From: "Magnus Bernhardsen" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Sun, 22 Jul 2001 15:30:31 +0200 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [Peoples War] Fwd: PKK Guerrilla Conference Held In South Kurdistan HPG: We Are The Force To Protect The Line The People's Defense Forces (HPG) [the guerrilla forces of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), formerly known as the People's Liberation Army of Kurdistan (ARGK) - ATS] held its first conference in mountains of South [Iraqi] Kurdistan. The 15-year guerrilla war was assessed at the conference, while a number of decisions were also made from the perspective of the guerrilla process. A statement from the conference said: "The HPG is the force to protect the gains made by the past struggle, the National Leadership, and national values, and the line of peace and democracy." The first conference of the People's Defense Forces was held in the mountains of South Kurdistan with the participation of 194 top-level commander delegates and over 50 commanders and guerrillas as observers. Great debates were carried out at the conference, which was held between June 28 and July 12. The opening speech at the conference was made by PKK Council of Leaders member Murat Karayilan, after which the conference moved on to its heavy agenda of evaluating the role of the HPG in the line of legitimate defense following the change in strategy experienced in the Kurdistan National Democratic Struggle, tactical approaches in the new process, organization in the new period, what will be the style of action, and similar topics. In his speech, Karayilan said: "Our guerrilla army will fulfill the role that befalls it in the development of the democratic struggle and a political solution. In this connection, the duty to protect the line of democratic political struggle adopted at the PKK's Extraordinary 7th Congress belongs foremost to our army." Force For Peace And Democracy All the developments of the 15-year armed struggle, along with its deficiencies and inadequacies, were appraised at the conference. The debates on the intense agenda of the conference platform coalesced around the line determined at the PKK's 7th Congress, the line of the new period. In accordance, the HPG forces will be positioned as "the force of protection of National Leadership, national values, gains of the past struggle, and the line of peace and democracy." Among other important decisions made at the conference was to expand and develop the HPG in accordance with modern, professional military criteria. One of the most striking and important decisions reached at the conference, however, was that concerning PKK President Abdullah Ocalan. The decision in question stressed that "every HPG member will be ready for an utmost struggle with a self-sacrificial spirit in the case of any physical action whatsoever aimed against our Leadership." "Our Army Is The Antidote To Denial" Taking the podium again at the conference, PKK Council of Leaders member Murat Karayilan completed his talk with the words: "Our army is the antidote to denial." Afterwards, all the delegates attending the conference went to pay respects at the cemetery in which Mahmet Karasungur, a former member of the PKK leadership cadres, is buried. The delegates dispersed after writing in the visitors' book located at the cemetery and holding a moment of silence in respect. Among what was written in the visitors' book was the following: "We have today realized the 1st HPG conference upon your labor which was given with heroic resistance, struggle, and blood. We, as conference delegates, give our word in your presence that we will remain loyal to the decisions of the conference and carry them out until the end." (Source: The Kurdish Observer - July 20, 2001) ----------------------------------------------------------------- Arm The Spirit is an autonomist/anti-imperialist information collective based in Toronto, Canada. Our focus includes a wide variety of material, including political prisoners, national liberation struggles, armed communist resistance, anti-fascism, the fight against patriarchy, and more. We regularly publish our writings, research, and translation materials on our listserv called ATS-L. For more information, contact: Arm The Spirit P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P7 Canada E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] WWW: http://burn.ucsd.edu/~ats/ ATS-L Archives: http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/ats-l ----------------------------------------------------------------- _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
