His Excellency Mr. George Papandreou, President of the Socialist International His Excellency Mr. Luis Ayala, Secretary General of the Socialist International
Dear Comrades,
The meeting of the Socialist International (SI) comes at a time when the world is going through exceptional circumstances, especially in Syria and Kurdistan. It is not a secret that our organisation, i.e. SI, has a significant role in the world, and is the largest assembly of powers, parties and personalities who believe in values based on the concepts of social justice, equality and global peace and security. As a member of this global organisation and representatives of our country, Syria, our belonging to the values of the SI makes us feel very proud. This is because it emphasises integration between the universal values and the values of humanity that we share according to our national, cultural and ideological characteristics. This, in turn, is in line with the role of the individual belonging to the family of humanity and the international community, away from monopoly, greed, any form of military, economic and cultural domination and the imposition of certain social values at the expense of indigenous cultures.
Our party, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), was founded on 20/09/2003 and has, since then, been struggling for the achievement of a democratic, ethical, liberal and egalitarian society in Syria, Kurdistan and the Middle East. We have assessed the Syrian crisis from its beginning in more depth and felt that this crisis is structural and political at the same time. We, therefore, were not with the re-production of the rigid central political system and maintain it. At the same time, we were not the ones who counted on the opposition, which carried out agendas that have nothing to do with the history and culture of the people of Syria, who in turn, consists of different peoples, nationalities and cultures. We, together with parties, political powers and community actors in Rojava and northern Syria, established the “third way”, which represents the aspirations of the people for change and democratic transformation. We have had a pioneering role in the establishment of the Democratic Self-Administration, which is based on the principles of the peaceful co- existence, the fraternity of the peoples and the unity of their destiny. We also represented the solution to the Syrian crisis by fighting terrorism and terrorist organisations, such as Daesh, and by proposing the self-administration model, which is based on a democratic decentralised system, as an alternative to the totalitarian system.
We have become an influential power in Syria as well as partners of the international community and together we have dealt severe blows to terrorism. We inform you that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are in the final stage of eliminating terrorism as an organisation in Syria. However, when we say that terrorism is in its final stages, it does not mean that it has been eradicated completely. As you know, drying up the sources of terrorism, especially the intellectual ones, is the biggest struggle.
What we have done in the north and east of Syria must be a source of pride for all members of the SI. However, the Turkish regime, threatens our democratic project and wants to invade our territories, based on baseless accusations and pretexts. Turkey wants to occupy our areas, as it occupied Afrin a year ago. In this regard, we highly appreciate the SI statement condemning the occupation of Afrin by the Turkish army. Today, the Turkish army and its mercenaries are committing horrific crimes against the remaining residents of Afrin, such as demographic change, looting, murder and intimidation. They are threatening to invade our entire region in full view of the world. Consequently, we put forward the following proposals to be adopted and considered by the SI during its next meeting:
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To issue a statement envisaging a solution to the Kurdish issue in Syria, so as to guarantee Syria’s unity and sovereignty within the framework of a decentralised system of governance in the model of democratic federalism.
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To adopt a vision that prevents Turkey’s aggression and threats against our region, which shall be submitted to the UN Security Council for adoption.
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To draw a practical plan for the safe, stable and dignified return of the people of Afrin to their homes under the supervision of the international community and to end the occupation of Afrin by the Turkish army and its terrorist mercenaries.
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To organise an urgent special conference under the auspices of the SI to draw emergency plans to deal with the humanitarian issue of the displaced people of Afrin and to establish mechanisms to deal with their harsh conditions.
We thank you very much for your time, effort and support, and we wish you and the SI every success in your next meeting.
Yours sincerely,
The Co-Presidency of the PYD
Mr Shahoz Hassan Ms Aisha Hesso
