By Sosyalist Emekçiler Partisi (SEP)
On Monday, 19 March 2018, A group of rightwing students at Boğaziçi University gathered on campus to celebrate the Afrin war with Turkish delight. Next to them, anti-war student unfurled a banner stating “wars and occupations are not to be celebrated.” The dean of the university came to the area and problem solved between two group.
As everybody thought the incident had come to an end, a lynching campaign was started on social media and mass media against anti-war activists and students. In an unofficial announcement of Boğaziçi University, the administration stated their support for the group that celebrated the war on the basis of freedom of speech, while targeting the anti-war activist students for terrorist propaganda without any basis.
Any opposition is being accused of ‘terrorism’ throughout Erdoğan dictatorship. The ruling Justice and Development Party, AKP is making use of Afrin war to suppress the opposition within the country. Among other things, YOK, The Council of Higher Education, has been instructed to introduce new rules and regulations to make students’ expulsions easier and suppress the anti-war voices within the campuses.
On March 22nd, Thursday, Police operations started at 5.30 am. 15 people have been detained for “making terrorist propaganda”. Moreover, on Thursday, the university students gathered on campus to protest the detentions of their comrades. 7 of them detained and released after being tortured, harshly beaten and sexually harassed by police even the police tied one girl’s eyes.
AKP’s last play, which uses all kinds of manipulation and oppression tools to crush every opponent voice, is being played at the Boğaziçi University. The AKP Government, taking advantage of the provocation of fascist groups. Comrades and progressive voices are being detained to oppress the left opposition. Our comrades in custody are valiant revolutionaries, who struggle to become the voice of proletariat and the oppressed. They denounced their careers and fighting for Socialism.
Universities have always been places of free mind and struggle against tyranny and the system of exploitation. In this sense, the universities offered blood to the revolutionary veins of the country and have been a source hope. This is the truth that the AKP regime cannot accept.
The AKP order stinks so much that it can only be supported by the ignorance arising from people’s deprivation. This helplessness of the AKP requires the State of Emergency and various kinds of bullying. They are afraid of any kind of opposition because they cannot rule the country without imposing the State of Emergency for the perpetuity of the one man regime, and for this reason, they are threatening the universities and students.
While some of our friends from Ankara University were released during the last days, the state operation at Boğaziçi University continued. While house and dormitory raids are being made, the police is trying to increase the pressure by making CRC, identity check, in the study areas and in the faculties around the university. There are now 15 students in custody. Erdoğan, who says “ We will not give the right to study to these Communist students” he must know that, Socialist Youth did not submit themselves to the state pressure and will never submit.
Orders come directly from AKP leader Erdogan. For our friends in Boğaziçi, Erdogan in an attempt to politically influence the judicial process issued the verdict by labelling them “terrorists” before everybody, and that’s the crime. Erdogan is misleading the public by saying, “We will not let the terrorists be in the open the square of school gardens “. There was no fighting nor violence in Boğaziçi, the camera records are clear. So, will the same Erdoğan say something about fascist gangs who come to school with knives and guns to attack left-wing students?
If books are to be more dangerous than bombs, if FETO (Fethullah Gulen) is to be Hoca Efendi (Supreme Religious Leader), if the USA and NATO are to be allies, if ISIS is to be “angry youth”, if the head-cutter FSA (Free Syrian Army) is to be Kuva-i Milliye (old name for the Armed Forces) and if Mafia who wants to make blood-bath is to be patriotic. Then, of course, the Revolutionary Youth who is against all those and the 50% of the public who said “no” in the referendum become “Terrorists”.
The ones who constantly plant the seeds of hatred in society, the ones who build their power on feud and hostility, of course, want to silence the call for brotherhood among the people. They want ethnic, religious, and cultural polarisations to be vigorous so that the labourers cannot resist the exploitation of the system that brutally drifts one from the other. That is why they mark the people as traitors who criticise the war policy and the rising voice on Kurdish Question. However, history will write down, who plundered this country and who are the real enemies of the masses. They know this very well, and they can not escape from this fate.
Those who think that they can end the struggle with these detentions are greatly mistaken; from “ODTU is Standing” to “TrusteePresident” protests, the youth has already shown that it will not bow down to the dictatorship. We have a couple of words to say against the ruling and its partners who have entered a higher level of expectations through the pressures and operations: the pressures on revolutionaries and youth in this country have not emerged today, and will not come to an end until this corrupted system ends. Well, we are not only struggling for freedom in universities but also freedom from Capitalism, freedom from exploitation and freedom of labourers, We will never be silent. So your efforts are for nothing.
Release our friends, comrades, companions Immediately! whom you detained for reasons of fabrication! You can not terrorise Socialists by oppressing them! We are against every war, oppression and exploitation! you may think yourselves very mighty, but from Şeyh Bedrettin to İnce Memed, you can not silence those lands that have a history of resistance. While you send 301 miners to death in Soma, while records are been breaking in occupational murders, while Kurds and Alevis are suffering, while women and secular people are marginalized, while youth is destined to futurelessness, do you really think that we will give up? NEVER…!
Our tradition does not end from Mustafa Suphi to Deniz Gezmiş!
The youth will not bow down!
Release our detained friends immediately!
Long Live Revolutionary Solidarity!
Solidarity Message from Revolutionary Students Front (RSF) and Pakistan Trade Union Defence Campaign (PTUDC)
Comrades,
Ruling class in every country is suppressing the youth. but we, comrades, like proletariats could not be divided by borders or nationalities.
Revolutionary Students Front Strongly condemn the Turkish State Operation on Students!
We demand the immediate release of revolutionary students and our comrades!
No War… But Class War!
Long Live Wolrd Socialist Revolution!
