Members of the Peace Mothers group who attended the Jul 11 disarmament ceremony held by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) shared their reflections with bianet on the ceremony and the ongoing peace process.
Founded in 1999, the Peace Mothers are composed of women who lost their children in the conflict. A select group of members attended the ceremony, which marked a historic turning point in the four-decade armed insurgency.
Nezahat Teke, a mamber of the group who attended the Sulaymaniyah event, described it as "deeply meaningful."
"They would say 'Kurdish people will give up everything except arms,' the step taken now demonstrates the sinceriy in this matter," she said.
‘You brought more death than them’
Mother for Peace Havva Kıran directly addressed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Jul 12 speech in response to the PKK ceremony, where he critically recalled extrajudicial killings in the region in the 1990s, saying, “He implies, ‘I wasn’t part of the state then, this happened under Kenan Evren, Tansu Çiller, Turgut Özal.’ He’s ignoring what happened in his term.
"We can't speek freely due to the [peace] process. You exceeded them, you used more violence and brought more death. We asked for peace; you sent us coffins. You sent coffins to Turkish and Kurdish mothers. You did worse than them.”
‘We filled graves and prisons’
Teke also criticized the the government's use of the “terror-free Turkey" slogan to describe the peace process, saying, “He still says ‘a country without terrorism;' no one is a terrorist. No one [joined the PKK] for pleasure. He must leave behind this idea of ‘I sacrificed a lot, the other side sacrificed little."
Also addressing politicians who oppose the peace process, Teke said, “If mothers who lost children are rejoicing today, those sitting comfortably in air-conditioned rooms shouldn’t threaten them. Do they even understand the pain of losing a child?”
“We’re not keeping score of losses or gains. We need a clean slate. Those who’ve laid down arms should be allowed to enter politics in Turkey without accusations. That would show sincerity. Yet no real steps have come from there. We filled the graves; we filled the prisons.
"If peace comes, there will be calm. For Turkey’s economy and so mothers don’t cry... Mothers should not lose their children. We aren’t seeking revenge, Kurdish mothers never even uttered the word. I wish we could go to the West and embrace each other, to show the value of peace.”
'May this process bring humanity to Turkey'
Saying that peace would also contribute to prosperity, Havva Kıran added, “Hopefully this process reverses everything and brings peace, democracy, humanity to Turkey. Let’s live together in this country. Turks have rights, and so do Kurds. As Kurds, we are the people of this country; we built it together.
"Turkey is clogged; let’s turn it into peace. No more killings, arrests or street violence. Despite everything, we still want peace in the streets. If a mother buries her child without arms, without hands or feet, lying in the ground, and prays for peace over that grave, let Turkey’s president listen to her. We want peace not just for ourselves, but for the entire world. If peace opens the way, hunger and misery will end. We want peace.”
'Let neither Kurdish nor Turkish mothers cry'
Afife Kartal urged the state to take steps following the PKK's disarmament: “The state still considers them terrorists. Guerrillas aren’t terrorists, they’re our children. They are Kurdish children. The state must act immediately and extend its hand for peace. Let no Kurdish or Turkish mothers cry. Let there be a peaceful, brotherly peace. Kurds and Turks must extend peace and brotherhood to one another, then we’ll see a dignified peace.
"We want peace. Our hearts ache, but we call for peace. Release sick prisoners, open prison doors, and don’t extend sentences of those whose terms are finished by three or four months.”
Addressing the ruling bloc, Kartal continued, “End this hostility, eliminate enmity. Killing serves no one. We’re brothers; we must stop crying. I was heartbroken by the deaths of the 12 soldiers in that last cave. I felt deep sorrow for their mothers. One soldier’s sister said, ‘We sent you our brother alive and well; you returned his body.’ I feel her pain. Our hearts are torn, but we still say peace.”
'All mothers’ tears are the same color'
In a final appeal to President Erdoğan's spouse Emine Erdoğan, Kartal said, “She is a mother from Siirt. Tell Erdoğan to bring peace, bring brotherhood, and stop people from crying. Their children live in comfort and abundance, they bathe by the golden fountain, sit on golden toilets. We are poor, oppressed, exploited; we can barely care for our own. Despite that, we call for peace.
"I call on all Turks: extend your hands in peace. To mothers of soldiers, to mothers of martyrs, mothers of police—extend a hand of peace. We don’t want war. Let there be no more mothers’ tears. All mothers’ tears are the same color; there is no other. Blood cannot wash blood, it must be washed with water. Let neither they nor we die anymore. Enough, let there be peace.” (AB/VK)
