In the Peace and Democratic Society Process initiated by Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Ocalan, there has been no response yet to the people's request for the release of prisoners, particularly ill prisoners, as a gesture of goodwill. 

 

Reacting to the situation, relatives of prisoers said: “On the one hand, they talk about peace, but on the other hand, ill prisoners are still not being released.”

 

Son of Halide Ezer, Mahir Ezer, has been in prison for 15 years. She said: “My son was arrested because he is Kurdish.” Mother said that her son had been transferred to Bolu Prison, far from her, and that she could not visit him. She noted that her son had dozens of illnesses and that she herself was elderly and ill, so she had not been able to visit him for four years. 

 

Halide Ezer said: "Despite all the pressure and violence, we demand peace. We are going door to door for peace. For peace, police and soldier mothers should go door to door like us. We are taking every step for peace, they are not taking any steps.”

 

Halide Ezer stressed that the state and the government are slowing down the process, also reacted to the use of the term "terrorism". Halide Ezer: "We just want our language and our identity." 

 

She said they now want peace, adding, "We trust our leadership, not them, for the process." She stated that AKP Chair and President Erdoğan does not want Syrian Kurds to gain status.

 

I WANT TO SEE PEACE BEFORE I DIE

 

Riyaze Nergiz, who stated that her son Cengiz Nergiz has been imprisoned since 2016 and is currently in Elazığ prison, said that she has difficulty travelling to visit her son due to her many health problems. 

 

Expressing her support for the process, Riyaze Nergiz said: "No one should die anymore. Neither soldiers' nor guerrillas' mothers should cry. It is a sin for both sides. We want peace and brotherhood. However, I will not believe in peace until my son walks through the door of our house. I want to see peace before I die."

 

'PRISONERS ARE BEING SEPARATED FROM THEIR FAMILIES'

 

Ayse Firat, whose son Siyar Firat was sentenced to eight life sentences and is being held in Burdur Prison, said that due to her son being transferred to a distant location, she has only been able to visit him twice in the last two years. Ayse Firat said: "The reason for taking them to cities far from us is to victimise both the prisoners and their families. They want to sever the bond between the prisoners and their families. But our bond with our children will never be broken, and we will always be by their side."

 

NO PEACE WITHOUT FREEDOM

 

Saying that this process can only be resolved by sitting down and discussing it with Abdullah Öcalan, She said, "For this, they must sit at the table with our leader. A joint decision must be made for peace."

 

Emphasising that for peace to be possible, the Kurds must achieve unity among themselves Ayse Firat concluded: "Kurdish unity means that Kurds will live freely wherever they are. Prisoners will be free. Our leadership will be free. If we do not achieve unity, we will lose. Mothers should now lay their children to rest with flowers, not in coffins."

 

MA / Mehmet Gules