"For A Kurd, Turkish Democracy Means Terrorism"

An Interview With Cemil Bayik, An ARGK (People's Liberation Army
Of Kurdistan) Commander - Spring/Summer 1996

By Sheri Laizer

Cemil Bayik was born in Elazig, north Kurdistan in 1955, the
eldest of four children. A brilliant student, he was sent on a
state scholarship to study at Teacher Training College in Malatya
and then continued on to university in Ankara. It was there that
he became acquainted with a Turkish classmate, Kemal Pir, who
later introduced him to Abdullah Ocalan. The three became friends
whose political choices would change each other's lives for ever.
Like Ocalan, Bayik was also the victim of an assassination
attempt - just days before the latest Turkish elections on
December 24, 1995.

On Being A Kurd

     To become a Kurd is to throw yourself into the fire -
economically, mentally, physically. Once it was considered
shameful to be Kurdish; it meant you were not a full human being.
For example, as a younger man and writer, Yasar Kemal saw there
was no life, no future as a Kurd (Kemal achieved success and fame
in exchange for forsaking his identity), but no sooner had he
denounced the dirty war going on in Turkey than he lost
everything - his fame and his name. Compare this with the
predicament of any ordinary Kurd and ask what Turkish democracy
means to him. It is terrorism that is being practiced against
him.

The Role Of Women

     We say that it is the women who have allowed us to carry on
our struggle so long. Without them fighting at our side it would
have been much harder. It is also the women who are both the
source of our Kurdish-ness and of our humanity. Man have lost
half of both. Sometimes I say this at meetings and the women
applaud. But it is a fact. Because of this, they are successful.
Because they are closer to people, their humanity is stronger;
deriving from the lives they lead, quick to feel both pain and
compassion, quick to respond. Their sensitivity is the source of
life.

The Turkish Government's Assassination Campaign

     As part of their pre-election campaign, that department of
the regime responsible for organizing the special war against
Kurdistan also directed special operations against the PKK's
leadership. They publicized this during the campaign itself:
there were to be attempts at our abduction as well as our
assassination, whether they brought us in dead or alive. Their
strategies were centered around this at the election rallies, but
they were unsuccessful. The Special War Team (Ozel Savas Ekibi)
included Prime Minister Tansu Ciller, Unal Erkan (The former
Emergency Region "Super" Governor), Mehmet Agar (former police
chief), Necdet Menzir and their close allies. I was in Arbil when
the assassination attempt against me was made, just one week
before the elections. A package containing enough plastic
explosive to topple a multi-storey building, attached to a timing
device which had been concealed near the wall of the building in
which I was staying. When the bomb was discovered, there was only
one hour left to blast-off. In the recent assassination attempt
against Abdullah Ocalan in May of this year, we were aware of the
possibility but not the timing. The Turkish regime had published
a target list last year in which they deliberately mixed up the
upper levels of the PKK's leadership with the lower as a trick to
confuse people. They would list someone who held no position
whatsoever as one of the top level leaders.

Another Cyprus

     The Turkish Government is very active in south Kurdistan.
The census figures for Turkomans are deliberately boosted by the
Turkish Red Crescent which operates there. They take them to be
brain washed for special training in death squads (infazlar) in
order to carry out disruptive activities back in the south. The
situation is very dangerous. A number of prominent personnel from
MIT are logged in the south in the offices of the Red Crescent,
as well as enjoying the protection of the two main parties. These
include the General Staff (whose most effective and active
officer in planning is under special protection in Salahaddin).
These people even play a role on some local committees. After the
war between ourselves and the KDP in 1995, some of these agents
from MIT were allowed to interrogate our prisoners. If the local
parties allow the region to be turned into another Cyprus they'll
realize what they've done.

Israel-Turkey Agreement

     This new agreement is clearly extensive and has implications
for the entire Middle East as well as upon the Kurdish movement.
It is an attempt to create a new bloc in the region. The
influence extends far beyond the region itself and will also be
reflected in Europe. It would seem that France and Germany, among
other nations oppose the Turkey-Israel-USA bloc. It could also
pose a considerable problem for relations between USA and Europe.
Within the terms of this agreement, the PKK is designated as
target. Israeli experts are currently educating the Turks and
taking part in their operations. Israel is supplying landmines,
rolled barbed wire and trip wires which illuminate the border.
Mines are attached to the wires which light up illuminating the
area where tripped. There is a large force in position on the
hills above Isikveren where this work has been carried out
already. Turkey's invasion of South Kurdistan in March 1995 was
conducted with the support of Israeli officers. They played a
role in both the planning and technical aspects.
Intelligence-sharing is directed against both Iran and Syria.
This literally cuts Turkey off from its neighbors. Although the
Refah Party expressed discomfort it made no attempt to oppose the
pact. Syria, Egypt and Iraq also expressed disapproval and
threatened Turkey. Jordan, as an ally of America, was however
supportive. This line-up opens a wider front for our struggle
politically. Turkey is becoming isolated in the region and
opposed by its neighbors because it has targeted Iran, Iraq, and
Syria. The Kurdish movement can gain a breathing space from this,
as the Arab countries now view the Kurdish Question as a major
card. This is one of the most important development we have
witnessed in the region in recent times and may prompt big
changes to the status quo. The PKK's importance also clearly
emerges. The PKK takes on grater significance, whether as friend
or foe. New political opportunities are opening up for us. For
the first time, a number of Arab countries have joined the same
side as the Kurds, in opposition. The PKK can extend its front
and carry on its struggle more comfortably. The two blocs depend
on the PKK's position as a significant force in both north and
south Kurdistan.

A Lamentable Situation In South Kurdistan

     After the Gulf War, America's influence was clearly exposed
because the other Kurdish parties were not prepared for, nor
planned to be, in power, they lost their opportunities. We have
tried to make those same possibilities useful for the Kurdish
people. This was the main reason for the war between us, in 1992,
and again in 1995. It is a little different now as the influence
of the KDP and PUK is waning. But to this day the new party in
the south is not allowed the freedom to move. Democracy is in
crisis. The old parties attempts to remain in power in the same
old form has held the region back and inhibits the development of
South Kurdistan. These parties encourage internal collapse and
are in fact allowing the region to decline.

The PKK And The Development Of The South

     The lack of a political solution and of development makes
for an uncertain future for South Kurdistan. Neither can economic
development occur without a democratic federation. The other
problems cannot be resolved without resolving the status of South
Kurdistan in relation to Iraq. Although the National Congress
cannot solve everything, it could still have been an opening. The
KDP and PUK obstructed it as it didn't serve their interests
because the people would then be bound to the congress and not to
them. It would bring about an end to the power of the militias.
The PUK says, "Yes we are in favor of the Congress!", but opposes
it in practice. The KDP says, "It's too early". They were presented
with all the necessary opportunities to run South Kurdistan in
1991; everything they needed to run a government was there after
Saddam left the region. After all this time we are still trying
to revive the South Kurdistan parliament and get them back on
their feet. Either there will be a democratic federation or it
will be end of the road.

My Own Position

     I didn't go to the mountains for this, for so many villages
to be burnt down and people murdered, that the wishes of this or
that government could be implemented at the expense of our people
and our children. Since the end of 1975, I've been active, whether
in the mountains or the cities. But it is worse now. We are here
to make sure that the events of 1975 in South Kurdistan are not
repeated, even if Saddam returns. The two local parties accused
us of having relations with Saddam which we didn't have. How dare
they criticize us when they were the ones who had such relations
with him. We didn't say anything. For example, Jalal Talabani
said, "Turkey is a democracy!" In 1993, when the Turks attacked
us with 50 jet fighters in Zele it was because a senior PUK
member had shown them exactly where we were. Their aim was to
wipe us out full-scale and leave no one alive.

Southern Kurds In The PKK

     There are more recruits now but the southern Kurds find the
discipline tough, or join because of the problem of hunger. Then
they take their guns away and sell them. It is the same with the
KDP and PUK. They join each other's parties, taking their weapons
to sell.

POW's And Political Impasse

     The Red Cross came a number of times to see the prisoners we
had captured. The prisoners are now all staying in one place and
have become part of the way of war life there, dressed in the
same clothes as everyone else and treated as guests rather than
as prisoners. They willingly joined us. They don't want to go
back to Turkey, especially without some international guarantees.
Some want to go to Europe. They would have left before now had
there been any international progress or someone to take
responsibility for them. Others want to stay and fight on our
side anyhow. They are mostly Turkish by origin. The Turkish
government has not responded to their families' requests despite
the mediation of the Red Cross. They ignore them. Some letters
have been exchanged with their families. We invited their
families to come and visit them but the Turkish government
wouldn't allow them. Even so, some families came and saw them.
Some of these mothers of soldiers and guerrillas are also uniting
to work together for peace, but the Turkish government behaves
aggressively as usual. The CHP (People's Republican Party) also
reacted negatively. There is a new endeavor for families to work
together for peace. After some meetings with German delegations,
we have considered a German proposal that Nelson Mandela mediate
between ourselves and government. We consider that this could be
positive.

Peace And The Cease-Fire

     At present the operations which the Turkish government is
carrying out in Kurdistan are intensely destructive, despite our
unilateral cease-fire. We want to carry on with the cease-fire
but it is very difficult. It cannot continue much longer. The
Turkish government says the PKK is finished and that we are
playing for time, whereas it is they who are doing it. The
international organizations know our position. The Kurdish people
and the outside world have responded positively to our initiative
and to the various international peace movements campaigning for
peace in Kurdistan. But these are still insufficient in response
to the massive use of force against us. Turkey has not changed at
all. Their operations continue daily. What clearly emerges is
that Turkey does not favor a political solution and relies solely
on a military solution. From our point of view, we have achieved
considerable success in proving we want peace. Conversely, the
militaristic face of Turkey has been exposed. Turkey advances
against us with the sole object of annihilation and we can but
defend ourselves against her. A massive devastation of the
natural environment is taking place. The army poisons the wells,
kills the crops, burns the forests - even the birds and animals are
slaughtered. How much longer are we to wait?