The Anger of Mothers will Strangle the Murderers!
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September 2018 / International Bulletin / Issue 190

Apart from conducting a systematic repression over the oppressed classes, peoples and identities in order to maintain the non-legitimate power of their own class, the bourgeois states hold the physical liquidation of those who threatens their tyranny order as an existential cause for themselves. For this sake, the bourgeois order does not restrain from mobilizing their both official and non-official forces against the leading ranks of the oppressed classes; isolate them in prisons, impose an exile through various ways of oppression or annihilate them by murders. Within this context, the enforced disappearances stands as one of the most cruel state policy through which fascism becomes nakedly concertized.
On August 25, the fascist dictatorship of Erdoğan brutally attacked the 700th vigil of the "Saturday Mothers", who have been gathering in İstanbul / Galatasaray Square for 23 years, sitting in silence with holding pictures of their relatives that went missing in police detention. Hundreds of people have been subjected to the police violence with water cannons, tear gas and plastic bullets, and 47 of them were detained including the families of the missing such as 82 year old mother Emine Ocak. On the following days, the Interior Minister, Süleyman Soylu, defended the police violence by swearing at the mothers and announced that the state will not allow the Saturday vigils anymore. Now, the fascist state takes the Galatasaray Square under a siege every Saturday, whereas the Saturday Mothers keep on gathering and escalating their true voice in front of the police barricades. The share of Turkey and North Kurdistan in this universal humanity crime of enforced disappearances has an exceptional place mostly with its period of the 90's. As the fight and resistance were growing in the 90's, specifically with the massive uprisings of Kurdish people in Northern Kurdistan under the leadership of the Kurdish Liberation Movement, but also with the revolutionary awakening in the west part of Turkey that was manifesting itself through workers' resistances and uprisings in the laborer quarters of the big cities, the fascist Turkish state was responding this "revolutionary situation" by conducting the most horrible methods of its dirty war; burning Kurdish villages, continuous detains, rape, torture, direct murders as well as the enforced disappearances. It was the period where many revolutionaries, Kurds and Alevi people were 'disappearing' after being abducted by the state forces; leaving their relatives with an unclear hope for the rest of their whole life.

The struggle of the Saturday mothers started in that dark period of the 90's, after Hasan Ocak, who was one of the founder cadres of MLKP, abducted by the police on the 21st of March, 1995, mostly because of his leading role in the Gazi uprising emerged after the counter-guerrilla's attack to Alevi people's place in Istanbul / Gazi quarter. The police denied his detention whereas Hasan Ocak's family and comrades immediately mobilized for creating a public attention with their campaign "You Took Him Alive, We Want Him Alive", in order to prevent him to be murdered. After various forms of actions including occupying the party buildings of the government, hunger strikes, rallies and press conferences in the squares, TV buildings, universities, work places etc.., Hasan Ocak's body was found in the cemetery of the nameless. It came out that he was murdered under torture.
As the state was caught on the very act, the struggle evolved to an extended stage with the Saturday sit-ins, asking for the names of the responsibles of this human crime. Every Saturday, the Galatasaray square became the voice of various cases of disappearances. Along with the weekly vigils, Hasan Ocak's comrades set on to extent the struggle. First they organized a "Convention of Mothers" in Istanbul that gathered many mothers of the forcibly disappeared people together. Then the process gained a universal extent by 1st International Conference against Enforced Disappearances that was held in Istanbul between 17-19 May, 1996. There, the conference announced the foundation of the International Committee Against Disappearances ( ICAD ) which became a platform that has allowed the struggle against disappearances in Turkey and Kurdistan to meet with others from all around the world, such as Colombia, Sri Lanka, Argentina, Philipines..

The 'silent' scream of the Saturday Mothers, which was revealing an essential crime of fascism, has been tried to be cut many times so far. Beginning from 170th vigil, the police started to attack the weekly sit-ins. The police violence took for 7 months against the relatives of the forcibly disappeared people together with the human rights defenders; they got threatened, beaten, detained, tortured, arrested.. On the 13th of May, 1999, the Saturday Mothers announced that they gave a break to the weekly vigils but the actions and rallies during the "International Week of Struggle Against Disappearances" continued. After a 10 year break, the Saturday vigils re-started on the 31st of January, 2009, and by now it has reached to the 702. week, continue to ask for the account of the state crimes on behalf of the enforced disappearances.

Today, those who want to oppress the true voice of the Saturday Mothers once again, are the same ones who undertake this dark heritage of 90's. By owing its non-legitimate power to the fascist oppression, the dictatorship of Erdoğan conducts a much more extended liquidation policy over the Kurds, Alevis and the revolutionary ranks of the society. This is the reason why any voice of justice becomes an existential threat for his tyranny order, just as how the justice call of Saturday Mothers does. With their 23 year old determination and will which continues today against the police barricades, the struggle of Saturday Mothers stands as a basis trench for the oppressed peoples to defeat the fascist dictatorship of Erdoğan in his total war against the truth itself. That is: "The Anger of Mothers will Strangle the Murderers!"

 

 

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The Anger of Mothers will Strangle the Murderers!
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September 2018 / International Bulletin / Issue 190

Apart from conducting a systematic repression over the oppressed classes, peoples and identities in order to maintain the non-legitimate power of their own class, the bourgeois states hold the physical liquidation of those who threatens their tyranny order as an existential cause for themselves. For this sake, the bourgeois order does not restrain from mobilizing their both official and non-official forces against the leading ranks of the oppressed classes; isolate them in prisons, impose an exile through various ways of oppression or annihilate them by murders. Within this context, the enforced disappearances stands as one of the most cruel state policy through which fascism becomes nakedly concertized.
On August 25, the fascist dictatorship of Erdoğan brutally attacked the 700th vigil of the "Saturday Mothers", who have been gathering in İstanbul / Galatasaray Square for 23 years, sitting in silence with holding pictures of their relatives that went missing in police detention. Hundreds of people have been subjected to the police violence with water cannons, tear gas and plastic bullets, and 47 of them were detained including the families of the missing such as 82 year old mother Emine Ocak. On the following days, the Interior Minister, Süleyman Soylu, defended the police violence by swearing at the mothers and announced that the state will not allow the Saturday vigils anymore. Now, the fascist state takes the Galatasaray Square under a siege every Saturday, whereas the Saturday Mothers keep on gathering and escalating their true voice in front of the police barricades. The share of Turkey and North Kurdistan in this universal humanity crime of enforced disappearances has an exceptional place mostly with its period of the 90's. As the fight and resistance were growing in the 90's, specifically with the massive uprisings of Kurdish people in Northern Kurdistan under the leadership of the Kurdish Liberation Movement, but also with the revolutionary awakening in the west part of Turkey that was manifesting itself through workers' resistances and uprisings in the laborer quarters of the big cities, the fascist Turkish state was responding this "revolutionary situation" by conducting the most horrible methods of its dirty war; burning Kurdish villages, continuous detains, rape, torture, direct murders as well as the enforced disappearances. It was the period where many revolutionaries, Kurds and Alevi people were 'disappearing' after being abducted by the state forces; leaving their relatives with an unclear hope for the rest of their whole life.

The struggle of the Saturday mothers started in that dark period of the 90's, after Hasan Ocak, who was one of the founder cadres of MLKP, abducted by the police on the 21st of March, 1995, mostly because of his leading role in the Gazi uprising emerged after the counter-guerrilla's attack to Alevi people's place in Istanbul / Gazi quarter. The police denied his detention whereas Hasan Ocak's family and comrades immediately mobilized for creating a public attention with their campaign "You Took Him Alive, We Want Him Alive", in order to prevent him to be murdered. After various forms of actions including occupying the party buildings of the government, hunger strikes, rallies and press conferences in the squares, TV buildings, universities, work places etc.., Hasan Ocak's body was found in the cemetery of the nameless. It came out that he was murdered under torture.
As the state was caught on the very act, the struggle evolved to an extended stage with the Saturday sit-ins, asking for the names of the responsibles of this human crime. Every Saturday, the Galatasaray square became the voice of various cases of disappearances. Along with the weekly vigils, Hasan Ocak's comrades set on to extent the struggle. First they organized a "Convention of Mothers" in Istanbul that gathered many mothers of the forcibly disappeared people together. Then the process gained a universal extent by 1st International Conference against Enforced Disappearances that was held in Istanbul between 17-19 May, 1996. There, the conference announced the foundation of the International Committee Against Disappearances ( ICAD ) which became a platform that has allowed the struggle against disappearances in Turkey and Kurdistan to meet with others from all around the world, such as Colombia, Sri Lanka, Argentina, Philipines..

The 'silent' scream of the Saturday Mothers, which was revealing an essential crime of fascism, has been tried to be cut many times so far. Beginning from 170th vigil, the police started to attack the weekly sit-ins. The police violence took for 7 months against the relatives of the forcibly disappeared people together with the human rights defenders; they got threatened, beaten, detained, tortured, arrested.. On the 13th of May, 1999, the Saturday Mothers announced that they gave a break to the weekly vigils but the actions and rallies during the "International Week of Struggle Against Disappearances" continued. After a 10 year break, the Saturday vigils re-started on the 31st of January, 2009, and by now it has reached to the 702. week, continue to ask for the account of the state crimes on behalf of the enforced disappearances.

Today, those who want to oppress the true voice of the Saturday Mothers once again, are the same ones who undertake this dark heritage of 90's. By owing its non-legitimate power to the fascist oppression, the dictatorship of Erdoğan conducts a much more extended liquidation policy over the Kurds, Alevis and the revolutionary ranks of the society. This is the reason why any voice of justice becomes an existential threat for his tyranny order, just as how the justice call of Saturday Mothers does. With their 23 year old determination and will which continues today against the police barricades, the struggle of Saturday Mothers stands as a basis trench for the oppressed peoples to defeat the fascist dictatorship of Erdoğan in his total war against the truth itself. That is: "The Anger of Mothers will Strangle the Murderers!"