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These are the essential writings of a man who inspired a new,
egalitarian socialist regime in the Middle East, which is currently
fighting for survival against religious extremism and state
violence. Abdullah Ocalan led the struggle for Kurdish liberation
for more than 20 years until his capture in 1999. Now, writing from
prison in Turkey, he has inspired a new political movement. Called
Democratic Confederalism, this revolutionary model is developing on
the ground in parts of Syria and Turkey; it represents an
alternative to religious sectarianism, patriarchy, capitalism and
chauvinistic nationalism, providing the blueprint for a burgeoning
radical democratic society. This selection of Ocalan's writings is
an indispensable introduction for anyone wanting to engage with his
political ideas. His central concepts address the Kurdish question,
gender, Democratic Confederalism and the future of the nation. With
The Political Thought of Abdullah Ocalan, his most influential
ideas can now be considered and debated in the light of his
continuing legacy, most notably in the ongoing revolution in
Rojava.
These are the essential writings of a man who inspired a new,
egalitarian socialist regime in the Middle East, which is currently
fighting for survival against religious extremism and state
violence. Abdullah Ocalan led the struggle for Kurdish liberation
for more than 20 years until his capture in 1999. Now, writing from
prison in Turkey, he has inspired a new political movement. Called
Democratic Confederalism, this revolutionary model is developing on
the ground in parts of Syria and Turkey; it represents an
alternative to religious sectarianism, patriarchy, capitalism and
chauvinistic nationalism, providing the blueprint for a burgeoning
radical democratic society. This selection of Ocalan's writings is
an indispensable introduction for anyone wanting to engage with his
political ideas. His central concepts address the Kurdish question,
gender, Democratic Confederalism and the future of the nation. With
The Political Thought of Abdullah Ocalan, his most influential
ideas can now be considered and debated in the light of his
continuing legacy, most notably in the ongoing revolution in
Rojava.
The Kurdish question, the general term for the fact that the Kurds
have no independent homeland of their own, is one of the most
complex issues in the Middle East. This situation will inevitably
continue to bring about other problems. Its geographical location
in one of the most fragile and strategically important parts of the
region should not be ignored. This situation needs to be resolved
urgently to prevent it becoming even more complicated and severe.
The Kurdish question is, in both form and content, more complex and
bears wider regional ramifications than the Arab-Israeli conflict,
which at present occupies a central position in the media
throughout the world. In his second book Mr Ocalan applies the
political and historical philosophy that was developed in the first
volume of his Prison Writings to the Kurdish question. It is less
philosophical and abstract and addresses the concrete political
issues at the centre of the Kurdish question. The author calls for
a "Renaissance of the Middle East" where the integration of
democratic western values and universal human rights with the
deeply rooted cultural values of the Middle Eastern societies,
especially the Kurdish one, will form a new synthesis of
civilisations.
Abdullah Ocalan was the most wanted man in Turkey for almost two
decades until his kidnapping and arrest in 1999. He has been in
prison ever since. This is the first publication of his writings
amassed during his imprisonment. As the founder of the Kurdish
Workers Party (PKK), the group fought for an independent Kurdish
state in the south east of Turkey. In a sustained popular uprising,
tens of thousands of PKK guerrillas took on the second largest army
in NATO. Since his imprisonment, Ocalan has written extensively on
Kurdish history. This book brings together his writings for the
first time. Breathtaking in scope, it provides a broad Marxist
perspective on ancient Middle Eastern history, incorporating the
rise of the major religions (Islam, Christianity and Judaism), and
defining the Kurdish position within this, from the ancient
Sumerian civilization through the feudal age, the birth of
capitalism and beyond.
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