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PROGRAM - Socialist
Party of Kurdistan (PSK)
- Part I
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- TRANSITION OF KURDISTAN INTO
A COLONY
-
- Our country, Kurdistan, in which
the Kurds have lived for thousands of years, is today partitioned
among four states (Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria), and the Kurdish
people, who number more than 30 million, are being oppressed.
- Kurdistan was initially partitioned
between the Ottoman and the Persian Empires. Because of the battles
between these two great dictatorships and their intense exploitation
of Kurdistan, our country was destroyed and pillaged; its economic,
social, and cultural development was obstructed. Kurdistan's feudal
structure was a major obstacle to the formation of a central unity.
- Several national uprisings of the
Kurdish people during the 19th century were struck down through
the joint efforts of the Ottoman and the Persian states with the
support of the great Western colonialist states, which were attempting
to make this region one of their spheres of influence.
- After World War I the Ottoman state
collapsed. In the course of the struggle that was waged by the
imperialists primarily to gain control of oil deposits, Kurdistan
was once again partitioned. The English included most of southern
Kurdistan within the borders of Iraq, which was a British mandate,
while the French annexed Cezire and Kurd Dagh, which is rich in
oil and agriculture, to Syria, which was subject to French administration.
Most of Kurdistan was given over to the Turkish Republic, which
was founded on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire and inherited its
legacy. Iran kept its part. Thus Kurdistan was divided into four
parts, and remains so until this day.
- The regional states among which
Kurdistan is partitioned and the imperialist forces struck down,
with great bloodshed and terrorist tactics, the many national
uprisings that our people have waged in the course of the 20th
century. In pursuit of their interests, they acted jointly in
most cases and provided mutual support.
- National states were established
in both Turkey and Iran, as well as Syria and lraq, which became
independent in subsequent years. In time, the economic, social,
and cultural life of these national states made considerable progress.
Only Kurdistan was excluded from this development, because it
was exploited and massively oppressed as a nation. The mineral
resources and all of the other natural wealth of our country were
plundered. Our people were not permitted to benefit either from
the oil, which alone would have sufficed to bring about the rapid
development of our country, or from other mineral resources such
as chrome, copper, iron, coal, or phosphates. All of these were
extracted and transported out of Kurdistan. The rich water resources
of Kurdistan either flow unused or the energy gained from it is
utilized outside the country. Our people live today in poverty
and misery in Kurdistan, which has been famous for centuries for
its cattle breeding and its fruitful, arable land. None of these
states has made any effort whatsoever to activate Kurdistan's
economy; on the contrary, they are implementing a policy of exploitation
and destruction. Thus a genuine abyss has opened up in all of
these states between Kurdistan and the rest of the country.
- Since World War I, the development
of the forces of production in Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria has
progressed measurably. Progress was also made in the areas of
agriculture, trade, and industry. As a result of these developments,
feudal relationships largely gave way to capitalist relationships.
The process of nation-building accelerated, and the national cultures
made great steps forward.
- In Kurdistan, however, this transformation
is proceeding extremely slowly. One reason for this is the intense
exploitation of Kurdistan; a further reason is the massive oppression
of the Kurdish people as a nation. The states among which Kurdistan
is partitioned have for years waged war in Kurdistan in order
to strike down the Kurdish people's struggle for liberation. The
Kurdish people are being subjected to an endless series of massacres
and deportations. The country resembles a tinderbox. In this kind
of situation, in which there is not even a minimum of security
and the people are in continual fear for their lives, no improvement
of economic and social life can be expected. On the contrary,
during recent years our country has been practically reduced to
ruins by the violent regimes that rule Turkey, Iraq, and Iran,
which launch massacres to suppress our national liberation struggle,
blindly destroy towns, villages, and the natural environment,
and even use chemical weapons to these ends.
- In all four states, the Kurdish
language and Kurdish culture are being subjected to extreme pressure.
Especially in Turkey, this suppression has grown to unprecedented
proportions. The Turkish state has resorted to unimaginable ways
and means to assimilate the Kurdish people and destroy the Kurdish
language and Kurdish culture. The Kurdish language has been banned
from education, public institutions, and publications. For a time,
even speaking Kurdish within the private sphere was forbidden
and subject to penalties. It is obvious that this suppression,
which still continues today, has considerably handicapped the
cultural and social development of Kurdish society.
- The colony-metropolis relationships
are clearly visible, both in the economy and in all areas of society,
politics, and culture.
- The Turkish bourgeoisie today uses
Kurdistan as a market. From Kurdistan it gets cheap raw materials
and agricultural products and sells industrial products there.
The state gives no recompense of any kind for the oil, iron, copper,
coal, chrome, phosphates, and electricity which it extracts there,
because it regards this region as its property. But it has not
undertaken any investments to bring about an economic upswing
in the region or to improve the standard of living of our people
in Kurdistan. The Kurdish culture, like Kurdish people, are being
exterminated_.
- Northern Kurdistan provides cheap
labor for the Turkish capitalists and large landowners. There
is a continuous flow of laborers and an emigration of the intelligentsia
from Kurdistan to the West (within Turkey). The wealth acquired
in Kurdistan also flows toward the_e West, and only there is it
actually transformed into capital.
- Because of the processes of massive
colonialization and oppression which have been described above,
the society of Kurdistan cannot experience a natural process of
development, and thus cannot keep up with the demands of modern
society. This situation is evident in every area of social life,
in the continuing tribal structures, the reactionary religious
institution of the sheik, and the system of large-scale land ownership
by aghas. The colonialist administration, on the other hand, is
implementing a policy of collaboration with these feudal elements
in order to exploit Kurdistan more easily and to keep Kurdish
society under control, and it receives strong support from these
elements.
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- THE NEXT HISTORICAL STEP FOR
THE KURDISH PEOPLE: A NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION
-
- For all of these reasons, the major
historical step that Kurdish society faces today is national liberation.
The Kurdish people cannot be free, gain peace, or develop until
foreign domination over Kurdistan is ended and a democratic society
has been created.
- The first step that lies before
us is a national democratic revolution: ending foreign rule, abolishing
the remains of the feudal system, distributing land to the peasants
by means of land reform, creating a democratic society, controlling
and conserving Kurdistan's natural wealth both above and beneath
the earth, and developing the national economy and culture.
- National liberation will be the
work of the Kurdish people themselves. It will be impossible without
a hard struggle. To this end it is necessary that, with the exception
of those forces which work together with the state and thus are
traitors, all of the national forces unite into a single front:
workers and peasants, intellectuals, religious people, craftsmen,
merchants and industrialists, patriotic landowners, patriotic
parties which represent these sectors of society, and the women's
and youth organizations.
-
- THE PSK- ITS NATURE AND ITS
GOALS
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- The Socialist Party of Kurdistan
(PSK) was founded at the end of 1974 in the part of Kurdistan
which is occupied by Turkey; it is waging its struggle in this
part of Kurdistan. The PSK is the party of the working class,
the poor and middle-class peasants, the business people and crafts
people, the intellectuals, and the other working people of Kurdistan.
The PSK has set as its immediate goal the country's national liberation
by means of a revolution.
- The forms of our national liberation
struggle and the measures to be used depend on specific circumstances.
We are attempting to reach a peaceful and just solution, and would
like to avoid a prolongation of the suffering of the Kurdish people
and the neighboring peoples. But this does not depend on us alone.
The colonialist powers have so far not recognized the legitimate
rights of the Kurdish people, and continue to try to strike down
our liberation struggle by means of violence. In this situation,
it is natural and necessary that we too employ all of the ways
and means that are legitimate and appropriate to the circumstances
in order to end the violent colonialist regime and live in freedom.
- Our party views the working people
of Turkey and progressive and democratically-minded Turkish people
as friendly forces in its national liberation struggle. It realizes
the enormous importance of their solidarity and our joint struggle.
The Kurdish people's attainment of freedom is closely bound up
with the democratization of Turkey. The policy of oppression being
pursued by the colonialist regime against the Kurdish people is
the main reason for the upsurge of chauvinism and militarism within
the country, the suffering of both peoples, and the waste of human
and natural resources. It would benefit both peoples to end this
policy and find a peaceful, just solution.
- At the international level, the
PSK regards all of the forces that are for the workers, for peace,
freedom, democracy, human rights, and protection of the environment,
as its friends, and believes that solidarity with them is valuable
and important.
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- THE TRANSITION TO SOCIALISM
-
- The PSK's long-term goal is socialism.
Our party views socialism as necessary for the freedom and many-sided
development of the human being in every respect. Socialism means
the ending of every kind of exploitation and oppression in social
life, as well as genuine freedom and equality.
- The PSK views socialism as a step
that necessarily follows capitalism on the path toward the development
of humanity. Working people, who constitute the vast majority
of society in our age, and humanity in general will be the beneficiaries.
- On the other hand, the attempts
made since the October Revolution of 1917 have shown that the
construction of socialism requires a long historical phase, and
that it will also be subject to setbacks from time to time. Moreover,
these attempts have shown that the construction of socialism is
not possible without the will and the support of the majority
of the population. This, in turn, is possible only on the basis
of a pluralistic, democratic society in which the people are able
to express their wishes freely and openly. For such a transformation
to take place, society must go through a process of economic,
political, and cultural maturation. At the same time, the transition
to socialism is linked with national and international circumstances.
- In our view, at this moment socialism
is not an immediate goal for Kurdistan. The creation of a democratic
society, the development and extension of the national economy
and culture, and the maturation of the society toward socialism
after national liberation will require a long period whose end
cannot be foreseen at this time.
- The PSK's concept of the transition
to socialism includes completely democratic circumstances and
the will and the support of the people - that is to say, it will
be a peaceful transition. If it wins the trust and support of
the people through a majority of the votes in a free election
within a pluralistic, democratic society, it will take over the
government and implement a program leading toward socialism, step
by step. If it should lose the people's support, it would immediately
withdraw from the government and take over the tasks of the political
opposition.
-
- THE SPECIFIC SITUATION OF THE
STRUGGLE IN EACH PART OF KURDISTAN, AND THE NECESSITY OF SOLIDARITY
AND COOPERATION
-
- The borders that divide Kurdistan
were drawn by the imperialist forces and regional states without
the assent of the Kurdish people. The Kurdish people has not recognized
these borders, nor will it do so in the future.
- The states which have partitioned
Kurdistan among themselves support one another in keeping down
the liberation struggle of our people; if they find it necessary,
military units cross the borders for this purpose. It is indispensable
for the patriotic forces of our people who are waging the liberation
struggle in all parts of Kurdistan to practice intense mutual
solidarity and cooperation against this unified oppression. The
specific form that cooperation and solidarity will take must vary
according to the given needs and circumstances.
- Moreover, the liberation struggle
in every part of Kurdistan is closely related to the struggle
of the other peoples who live there together with our people.
It is also influenced by the historical, social, and political
circumstances in these states. The struggle can proceed differently
in every part of Kurdistan as a result of these these circumstances;
it can be ended at different times and arrive at different results.
The organization and conduct of the struggle in each part of Kurdistan
is the responsibility of the revolutionary and patriotic organizations
that have arisen from the midst of our people in that part of
the country.
- The PSK believes that solidarity
and cooperation with the patriotic organizations in the other
parts of Kurdistan is important for the liberation of our people,
and it takes upon itself the duty of friendly criticism at points
where this is necessary to the interests of the national movement;
but it does not interfere in the affairs of these parts of Kurdistan
or in their organizations.
- The abolition of the borders dividing
Kurdistan and the creation of national unity are among our major
goals. They are linked with the development of the appropriate
historical circumstances in the future. For a step toward unity
to be possible, at least two parts of Kurdistan must be free.
If the appropriate circumstances for this become a reality, the
PSK will make efforts to achieve unity.
-
- DIVISION OR DEMOCRATIC UNITY
-
- The PSK views the national liberation
of the Kurdish people as being implicit in our people´s right
to determine its own destiny. The Kurdish people must govern itself.
- Our party believes that there could
be two possibilities for this in northern Kurdistan: the Kurdish
people could secede and establish a state of its own, or it could
choose democratic unity with the Turkish people.
- In the second case, the unity would
have to consist of a federation of two republics having equal
rights. Kurdistan would have to organize itself as an independent
republic with its own parliament and its own government, and it
would have to have the same rights as Turkey in every respect.
- As soon as the appropriate conditions
have evolved for the Kurdish people's right to determine its own
destiny, the Kurdish people can choose one of these two possibilities.
In both cases it would have the status of an independent state.
-
- Part II
-
- Political Goals
-
- 1. A democratic republic shall
be established in our country; it will end the colonialist administration
of Kurdistan by the ruling classes of Turkey.
- 2. Relationships with other countries
shall be established on the basis of equal rights and mutual benefit;
all foreign military bases shall be closed down.
- 3. According to the principles
of a general, secret, one-step, equal election in which all parties
can freely participate, a National Parliament of Kurdistan shall
be established which shall form the government and hold legislative
power in Kurdistan.
- 4. Every citizen who has completed
his/her 18th year shall be entitled to vote in the parliamentary
and local elections, and after the completion of his/her 21st
year shall also have the right to hold office.
- 5. Every person, without regard
to his/her race, sex, language, or religion, shall be granted
complete freedom of thought, belief, expression of opinion, the
press, organization, and association.
- 6. The minority peoples living
in Kurdistan shall be free of any type of oppression and shall
be granted national and democratic rights.
- 7. With regard to human rights,
those principles and regulations shall be applied which have been
agreed upon in the United Nations' General Declaration of Human
Rights and within the framework of the Council of Europe and the
Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE).
- 8. The laws of the colonialist
administration shall be abolished and replaced by new ones which
are appropriate to the nature of a democratic republic and the
national interests.
- 9. A democratic system of justice
shall be established which incorporates the independence and judicial
sovereignty of the courts.
- 10. A national army shall be formed
for the defense of the democratic republic.
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- Building Up the National Economy
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- 11. The businesses, banks, and
mines left behind by the colonialist state shall be nationalized.
- 12. Large privately owned businesses
which function profitably shall remain untouched, but those large
enterprises which are judged necessary to the public good shall
be nationalized.
- 13. To the extent that the national
interests require it, incentives shall be given for the import
of foreign capital and technology into the country.
- 14. Factories for heavy industry
shall be established.
- 15. Precautions shall be taken
to protect small tradesmen and craftsmen.
- 16. Handicrafts shall be protected
and their development shall be encouraged.
- 17. Efforts shall be made to produce
energy from the wealth of flowing water in Kurdistan and to use
it for irrigation.
- 18. Serious efforts shall be made
to protect the forests, extend forest areas, protect and increase
the stocks of birds, fish, and other game animals and plants -
in short, all natural resources - and prevent destruction of the
environment.
- 19. Possibilities of increasing
tourism shall be exploited and developed.
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- Structuring of Working Conditions
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- 20. In the structuring of working
conditions, the standards of the International Labor Organization
shall be applied.
- 21. A working day of no more than
8 hours shall be instituted for all workers without exception.
- 22. All workers shall be guaranteed
the right to organize unions, negotiate wage agreements, and strike.
- 23. A system of social security
shall be established which also includes unemployment security.
- 24. The retirement age shall be
established, taking into consideration the average age in K_Kurdistan,
the other circumstances there, and international standards.
- 25. Needy widows and orphans of
those who fell. in the liberation struggle shall receive pensions.
- 26. Each worker shall receive wages
in accordance with the work he/she accomplishes.
- 27. The employment of children
under the age of 16 shall be forbidden, with the exception of
work that assists activities carried out by the entire family
and are not damaging to health.
- 28. Women shall receive equal opportunities
in the workplace; they shall receive equal pay for equal work,
and legal regulations shall be found to solve the problems that
occur because of motherhood.
- 29. Participation of workers in
the administration and control of the workplace shall be guaranteed.
- 30. Prostitution and begging, which
are a disgrace to humanity, shall be outlawed; every person shall
be provided with work by means of which he/she can earn a living.
- 31. All working people shall be
guaranteed the necessary paid vacation and periods of rest.
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- Land Reform and the Peasantry
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- 32. The land belonging__g to the
large landowners shall be nationalized by means of land reform.
- The large landowners shall be compensated
if they have supported the national liberation struggle, but the
land of collaborators shall be confiscated.
- 33. Land shall be distributed free
of cost to peasants who own little or no land; the formation of
voluntary cooperatives shall be encouraged; efforts shall be made
to provide modern agricultural machinery; a sufficient number
of professionals shall be made available so that the peasant producers
can learn and apply agricultural techniques, and training programs
for the latter shall be encouraged.
- 34. All meadowland shall be nationalized
and its use shall be regulated according to scientific principles.
- The feeding, shelter, protection,
and veterinary care of domestic animals, as well as the processing
of animal products, shall be conducted according to modern methods;
the producers shall be provided with assistance to these ends.
- 35. Poor and middle-class peasants
shall be released from their debts in full.
- 36. The peasant producers shall
be granted sufficient credit, and they shall be freed from exploitation
by usurers; usury shall be forbidden.
- 37. The payment of duties or taxes
to aghas, beys, or sheiks, under whatever name, as well as obligatory
work done for them by the peasants shall be prevented; this kind
of slave relationship, a remnant of the feudal period, shall be
abolished.
- 38. Efforts shall be made to provide
all villages as soon as possible with electricity, roads, water,
schools, public-health clinics, reading rooms, and similar institutions
and services.
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- National Education and Culture
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- 39. The official language in Kurdistan
shall be Kurdish.
- The Kurdish dialects spoken in
northern Kurdistan, Kurmanci and Zazaki, shall be given the possibility
of developing freely on the basis of equal rights; a merging of
the dialects and the issue of linguistic uniformity shall be relegated
to natural processes.
- 40. In accordance with the requirements
of science and the interests of the people, a democratic educational
system shall be introduced.
- 41. Schooling shall be obligatory
until the age of 16; food, clothing, and school materials shall
be provided free of charge to those in need.
- 42. The people of Kurdistan, most
of whom are illiterate, shall be freed of their educational disadvantage
by means of adult education.
- 43. Serious efforts shall be made
to teach the general public the Kurdish written language and literature,
which the authorities have so far tried to eradicate through unbelievable
pressure, and to use it throughout Kurdistan in schools, the press,
and all areas of public life.
- 44. The necessary measures shall
be taken to develop every individual's capacities for, and enjoyment
of, culture and art.
- 45. For the sake of the physical
and mental health of young people, the importance of sports shall
be recognized, and youth cultural centers shall be established.
- Efforts shall be made to integrate
sports into the life of the entire people.
- 46. Religious and state affairs
shall be separate from each other.
- Every individual shall enjoy religious
freedom; no one shall be oppressed or privileged on the grounds
of his or her beliefs.
- Sheiks and other persons who use
religion for their own interests, shall be given no opportunities
to mislead the people.
- 47. Work shall be undertaken to
investigate and develop the history, art, and culture of our nation.
- 48. The historical works and monuments
of Kurdistan shall be researched, restored, and protected.
- 49. All of the minorities living
in Kurdistan shall be guaranteed the possibility of freely using
their respective languages; they shall not be subjected to any
limitations whatsoever in education, teaching, art, and all other
areas.
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- Women
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- 50. The necessary measures shall
be taken to liberate women and ensure their participation in professional,
social and political life on the basis of equal rights.
- 51. All of the humiliations and
mechanisms of oppression applying to women which have remained
from feudal times shall be abolished; violence against women within
the family shall be punishable, and the necessary measures shall
be taken to prevent it.
- 52. Women shall be given especial
importance in education; women shall be guaranteed the use of
the educational system on the basis of equal rights.
- 53. The custom of paying a bride
price shall be abolished.
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- Construction of Housing and
Urban Planning
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- 54. The PSK wants to liberate our
people from the primitive shelters in which they live today and
prevent their victimization by earthquakes and avalanches.
- Our rural population shall be liberated
from having to live in widely scattered settlements such as koms
and mezras (settlements with few houses).
- 55. Each family shall be provided
with a modern home suited to its needs and health requirements.
- Rents shall be controlled, and
needy persons shall receive rent subsidies.
- 56. A purposeful, modern approach
to urban planning shall guide the building of housing and settlements;
ready access to transportation, clean air, green areas, parks,
and aesthetic aspects shall be kept in mind.
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- Health Services and Social Services
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- 57. Every person shall be provided
with an adequate amount of food; starvation and malnutrition shall
be ended.
- 58. The necessary measures shall
be taken to provide health care to the people; those in need shall
be examined, treated, and given medicines free of charge in public
hospitals and other institutions providing medical care.
- 59. A sufficient number of kindergartens
shall be provided for preschool children; orphans shall be raised
under the supervision and control of the state.
- 60. In cases of need, the care
and financial responsibility for sick, handicapped, and aged people
shall be borne by the state.
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