By Wladimir van Wilgenburg
Loghman Ahmedi is the representative of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan in the United Kingdom. He spoke with Rudaw about KDP-I’s relations with other Kurdish parties and the future of the Iranian Kurds.
Can you introduce yourself?
I was born in the city of Diwandere in Iranian Kurdistan in 1983. My family and I had to flee to Sweden in 1987. I became active in the Democratic Youth Union of Iranian Kurdistan and the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan at the age of eighteen. Currently, I have a consultative position in our party leadership and work as the party’s representative to the United Kingdom.
Why do you use Twitter? Does it help?
I think that the rise of information technology, especially in the form of the social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook and Youtube, offer great recourses for everyone that needs to disseminate information. For a Kurdish opposition party like ours that is struggling against a regime like the Islamic Republic of Iran, information technology is indispensable. Twitter, Facebook and Youtube have helped us raising awareness and disseminating information in a way that was not possible before.
How do you get your information about what is happening in Iranian Kurdistan, via phone calls or do you have contacts with people inside of Iranian Kurdistan?
Our party has a very large network of members and supporters that work in underground cells that provide us with information on an hourly basis. We receive information from Iranian Kurdistan through different means. For the safety of our members in Iranian Kurdistan, I cannot elaborate on those means.
Does the PDKI also follow the internal developments in Iraqi Kurdistan with the creation of the new Kurdish opposition party Change (Gorran). Do you have any contacts with them, since they won many votes in region where the PDKI camps are located?
Our party follows the internal developments in all parts of Kurdistan. Regarding Gorran, up until now we have not had any official meeting with them and, to my knowledge, they have stated that they are not working as a political party but as block in the Iraqi Kurdistan parliament.
Last month Iran claimed it killed fighters of several Kurdish parties (PDKI, Komala and PJAK). What is the real background behind this? Are these parties cooperating?
I can only talk about what happened to our party’s Peshmergas. Four of our Peshmergas, by the names of Yousef Feghehi, Hussein Mohammedi, Azad Barabi and Seifola Dniabi, were on a political mission in the district of Feyzolabegi outside the city of Saghez when they clashed with a very large group from the Revolutionary Guards in the valley between the villages of Tomarqamish and Koltepe on the 20th of August. The Peshmergas managed to respond to the fire by the regime’s forces, killing and injuring an unknown number of them, and flee from the area.
The following morning, on Friday the 21st of August, the regime gathered forces from all of the sounding areas and attacked the Peshmergas in the villages of Papshkhan and Qere. Unfortunately, after several hours of fighting, all four of our Peshmergas died in the battle. It is important for us to underline that our Peshmergas were not on a military mission but rather on a political one.
Regarding your question about cooperation between the Kurdish parties, we have regular meetings with Komala and other Kurdish parties from Iranian Kurdistan, but we do not have any relationship with PJAK.
Why did a split occur within the PDKI? Aren’t the Iranian Kurdish parties divided enough? Can you explain the split more for our readers that do not have any knowledge about it?
It is now almost three years ago that a small minority broke away from our party. Many individuals in this group have previously at three different times split from our party. The first time was at our fourth Congress after the revolution in Iran. That time they joined the communist Tudeh party of Iran. The second time they split from our party was following our eight Congress, after which they allied themselves with the Peoples Mujahidin of Iran. And since they did not get a majority in the party leadership at our thirteenth Congress, they chose to split from our party again, and this time they supported Mehdi Karroubi in the Iranian presidential elections. There are many different reasons for why they split from our party, but the main reason is that they are only interested in having control of PDKI. If they cannot achieve this, they split from our party, but without changing their name.
We think that it is very unfortunate when any Kurdish political party is divided and we hope that stronger cohesion within the parties will be brought about, but we cannot compromise our political and internal principles to satisfy a small minority.
Why do Iranian Kurdish groups claim that Iran is poisoning the Kurdish population with drugs? Isn’t this because of the proximity of Afghanistan and Pakistan’s drug routes?
The large amount of drugs that is spread in Iranian Kurdistan cannot be compared to other parts of Iran and we have a lot of evidence that Iranian officials are spreading drugs deliberately. Several witnesses have testified about being forced by Iran’s Intelligence Service and the Revolutionary Guard to sell drugs. For example, witnesses testified on a Kurdish TV program called “God Doesn’t Exist Here” about how agents of Iran’s intelligence services forced them to sell and consume drugs and commit acts of espionage and sabotage against our party.
A couple of weeks ago there were several attacks on Iranian officials in Kurdistan. Are there any indications about who is behind these attacks? Is there a new Sunni Kurdish rival to the secular nationalist Kurdish parties?
If you are referring to the assassinations that took place in the city of Sine, the circumstances surrounding these assassinations remain a mystery. The same goes for the identity of those who ordered and carried out the assassinations.
The Iranian regime first blamed Kurdish opposition groups and then foreign agents for the assassinations. But in the end, the regime announced that Sunni extremists linked to Al-Qaeda were responsible for the assassinations. The Sunni-extremists that Iran is claiming to be behind the assassinations are a network of groups that the Islamic Republic actually supported, funded and in some cases even established. Kurdish political organizations have condemned the assassinations. They also warned at an early stage that Iran could very well be behind the assassinations in order to have a pretext to increase its crackdown on Kurdish activists.
The Islamic Republic has pursued a policy in which it attempts to establish and support different Islamist groups to undermine the support that the secular Kurdish parties enjoy in Iranian Kurdistan. But this policy has had exactly the opposite effect, because the Kurdish population is very politically conscious and they know that the Islamic Republic is using these groups to oppress the Kurdish people.
Why do Kurdish parties condemn the attacks? If they have armed forces, why do they not carry out armed operations and target Iranian officials?
There are two main reasons for why Kurdish parties have condemned these assassinations. The first reason being that the Kurdish parties have traditionally not carried out political assassinations but we have at several times been subjected to political assassinations. The second reason being that many Kurdish political parties believe that the Islamic Republic might very well be behind the resent assassinations in Sinne [Sanandaj].
We are not rejecting armed struggle as a method, we have waged a armed struggle against the Islamic Republic in the past and we would restart an armed struggle if we believed that it was in the interests of our people, but at the moment we think that there are other opportunities that are less costly in terms of human lives that are worth pursuing.
You posted Youtube videos of PDKI training its fighters. How many fighters do your PDKI fraction have? And are you planning to use them?
The number of our Peshmergas is not something that I could reveal, but we have enough Peshmergas to protect ourselves. And as I mentioned before we are currently not planning to carry out any military operations against the Islamic Republic we have military forces in order to protect ourselves against any possible attacks by the military forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
What are PDKI’s relations with other parties fighting Iran? Like the Iranian People's Mujahideen of Iran, nationalist Turkish Azeris or the Baluchi nationalist Jundallah (Soldiers of Allah)?
We have a good relationship with many of the other political organizations that are struggling against the Islamic Republic. The PDKI and fourteen other political organizations jointly established the Congress of Nationalities for a Federal Iran in 2005, which seeks to establish a democratic, secular and federal Iran.
Regarding the organizations that you mentioned, we do not have any contact with any of them.
What’s PDKI’s position on Camp Ashraf near Baghdad, since it’s known that PMOI have killed Iraqi Kurds in Kirkuk and supported Saddam in the past?
We have expressed concern about the Iraqi army’s use of violence against the people residing in Camp Ashraf. From a humanitarian perspective, we object to the human tragedy that happened at Camp Ashraf. Politically, we have expressed concern about the fact that it seems that the Shiia-led government in Bagdad is bent on targeting Iranian opposition groups that have a presence in Iraq.
Regarding the PMOI’s involvement in the killing and oppression of Iraqi Kurds, we have always condemned this and it is also one of the main reasons why we have no relationship with the PMOI.
Does the PDKI or any other Kurdish Party have any ties with Mousavi or the Iranian ‘green movement’?
The PDKI has no ties with the Green Movement that is lead by Mousavi or any other individual that belongs to the so-called reformist fraction of the Islamic Republic. But our party has in different statements and actions expressed its solidarity with the brave people that are standing up against the regime. We support the political struggle for liberty and democracy in Iran. This should be differentiated from taking sides in the regime’s factional infighting between “conservatives” and “reformists”.
There have been several claims of Iranian protestors being killed in
Iranian cities after the presidential elections, but there was not much news from the Kurdish region. How so?
Due to several factors, the Kurdish people did not take to the streets after the announcement of the so-called election results. Our party leader, Mr. Mustafa Hijri, made a statement when the regime announced the approved candidates for the presidential post, in which he outlined our party’s position and urged the Kurdish people to boycott the elections. Moreover, our party predicted very early that Ayatollah Khamenei would not let anyone except Ahmedinejad to become President.
As a result, the Kurdish people did not turn out in large numbers on election-day. Furthermore, the Kurdish people do not want to become pawns of an internal power struggle between the different fractions of the Islamic Republic. Another factor is the fact that the leaders of the Green Movement take every opportunity to pledge their loyalty to the Islamic Republic’s undemocratic constitution and its theocratic system of governance. They also refuse to even take any of the Kurdish nation’s demands into consideration, making it impossible for the Kurdish people to support them.
Some Kurds in the Diaspora and even in Iraqi Kurdistan claim that Iranian Kurds do not care about their Kurdish identity in Iran. They mostly speak Persian and that they are more busy with working. What do you think about this?
I don’t know whom you have been talking to but claims like that just sounds ignorant and ridiculious.
Are members of the PDKI or other Kurdish parties still being deported from Turkey to Iran and hanged?
Since 1995, many members of our party, up to seven thousand, that have sought political refuge in Europe have been stuck in Turkey waiting for their cases to be handled by international organizations like UNHCR. Unfortunately, Turkey have at different times deported some of them to Iran were they have been imprisoned and executed. There are also several cases were agents of the Islamic Republic have assassinated members of our party in Turkey. Pressure from the European Union has resulted in some changes in Turkey’s actions against the Kurdish political refuges, but Turkey still deports some of them.
Do you think Iran and America can ‘solve their crisis’?
No, I do not think that the United States can solve its issues with the current regime in Iran due to several factors. Regarding the nuclear issue, Iran sees this as a long-term strategic issue. The regime believes that a nuclear bomb will work both as a deterrent against any force attempting to undermine the Islamic Republic’s security. It also seeks nuclear weapons in its pursuit of regional hegemony. The Islamic Republic has since its establishment had an aggressive foreign policy, in which spreading the Islamic revolution outside Iran’s borders is a cornerstone. Thus, it is highly unlikely that Iran will give up its attempts to attain nuclear weapons.
The same goes for Iran’s support to different terrorist groups in the region. Through its support to these groups, Iran has been able to act as a regional hegemon. Iran wants to be the only actor that can decide whether there will be peace and stability in Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Palestine and so forth. So a strategic rapprochement with Iran is impossible for the U.S.
There are some signs of America resetting its relations with Iran. If
America becomes an ‘ally of Iran’ (although it’s unlikely), will the
Iranian Kurdish parties then turn against America? What are they going to do?
I think that the shift in the United States policy towards Iran should be seen based on the fact that it seems that they have realized that sanctions, in any form, or aerial strikes targeting Iran’s nuclear sites will not stop Iran from attempting to attain nuclear weapons. The Americans seem to believe that they do not have any real leverage over Iran, thus forcing them to propose all kinds of incentives to try to persuade Iran to give up its nuclear program. This policy will also fail. What the Americans and other Western states need to do is to support the democratic opposition in order to bring about regime change.
I do not think that the United States will become an ally of the Islamic Republic and even if that would happen our party would not change its policy towards the United States. Our struggle against the Islamic Republic will continue regardless of the policies and actions of the U.S. or other powers. The United States was a very close ally of the former regime and it did not affect our struggle. We hope that the U.S. will realize the morally justified and politically prudent rationale for an alliance with us and the rest of the democratic Iranian opposition. However, our struggle is directed against Iran, not against its current or potential allies.
How do you analyze the news reports that claim that the Iranian president has Jewish background? Is this a plot by the ‘Iranian reform movement’?
I really have not given it much thought. It is an insignificant matter if he has Jewish ancestors or not. It will not change his stance against the Jewish people and the state of Israel. But one should recall that rumors of his purported Jewish background surfaced even before the recent crackdown on the so-called reformists.
In the past PKK was supported by Iran, but now they have established PJAK to fight against Iran. Recently it became know that the legal Kurdish party DTP from Turkey (which is close to the PKK) has plans of opening offices in Iran (Urmiyeh) and Syria. What does the PDKI think of this?
The DTP is free to open offices wherever it wants, it is not up to our party or any other party do judge whether this is good or bad.
Why do you think PKK established the PJAK? Is it because of the weaknesses and splits within Komala and PDKI? Are they supported by USA?
From our point of view, PJAK has only been created for tactical reasons by the PKK. The PDKI and other political organizations in Iranian Kurdistan have emerged inside of Iranian Kurdistan and have been created by the Kurds in this part of Kurdistan. This is very different from other political formations created by external actors and imposed on either the people of Iranian Kurdistan or other parts of Kurdistan for the parochial interests of such external actors. Such tactics will fail and only turn out to be counterproductive even for those political organizations that try to create such secondary organizations for their short-term interests.
PDKI seeks good relations with all Kurdish organizations in all parts of Kurdistan, including the PKK, but we do not think that it is justified for any of these organizations to dictate for Kurds in other parts Kurdistan, either directly or through their off-shots, what goals or demands they should pursue.
Only the PKK is in a position to answer whether PJAK is supported by the USA.
It’s known that PUK has very good relations with Iran and Iran’s intelligence services. PUK officials have often called Iran the ‘brothers of Kurds’. The Iraqi Kurdish parties were also involved in targeting Iranian Kurds in the past, but on the other hand they shelter the PDKI and Komala. Is the past forgotten? Why do PDKI and Komala accept these statements of PUK?
First and foremost, our party is not being sheltered by either the PUK or the any other Iraqi Kurdish party. One of the reasons why we are not waging an armed struggle against the Islamic Republic is because we do not want to become a pretext for the Islamic Republic to attack Iraqi Kurdistan. The security interests of Iraqi Kurdistan are of paramount importance to us.
Regarding the PUK’s relationship with Iran, our party understands that the PUK needs to have relations with Iran due to several factors. This does not preclude that we have good relations with the PUK. If any problems arise between us, we address them through dialogue. We have done so in the past and will do so in the future in the event of problems of any nature.
Why is Iran bombarding the border regions of Iraqi Kurdistan? Is it because of the presence of the PKK, PDKI or Komala? Or is there another explanation?
Iran has bombarded the border regions of Iraqi Kurdistan since the No-Fly-Zone was set up in 1991. The Revolutionary Guard has at several times also entered Iraqi Kurdistan with large forces. In 1996 between 2000-4000 Iranian soldiers attacked one of our bases in Koya-Sanjaq, which is located in the middle of Iraqi Kurdistan. But in general, Iran uses our party and other Kurdish opposition parties presence in Iraqi Kurdistan as a pretext to undermine the security of Iraqi Kurdistan. The bombardment could also be seen as a kind of psychological war with the civilian population of Iraqi Kurdistan.
Some PDKI members I spoke with in Iraqi Kurdistan were not very positive about the future; others were citing the recent progress Kurds made in Iraq and Turkey. What’s your view on the future of Iranian Kurds?
I think that it is very important to stay optimistic about the future. We have a brutal enemy that will do anything in its power to destroy us, but history has shown that a regime like the Islamic Republic will not be able to continue to rule forever. There is a new generation of young Kurds that will slowly take over the leadership of the Kurdish liberation movement and I think that this new generation will be more effective in the struggle against the regime and if they do not succeed there will be a new generation after them and a new one following them and so on. Some individuals’ pessimism, even within our ranks, will not constitute any hurdle to the historical dynamic in the struggle for democracy and national rights in Iran. Like other countries in the region or other regions that have suffered from war and dictatorship, Iran too will go down the path of peace and democracy. There is no reason whatsoever to be pessimistic on that historical end-goal (Photo: lawan.nu).
© Rudaw
