JINHA

ÊLIH – Tens of thousands of workers gathered in the Northern Kurdish city of Batman today for the Kurdish region’s largest May Day celebration. Workers in Batman denounced the police violence in Istanbul.

“Whatever you’re going to do, do it; you can’t stop Taksim and Batman coming together,” said Şaziye Köse, general co-chair of the union confederation KESK, reminding the crowd that while they gathered in Batman, police were attacking their fellow workers in Taksim Square.

Union leader Mustafa Mesut Tekik, from the oil industry union Petrol-İş, opened the rally yesterday
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“Let’s turn May 1 into Newroz,” said Mustafa. Referring to the Newroz legend of the defeat of the tyrannical giant Dehak, he continued, “We celebrate May 1 as the day of victory against the Dehaks, the cruel tyrants of capitalist modernity and capital, the enemies of the people.”

Mustafa stressed the importance of women’s struggle, referencing PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan’s analyses of the key role of women in escaping from capitalist modernity. Mustafa noted that women, both commoditized by capitalism and exploited as workers, were the key to the struggle.

“It’s time for all women workers and laborers to come together,” he said.

Democratic Regions Party co-chair Kamuran Yüksek also spoke, making a call for workers to come together to defeat the AKP in the June elections, end corruption and communalize natural resources.

(ekip/fk/cm)