Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) MP Sinan Çiftyürek spoke to ANF about the 10 March agreement between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Interim Damascus Government, its applicability, and Turkey’s attempts to leave the Kurds without status and disarm them through the interim government. Çiftyürek said that “the Turkish state’s politics of pressure will not produce a solution. In this process, protecting the democratic rights of the Kurdish people and their achievements is essential for us.”
Çiftyürek noted that the previous agreement between the SDF and the Interim Damascus Government was being concretized by a commission formed by the parties, and he evaluated the Turkish state’s systematic policy of pressure against the Kurds in Syria as follows: “A short time ago, the Turkish Foreign Minister said that each of these articles could later turn into a ‘minefield’ and emphasized the need for caution. For this reason, while commissions in Damascus were continuing their meetings, Turkish officials, the Foreign Minister, the Minister of Defense and intelligence directors, frequently traveled to Damascus. In this way, they exert pressure through the Damascus government during the process of implementing these articles, trying to dictate their demands and objectives. There are efforts to shape these articles through the ceasefire process. This is not a correct approach.”
Blocking Kurdish status will be futile
Çiftyürek drew attention to how Turkish state officials designed their policies in Rojava and Syria around eliminating the Kurds’ achievements and activated different mechanisms of pressure. He said: “They pour threats and impositions on the SDF, issuing orders such as ‘Lay down your arms.’ They tell the SDF, ‘You are not complying with the agreements, you are changing the March agreement. Lay down your arms immediately, join the government, and surrender.’ These statements are neither correct nor meaningful. The reason Turkey has become so aggressive is that it sees that its demands on the ground will not be realized. The unitary regime in Syria has already collapsed in practice. That system cannot be rebuilt.”
Çiftyürek also said, “The only way for peoples and faiths to live together in Syria is through a federal system. This is demanded not only by the Kurds, but also by Alawites, Druze, Christians, and even a part of the Sunnis. Turkey’s anger stems from seeing this reality. It has done everything to prevent the Kurds from gaining status and continues to do so. Yet it sees that this status is now inevitable. Now it is putting pressure to prevent the SDF from becoming a constitutional force.”
Disarming the Kurds in Rojava is equal to death
Çiftyürek added that Turkey is not alone on this issue, as regional states also act together in an effort to eliminate Kurdish achievements, and said: “Look, Iraq has a similar approach. Indeed, Iraqi Prime Minister Sudani recently said, ‘Do not make the same mistake we made.’ According to him, the mistake was recognizing the Peshmerga forces as a constitutional force. Therefore, they also do not want the SDF to become part of the Syrian army. The aim is to disarm the Kurds.”
He said, “In our view, disarming the Kurds and leaving them without status is equal to death for them. We know what ISIS did in Rojava, in Shengal, and in other places. We know how Kurdish women resisted this brutality. We also know the rage that ISIS felt toward Kurdish women fighters. The mentality that said, ‘If we die at the hands of a woman, we cannot enter paradise,’ is best understood by the people of Rojava, who know what such a mindset would do to unarmed Kurdish people and women.”
Pressures on Rojava have no ground in reality
Çiftyürek underlined that the Turkish government’s pressures and threats against Rojava will find no ground on the field and made the following call to Ankara: “Listen to, recognize, and understand the Kurdish people. They have survived through 170 years of struggle with death. Do not threaten them with death. If you want to be influential in the region, the way forward is no longer weapons, nor the Turkish-Islamic synthesis. The way is to recognize all peoples, first and foremost the Kurds, to develop democracy, and to embrace democracy.
Negotiations in Syria were on the agenda. They took place in Amman, Jordan. But in our view, Paris is the suitable place. The discussions have reached a certain stage. However, the essence here is solving the problem and recognizing the rights and justice of the Kurds. Turkey must now give up this pressure and adopt an attitude that ensures Kurds will attain their rights.
One noteworthy point is the recent statement by Ahmed Al-Sharaa (Al-Jolani). In a meeting with opinion leaders in Idlib, he said they were not considering a military solution against the SDF and believed the issue could be resolved peacefully by the end of the year. He also referred to a previous agreement, stating that the SDF, the United States, and Turkey were part of it.”
Çiftyürek also said, “Thus, the solution has been postponed for a few months, three to four months later. This is a normal and reasonable situation, and until then the discussions will continue. Yet it should be noted that the commission’s work in Turkey will also proceed within this framework during that time.
However, if this is being done merely to gain time, to ‘gather an army and grow stronger,’ we hope they will not pursue such a misguided policy. We especially hope they will not attempt to repeat in Rojava the scenario that was tested in Sweida (Suwayda). The conflict scenario staged there between Bedouin tribes and Druze could tomorrow be incited in a similar way against the Kurds and the SDF; followed by the excuse of ‘conflict has erupted, so we intervened.’ Such a move would turn Syria into a bloodbath and harm all the peoples of the region.”
The only way for Turkey to have a say in Syria is to recognize Kurdish rights
Çiftyürek emphasized that Turkey’s ability to have influence in Syria depends on acknowledging and recognizing Kurdish rights and said: “Recognize the achievements of Rojava. If we are brothers, this must be shown in practice. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, you defend the right of 300,000 Turks in Cyprus to establish an independent state. Then you must at least recognize the status of 50 million Kurds, if not their independence.
The recognition of Rojava’s status and reconciliation with it is in the interest of both Turkey and the Turkish and Kurdish peoples. Therefore, attempting to impose pressure through Syria, through the PYD and the SDF, will not bring a solution. A policy of attacking Rojava will never yield results. Because everyone knows that the people of Rojava, the Kurdish people, with the resistance of Kobanê, fought not only for their own freedom but for democracy and freedom across the entire region against the darkness of ISIS. If Kobanê had not resisted, ISIS would have turned not only that region but also Europe into a bloodbath.
For this reason, the peoples of Europe and the world must not allow the people of Rojava to once again be placed under siege and attack. The Kurdish people are already resisting with their own strength; with their elders, their youth, their women, they are defending their democratic positions. Until now, they have not attacked anyone, they have not fired a single bullet at anyone.”
Çiftyürek underlined that the pressures on Rojava are intertwined with domestic politics and drew attention to the statement of Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Deputy Chair Fethi Yıldız, who said that “the article of the Constitution that states ‘everyone is a Turk’ will never change,” calling it a problem in itself: “If the language of education is to remain only Turkish, if no other language is allowed in education, if Article 67 of the Constitution remains the same, then what meaning do these constitutional debates have? This will not solve any issue. The consequences of the Kurdish question are being dealt with, but unless the problem is resolved at its root, pressures and political operations will continue.”
Sinan Çiftyürek emphasized that the Kurdish people have won two major gains through great sacrifices and concluded his assessment with the following: “The Federal Kurdistan Regional Government and the Autonomous Rojava Administration are the product of historical struggle. Today, the primary duty of the Kurdish people is to protect these achievements. If the state mentality is directed against Rojava, then the minds and hearts of the Kurds must also be with Rojava.
We are calling on the peoples of the region, international public opinion, and the diaspora to protect the democratic status of Rojava. The dialogue between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Rojava administration must deepen. If these two structures join hands internationally, the support for the Kurdish people’s achievements will multiply. Otherwise, if one weakens, the other will not remain standing. For this reason, acting together is of vital importance.”
Source: ANF News
