Traduction de notre motion d'orientation (mai 2021) sur le #Kurdistan : L’UCL et le soutien à la gauche kurde
Translation of our policy motion (May 2021) on Kurdistan : Regarding the UCL's support for the Kurdish left

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#BijiRojava
#Status4NorthAndEastSyria

Regarding the UCL's support for the Kurdish left

The Kurdish left and the revolutionary process of democratic confederalism in the Middle East: recent history and political framewok of the Union Communiste Libertaire's support.

By 'Kurdish revolutionary left', we refer to all the political, combatant, trade union and associative structures grouped together within the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), based in Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria, with the PKK (in Turkey) and the PYD (in Syria) being the two best known parties.
Since July 2012, in the context of the Syrian revolution and civil war, a revolutionary process led by the Kurdish left has been underway in western Kurdistan. It has spread to the entire region of northern and eastern Syria (commonly known as Rojava) and is being met with growing interest in Iraq and Iran.

An unprecedented analysis, a historic experience

This process is underpinned by an original revolutionary project, driven by the PKK, called "democratic confederalism". This project is a synthesis of not only several revolutionary movements (including marxism and anarchism), but also an analysis that specifically applies to the Middle East, and the history of Kurdish anti-colonial and autonomist struggles. It aims at putting the peaceful coexistence of peoples, achieved through direct democracy, at the center of the revolutionary process, and demands the political autonomy of these peoples from all state institutions. At the same time, it brings feminism and Murray Bookchin's social ecology to the fore, questioning the role of the state as a tool for domination and challenging the legitimacy of its very existence.

By directly implementing the principles of democratic confederalism in Rojava, despite an ongoing war, first against the Islamic State (EI), then against the Turkish state and its Islamist mercenaries, kurdish organizations are proving in practice that an alternative based on self-organization is possible. Today, the Kurdish revolutionary left is one of the few political forces in the Middle East that propose a societal project that is built around self-organization, environmental awareness, anti-patriarchal struggle and, in some way, secularism.

Not only does it defend this vision of society, it also has the means to effectively carry out its policies: it enjoys solid support from the Kurdish population, but is also increasingly supported by other communities, notably in Turkey and Syria, and to some extent by Turkish and international far-left organizations. The Kurdish revolutionary left has built political organizations that are both efficacious and capable of ensuring their own defense in the face of aggression. Lastly, the revolutionary experience in Rojava has an internationalist dimension: from 2012 onwards, and even more so with the second battle of Kobanê in 2014, Kurdish organizations called to come and help build and defend the revolutionary dynamic threatened by jihadist attacks, then by the Turkish army and its auxiliaries. Numerous organizations around the world have lent their direct or indirect support to the ongoing process.

The defense of the revolution is constantly being put to the test. Confronted, since 2011, with a civil war (one that's known for its international dimension) on Syrian territory, Kurdish organizations are caught up in issues that go beyond the sole question of their autonomy. Having been not only an essential bulwark against the Islamic State but also the gravediggers of the caliphate, they have benefited from the self-serving support of Russian, French and American imperialism competing in the region. This is but one of these short-term paradoxes that may arise under certain historical circumstances.

This struggle, which has cost thousands of lives, has brought together the Kurdish YPG-YPJ militias and Arab brigades within the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). But Moscow and Washington's support was only circumstantial, and ended shortly after the SDF defeated Daesh. The Turkish army and its Islamist auxiliaries attacked the Afrîn canton in January 2018 with Moscow's backing, then part of Cîzîrê in October 2019 with Washington's backing. The democratic confederalism established in northeastern Syria has, however, withstood this ordeal, making proof of its resilience and viability as a political system.

A strong yet watchful support

Faithful to its anti-colonial and internationalist positions, the UCL reaffirms that the revolutionary process led by the Kurdish left calls for strong support from libertarian communists. Said support must be strong, as while being caught between multiple enemies, the revolutionary process in Rojava truly is a source of hope for its internationalism, its multicultural, autonomist will and opposition to state structure, its popular nature, and its concrete achievements, particularly in the fields of anti-patriarchal, democratic and environmentalist action, despite permanent war.

However, our support must remain critical. We must provide understanding yet honest criticism,
and remain clear-sighted regarding the two dangers that threaten the self-organized alternative in Kurdistan:
- an imperialist danger: the multiple maneuvers of the Syrian civil war since 2012, coupled with
interventions by regional and international powers threaten the political independence of the Kurdish left. The self-serving neutrality of Damascus since 2012, then, in autumn 2019, the redeployment of pro-Bachar forces and the Russian army of occupation as a shield against the Turkish threat, can lead to compromise with the puppet regime in Damascus, i.e. to corruption, and to the denaturing, or even outright disappearance of the revolutionary process.
- a democratic danger: officially, the Kurdish left, under the impetus of Öcalan's theories, has broken with the concept of nation-state and with the authoritarian tradition of Marxism-Leninism.
But even if democratic confederalism enjoys the support of a large part of the civilian population, the question of the military leadership's pre-eminence over the civilian movement, and that of the party over popular power, remains unanswered. This question, particularly in the context of war, needs to be closely monitored.

While taking all these factors into account, just like the organizations that preceded its creation, the Union Communiste Libertaire must defend the revolution in Kurdistan by every means at its disposal:

- We publicly lend our critical support to the Kurdish revolutionary left;
- We act to support, study and publicize the political revolution in Rojava/Syria's northeastern self-administration;
- We demand the removal of the PKK and other armed political branches of the revolution from the list of terrorist organizations;
- We demand truth and the end of state secrecy regarding the assassination in Paris, on January 9, 2013, of Fidan Doğan, Sakîne Cansiz and Leyla Saylemez ;
- We demand the release of Abdullah Öcalan and all prisoners of the Kurdish left and its supporters.
Imperialist intervention and capitalist domination can only be halted through coordinated internationalist action by the oppressed classes. As anarchists, we must do everything in our power to strengthen the international revolutionary anti-capitalist, anti-patriarchal, anti-state and anti- imperialist movement.

To this end, in addition to its ongoing global action, the Union Communiste Libertaire is working
within the Coordination nationale solidarité Kurdistan ('National coordination for Kurdistan
solidarity'), and with the international Anarkismo network as a whole. In this regard as well, the
organization will continue the work it has already done and keep strengthening its bonds, notably
with the representative body of the Kurdish left in France, the Conseil démocratique Kurde en
France (CDKF).

Union Communiste Libertaire, May 2021