The International Conference for Solidarity with Political Prisoners organised by the European Committee for Solidarity with the Free Prisoners in Cologne, Germany on May 24-25 has come to an end.
At the conference, questions such as developing the conscious for international solidarity with the political prisoners and the common work between the organisations working on the political prisoners` questions as well as coordinating the struggle on international level.
On the first day of the conference the following subjects were discussed: "Approach to the prison question, prison question during the historical development period", "Strategies of physical and psychological oppression in prisons and aims", "The prisoners: The resistance in the prisons and experiences of struggle", and on the second day the subjects "The role of the lawyers and the families within the struggle in the prisons", "International solidarity and struggle perspectives for the future" were discussed.
At the conference it was stressed that the question of prison is not a local, regional and national question but an international one, that the struggle on the prisons` question is one of those where the class struggle is at a very high level, that the method of isolation is a part of the imperialists` general attacks on the working class and oppressed people and finally, that the struggle on this topic is the duty of the whole society, the workers and labourers.
The conference also saluted the textile workers of the city of Mahalla, Egypt, who had started a hunger strike in the last days, and declared its support of the general strike of the Peruvian workers and labourers on June 9 as well as the strike organised by Limter-Is at Tuzla shipyards` area, Istanbul, on June 16. The conference also published a greeting message to the political prisoners.
The International Conference was saluted by the political prisoners in different countries, first of all by the PFLP general secretary Ahmed Saadat in the name of the Palestinian freedom fighters detained at Israelian prisons and the MLCP prisoners of Turkey and Northern Kurdistan and joined by delegates from organisations such as f.ex.:
IHD Istanbul branch - Turkey, Relatives of the Martyrs and Prisoners of the ESP -Turkey / Northern Kurdistan, Lawyer Kamil Agaoglu representing the advocates for the defence of the 10 September Prisoners - Turkey, Addameer - Palestine, Proletarian Solidarity Organisation (ASP) - Italy, AFAPREDESA - Western Sahara (by video conference), Labour Party Iran (Toufan) - Iran, ICAD (Netherlands and Germany Sections), Manik Mukherjee in the name of SUCI, IAPSCC and AIAIF - India, Red Aid France, International Red Aid - Switzerland, Red Aid - Germany, Communist Party Maoist - France, AvEG-Kon (European Confederation
of Oppressed Migrants), psychologist Dr. Jean-Claude Métraux - Switzerland, pedagogue - social specialist Umit Kosan - Germany, "Freedom to Abdullah Ocalan - Peace to Kurdistan" International Initiative - Germany, International Forum - Denmark, Persien Dialog - Germany, Aufbau - Switzerland, Collective of the prisoners of PCE(r), Grapo and Socorro Rojo - Spain, International Red Aid Commission - Belgium, AGIF - Germany, IGIF - Switzerland, ACTIT - France, GIK-DER - Great Britain, EGK - Belgium, MKP (Turkey-Northern Kurdistan).