MUHAMMED KAYA
Dr. #Kerem Schamberger# said that the arrest of Kurdish politicians in Germany a sabotage of the peace process.
Abdullah Öcalan’s “Call for Peace and a Democratic Society,” issued on 27 February, was followed by a series of major developments. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) convened its 12th Congress between 5 and 7 May, during which it officially declared its dissolution. A new phase began with a symbolic disarmament ceremony held on 11 July.

In parallel, the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs voiced its support for Abdullah Öcalan’s call. During its meetings with the delegation of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), the ministry communicated through the press that it would be willing to serve as a mediator in the process underway in Turkey, should a request be made.

Despite these statements, Kurdish civil society organizations in Germany continue to face pressure under the long-standing ban on PKK activities in place since 1993. Police raids are regularly carried out, and prominent Kurdish figures such as Yüksel Koç have been arrested.

Political scientist Dr. Kerem Schamberger, author of Vom System zum Netzwerk: Medien, Politik und Journalismus in Kurdistan (“From System to Network: Media, Politics, and Journalism in Kurdistan”), spoke to ANF about Germany’s position and its implications.

How do you interpret the criminalization policy in Germany under the ban on the activities of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), in effect since 1993, and the insistence on maintaining it?

Kurdish people have been present in Germany for decades. In fact, there has been a Kurdish presence here since the 1950s. What began with a few students later became characterized by labor migration, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. People were brought in as cheap labor. After the devastation of German fascism and the Second World War, many German men had died, so labor was recruited from Italy, Greece, Yugoslavia, and also from Turkey.

But this was not simply a wave of economic migration from Turkey. It was also deeply political. The Turkish state had deliberately left Kurdish regions, Northern Kurdistan (Bakur), underdeveloped. No industry was established there; the region was reduced to a source of raw materials and cheap labor. As a result, many Kurds felt compelled to leave for Europe, especially Germany, in search of work.

Following the fascist military coup in Turkey in 1980, this labor migration was also accompanied by political exile. Many fled the repression of the military junta. These processes became intertwined. Throughout this period, the German state largely mirrored the Turkish state’s policy of homogenization, almost entirely ignoring the fact that many of the people arriving from Turkey were Kurdish.



People only began to identify themselves ethnically or define themselves as Kurdish in recent years. Until then, Kurds were neither recognized nor accepted in their identity. With the growth of the Kurdish Freedom Movement in the 1980s and the increasing presence of Kurdish protests on the streets of Germany, Kurds came to be seen primarily as a “security threat.” They were quickly branded as “terrorists” and marked as a problem.

Let me remind you of the Düsseldorf trials between 1988 and 1993–94. At that time, media narratives aggressively portrayed Kurdish women as a security threat. Kurds were never viewed as an asset or a contribution to German society during the 1980s. They were either ignored or framed as a problem.

That was the past. Today, the situation has changed to some degree. Kurds are now present in all areas of society, in the workforce, and also in political life. Thanks to the activities of the Kurdish Freedom Movement and the many associations and institutions around it, Kurds have achieved a certain level of recognition in Germany. They live here, and they contribute to society.

But that does not mean the German state has stopped repressing Kurds. I do believe, however, that their presence can no longer be denied. Especially since the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS), public perception has shifted once again, and people have seen that Kurds play a positive role in the Middle East and thus also deserve recognition in Germany. I believe this should not be overlooked.

The legal basis for the political repression of Kurds in Germany over the last 32 years is the ban imposed in November 1993 on the activities of the PKK and related organizations. That is the formal legal justification. But there is, of course, also a political dimension behind it. Many factors are at play.

On one hand, there are internal political reasons: Kurds, especially those affiliated with the Kurdish Freedom Movement, are highly active, exercising their rights, organizing demonstrations, blocking highways. For a German state deeply rooted in racism, there is nothing more threatening than a defiant migrant population proclaiming, “We are here, and we will exercise our rights.” This is the internal political aspect.

There is also another layer: the ideological dimension. The Kurdish population and the Kurdish Freedom Movement have always defined themselves as socialist. Germany has a deeply entrenched anti-communist tradition that dates back to the era of the German Empire, intensified under Nazi rule, and was seamlessly carried over into the Federal Republic of Germany. When the movement first emerged in 1978, it used the hammer and sickle symbol and was quickly labeled a “security threat.” Although the symbols have since changed and the ideology has evolved, the desire to suppress and fight a leftist movement remains.

But perhaps the most decisive factor is the nature of the historical relationship between the German and Turkish states. These ties go back 120–140 years. In this relationship, Kurds, always seen as the “rebellious element” in Turkey, were thrown under the bus. With the 1993 PKK ban, the Turkish state’s definition of “terrorism” was essentially adopted wholesale by Germany. This is how Kurds and the Kurdish Freedom Movement were placed on Germany’s “Kurdish terror” list.

In my opinion, we also need to examine the dynamics between European states. The Kurdish Freedom Movement analyzes this as well. Germany has always played the role of Turkey’s “big brother” in Europe. It has defended Turkey’s actions against Kurds and other groups that do not conform to Turkey’s concept of nationhood. Germany has supplied weapons to Turkey. Their economic and diplomatic relations are very close. All of this contributes to the ongoing repression of Kurds in Germany and that repression continues to this day.

The Kurdish Freedom Movement has evolved into a fundamentally different paradigm since its founding. How do you evaluate Germany’s approach to this transformation?

We are now at a completely different stage. We are in the midst of the Kurdish Freedom Movement’s process of transformation. We will discuss Turkey in a moment but let me first say that this struggle is still being waged by the German state in line with Turkey’s interests.

That is why I believe we are fortunate to be living through a historic period in which the Kurdish Freedom Movement, one of the largest social movements in the Middle East, is undergoing a profound transformation. We have the opportunity not only to observe but to participate in this process.

At a time when the armed wing, or one of the armed wings, of the Kurdish Freedom Movement declares, “We want to shift our mode of struggle away from weapons and violence and toward politics and democratic debate,” it is striking that more Kurdish activists and comrades are behind bars in Germany than in a long time. Even at this very moment, when the PKK has announced its dissolution, we are seeing arrests such as that of Yüksel Koç on 20 May, and the PKK continues to remain banned. This is becoming increasingly difficult to justify.

Yüksel Koç was arrested on 20 May under Article 129b on so-called “terrorism” charges. He is not accused of any individual crime, only of alleged membership in the PKK. Yüksel Koç is one of the most well-known and respected Kurdish representatives in Germany. He has traveled extensively across Europe, served for years as the chair of the main Kurdish umbrella organization in Germany, and is widely recognized across the continent.

By arresting him, the German state is essentially sabotaging the peace process. Rather than supporting this process, as declared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the announcement of the PKK’s dissolution, it seems to be continuing, in practice, the arrest of Kurdish activists.

A further example of this repression is the case of Mehmet Çakas, who was extradited from Italy to Germany, imprisoned here, and sentenced to over two years. Now, instead of being returned to Italy where he lives, he is facing deportation to Turkey, where he would be at risk of torture, imprisonment, or possibly even death. This is a painful indication of the harshness with which the German bureaucracy continues to carry out this policy.

As you noted, the Kurdish Freedom Movement is undergoing a transformation, yet the German bureaucracy continues to operate according to old frameworks. What can be done to bring about a similar transformation within Germany?

Even in the midst of this transformation, the level of repression remains high. You asked what can be done in the public sphere. I believe there are several steps that can be taken.

First and foremost, there needs to be a broad and open public discussion about the repression of Kurdish politicians and activists. The majority of German society is not even aware that what we are witnessing here is what we call a major democratic deficit in Germany, namely, that Kurds are being systematically denied their most basic rights. Yet freedom of thought is a fundamental right, as are the rights to assembly and organization. These rights must be recognized, and a public conversation about them must begin.

Right now, the Kurdish Freedom Movement is receiving a great deal of media attention due to its transformation. But this coverage is almost entirely focused on events in Turkey and Kurdistan. The fact that repression is also taking place here in Germany is not being addressed. This must be brought into the public conversation and made visible.

Secondly, I believe there must be a renewed public debate about the absurdity of the ban on the PKK. There is already an initiative moving in this direction. Especially in this moment of transformation and reorganization, the PKK ban, which remains the legal basis of ongoing repression, must be lifted. The ban must be abolished, and the repression must end.

Third and finally, I believe we need to seriously discuss the reality that a large number of people from Turkey live in Germany. I am one of them. At the same time, there are hundreds of thousands, possibly close to a million, Kurds living in Germany. Therefore, supporting the peace process is also in Germany’s own interest.

So why do we not propose German soil as a place of negotiation, a place to meet? Why do we not engage with the peace initiative launched by Abdullah Öcalan, an initiative that has even found support among some figures in the Turkish state, such as Devlet Bahçeli? Why do we not join this initiative and declare our support for the peace process with everything at our disposal? Why, instead, do we continue to arrest Kurdish representatives in Germany and, by throwing them in prison, undermine the peace process?[1]