There are Millions of Kurds in Europe who Support the PKK and the Kurdish Freedom Movement.

Unfortunately, by 'criminalising' the legitimate struggle of the Kurds for their freedom, Europe is now declaring war on the Kurdish people and therefore millions of Kurdish people who live in Europe!

Pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) deputy Emine Ayna reacted strongly to the Belgian police raids on the BDP’s Brussels office during a news conference in Brussels. She said even Turkey’s Constitution accepts the legality of the party and that the Belgian police’s raid of the BDP’s office as if it were a terrorist organization is unacceptable.

Meanwhile, BDP leader Selahattin Demirtaş reportedly went to the Belgian Embassy in Ankara to learn about the latest developments of Thursday’s operations against PKK members and Roj TV’s Brussels office.

As Turkey does when it attacks the Kurdish Movement in Turkey, Europe by its outragous and blatently illegal attacks on the Kurdish Movement has strengthened the Kurdish Resistance and mobilised tens of thousands into action.

If by these racist and unjust attacks on Kurds mirroring Turkey's racist war in Turkey, Europe think that the Kurdish people will give up their long and profound struggle for basic rights and freedoms in Turkey then it is profoundly wrong.

The only thing that Brussels has done is exposed it's own serious defects in it own legal system and democracy.

How a European country can aid Turkey one of the world's worst human rights abusers mystifies millions of people and does not reflect well as Belgium as a democracy.

The PKK was borne to defend the Kurdish people against the genocidal onslaught on the Kurdish people.

As the ANC was the Freedom Movement of the Black South Africans struggling against racist Aparthied system so the PKK represents and has the popular support of the Kurdish people in Turkey.

If you are ignorant to this fact and are only listening to what the Turkish government and Turkish army psychological warfare department are telling you then please just watch the videos of the jubilant celebrations that welcomed the PKK's Peace Group only in Oct of last year.

If you attack the PKK then you are attacking the Kurdish people.

If you attack Roj TV and television station that is the voice of the Kurdish people's struggle then you are attacking the Kurdish people.

If you attack the Kurdish people then do not expect them to remain passive and accept this situation.

As Leyla Zana said and is true.

The Kurds are like fire. Approach them with respect and they will warm you but treat them unfairly and they will burn you.

Europe should think about how many Kurds there are in Europe.

Millions of Kurds who support the struggle of the PKK and the Kurdish Freedom Struggle.

So far the Kurds have remained within the laws of the countries they live in and under the discipline of the Kurdish Freedom Movement but for how long will that continue......that is the question!

Defy the Ban!

"So, this is the flag you have labelled illegal is it, Inspector? So then if I carry this flag you'll arrest me will you? You will! Okay then....BRING IT ON!"

Kurds likely to win in the disputed Kirkuk province

06-03-2010

By Wladimir van Wilgenburg

Kirkuk - Despite competition between Kurdish political lists, Arabic and Turkmen lists, Kirkuk didn’t face major bomb attacks. All Kurdish lists in Kirkuk maintain that the disputed city of Kirkuk is a part of Kurdistan and promise changes. It’s likely Kurds will win the majority of seats. “All parties believe Kirkuk is part of Kurdistan,” says Change list candidate Ali Askeri.

Middle-East expert Gareth Jenkins says it will be more difficult for the Kurds to push the inclusion of Kirkuk in Kurdistan, if they fail to win an overwhelming majority in Kirkuk. But he notes that this doesn’t mean Baghdad will allow the Kurds to takeover Kirkuk.

The Kurds want the implementation of article 140, which proposes a referendum on disputed provinces like Kirkuk, to decided whether to become part of the Kurdistan Region or the administration of Baghdad. The Iraqi governments managed to continually postpone the census and referendum.

”Special status of Kirkuk within Kurdistan”

The personal physician of the Iraqi president Talabani, Rajmaldin Karim, is the number one candidate for the Kurdistan Alliance, an alliance between Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Massoud Barzani,wwthe Kurdishw.ekurd.netthe Kurdish president. He promises the people of Kirkuk to bring more reconstruction, services and business to Kirkuk. “I have a program for a special status of Kirkuk within the Kurdistan region”.

Last Thursday his supporters rallied in a big hall, dancing on Kurdish music and waving green flags of the PUK, while supporters of the Change list (Gorran) drove around Kirkuk with blue Gorran flags and beeping cars. Also there were other car ‘carnivals’ by supporters of a Turkmen list.

Kurds claim Arab and Turkmen support

Both Kurdish lists, the Change list and the Kurdistan Alliance, say they also get support from Turkmen and Arabs. “I think Arabs and Turkmen that read our program are supportive of our ideas and they want to continue living in the miserable situation they are in now,” says Karim. The Change list claims they also got support from other ethnicities in Kirkuk. Mam Rostam, one of the campaign leaders of Change in Kirkuk said he has received many support from Turkmen.

But Kurdish editor Ako Mohammed from Rudaw says its unlikely that Turkmen or Arabs will support Kurdish lists. Turkmens living in the streets of Kirkuk often say they support the Iraqi National Movement of Iyad Allawi. “I support Allawi because he is good for the whole of Iraq,” Turkmen Ali Mustafa says. Hassan Aydinli of the Iraqi Turkmen front (ITF) in Europe says the ITF is in an alliance with Allawi’s list in cities like Kirkuk.

Al Jazeera reports that Sunni Arabs are planning to participate to oppose the Kurdish aim to add Kirkuk to the three Kurdish provinces administrated by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

”Life is nothing here”

Kurds in Kirkuk can choose between Gorran and the Kurdistan Alliance. Some Kurds say they are reluctant to support any lists, because they say the political parties haven’t done anything for the city. “Look at the streets, do you see how bad it is? Life is nothing here”, a Kurd said. Others think Rajmadin Karim is a good candidate. “He is an American Kurd and will bring business and will make new streets in Kirkuk. He is a good candidate,” says a Kurdish shopkeeper. “Gorran just makes advertisement, nothing more.”

But Ali Askari says the PUK, which is part of the Iraqi government, is to blame for the lack of health and education services in Kirkuk. “The schools were ruined by the two parties [KDP and PUK]”. He adds: “What did they do all those years for Kirkuk? Nothing. Najmadin Karim wants to be the next foreign minister. He is a rich millionaire in the USA, but with his hospitals he never helped the people of Kirkuk.” Rizgar Ali, the Kurdish chair of Kirkuk's provincial council, is also a member of the PUK, but PUK-candidate Karim says Baghdad is to blame.

Still Gorran doesn’t expect the majority of the Kirkukis to vote for the Change list. “We are a new movement and voters are intimidated by the ruling Kurdish parties,” says Askeri. The opposition candidate says people could lose their jobs for voting for the Change movement, because the institutions are controlled by the political parties.

Majority of seats for Kurds

Analysts expect the Kurds to win the majority of the province’s 12 parliamentary seats, despite opposition of Turkmen and Arabs. According to a poll of Rudaw, 8 of the 12 seats will go to the Kurds. Ali Askari of the Change list thinks his list will get 2-3 seats, while the PUK expects to get the majority of the seats. Director of the Gelli Kurdistan TV of PUK in Kirkuk, Zahar Sukr, says the PUK is a strong list and will get 4 of the 7/8 Kurdish seats, while Gorran might get one seat.

© Rudaw

Not everybody votes Barzani in Erbil

06-03-2010

By Wladimir van Wilgenburg

Hewler - The capital of the Kurdistan region Hewler (Erbil) is known for its support for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), but not everybody votes for the KDP. "In the past we were all Peshmerga, but now there is no justice," says businessman Idris Osman (46).

"In the past I supported KDP, but now I support Gorran. I'm against corruption," says Osman. According to Osman there are more supporters of the Kurdish opposition list Change (Gorran) in Hewler. "If Gorran gets the elected, they will make Kurdistan the same as the Netherlands. 19 years and nothing happened. The KDP parliament member is not good."

Shop keeper Salah Ali (35) says he is very positive about the actions of Gorran in the parliament, "they showed how corrupt they are." Some people in Hewler were scared to tell their ideas about the political parties. "If they steal millions of money, why they don't give the half of it to the poor people?," a shopkeeper asked, who wished to remain anonymous, without saying who he supported.

According to Sam Dager of the NY Times, the KDP isn't challenged in Duhok or Mosul, but it does face competition from Gorran in Hewler, where the KDP is very strong. Gorran officials claim supporters of its list are intimidated in Hewler.

But still the streets of Hewler are filled with beeping cars with KDP flags and even PUK flags. Also a lot of people on the streets are positive about KDP and especially Massoud Barzani. "Barzani is very good for us. Look how developed Hewler is, in the past we had nothing in Hewler, but now its safe and developed," says Serdar Mohammed, who sells clothes in the bazaar.

There are also supporters of the PUK in Hewler. Former Peshmerga, Bedran Salim, who now sells gold, says he will support the candidate supported by the powerful PUK-member Kosrat Rasul. "I've known Kosrat for a long time he is a very good man and was very strong in the fight against Saddam."

KDP-spokesperson Jafar Eminki told Rudaw that the Change list (Gorran) will receive at least three of the 15 seats in Hewler. Change list official Safeen Malaqara from Hewler says they could even get between 5-6 seats.

© Rudaw

Kurds prevented from voting in diaspora

06.03.2010

London - Hundreds of Kurds were prevented to vote by Arab officals of the Higher Iraqi Electoral Commission (IHEC), supposedly because of problems with their passports.

Bestun Sarwi, a observer of the Islamic Union of Kurdistan (KIU) in Manchester told Awena that Kurds started demonstrations, because the electoral commission refused to let Kurds votes.

"The commission says that voters should have 'Iraq' in their country of birth on their passports and birth place, this is impossible," says Sarwi. According to Sarwi this decision favours Arabic voters. "Kurds lose their vote in this way."

They also ask two documents to prove a person is Iraqi, but not everybody has these two documents.

On 16.00 the electoral office in London was closed and Kurds were standing outside of the voting office. Many Kurds were rejected and couldn't vote.

Kurdish freelancer Raz Jabary was outraged to find that many Kurds from especially Kirkuk were not allowed to vote due to the lack of two Iraqi forms of proof of identity. "My dad went into a heated argument and claimed it was simply ridiculous for everyone to still have two official documents after nearly 20 or so years after exile; he argued with the polling center's director and other workers, who then decided to contact Baghdad. After 30-40 minutes they got back reply saying decision was retreated and anyone with two forms of identity not necessarily Iraqi was allowed to vote."

A KNN advisor confirmed that especially Kurds from Kirkuk were prevented from voting. "I heard it too, that the London electoral station was controlled by Arabs, and they seized the opportunity of the European identity documents to prevent the Kurds to vote. I heard of clashes in Sweden too."

In 16 countries Iraqi immigrants can caste their votes.

© Rudaw

The Halabja/Anfal case proceeding at a U. S. federal court

• KurdishMedia.com

• KNC - North America

• 06/03/2010

On Thursday, February 25th, we had the first court hearing before a federal judge in a court room at Baltimore University in Maryland. The legal debate between the KNC and Alcolac teams of lawyers lasted more than two hours.

The Alcolac lawyers asked the judge to dismiss the case and they premised their argument on the following:

* The time has exceeded the statute of limitation (the statute of limitation being 10 years—now 22 years have passed since the attacks took place in 1988.)

* The KNC cannot prove that the chemical precursors sold to Iraq were used for chemical weapons. The materials were for ballpoint pens.

The KNC lawyers, in return, rejected their claims and argued that,

* Not until after Saddam Hussein’s regime was toppled in 2003 were people able to speak publicly against his regime. They referred to the fact that even when Iraqis participated in a demonstration outside Iraq, they had to wear masks to cover their faces fearing that they or their families might be harmed.

* Not until 2003 and the removal of Saddam's regime did people know about the companies or individuals who helped Saddam in obtaining the chemical weapons.

* The amount of chemical precursors sold to Iraq was 1000,000 tons. This was to reach 6,000,000 tons in one year. This amount could not possibly be used in the ballpoint pen industry.

The Alcolac lawyers, then, asked the judge to remove the KNC from the case. The judge immediately rejected their claim and said the Kurdish National Congress of North America was and will remain on the case.

The Judge, then, concluded the session by saying, "my deepest sympathy is with the Kurdish people.

He said he needed more time to review everything presented to the court before he could decide on the case.

This hearing was for each side to present their side of the story so the judge could decide whether to drop or let the case proceed.

Kurdish National Congress of North America

inquiries: info@kncna.org

Hevallo's blog has been sabotaged!

Today I have noticed that my blog, Hevallo, has been sabotaged. It may not be long before the blog is hacked and gone. I've been expecting this for some time and hope you've enjoyed Hevallo and/or found it useful.

It seems there is a concerted attempt to silence the voice of the Kurdish Freedom Movement but Hevallo, if attacked, will, no doubt, appear in a different form.

The enemies of the Kurds continue to criminalise and suppress the Kurdish wish for freedom and justice.

For Hevallo after three years and over 1,500 posts, the struggle continues!

If I disappear please bookmark this ghostblog.

Please begin more blogs!!!!

Silav u rez

Hevallo.

PJAK’s leader arrested

Within the purge that orchestrated against the Kurdish politicians in Europe today at 3.30 mp Haci Ahmedi’s house was raided unexpectedly by the German police.

The official who didn’t want to reveal her identity said that the raid was deliberately carried out on Friday afternoon. “Over the weekend they want to pressurise the leader of PJAK, she said”

Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK) was founded in 2004 and since then has been resisting the Iranian’s repression of the Kurds in Eastern Kurdistan (Iran).

Syrian Human Rights Committee (UK), ‘SHRC Ninth Annual Report on Human Rights in Syria 2010′, 16/02/2010

March 3, 2010 by sks   

SHRC Ninth Annual Report on Human Rights in Syria 2010
(Covering the period January to December 2009)

Contents
1. Contents
2. Preface
3. The calamity of the activists of human rights and the civil society
4. Forced Exiles and the Dossier of Law 49/1980
A. Arrests and Trials
B. Travel Documents
C. The Missing in the Syrian Prisons
5. Kurds
First: Arbitrary Arrest
Second: Trials
Third: Release Cases
Fourth: Death during Compulsory Military Service
6. Random and Arbitrary Arrests
7. Death in prisons under torture
8. The Sednaya Military Prison
9. Targeting the establishments of the civil and charitable society
10. Those Banned from Travel
11. The Media Read more

Human Rights Watch, ‘World Report 2010: Syria’, 20/01/2010

March 3, 2010 by sks   

EVENTS OF 2009

Syria’s poor human rights situation deteriorated further in 2009, as the authorities arrested political and human rights activists, censored websites, detained bloggers, and imposed travel bans. No political parties are licensed. Emergency rule, imposed in 1963, remains in effect and Syria’s multiple security agencies continue to detain people without arrest warrants. The Supreme State Security Court (SSSC), an exceptional court with almost no procedural guarantees, resumed trials in March 2009, following an eight-month suspension. Read more

London Demo Outside Belgium Embassy.

Spot the difference. Turkey above Europe below. 

Over 250 Kurds and non Kurds gathered outside the Belgium Embassy in London to protest against the political decision of Europe to join Turkey's war against the Kurds.

A letter was given in to the embassy and was accepted by the deputy consul of the embassy.

The deputy consul was asked why has Belgium decided to help Europe's worst human rights abuser to suppress the Kurdish media and detain Kurdish political exiles!

250 people was an amazing turnout considering only 24 hours notice of the protest.