Uncovering Democratic Modernity — Resistance, Rebellion and Building the New Documentation of the 2017 Conference
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Network for an Alternative Quest Challenging Capitalist Modernity III Uncovering Democratic Modernity — Resistance, Rebellion and Building the New Documentation of the 2017 Conference International Initiative Edition Network for an Alternative Quest Challenging Capitalist Modernity III Documentation of the 2017 Conference Network for an Alternative Quest Challenging Capitalist Modernity III Uncovering Democratic Modernity — Resistance, Rebellion and Building the New Documentation of the 2017 Conference This book is online: http://ocalanbooks.com/#/book/challenging-capitalist-modernity-iii Challenging Capitalist Modernity III Uncovering Democratic Modernity — Resistance, Rebellion and Building the New Network for an Alternative Quest http://networkaq.net Copyright © 2020 by International Initiative Edition International Initiative “Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan — Peace in Kurdistan” P. O. Box 100 511 50445 Cologne, Germany [email protected] SeitenHieb-Verlag, Reiskirchen Typesetting: Andreas Hollender Cover Motive: Holger Deilke ISBN 978-3-86747-089-6 Table of Contents Network for an Alternative Quest — Editorial Note ..................................7 Welcoming Speeches and Messages 0.1 Rolf Becker — Welcoming Words ..................................................... 10 0.2 Hamburg Rojbîn Women’s Assembly and Civaka Azad Assembly ................. 14 0.3 Frank Adloff — Real Utopias .......................................................... 16 0.4 John Holloway — You are not Alone ................................................. 20 0.5 Message from Ekojin ................................................................... 23 0.6 Havin Guneser — Opening Speech: Becoming Aware ............................. 25 0.7 Asrın Law Office — Free Society, Free Human and Free Humanity ............. 29 Session I — Breaking Down the Mindset of Capitalist Civilization 1.1 Fabian Scheidler — Cracks in the Global Megamachine .......................... 34 1.2 Ebru Günay — A continuous State of War .......................................... 42 1.3 Dawn Paley — Construction of Fear and “Human Surplus” ...................... 48 1.4 Ferda Çetin — Society of the Spectacle: Arts, Sports, Sex and Media ........... 55 1.5 Carlos Pazmiño — Öcalan and Bakunin: an incomplete discussion ............. 60 Session II — Beyond State: Thinking and Building Alternatives 2.0 Debbie Bookchin — Introduction ..................................................... 66 2.1 Özlem Ekinbaş — Acknowledging the history of now and understanding it and building tomorrow ................................................................. 73 2.2 Haskar Kırmızıgül — The Geist of Democratic Civilization ..................... 81 2.3 Reimar Heider — Democratic Nation: Defining “nation” beyond the borders of patriarchy ...... 89 2.4 Hanim Engizek — Self-Defense: Deconstructing How Society is Left Defenseless ................. 94 Session III — Ways of Building and Defending the New 3.0 Simon Dubbins — Introduction ......................................................104 3.1 Zilan Yagmur — Resist, Revolt and Build the New ...............................107 3.2 David Graeber — Re-Thinking Resistance: Smashing Bureaucracies and Classes ..................113 3.3 Raúl Zibechi — Dispersing Power: How to Prevent the Monopolization of Power .............120 3.4 Fuat Kav — How to Move Ahead: Extraordinary State Violence and Terror While Making Revolution ............................................................126 3.5 Miguel Juaquin — Stages of Liberation: Fanon’s Concept of the Anticolonial Revolution .......132 Video Messages Video 1: Zeynep Cûdî, YJŞ — Will to Truth .............................................144 Video 2: Mustafa Karasu — Building Democratic Modernity .........................146 Video 3: Ronahî Serhat— “Women of Fire an the Sun” ................................152 Video 4: Internationalists ....................................................................158 Session V — Capitalism Can be Overcome: Imagine the “Unimaginable” 5.1 Cora Roelofs — Agriculture and Food: Contradictions and Solutions .........166 5.2 Friederike Habermann — Commoning and Self-Sustenance ....................174 5.3 Eleanor Finley — Local decisions and regional democratic confederalism (breaking with the logic of nation-state) ...........................................182 5.4 Halime Kurt — Matriarchy: Breaking the Logic of Patriarchy ..................188 5.5 Salih Muslim Muhammad — Breaking with the Logic of Militarism — Self-Defence and Legitimate Defence ..............................................194 Session VI — Democratic Modernity: Perspectives Ahead 6.1 Abdullah Öcalan (Kurdistan) — Democratic Modernity: A Perspective for Today .................................200 6.2 Sonia López, People’s Congress (Colombia) .........................................208 6.3 Fawza Yusuf (North Syrian Federation) .............................................213 6.4 Quincy Saul — Eco-Socialist Horizons (USA) ......................................217 6.5 Cassia Figueiredo Bechara, MST (Brazil) ...........................................223 Hêvîn Tekin, YXK — Closing speech ...............................................230 Editorial Note The thirdChallenging Capitalist Modernity conference took place at the University of Hamburg on 14–16 April 2017 under the title Uncovering Democratic Modernity: Resistance, Rebellion and Building the New. We are once again happy to present a volume of texts to document all the speeches made during the conference. It is impossible to document everything that happened during the con- ferences. Not only the discussions and preparations in the run up to the conference go undocumented, but also the friendships formed, feelings and creativity as well as the political events that inspire and make the confer- ence finally what it is when all these different components come together. So lots of things indeed go undocumented, the whole bunch of beautiful people who made it possible for people to understand one another with ease, in six different languages. And the people who opened their homes to 700 participants of the conference, to care for one another, not previ- ously knowing one another — the strength of ideas and the quest for an alternative or free life. Or the beautiful start we had, with dancing that depicted that quest for truth by the Mesopotamia Dance Society, or the music that not only rested our souls with the beats of dengbej women (Narîn Şêxê, Tawê Efrînî, Ayda Riha) and spiritchild who took us to different worlds but were telling us the same things. And all of these brought us together the next morning, having left two days of the conference behind but feeling miraculously refreshed. The workshops this time around allowed for more in depth discussions of many important topics from criminalizing societies to self-defense in Rojava, from jineolojî to health and to many more important topics. This, too, we could not document as there were more than 13 workshops. And all along, those who were unable to be there, those struggling in many different places, resisting out of prisons or on their land, in their forests, mountains or urban neighborhoods were in our midst. We, thus, present to you the work of countless people who have con- tributed both in the realization of the conference and the making of this book. It is truly impossible to name them one by one, but most of us know who they are and that without their work, solidarity and support neither the conference itself nor this book would have been possible. So we are pleased to present the fruit of all your contributions as a timeless document. Thank you all! Network for an Alternative Quest: International Initiative “Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan — Peace in Kurdistan” • KURD-AKAD Network of Kurdish Academics • YXK/ JXK – Association of Students from Kurdistan • Kurdistan Report • ISKU – Information- stelle Kurdistan e.V. • Cenî – Kurdish Women’s Office for Peace • Civaka Azad – Kurdish Center for Public Relations Welcoming Speeches and Messages 10 Challenging Capitalist Modernity III 0.1 Rolf Becker Welcoming Words A heartfelt good morning to everybody; it’s great that you are here. Thank you for allowing me to participate and to contribute a few welcoming words. In one of the announcements, there is a ref- erence to thinking the unthinkable and asking oneself: “What is the unthinkable and what is the thing to be thought?” Each one of us will have a different answer to the question of what they deem unthinkable and what they deem thinkable. Each one, a different answer. How do we find a com- mon answer? In my view, we do so only by standing up, whether individually or in smaller and maybe even larger collectives, for what we have found out. By concretely standing up for it, acting practically, whether it be at the job, in the union, or in the neighborhood, and whether it be for pensioners, old people, children, or whoever and wherever. A truth we do not stand up for is not really a truth at all. As some of you may know, last year I was in Sûr, in Diyarbakir. There, they had an assembly of mothers, mothers who were on a hunger strike. Our question was: “What are you striking for?” The answer was obvious from many pictures, reproduced in big photos, on the walls of the room. There were around 60 to 70 mothers there. Striking for the release of their children? That would have been comprehensible. No, it was a hunger strike for release of the dead bodies of their murdered children. What response do we give these