For profit the Turkish ruling classes dispatch soldiers into Iraq! / No to troop dispatches into Iraq! / Immediate withdrawal of all Turkish soldiers from South Kurdistan! / Imperialists get out of the Middle East! / The only way for the sisterhood of nations and real peace is revolution!

Real peace will be won through the revolution!

With its attack on Poland, the Nazi empire officially started the Second World War on 1 September 1939. The day the war broke out that led to the death, mutilation and deportation of millions of people, was declared after the war by the UNO as “World Peace Day”.

The bourgeoisie always used “1 September — World Peace Day” as a means of propaganda. The fact that unjust, counter-revolutionary wars in the world are a product of the capitalist system itself should be concealed.

In this year the bourgeoisie will also propagate on 1 September — World Peace Day that she is for peace. In various actions the issue of the wish of the masses for peace will also be taken up, but the fact that there can be no real lasting peace in this system will be concealed. Pacifist bourgeois events within the framework set by the bourgeoisie will dominate this year also.

The ruling classes of Turkey, also a part of the capitalist-imperialist system, will again constantly drone out their motto of “Peace at home, peace in the world” to prove their alleged love of peace in an attempt to veil their occupier and colonialist face.

Out-and-out fraud!

How ever much the bourgeoisie lays stress on her “love of peace “, the actual situation in the world speaks a completely different language.

After the Second World War, not one year passed without a war! In these wars 60 million people more died than in the Second World War. Even according to numbers furnished by the UN, for example, in the 10 years since the disintegration of the East Bloc, more than 5 million people lost their lives in regional wars in these regions.

This alone shows that there can be no talk of that bourgeois “peace era”.

Today wars of varying intensity are waged in all continents, in Asia, America, Europe and Africa. From Afghanistan to Iraq, from Palestine to Chechnya, from many countries in Africa to Colombia, war is waged everywhere in the world.

The occupation and plunder of Iraq continues!

One of the latest wars is the occupation and plunder of US imperialism in Iraq. Ever more documents come up proving that the “reasons” for this open occupation and plunder operation were nothing but fabrications. They only served to deceive the American people and the world public opinion. But so what? That does not make much difference in a world in which not right, but might rules.

After the occupation of Iraq the US–UK coalition immediately demanded from other imperialist powers to send soldiers into Iraq. That was refused by them on the grounds that there was no “UN resolution”, peace was not established and no civilian government was formed. Meanwhile a UN resolution smoothed the way for the dispatch of soldiers!

The Saddam regime could not offer much resistance to the coalition. Iraq was occupied. During this war the occupying forces did not suffer any great losses. But the restructuring of Iraq will not be as simple as the war itself. Armed resistance actions against the occupation forces increase. These almost daily assaults escalate the number of losses suffered by the USA, UK and the collaborating Iraqis. The number of soldiers killed in these attacks already exceeds the number of losses during direct war operations. Every body bag flown to the USA will reduce the public support for the Bush administration.

The occupation forces experience many difficulties while setting up a new government in Iraq. The civilian government set up by the occupation forces is far from representing the different forces in Iraq. Big parts of the Shiites do not see themselves represented in this government. A part of the Sunnite population is clearly against the occupation. The Turkmen nationality is dissatisfied with the “civilian government” that does not bring up her interests etc, etc.

The difficulties in continuing the occupation and building a new order force the US and British imperialism to shift the burden of the occupation and plunder operation also onto the shoulders of other imperialist great powers. (In return, they will receive a tiny part of the oil revenues). For the USA and England, allies have become more significant for the operation in Iraq. One of these allies on whose door they knocked is the Turkish state.

The Turkish ruling classes also sit at the bargaining table in Iraq

During the war of occupation the USA demanded from Turkey the readiness to let its territory be used as a military base for aggression, and make provisions for the possibility of 60 thousand US soldiers crossing into northern Iraq. However, the rejection of the government bill to dispatch soldiers into Iraq in the parliament led to a noticeable chill-out in the relations between the USA and Turkey.

The raid by the US occupation forces on the “liaison office” of the Turkish Republic in Suleimania, whereby 11 officers and soldiers were taken prisoner, led to even more tension. With this action the USA conveyed to Turkey the message that her presence in South Kurdistan (Northern Iraq) is tolerated only under US sovereignty. It was drastically demonstrated to Turkey that no action in this area will be tacitly approved, when the USA does not agree.

After this incident suddenly a quarrel broke out in Turkey about “national honor”.* With this campaign about honor etc., the question why the Turkish army already operates in South Kurdistan, in which plots it is involved etc., was swept under the carpet.

Plunging as they did into a crisis after the rejection of the bill on March 1 in the parliament, the Turkish ruling classes were anxious to make every effort to recover lost ground. As a result, when the USA asked all NATO members to dispatch troops, Turkey was one of the states that answered with “in principle yes”. Negotiations were held over how that “in-principle-yes” can be translated into practice.

After the US visit of the Foreign Affairs Minister Abdullah Gül, the government is now intensifying its activities to dispatch soldiers into Iraq. Hiding themselves behind the “national interests of Turkey”, they offer their services as mercenaries to the USA. They hauled in the approval of the military. Now only the consent of the parliament and approval of the President is needed. It seems as if there won’t be an incident (or accident) in the parliament this time, and the President, who had up to now always demanded “international legitimation”**, does not see any problems now on the basis of the UN resolution “to set up a new order together with the occupying power in Iraq and participate in the construction of Iraq”.

In return for the blood of Turkish soldiers, the USA promises Turkey to disarm the KADEK (successor organization to the PKK). If the public rumors are right, there is a plan according to which, in return for soldiers sent into Iraq, the USA and Turkey will liquidate the KADEK as an armed force. There are several ways how the KADEK can be disarmed. The KADEK forces in South Kurdistan will either be disarmed, or driven out of South Kurdistan. This plan is to be complemented by a so-called “Rehabilitation Law” —in reality a “remorse law”— passed by the Turkish State. This law has already been put into force by the Turkish government, a law that provides for not prosecuting any members and sympathizers but the leading cadres of the KADEK who have not been prosecuted for a concrete action up to now and show remorse, and the release of repentant convicts. For the rest, the leading cadres, the US plan is to enable them to go to Scandinavian or other countries. That is the plan.

Should this plan prove impracticable, i.e., should the KADEK refuse to comply with the demand to disarm, and opt for armed struggle, then attempts will be made to annihilate the KADEK forces by military attack.

How is the KADEK reacting in the face of this plan? As is known, the KADEK, new name of the former PKK, stick to the unilateral armistice they declared on 1 September 1998. In connection with the latest developments the KADEK leadership assessed and rejected the “Rehabilitation Law” as “Remorse Law”, and in its stead demanded a “general amnesty for peace in the society”. The KADEK proposals include the concession of a place in the political system for them after the general amnesty, and sending their chairman Abdullah Öcalan into exile. It is clear that this plan will not be accepted by the USA and Turkey that want to smash the KADEK. The indications are, that everything will be undertaken to destroy the military strength of the KADEK, and to that end various offensives including military action will be planned and carried out.

The KADEK cannot revoke the armistice that they have been unilaterally sticking to since five years. In words, they utter threats of replying with military actions in the shape of “Serhildans” and “righteous defense”, but it is the wish of the KADEK leadership to establish “peace” and, after reconciliation with the system, be politically active in it. Therefore KADEK makes every effort, including negotiations with the USA. But most probably, now that it has come to an agreement with its regional ally Turkey, and Turkey is ready to send soldiers into Iraq, the USA will, in its own interests, sacrifice the KADEK in return.

Can real peace be established under these circumstances?

A system that violently oppresses other nations, occupies and exploits other countries to have more weight in the contention between imperialists, denies other nations their right to self-determination, clubs down basic democratic rights and freedoms, forces the masses to live in hunger and poverty, cannot aspire to any real peace, no matter how much it mendaciously talks of “peace”.

Real peace will be won after the revolutionary overthrow of this capitalist-imperialist system which always engenders unjust, reactionary, counter-revolutionary wars again and again.

This year, on 1 September, World Peace Day, it is our duty to denounce the mendacity of the capitalist-imperialist cry for peace, criticize the pacifist understanding of peace that does not exceed the frame drawn up by the bourgeoisie, and in the interests of real peace intensify above all the fight for the revolution.

We must show that it is fraud when the war in Iraq is presented as a “fight against terrorism”, that it was a matter of bringing democracy to Iraq. It is our duty to oppose the imperialist occupation and plunder. Working people of Turkey have no interest in this war waged by the USA for world domination! We must oppose the dispatch of troops from Turkey into Iraq against the working people of Iraq for the interests of the ruling classes who want to reassure as “trustworthy” allies of the USA. It is our duty to demand the withdrawal of Turkish troops stationed at present in South Kurdistan!

The working people of Turkey have no interest in the war the Turkish ruling classes are waging to get a share at the bargaining table and to crush the struggle of the Kurdish nation for national rights. There is no conflict of interest between the working people of Turkey and a force waging guerilla actions against an occupying power. The working people of Turkey have no problems with the working people of different nationalities in Iraq. They have no enmity with each other which requires a war!

This war is not the war of the working people of Turkey. The war that represents the interests of the working people of Turkey is the war against imperialism and against the fascist Turkish state! This is a fight for bread, freedom and real peace. The task is to intensify this just fight and overthrow the system of exploitation.

No to the dispatch of Turkish soldiers into Iraq!

Withdrawal of Turkish soldiers from South Kurdistan!

Imperialists get out of the Middle East!

No real peace is possible without the overthrow of the imperialist system!

The only way for friendship among the nations and for real peace is the revolution!

17 August 2003

“Call for a New world”, Nr 70, September 2003

*) After the events in Suleimania a quarrel broke out on “national honor”. This quarrel is wasted time. The honor of a system in which over 90% of its population lives below the poverty line, lets the values created by its working people by sweat of their brow be exploited by and pour into imperialist banks and monopolies is in the eyes of workers and toilers the dishonor itself. Their reference to “national” is a means of rallying the workers and toilers under the flag of the bourgeoisie to prevent them from recognizing their true enemy.

**) On the one hand they demand “international legitimization”, and on the other hand they continue the military occupation of Northern Cyprus in spite of resolutions of international bodies! If it is a matter of international legitimization, Turkey must immediately withdraw its soldiers from Southern Iraq and Northern Cyprus!