💾 Archived View for library.inu.red › file › clare-maxwell-anarchy-in-the-ypg.gmi captured on 2023-01-29 at 23:16:29. Gemini links have been rewritten to link to archived content
⬅️ Previous capture (2023-01-29)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Title: Anarchy in the YPG Author: Clare Maxwell Date: 11 May 2017 Language: en Topics: YPG, Syrian civil war, Syria, International Revolutionary People’s Guerrilla Forces, rojava Source: Retrieved on 2020-5-25 from https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/anarchy-ypg-foreign-volunteers-vow-turkish-revolution
to create democratic confederation across Turkey and Syria
International volunteers have called for a “revolution” across southern
Turkey and northern Syria, after forming what they claim to be the first
strictly “anarchist” contingent inside the Syrian Kurd YPG militia.
The International Revolutionary People’s Guerrilla Forces (IRPGF),
created in April, is a cell within the International Freedom Battalion,
the grouping of foreigners who travelled to support the YPG in their
fight against the Islamic State group.
While they are by no means the first international volunteers to travel
to northern Syria, their goals of a revolution within Syrian-Kurd area
of “Rojava”, and the Kurd-dominated southern areas of Turkey, will alarm
Ankara.
Many within the IRPGF have committed to fight against the Turkish
military and their allies, who entered Syria in August partly to
neutralise the YPG as a threat on their southern border.
Turkey views the YPG as an extension of the Turkish PKK, which has
fought a decades-long war with the Turkish state. On Wednesday, the
Turkish government said it could not accept a US decision to arm the YPG
with heavy weapons to fight the Islamic State group.
For anarchists, as well as other ideological volunteers in Rojava, this
war is one front of an internationalist revolution, not merely
resistance against IS. Whether or not the IRPGF will ever eventually
fight in Greece, Brazil, Belarus or China remains to be seen, but they
are definitely more than happy to find themselves on the front lines in
Syria.
Two members of the IRPGF, who go by the pseudonyms Heval Sores and Black
October, agreed to speak with Middle East Eye about their experiences,
and the role of international anarchists in Syria.
“The IRPGF is the first major strictly anarchist formation in Rojava
whose intentions are not only to fight in Rojava (which is at this point
easy to do and legally not a big problem for Westerners) but to defend
social revolutions around the world, to fight against the state and
capital and advance the cause of anarchism around the world,” said Black
October.
“That means world revolution…while we are under the YPG’s authority and
therefore legally in alliance with every group in the Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF) we want to make it clear that our politics and the
revolutionary struggle are not simply confined to Rojava.”
The US on Tuesday announced it was arming the YPG in its push for Raqqa.
Turkey says every weapons delivered is a threat and according to IRPGF
members, they are bracing for an eventual war with Turkey, in the hopes
of uniting parts of Syria and Turkey into a confederalist entity.
“We cannot declare war on everyone at once but we need to be smart in
how we play our enemies while still sticking to our values,” said Heval
Sores.
Despite their internationalist viewpoint, both men felt drawn to Rojava,
the YPG and its all-female counterpart, the YPJ as one of the most
revolutionary political groups in the world. They had each spent time in
anarchist and socialist organisations, but felt that life in YPG/J units
was unique in its near total egalitarianism, ecological awareness and
feminism.
All the armed groups in Syria, including the IRPGF, are turning their
focus towards the battle for Raqqa, the de facto capital of IS. Once
that is over, however, priorities will change.
According to IRPGF members, they are bracing for an eventual war with
Turkey, in the hopes of uniting parts of Syria and Turkey into a
confederalist entity. Until that war is over, IRPGF and the
international Freedom Battalion are actively encouraging international
volunteers to join them.
“This is not the place to come to kill Arabs, Muslims or fight because
Jesus told you so,” said Black October.
“This is a revolution and we have no need for people like that. Not to
mention the Arabs are our comrades and fellow revolutionaries here in
Rojava and most Kurds are Muslims.
“I would also like to emphasise that people with right-wing tendencies
and/or religious motivations for coming to this conflict should refrain
from doing so.”
Both said that their decision to fight in Rojava was influenced by the
political ideology of Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned founder of the
Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), whom the YPG also hold up as their
ideological guide.
Ocalan, originally a Marxist-Leninist and Kurdish nationalist, underwent
an ideological transformation during his ongoing imprisonment in Turkey.
This has often been attributed to his correspondence with the late
Murray Bookchin, an American ecologist and socialist thinker who, after
spending many decades in anarchist circles, developed a new ideology
called Libertarian Municipalism based on decentralised democratic
self-governance.
Today, the PKK and YPG claim they no longer seek an independent Kurdish
state, but rather the Bookchin-inspired global model of grassroots
governance based on community assemblies, which Ocalan termed democratic
confederalism.
While anarchist theory heavily influenced Ocalan, anarchists worldwide
are split over whether or not they agree with his model, with the
British Anarchist Federation, for example, criticising the YPG and its
political wing the Democratic Union Party (PYD) for continuing to
function within a parliamentary system that dilutes the autonomy of the
nominally democratic local councils and municipalities in Rojava, while
suppressing political dissent and opposition parties.
However, the IRPGF admonished those who don’t lend their support to
their struggle.
“I think the better question probably should be why all the people still
living in non-liberated areas such as the USA, UK, China etc have not
come,” said Heval Sores.
“Especially all the anarchists… I see many ‘revolutionaries’ that don’t
actually believe that they could even bring about a revolution.”
Nevertheless, Black October acknowledged there were “contradictions”
that he disagreed with.
“But that is why I am here. To learn and provide critical solidarity and
support.”
Another major point of contention, especially for American anarchists,
is the YPG/J’s ongoing partnership with the US military.
From the American side, the relationship is relatively simple — if the
YPG/J is challenging IS, they are an asset to the US.
A representative from US Central Command reiterated that it is currently
legal for American citizens to join any group of the anti-IS coalition
in Syria, and the Department of Defence only interacts directly with
American YPG/J volunteers in the event of extreme medical emergencies.
The members of IRPGF affirmed that international fighters had relatively
no interaction with the several hundred US advisors and special forces
in northern Syria. However they coordinate with US coalition air
support, meaning that anarchist fighters are working in tandem with a
military power that they consider an ideological enemy. This leads them
to treat the YPG/J’s alliance with the US very delicately.
“Well for one it is important to acknowledge the fact that without
coalition air support the YPJ/YPG would not have had the same success,”
said Heval Sores.
“But they learned their lessons from the past. The betrayal of the Kurds
at Sykes-Picot have taught them to be careful and only rely on
themselves.
“Apoji movements (Kurdish organisations following Ocalan) have fought
over 40 years and they have since learned how to use the political
interests of the different players to their advantage.
“And they know what the interests of the US are and that in the long
term they are the enemy. We as militant anarchists need to learn from
this and do the same thing.”
While international media has lauded the YPG/J for their success against
IS, and the inclusion of women, members of the IRPGF say that the
radical ideology which has produced such success is rarely covered.
The YPG/J and associated militias are designed to work as collectives,
with each unit spending hours a day critiquing themselves, other members
of the group, and their actions. The process, known as Tekmil (Kurdish
for “review”), is credited with minimising hierarchies in the fighting
groups, as everyone is given a chance to put opinions forth.
“The Tekmil criticism and self-criticism system work extremely well,”
said Heval Sores. “A friend of mine once put it nicely: We are not the
Catholic church. You don’t say “sorry I am an asshole”, do your 10 Ave
Marias and then go back to being an asshole.
“If you self-criticise it means you truly want to work on something,
resulting in less conflict and a constant striving for
self-improvement.”
Black October explained that the Tekmil traced its origins to the Maoist
practice of criticism and struggle sessions.
“Yet the PKK adapted and modified it, turning it into one of the most
important aspects of the guerrilla struggle and party life,” he
explained. “To acknowledge and address our shortcomings and those of our
hevals (comrades) allows growth and development for both the individual
as well as the community.”
IRPGF members noted that tasks are equally divided and rotated,
everything from guard duty, to cleaning toilets, to composting. Men and
women participate equally in militias.
Black October credits the YPJ’s ideology and propaganda with a major
shift for women’s place in Kurdish society. He said he was moved to
tears by their expressions of joy during a Newroz (Kurdish New Year)
celebration.
“During the festivities, a group of young girls were dancing around the
fire holding hands and shouting “Jin, Jiyan, Azadi!” or “Woman, Life,
Freedom!” he explained.
“Their voices were filled with the confidence of free women, though most
were not even teenagers yet. Their laughter and joy filled the air and
it was their voices that were the true sounds of the revolution.
“I was overcome with emotion. With tears streaming down my cheeks, I
turned to one of my comrades saying, ‘even if this revolution is crushed
by our enemies, the revolution had already succeeded.’”