The political thought of Abdullah Öcalan : Kurdistan, women's revolution and democratic confederalism / translated by Havin Guneser and International Initiative "Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan--Peace in Kurdistan."

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Öcalan, Abdullah, author.

Contributor:

Güneşer, Havin, translator.

International Initiative, Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan--Peace in Kurdistan (Organization), translator, issuing body.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Kurds--Politics and government.

Kurds.

Kurds--Turkey--Politics and government.

Turkey.

Politics and government.

Kurdistan.

Women's rights.

Democracy.

Physical Description:

xxvii, 153 pages ; 20 cm

Edition:

International Initiative edition.

Place of Publication:

London : Pluto Press, 2017.

Summary:

Abdullah Öcalan led the struggle for Kurdish liberation for more than twenty 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. These writings form an indispensable introduction to Öcalan's political thought - and to the ideas that have inspired a new, egalitarian socialist system in the Middle East which is fighting for survival against religious extremism and state violence. Book jacket.

Contents:

1 War and Peace in Kurdistan: Perspectives on a Political Solution to the Kurdish Question 1

Introduction 1

Etymology of the Words Kurd and Kurdistan 2

Kurdish Settlement Area and Kurdish Language 3

A Short Outline of Kurdish History 3

Struggles for Resources, War and State Terror in Kurdistan 6

European Colonialism and the Kurdish Dilemma 7

The Ideological Basis of Colonial Oppression and Power Politics in Kurdistan 8

Kurdish Identity and Kurdish Resistance 13

The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) 14

New Strategic, Philosophical and Political Approaches 18

The Present Situation and Suggestions for a Solution 24

2 Democratic Confederalism 30

Introduction 30

The Nation-State 31

Democratic Confederalism 39

Principles of Democratic Confederalism 46

Problems of the Peoples in the Middle East and Possible Ways to a Solution 47

3 Liberating Life: Woman's Revolution 57

Introduction 57

Women's Revolution: Neolithic Era 60

The First Major Sexual Rupture 63

How Patriarchal Authority became Deep-Rooted 68

All Slavery is Based on Housewifisation 70

The Second Major Sexual Rupture 73

Family, Dynasty and State 76

Women's Situation in Kurdish Society 80

Capitalism 82

Economy 85

Killing the Dominant Male: Instituting the Third Major Sexual Rupture against the Dominant Male 87

Jineolojî as the Science of Woman 91

Democratic Modernity: The Era of Woman's Revolution 93

4 Democratic Nation 97

Introduction 97

Capitalist Modernity and the Nation 99

Democratic Modernity 103

Democratic Solution 105

The Democratic Nation Model 108

To Be a Seeker of a Democratic Nation Solution 139

Conclusion 141.

Notes:

Includes index.

ISBN:

0745399762

9780745399768

OCLC:

953976818