Letter from jailed Kurdish politician Leyla Güven for Mother’s Day
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"Maybe the only word you learn in a language you don't know is, 'peace'" wrote from prison, Leyla Güven, a former People's Democratic Party (HDP) MP, who was stripped of her parliamentary status and sentenced to 22 years and 3 months in prison for her political activities.
"You have always wanted peace"
Güven sent a letter from Elazığ Women Closed Prison for the International Mother's Day to Jin News. She called out to Peace Mothers, Saturday Mothers and Plaza De Mayo Mothers in her message.
"I'm sure that you, as Peace Mothers, are as always very busy, since wherever there is unlawfulness, injustice or inequality, you are there. You are the first to feel pain when there is conflict and war, wherever in the world it may be." she wrote.
Hoping her wishes for the days of peace, Leyla Güven stated the following:
"You have always represented hope to our community with your boundless resistance, from the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo to the Saturday Mothers and yourselves, the Peace Mothers.
Maybe the only word you learn in a language you don't know is, 'peace' (...)"
"We as imprisoned women are asking you: Please do not be sorry for us. We are always hopeful and have high morale. We get our strength from your white scarfs. "
"The days are not far off when all mothers will embrace their children, when an honorable peace will prevail in our lands. Take great care until that day. You already know that, hope is more valuable than victory."
About Leyla Güven
Living in Germany for a long time, she worked in the women's organization of the People's Democracy Party (HADEP) in 1994.
In the local elections in 2004, she was elected as the Adana Küçük Dikili Mayor; in 2009, she was elected as the Viranşehir Mayor.
As part of the operation against the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), Leyla Güven was arrested in December 2009. Following an imprisonment for five years, she was released in 2014. In the KCK main trial, she was sentenced to 6 years, 3 months in prison.
In the Parliamentary elections in June 2015, Leyla Güven was elected as the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) 25th Term Şanlıurfa MP and entered the Parliament. In the Parliamentary elections in 2018, she was elected as the HDP 27th Term Hakkari MP.
While she was in prison as part of the KCK investigation, she went on a hunger strike, demanding that the isolation of imprisoned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan be lifted.
Her prison sentence of 6 years, 3 months in the KCK main trial was upheld by the Court of Cassation while she was the HDP Hakkari MP. With her finalized prison sentence read out at the General Assembly of the Parliament, she was stripped of her MP status on June 4, 2020. While she was arrested shortly afterwards, she was released on June 9, 2020.
On December 21, 2020, she was sentenced to 22 years, 3 months in prison on charge of "leading an organization", arrested and sent to Elazığ Type E Prison in eastern Turkey. (TY/TB)