International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Violence Against Women: Deadliest place for women is at home, UN report says
Europe

A UN report released on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women said that "almost 60 percent of all women who were intentionally killed in 2023" died at the hands of partners or family members. The report added that “the home is the most dangerous place for women and girls”.


Issued on: 25/11/2024 -
By: NEWS WIRES

Protestors march during the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women in Paris, France, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. © Thibault Camus, AP

The deadliest place for women is at home and 140 women and girls on average were killed by an intimate partner or family member per day last year, two U.N. agencies reported Monday.

Globally, an intimate partner or family member was responsible for the deaths of approximately 51,100 women and girls during 2023, an increase from an estimated 48,800 victims in 2022, UN Women and the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime said.

The report released on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women said the increase was largely the result of more data being available from countries and not more killings.

02:26

But the two agencies stressed that “Women and girls everywhere continue to be affected by this extreme form of gender-based violence and no region is excluded.” And they said, “the home is the most dangerous place for women and girls.”

The highest number of intimate partner and family killings was in Africa – with an estimated 21,700 victims in 2023, the report said. Africa also had the highest number of victims relative to the size of its population — 2.9 victims per 100,000 people.

There were also high rates last year in the Americas with 1.6 female victims per 100,000 and in Oceania with 1.5 per 100,000, it said. Rates were significantly lower in Asia at 0.8 victims per 100,000 and Europe at 0.6 per 100,000.

According to the report, the intentional killing of women in the private sphere in Europe and the Americas is largely by intimate partners.

By contrast, the vast majority of male homicides take place outside homes and families, it said.

“Even though men and boys account for the vast majority of homicide victims, women and girls continue to be disproportionately affected by lethal violence in the private sphere,” the report said.

“An estimated 80% of all homicide victims in 2023 were men while 20% were women, but lethal violence within the family takes a much higher toll on women than men, with almost 60% of all women who were intentionally killed in 2023 being victims of intimate partner/family member homicide,” it said.

The report said that despite efforts to prevent the killing of women and girls by countries, their killings “remain at alarmingly high levels.”

“They are often the culmination of repeated episodes of gender-based violence, which means they are preventable through timely and effective interventions,” the two agencies said.

(AP)

Thousands protest violence against women across France


More than 400 French organisations have called for demonstrations across France on Saturday to protest violence against women. The mass mobilisation comes amid the widespread shock caused by the Pelicot mass rape trial, in which some 50 men are accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot at the behest of her husband while she was unconscious.


Issued on: 23/11/2024 -

08:57

Demonstrators hold a banner reading "feminists in a fight against feminicides and patriarchal violences everywhere and all the time" as they take part in a protest to condemn violence against women, in Paris, on November 23, 2024. 

© Stephane de Sakutin, AFP


Thousands demonstrated in major French cities Saturday against violence targeting women, as campaigners push for the country to learn from a mass rape trial that has shocked the public.

Prosecutors will in the coming week ask the court in the southern city Avignon to sentence 51 men, one who drugged his wife over the course of a decade and dozens of others who accepted his invitations to abuse her at their home.

Out on the street, "the more of us there are, the more visible we are, this is everyone's business, not just women," said Peggy Plou, a local elected official from the Indre-et-Loire region in western France who had made the trip to Paris.

Thousands of people marched in the capital alone, mostly women but including some children and men.


And there were hundreds-strong demonstrations in other major cities including Marseille in the south, Lille in the northeast and Rennes in the northwest.

05:02

Many demonstrators carried signs with variations on the slogan "shame must switch sides", popularised by the plaintiff in the Avignon trial, Gisele Pelicot.

She has been celebrated for accepting public hearings in her case rather than a trial behind closed doors, despite their painful content.

"A law about consent must be put in place very quickly. Just because someone doesn't say something, doesn't mean that they agree" to sexual contact, said Marie-Claire Abiker, 78, a retired nurse also marching in Paris.

France's legal definition of rape calls it "any act of sexual penetration... by violence, constraint, threats or surprise" but includes no language about consent -- a key demand of women's rights groups especially since the MeToo movement launched in the late 2010s.

"In 2018, there were basically only women (demonstrating). Today there are, let's say, 30 percent men. That's really great news," said Amy Bah, a member of the NousToutes (all of us women) feminist group protesting in Lille.

"I feel like this is my business too, we each have our role to play, especially men," said Arnaud Garcette, 38, at the Marseille demonstration in the city's touristy historic port with his two children.

"We're at the source of the problem, and at the source of the solutions too," he added.

The demonstrations called out by more than 400 campaign groups come two days before Monday, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Equality Minister Salima Saa has promised "concrete and effective" measures to coincide with the global day.

YPJ Commander: The women-led revolution in Rojava has been a source of inspiration for all women

JIN, JIYAN, ASADI  WOMEN, LIFE, FREEDOM

YPJ Commander Leyla Waşukanî emphasised the importance of the Kurdish women's revolution and struggle and said that women should fight against male-dominated systems in an organised and courageous way.


ANF
NEWS DESK
Monday, 25 November 2024, 18:38

Leyla Waşukanî, one of the commanders of the Women's Protection Units (YPJ), spoke to ANHA about the Kurdish women's revolution and resistance.

Commander Leyla Waşukanî drew attention to the policies of the male-dominated system against women and the resistance of women and said, “First of all, it should be noted that we are faced with a system prevailed by a male-dominated mentality. This system united against the order of the goddess woman, set games and intrigues, and built its cruel order by realising the first conspiracy in history. It is a fact that women and children suffer the most in wars and conflicts. Today, humanity is experiencing the peak of the third world war. In Kurdistan, the Middle East and all over the world, humanity is being abused and the existing conflicts are being fuelled. In the face of these attacks, resistance and a unique struggle is absolutely necessary. Every day we witness the murder of women in society. This is a result of the special war waged by the capitalist nation-state and the small state mentality that is its continuation. At this point, the duty of women is to organise against this system and its dirty war. This is only possible through revolution.”

Referring to the women's revolution, the Rojava Revolution, Leyla Waşukanî said the following: “When the war in Rojava started in 2012, Kurdish women participated in revolutionary activities with all the means at their disposal. When the spark of the war was lit, they organised themselves, took the front lines and fought heroically. They were brave and determined; they stood shoulder to shoulder with men against the most dangerous forces in the world and wrote epics of heroism. This struggle of women influenced everyone. So much so that even brutal gangs such as ISIS were afraid of women and had to say, ‘Women with red shoes (Jinên pêlav sor) are not afraid and will not back down’. This stance of women has been a great source of pride and honour for all of us.

It was the resounding struggle of these brave Kurdish women fighters that led to the Rojava Revolution being recognised as a women's revolution. Even in the harshest conditions, women took on their roles and formed the basis of moral strength and enthusiasm. Women's struggle became a place of respect and admiration. The sacrificial and warrior women's labour has become the legacy of libertarian women's freedom to organise for the future and to build a confederal and democratic society.

We must remember this: Nothing is won for nothing. Sacrificial fighters are needed for an equal and free future. Today, women can proudly and confidently say, ‘We exist and we want our freedom’. As Leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan) said, ‘If the woman is not liberated through her labour, the man will never be liberated; he will remain a slave.’ Therefore, women must be confident in themselves, grow on their labour and achieve freedom.”

Leyla Waşukanî emphasised the courage of Kurdish women and continued: “The epic heroism of Kurdish women is in front of the eyes of the whole world and this struggle still continues with determination. Kurdish women are known for their relentless courage, pride and self-confidence. From pioneers such women from Dersim, Besê and Zerîfe to Sara, Bêrîtan, Zîlan, Sema, Ezîme, Zinarîn, Meryem, Zehra, followed by Arîn Mîrkan, Rêvan Kobanê, Avesta Xabûr and many more heroic women sacrificed their lives for the sake of their people, their land and their freedom. No matter how great physical and life difficulties women faced, they never backed down or complained. Even in the most difficult moments, they put up resistance without hesitation and reached the highest rank in the struggle for freedom. Kurdish women bravely took part in the front lines and have always been the main force of resistance and struggle.

If women's revolution is being talked about today, this is not just a discourse, but the result of the resistance of women on the battle fronts. The resistance of women on the battle fronts was decisive for the Rojava Revolution to be recognised as a women's revolution. With their courage and sacrifices, women have gained respect. The struggle of Kurdish women in the Rojava Revolution can never be denedi, because this struggle has resonated all over the world and cannot be overshadowed by any dominant mentality.”

The YPJ commander also mentioned the leadership of women in the Kurdish uprisings and said: “Women have always played a pioneering role in Kurdish uprisings and revolutions. Today, young women such as Şervîn, Reyhan, Rojna, Leyla, Jiyan, Sara, Rûken and finally, Kurdish woman Asya Elî, have become the stronghold of resistance and revenge in the heart of Ankara, the capital of Turkey, with the art of guerrilla struggle. Leader Apo says the following about the Kurdish resistance fighter Bêritan Hêvî: ‘In Barzani's war in 1992, weak people like Osman could not resist and surrendered to the enemy. However, the heroic Bêritan did not surrender, she resisted the betrayers. When Gülnaz Karataş, that is Bêritan, ran out of bullets during the battle, she smashed her gun and jumped from Lêlkan Hill in Xakûrkê in order not to fall into the hands of those who sold her.' In Rojava, there were women like Barîn Kobanê; they heroically resisted in order not to fall into the hands of the enemy. Barîn was fully focused on her goal and fought against the gangs until her last breath and joined the caravan of martyrs. Similarly, Avesta Xabûr also fell a martyr with honourable resistance. The struggle of Kurdish women has become a source of inspiration for all women.”

Leyla Waşukanî emphasised that the revolutionary women's struggle had a great impact on all societies and added the following: “The leadership of women in the Rojava Revolution has been a source of inspiration for all women and revolutionary and libertarian forces. Dozens of young women joined the ranks of the revolution and took part in the war. Women were seen as cowards in society. However, it should not be forgotten that Leader Apo persuaded women to stand up, and this in itself is a revolution; it is almost as if it was created out of nothing. Women sacrificed their lives to protect women and society. As we all know, YPJ was founded on this basis and grew day by day. YPJ pioneered all the moves in the Rojava Revolution and continues its struggle with determination.”




MSD: The struggle to end violence against women is an inseparable part of our fight

MSD calls on the international community, human rights organizations, and feminist movements to intensify their efforts to support Syrian women and expose the practices and violations they face, whether by oppressive regimes or occupying forces.


ANF
NEWS DESK
Monday, 25 November 2024

The Syrian Democratic Council (MSD) released a statement marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Remarking that November 25th carries significant meaning in the global women's struggle for freedom, dignity, and equality, MSD pointed out that this year’s commemoration comes amidst the rise of systematic violence and gender-based discrimination in various regions around the world.

The statement also shed light on the plight of Syrian women who, it said, are enduring highly complex conditions due to the ongoing war since 2011. “The war has exacerbated various forms of violence and discrimination, including poverty, marginalization, severe abuses such as torture, killing, and enforced disappearance. These conditions are particularly dire in areas under Turkish occupation and its affiliated mercenaries, where severe violations against women are systematically committed.”

The MSD attributed the rise in violence against Syrian women to the dominant patriarchal culture, discriminatory laws, and the devastating consequences of the bloody conflict. It stressed that this painful reality "requires a serious stance from all of us to struggle for change and promote equality."

In the context of women's struggle against all forms of violence, the MSD saluted the resilience of Syrian women and their continuous fight for freedom and democratic change. It stressed that empowering women and guaranteeing their rights is not only a humanitarian issue but also a fundamental condition for achieving peace and sustainable development in Syria.

The MSD called on the international community, human rights organizations, and feminist movements to intensify their efforts to support Syrian women and expose the practices and violations they face, whether by oppressive regimes or occupying forces.

The MSD also urged all Syrian women to unite and work together to align their visions and goals, collaborating to end the violence practiced against them. The MSD stressed that women's participation in the political process and decision-making is not a secondary demand but a necessity for the success of any sustainable political solution in Syria.

The MSD reiterated that "women's freedom is the key to the freedom of society as a whole, and the struggle to end violence and discrimination against them is an inseparable part of our fight to achieve justice and dignity for all Syrians."

KURDISH RESISTANCE

JIN, JIYAN, ASADI  WOMEN, LIFE, FREEDOM

Duran Kalkan: The greatest women’s liberation struggle is the PKK struggle

Kalkan said that "Öcalan created the slogan 'Jin, Jiyan, Azadi' and called it the ‘magic formula’. It indeed has become a magic solution, a pioneering force for the problems created by the power and state system."


ANF
BEHDINAN
Monday, 25 November 2024, 07:50

In the second part of this in-depth interview, Duran Kalkan, member of the KCK Executive Council, spoke about the significance of democratic confederalism as well as the women’s revolution that is taking place in Kurdistan under the leadership of the PKK and PAJK.

The first part of the interview can be read here.

What is the significance of democratic confederalism and the solution model of the democratic nation in a territory characterized by violence, conflict and war such as the Middle East? Why is this model seemingly so vital for different peoples, beliefs and even marginalized communities?

The Middle East, Kurdistan in particular, is a historically multilingual, multicultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious, multi-sectarian territory. It is an area where many different societies are intertwined with each other, where many different social realities have developed alongside each other and have been shaped over a long historical process. It is the area where sociality and natural society have developed. It is also the area where power and state structures have developed and taken shape and ruled for the longest time. What do democratic confederalism and democratic nation mean in such an area? It means the free self-organization of all identities and their free participation in the unity of the democratic nation, in the framework of democratic confederalism. Within this unity, they can freely live in their own uniqueness. All identities, religious identities, national identities, social identities, see their uniqueness in the freedom of the others in the democratic nation model, under democratic confederalism. They see their existence in the existence of the other. They see their life in the life of the other. However, religious, nationalist, sexist, ideological patterns, and liberalism express exactly the opposite. It is this thinking that to ensure one’s own existence, the destruction of others is needed, that to ensure one’s own freedom means the enslavement of others. As an example, Rêber Apo [Abdullah Öcalan] evaluated Israel, which is currently launching heavy attacks. It is trying to ensure its existence by destroying those around it. It follows a mentality that by enslaving those around it, the Jews will be free. As Rêber Apo said, this is impossible.

By destroying others, the Jews cannot exist and be free. No one can. But all these mentality patterns and currents of thought see their own future in marginalizing, destroying, oppressing, and enslaving others and accept and foresee this as the truth. This is what is turning the Middle East into a bloodbath. So many religious and sectarian divisions, so many ethnic divisions, so many social divisions, and contradictions; if they all clash with each other, a deadlock emerges. The democratic nation, democratic confederalism, is a movement to set an end to this. It is a movement to eliminate the bloodbath, these contradictions and conflicts. And it does so through a change in mentality, through an important revolution of mentality. It means the elimination of the understanding that ‘others must disappear, everything must be mine’. It envisions a democratic, socialist, sharing, and communal life. It is not about saying, “Let me live!” but about saying, “Let everyone live!”. It is about saying, “For me to be free, everyone else must be free!” It envisages developing and ensuring freedom under democratic politics.

As the mentality and the concepts of democratic nation and democratic confederalism developed by Rêber Apo on the basis of the new paradigm are carried forward, they have a great impact on societies and the various ethnic structures in the region and in the world and thereby become a center of attraction. It becomes a way out, a way of salvation for everyone. The hegemonic system is hostile; they attack, but the societies see it as a way out. In the Middle East, states are preventing the spread of these ideas, but in different suitable areas of the world, they find the opportunity to spread more and to be more influential. If these opportunities are utilized, they will lead to very rapid developments. A new life, a new order of relations, a new existence for humanity. It starts a new era, a new history. Against the 5,000-year-old male-dominated mentality and system of power and the state, and against the 500-year-old male-dominated mentality and system of capitalist modernity, it envisages a new era of life, a new historical process that is compatible with natural society, that makes peace with nature, and that envisions humanity living freely and fraternally in happiness. It is clearly seen that it has already led to important developments and will lead to more.

A women’s revolution is taking place in Kurdistan under the leadership of the PKK and PAJK and based on the philosophy and efforts of Rêber Apo. How did this revolutionary process develop, and what changes did it bring about within society? What are the reasons for the women’s liberation struggle being constantly and deliberately targeted by the states?

Historically, these issues have been evaluated and discussed. The PKK’s new paradigm, the struggle that is developing in Kurdistan under the leadership of the new PKK, is seen, discussed, and evaluated primarily on the basis of the philosophy of women’s liberation, within the framework of defining and developing the women’s liberation revolution. This is a current situation.

In order to be able to assess how it came to this point, it is necessary to examine Kurdish society historically. On the basis of which characteristics was a society that could survive and sustain itself in the midst of so much fighting in Mesopotamia, be shaped? There are historical realities for this, and there are many social dimensions that need to be taken into consideration for this. What happened historically in Kurdish social organizations and women’s participation in social life is also important for today. It is not a society in which the power and state systems are highly developed. It is the least developed in society. It is a society that has not realized empowerment and statehood. What does this mean? It means that women play a very active role in society. It means that, to a certain point, women’s freedom and leadership still prevail in society. Statehood and empowerment are expressions of male dominance; they are its products. It is a result of the politics of the dominant male mentality. Since historically, this is not as deeply rooted in Kurdish society as in many other societies, this already makes a big difference.

As for the development in the PKK, Rêber Apo is a personality passionate about freedom, and this from his childhood on. His development of the movement is also like that. His passion for research on the Kurdish identity and struggle for freedom has created so many achievements and brought about so many developments, making him a true pioneer of his people. It made him a personality that overcame many difficulties and obstacles. The same thing manifested itself in the problem of women as the most oppressed, exploited, and enslaved gender. He approached this issue seriously from the very beginning. As he understood the Kurdish reality, he tried to understand the reality of women, and as he analyzed the Kurdish reality, he analyzed women. This is how the evaluation and analysis of women developed, and of course, when it came to the point of founding a party, Rêber Apo saw the power of women, the power of women marching towards freedom and struggling for freedom, as the most fundamental force of this party.

One of the core calls in the PKK founding declaration was made to women and was prepared by Rêber Apo. It is still a strong call that affects everyone who reads it. He called for creating a new life with the PKK by destroying all forms of slavery, fighting against all forms of domination, and envisioning a free society and a free Kurdistan. This was an important call, but since the mentality and ideological system of real socialism were still in the foreground at the time, it took some time before the realities corresponding to the call became the defining factors in the political and organizational framework of the PKK. How was it initially received back then? It was perceived as one of the many arms of the movement, as a pillar of struggle and organization. The pioneering struggle for women’s freedom was not initially seen as fundamental. But the women’s organization took the issue very seriously. It developed from the mid-1980s onward.

It developed in Europe and spread to other areas. Women had already participated in the PKK when it was still a group, and later, through the breakthrough of August 15, when the guerrilla struggle was implemented, many women joined its ranks. The more problems arose in the guerrilla struggle and the more corresponding solutions developed, the more the importance and role of women in the struggle became apparent. Accordingly, the issue of women’s freedom and the issue of the family were more on the agenda of Rêber Apo, and he evaluated them more. After the 3rd Congress, with the establishment of the Mahsum Korkmaz Academy, Rêber Apo’s theoretical evaluations deepened. It was multifaceted and developed in many dimensions, but there were two main dimensions of Rêber Apo’s deepening at that time. One was the dimension of the guerrilla struggle, and the second was women’s liberation. These developed in parallel to each other. They deepened, complemented, and strengthened each other. Gradually, this had a great impact on society. Not only did the participation in the guerrillas increase, but from the beginning of the ’90s, the women-led national resurrection revolution, the serhildans, developed. This marked the beginning of the women’s liberation revolution and gave birth to the ‘Party of Free Women in Kurdistan’ (PAJK). Women’s militancy developed; the autonomous women’s guerrilla developed, which today is embodied as ‘Free Women’s Units – Star’ (YJA-Star). Consciousness, ideology, and the organization and struggle based on it developed are intertwined with each other.

With the new paradigm, Rêber Apo took women’s freedom as a fundamental pillar of the paradigm. The ecological society, the ethical and political society, and the freedom of women; these are the three main pillars of the ideology of Rêber Apo. He addressed the need for women’s freedom on many levels, and, accordingly, developed ‘Jineoloji’ as a science of women. The Kurdish woman embraced and participated in this by struggling under the most difficult circumstances, taking on all kinds of risks and tasks, and assuming the responsibility and duty of leading the struggle for their country and nation. Thus, the ideology of women’s liberation, and the women’s liberation revolution came to the agenda. On the basis of PAJK, KJK, and YJA-Star. It became a movement to create a new life, a new society, a new revolution. It defined the 21st century as the century of women’s freedom. This development affected all the movements related to women’s issues in the world. It revealed the narrowness and inadequacy of feminist movements, movements that fought for women’s rights and for materialistic equality to reduce the oppression of women. It drew them to the women’s liberation revolution.

Rêber Apo created the slogan “Jin, Jiyan, Azadi” and called it the ‘magic formula’. It indeed has become a magic solution, a pioneering force for the problems created by the power and state system. Humanity is marching under the leadership of women. It is marching with the Jin Jiyan Azadi revolution. The women’s liberation struggle and revolution is not just a part, a branch, but the vanguard of the struggle for freedom and free life. It constitutes the basis of social freedom; it expresses its leadership. It envisages overthrowing and changing male dominance in every aspect.

Now we are approaching November 25th; it is called the international day against violence against women. It is followed by November 26 and 27, the anniversary of the founding of the PKK. Creating a women’s party, creating a women’s liberation revolution, and thereby turning the struggle against violence against women into a women’s liberation revolution was the most appropriate approach, and it still is. This needs to be evaluated together. November 25 finds its best meaning in the reality of the PKK on November 26 and 27. The greatest women’s liberation struggle is the PKK struggle. A struggle that finds its representation in the foundation of the PKK. Some people narrow the definition of violence too much. They envision it as material violence and oppression. But it is not like that. By exposing not only visible violence but also invisible male-dominated violence against women and by envisioning a women’s liberation revolution that fights against it, the PKK is a movement that strongly wages the struggle for women’s freedom and equality as women’s identity against the male mentality and system. This reality is much better seen and understood by women today. Women realize the meaning of PAJK’s leadership more and more. They understand more deeply the Jineoloji developed by Rêber Apo. They participate more than anyone else in the global freedom campaign for the physical liberation of Rêber Apo. They embrace it and they lead it. Because they see and understand with their lives and experiences that Rêber Apo is indeed the strongest companion of women.

This will be the fundamental revolution of the 21st century. And the statist structures are attacking this because it is the women’s liberation revolution that most concretely exposes and confronts the mentality and political system that creates the state and power. It analyzes not only the state and power, but most crucially the mentality and hierarchy that lead to it. It analyzes male dominance beyond the state and power. It reveals the male-dominated mentality and system that is internalized in all areas of life beyond the rough appearance of the state and power. In this respect, they fear women. The struggle for the revolution of women’s liberation consciousness unmasks them the most. The struggle for women’s liberation exposes the male-dominated mentality and system, the power and state system the most; it shows its brutality, its unacceptability, and its inability to live the most. Therefore, the ruling statist forces are afraid of the women’s liberation struggle. That’s why they attack. In the past, some struggles for women’s rights did not reveal their faces at all. They were even trying to win it for themselves. This is due to liberalism. They were under its influence, but now the women’s liberation revolution that is developing on the basis of Jineoloji is shattering and eliminating all this. It completely unmasks them and reveals the truth in all its depth. Therefore, the power and the state system are afraid. It sees its own end coming. It sees that it will lose everything in the women’s liberation revolution. Things have changed. Women are seen as the most dangerous and are therefore attacked, oppressed, and arrested. Women understand this reality better than anyone else; they educate and organize themselves accordingly. Men who become conscious and organized on the basis of women’s liberation see this reality. Free women and men who strive for liberation can analyze this reality together and struggle more effectively. No matter what they do, the male-dominated mentality and politics, the power and state system will not be able to destroy this consciousness and the organization and struggle it creates. On the contrary, this consciousness, organization, and development will destroy the male-dominated mentality, politics, and the power and state system. It will make the 21st century a century of a free and democratic society based on women’s liberation.

Kalkan: The PKK’s strength and invincibility lie in its capacity of transformation

Duran Kalkan said that "the PKK is a movement of leadership, and that is related to being a pioneering movement."

ANF
BEHDINAN
Tuesday, 26 November 2024


In the third part of this in-depth interview, Duran Kalkan, member of the KCK Executive Council, spoke about the significance of democratic confederalism as well as the women’s revolution that is taking place in Kurdistan under the leadership of the PKK and PAJK.

You said that the PKK is a movement of leadership. How should that definition be understood? What is the reality of leadership in the PKK, and what is the role of Rêber Apo [Abdullah Öcalan]? How should the participation of this reality be?

That is correct; the PKK is a movement of leadership, and that is related to being a pioneering movement. It is not an ordinary movement. It is not a movement that gives power and support to something. On the contrary, it is a movement that analyzes, evaluates, criticizes, takes positive aspects, rejects negative aspects, and envisions a new life. It is a revolutionary movement, a movement of great change. It does this as a pioneer. It is undoubtedly a movement of leadership that is leading the way, preparing a new and free life, and exploring and creating the paths to get there.

Rêber Apo made a decisive contribution to the birth, establishment, and everything of the PKK. Rêber Apo’s role is decisive. The roles of others vary accordingly. There are those who contribute more, those who contribute on average, those who contribute less, and, of course, there are those who obstruct. From the beginning, the role of Rêber Apo has been decisive. It is a fact that Rêber Apo is the one who contributes the most, from forming the movements' thoughts, theory, program, strategy, tactics, leadership, training cadres, to leading the party, forming the guerrillas, and leading the people. He has always been at the forefront, spends the most effort, and makes the greatest contribution.

The PKK did not take shape through a bunch of people sitting around a table, discussing, agreeing on some principles, forming a common administration, and establishing a party. There are such movements, such parties. They have tried to emerge in Kurdistan throughout history, but the PKK was not like that. From the beginning, the PKK was a movement shaped around Rêber Apo and formed on the basis of joining Rêber Apo. Rêber Apo determined, developed, and created all the measures, principles, and values of the movement. Others joined him and became one with Rêber Apo. Becoming a PKK member, joining the party, becoming PKK, means joining Rêber Apo, forming and organizing around Rêber Apo.

This is an important aspect, an important feature of the PKK. This is what leadership means. Rêber Apo said that participation in the leadership is based on consciousness and belief. Some participate with consciousness and some with conviction. But the most correct way is to participate with both, as he said. This is how to reach truth. He also stated that this is how comrades like Mazlum and Hayri participated, and they became the most successful party members. Consciousness means understanding the truth of Rêber Apo. Of course, belief means participating and being attached to the truth. But just seeing and evaluating the truth is not enough. In order to be a good revolutionary, militant, or patriot, the truth must be well understood and set into practice. Participating with knowledge, understanding, and belief is the right participation; it brings out the most successful revolutionism and patriotism.

In the past and now, especially on the basis of the new paradigm, we question the way of participation in the PKK and in the reality of the Rêber Apo more. There are many things we arrange according to our own wishes, and one thing that falls within this framework and is much discussed is emotional participation. “I have participated according to my emotions.” That’s not how it works. That’s not how you join the PKK. On the contrary, Rêber Apo evaluates the emotion that is not thought through and not organized as a great danger. The power of emotions, when they are well-thought-out and organized, is a power that cannot be destroyed. But an emotion that is detached from thought and organization, through which no action arises, opens the way for great dangers and prepares the way for fanaticism. Emotional participation must be well analyzed and evaluated as a step towards the PKK and towards leadership. It could be a start, but Rêber Apo and the party must be well understood. With this, together with deep thought and conviction, participation can take place. The mistakes and damage caused by emotional participation must be overcome.

To this day, the PKK is not fighting with the Turkish army, the second largest in NATO, but is actually fighting against NATO’s Gladio. It is a force that not even states could withstand, but the PKK seems to have managed to strengthen itself in the resistance against it. How has the PKK made it to the present day? In other words, what are the characteristics of the PKK that have kept it alive?

This actually is a good definition; the question is well put. It really reveals the PKK’s strength. It expresses what kind of war it is fighting and against whom it is fighting. You ask how it was able to fight against these forces? Where did it find the courage and strength to wage war? And how did it survive while fighting against such a powerful force?

Well, especially for the last 26 years, these attacks have been carried out at the level of an international conspiracy. It directly targets Rêber Apo. The capitalist global hegemony directly plans, organizes, and executes it. It is the same now as it was in the beginning. There has been no change in this regard. Of course, it is not just the Turkish army, the Turkish state’s special warfare system, or the Turkish intelligence that conduct these attacks. From the very beginning, and on an increasingly prominent basis, the PKK has been fighting the NATO system, Gladio, and beyond that, the power and state system, the male-dominated mentality and system. These are multileveled struggles: ideological struggles, conscientious struggles, moral struggles, cultural struggles, literary struggles, and struggles of emotions.

These express a struggle as great as war, as great as political war, as great as social war. Even more than that. How does the PKK do all this? How has it survived? The essence of it needs to be evaluated on many dimensions. It is essentially based on its own strength, the strength of autonomy, the strength of the people, especially women, young people, and workers; after all, it has also adopted the name of the party of working people. How did it become such a strong autonomous force? This has to do with Rêber Apo’s approach and view of life. It can also be linked to the concrete situation in Kurdistan. There was no other option in Kurdistan. There was a situation where there couldn’t be any hope of getting support from others. There was no forming of alliances to hope for. Those who tried to collaborate with the state were more dangerous than the most worthy agents. A society and a country ignored and destroyed by the global dominant structure of the capitalist system.

Who are you going to get support from? Everyone is part of this system, and the ruling power and state system are against you. There was the Soviet Union that said it was an alternative. But they didn’t support either. In fact, as the Kurdish freedom struggle and the organization of the PKK gradually developed, the Soviet Union declined, and on the basis of its ideological contradictions, it dissolved and collapsed. There was seemingly no basis left. Rêber Apo saw this reality very well from the beginning. His awareness of history was very strong in this regard. He learned lessons of history well. In other words, he always questioned the situation of the resistance in the first quarter of the 20th century, the results of the resistance in the 19th century, and why these resistances were defeated, crushed, and failed to succeed. And thereby he realized that one has to rely on one’s own strength, one’s own power, but of course this is not enough; relying on one’s own strength is not enough.

One will rely on one’s own strength, but one will also have to rely on the people, on the power of people. One will believe that people who become conscious, educated, and organized are the greatest power. Technique is, of course, power; weapons are power; money is power; but the greatest power is the conscious and organized man. The greatest power of struggle is the apoist militant, the sacrificial militant, the PKK cadre. How did Rêber Apo define this by saying that it is the truth that has been rendered organized and activated? Bringing a person to this state is the greatest power. There is no power that can prevent it. This is not an exaggeration; we don’t need to prove it. The most recent example is the attack aimed at TAI in Ankara, which is the reality shown in Asya Ali and Rojger Helin. The place attacked is one of the most protected and is secured by the joint force of 40 states. But still, nothing could prevent that revolutionary militancy. This is the PKK strength.

How is it possible to create such militancy? By analyzing life and living according to the findings. The power of Rêber Apo needs to be seen, as do his persuasiveness, sincerity, consistency, and power of analysis. He offers a new life. He reveals the characteristics of this life and defines it as humane life. Based on this, he reshapes and educates human beings with their emotions, mindsets, and souls and creates a new free, conscious, and organized human being. This lies in Rêber Apo’s power to explain the truth and analyze life. He reveals the facts and truths at this level. There is no cheating, no wrong. He analyzes the concrete situation that reveals and shows everything clearly. Accordingly, he educates people and creates such a force. The power that makes the PKK invincible is this sacrificial militancy, the consciousness that creates it, the paradigm, the last line, the line of democratic civilization, the theory of democratic modernity. As long as this reality is taken as a basis, everyone should know that no one can defeat the PKK; the PKK will remain invincible. It has been like this until now. It will be like this from now on too. It is probably best to seek and understand the secret here.

What especially distinguishes the PKK from other national liberation movements and Kurdish parties? What is the secret of the PKK? How did the PKK turn into an ideological, political, military and social reality that is perceived by everyone?

We have already partially touched this above. There are many things that distinguish the PKK from other organizations and Kurdish parties. It differed in the way it defined, recognized, analyzed, and thought about the Kurdish reality, the reality of Kurdistan. It also differed with his commitment to Kurdish existence and freedom. Rêber Apo said that if he had not succeeded in uniting himself with the existence of the Kurdish people and the free existence of the Kurds with his own existence, he could not have created any of these developments. Kurdish patriotism and libertarianism are about dedication and not for material gain, not to become a civil servant or to make a name for oneself. He did not accept such a way of life for himself. He refused the seemingly beautiful material life.

The other Kurdish organizations did not. They lived like civil servants of an organization. They wanted to threaten the state a little bit and get more space for their civil servantship. They were begging for a little more share of the exploitation of Kurdistan and Kurdish society for themselves. They were not breaking away from the system. They envisioned living within the system. Therefore, their so-called Kurdishness, patriotism, revolutionism, and socialism always led them to develop their individual lives, to take some space, or they remained weak and powerless. They were not strong, strong-willed, or assertive. There was too much expectation on the outside. Instead of relying on their own power and developments, they had this kind of empty Kurdishism based on blunt nationalism. In other words, there was a ‘materialist revolutionism’. Therefore, they associated with the socialist system and liberalism. They evaluated the Kurdish reality on the basis of their own interests. Therefore, they could not break away from the system. They always sought reconciliation with the system and were reformists. They could not build an effective struggle within the system. When they came into contradiction or conflict, they immediately disappeared. Because they were under the control of the system. They did not have a structure to fight against the colonialist, genocidal mentality and system under all circumstances.

The PKK was not like this. It criticized their reformism, surrender attitude, primitive, reformist, and petite bourgeoise nationalism. The PKK criticized them intensely. On the basis of these criticisms, Rêber Apo both formed his own understanding and line and shaped himself according to them by educating himself on this basis. He did not become like them. When the conditions changed a little and the attacks increased, those in control disappeared. They tried to hold the PKK responsible for their liquidation due to their own approach and style. Their misconceptions were at that level. They did not assess the conditions in Kurdistan correctly; they were not committed to Kurdish freedom. They did not educate and organize themselves in a way to wage a true struggle for freedom under all circumstances. They could never get out of colonialist genocidal control. Those who were under control disappeared in a short time.

Also, other forces and organizations had been liquidated, but the PKK managed to always protect itself in these developments because it was open to change and transformation. Rêber Apo criticized the dogmatism but also gave self-criticism and said that we were also affected by this dogmatism. But we must know this; nevertheless, in the 20th century, Rêber Apo was the least dogmatic personality, the one who approached the process most openly and creatively. As he developed with the struggle, he deepened this creativity even more. He was constantly aware of change and transformation and envisioned renewing himself and the movement. He was always looking for innovation, not repeating what already existed, repeating things he had memorized, and doing what he had done over and over again. His questing characteristic never disappeared. His innovative attitude deepened; he was not afraid; he did not shy away from change, transformation, and innovation.

The paradigm shift did not come out of nowhere. And the change, development, and renewal in Rêber Apo did not happen only with a paradigm shift. There were always changes and developments step by step throughout the process. The paradigm shift against the international conspiracy actually foresaw a radical self-criticism, a radical renewal, and change. This is where the PKK’s strength and invincibility lie. In its transformation. Rêber Apo said that his most fundamental characteristic is his change-orientation. The power to defend something, to persistently defend it, to create it is also its character. He never gives up on that. This is the reality, the reality that made him struggle against so many attacks, that gave him the strength to fight. The international conspiracy, the attempt to destroy him, failed. So they put him in the Imrali system of torture, isolation, and genocide.

They said now it was over. They said the PKK had a maximum of six more months to live. No one believed that there would be any more struggle, but Rêber Apo believed in himself; he trusted himself. He trusted in his own strength and called on the organization and the people to follow him. And our movement and our people responded to this call of our leader. It was Rêber Apo that succeeded. Rêber Apo created success where everyone else was surrendering. This is not a normal, ordinary situation. Rêber Apo overcame any difficulties and obstacles and created new things starting from scratch, all of this with its own power. It is necessary to assess and understand Rêber Apo’s leadership qualities in all their dimensions.

It is this characteristic that makes the PKK so strong and invincible. This is how Rêber Apo was able to take down every hindrance in front of him. No other leader in Kurdistan has been able to lead uninterruptedly for more than 50 years. Despite the attacks of the international conspiracy, Rêber Apo did not interrupt the march of leadership. There is nothing similar in the world. He showed the strength to struggle for such a long period. The PKK gains success to the extent that it understands and implements the thoughts of Rêber Apo, organizes itself accordingly, and takes action. The more they put it into practice, the more successful it is. The more it understands, the more it puts it into practice. Sure, there are criticisms and self-criticisms in this regard. Sure, there are a lot of inadequacies; one needs to see that too. But the secret really lies in this creative, innovative power, this power of change. Anything that cannot change itself and that repeats the old cannot succeed, even if it is the PKK.

 

What a Difference a Day Makes: Armistice vs Veterans

by Mike Ferner / November 25th, 2024

After the fourth graders concluded singing the songs of the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force, they were hailed as “our future heroes.” Fifty-caliber machine guns and other weapons were on display. An invocation was offered for those missing and captured. A bagpiper skirled a haunting benediction of “Amazing Grace” and the school kids returned to close it out with “Thank You, Soldier.”

In between there were speeches by local dignitaries and military officers as 1200 people chowed down on pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage gravy and biscuits, fruit salad, coffee and juice. When the grade schoolers filed out, several saluted, some tried a 10 year-old version of marching in step and nearly all said, “thank you for your service!”

So concluded the 20th annual Veterans Day Breakfast that filled the University of Toledo basketball arena on November 11.

That holiday, called Armistice Day for many years, observes the day in 1918 when the guns of the Great War finally fell silent, ending a slaughter the likes of which the world had never seen. Over 8,000,000 soldiers were killed. Some 13,000,000 civilians died, mostly from starvation and disease.

The original Congressional resolution establishing the holiday said it “shall be a day dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as Armistice Day.”  At the height of the Red Scare in the 1950’s, Congress changed it to “Veteran’s Day” as part of a full court press to militarize Americans in preparation for the Russian invasion we were told to fear.

And fear we did!

Air raid sirens told us when to hide under our desks. The lives and careers of scores of people subpoenaed for McCarthy and Nixon’s un-American hearings were ruined, as were thousands more who were named or whispered to be Reds. Labor leaders purged their most passionate organizers, insuring union membership declined from 1955 onwards and the South would remain largely unorganized for decades.

Nationalism and its cousins, militarism and xenophobia have long been woven in our cultural fabric and they’re seeing another peak in popularity. Such corrosions of spirit don’t arrive fully formed in the minds of adults but are part of what we breathe every day from kindergarten on up.

Veterans For Peace members and Palestinian supporters outside the UT arena distributed hundreds of flyers that explained the true meaning of November 11 and called for a modern day ceasefire in Palestine. We included copies of Wilfred Owens’ “Dulce et Decorum Est” poem which was extremely well received when we explained he was killed one week before the end of WWI.

Our effort stood out vividly because it was so very rare. “Maybe it got a few people thinking,” we hoped, knowing how difficult that is in a thoroughly militarized society.

If that sounds like a too-harsh indictment, consider these few examples, many of which you’ve no doubt personally witnessed in some version:

• A plethora of bridges, streets, post offices and schools are named for veterans or military celebrities across the nation
• From sea to shining sea light poles on Main Streets are festooned with banners depicting local military veterans but never nurses or teachers
• Military recruiting billboards and commercial messages exert a daily presence everywhere, as do military recruiters in high schools and job fairs
• The Pentagon has annual multi-million dollar contracts with the National Football League to provide flyovers of fighter jets and honor “local heroes”
• Every high school, college and professional sports game is preceded by “the rockets red glare” and “bombs bursting in air.”
• Memorial Day, July 4, Flag Day, Armed Forces Day, December 7, September 11 and other days dot the calendar reminding all of the importance of the military. In my book, the two worst annual perversions have to be the military color guard that leads the Labor Day parade when militarism is a plague on working people and the Marine in full dress uniform that makes sure even the Holiday Parade’s Santa Claus is fully exploited!

Why such an omnipresent, interminable, expensive deluge of propaganda?

Because otherwise successive generations might not learn the hard way that War Is A Racket in which the few profit and the many pay…and to make sure fourth graders become our “future heroes.”

Mike Ferner is Special Projects Manager for Veterans for Peace. He can be reached at mike@veteransforpeace.org. Read other articles by Mike.

 

No Screening for Black Men’s Prostate Cancer Epidemic 

Why?

by Nayvin Gordon / November 25th, 2024

Would the below statements from the American Family Physician (11/2024) be true if, after 40 years of a prostate cancer epidemic, it was White men, not Black men who have been suffering and dying?

“Black men: Compared with White men, Black men have a more than 60% higher incidence of prostate cancer, an earlier age at diagnosis, a higher rate of metastatic cancer at the time of diagnosis, and a two to three-fold higher rate of prostate cancer mortality.  Unfortunately, none of the large prostate cancer screening trials included adequate numbers of Black men to determine any specific recommendations for screening.”¹

Black men in the U.S. have the highest rate of prostate cancer in the industrialized world. It is a leading cause of death for all men and Black men die from this cancer at over twice the rate of White men. The cancer in Blacks often spreads more quickly if not aggressively treated.

Over the last forty years, at least 30,000 Black men have died yearly from prostate cancer. Screening with the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood test can find this cancer early.

The 2018 US Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) report stated: “Screening offers a small potential benefit of reducing the chance of death from prostate cancer in some men.” “More aggressive screening strategies particularly those that use a lower PSA threshold …., provide the greatest potential reduction in death from prostate cancer.”

While acknowledging that PSA screening saves lives the USPSTF does NOT call for universal screening of Black men for prostate cancer. The National Cancer Institute, 4/10/19, The American Cancer Society 3/11/16, and the American College of Physicians, 4/9/13, none of these organizations call for universal prostate cancer screening for Black men.

Why?

Black men do NOT get universal prostate screening because of priorities and money.

 The PSA test is “a hugely expensive public health disaster”. “As Congress searches for ways to cut costs in our health care system, a significant savings could come from changing the way the antigen is used to screen for prostate cancer.”²

Americans waste an enormous amount of money on an inaccurate test for prostate cancer.

Even a blind man can see that Black men are not a priority.

The political priorities are obvious: Trillions of dollars in tax cuts for corporations and the rich, and trillions in dollars for the military–war machine.

Are all lives equally worthy?

ENDNOTES:

• 1
  See Prostate Cancer Screening: Common Questions and Answers.
• 2
  See Opinion | The Great Prostate Mistake (Published 2010).

Dr. Nayvin Gordon is a Family Physician in California who has written many articles on Health and Politics. He can be reached at gordonnayvin@yahoo.com. Read other articles by Nayvin.

 

Fencing the Ocean: Australia’s Social Media Safety Bill

by Binoy Kampmark / November 23rd, 2024

The Australian government is being run ragged in various quarters.  When ragged, such a beast is bound to seek a distraction. And what better than finding a vulnerable group, preferably children, to feel outraged and noble about?

The Albanese government, armed such problematic instruments as South Australia’s Children (Social Media Safety) Bill 2024, which will fine social media companies refusing to exclude children under the age of 14 from using their platforms, and a report by former High Court Chief Justice Robert French on the feasibility of such a move, is confident of restricting the use of social media by children across the country by imposing an age limit.

On November 21, the government boastfully declared in a media release that it had officially “introduced world-leading legislation to enforce a minimum age of 16 years for social media.”  The proposed legislation, known as the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024, is supposedly going to “deliver greater protections for young Australians during critical stages of their development.”

The proposed legislation made something of an international splash.  NBC News, for instance, called the bill “one of the toughest in the world”, failing to note its absence of muscle.  To that end, it remains thin on detail.

These laws constitute yet another effort to concentrate power and responsibilities best held by the citizenry in the hands of a bureaucratic-political class governed by paranoia and procedure.  They are also intended to place the onus on social media platforms to place restrictions upon those under 16 years of age from having accounts.

The government openly admits as much, seemingly treating parents as irresponsible and weak (their consent in this is irrelevant), and children as permanently threatened by spoliation.  “The law places the onus on social media platforms – not parents or young people – to take reasonable steps to ensure these protections are in place.”  If the platforms do not comply, they risk fines of up to A$49.5 million.

As for the contentious matter of privacy, the prime minister and his communications minister are adamant.  “It will contain robust privacy provisions, including requiring the platforms to ringfence and destroy any information collected to safeguard the personal information of all Australians.”

The drafters of the bill have also taken liberties on what is deemed appropriate to access.  As the media release mentions, Australia’s youth will still “have continued access to messaging and online gaming, as well as access to services which are health and education related, like Headspace, Kids Helpline, and Google Classroom, and YouTube.”

This daft regime is based on the premise it will survive circumvention. Children, through guile and instinctive perseverance, will always find a way to access forbidden fruit.  Indeed, as the Digital Industry Group Inc says, this “20^th Century response to 21st Century challenges” may well steer children into “dangerous, unregulated parts of the internet”.

In May, documents uncovered under Freedom of Information by Guardian Australia identified that government wonks in the communications department were wondering if such a scheme was even viable.  A document casting a sceptical eye over the use of age assurance technology was unequivocal: “No countries have implemented an age verification mandate without issue.”

Legal challenges have been launched in France and Germany against such measures.  Circumvention has become a feature in various US states doing the same, using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).

While this proposed legislation will prove ineffectual in achieving its intended purpose – here, protecting the prelapsarian state of childhood from ruin at the hands of wicked digital platforms – it will also leave the apparatus of hefty regulation.  One can hardly take remarks coming from the absurdly named office of the eSafety Commissioner, currently occupied by the authoritarian-minded Julie Inman Grant, seriously in stating that “regulators like eSafety have to be nimble.”  Restrictions, prohibitions, bans and censorship regimes are, in their implementation, never nimble.

For all that, even Inman Grant has reservations about some of the government’s assumptions, notably on the alleged link between social media and mental harm.  The evidence for such a claim, she told BBC Radio 5 Live, “is not settled at all”.  Indeed, certain vulnerable groups – she mentions LGBTQ+ and First Nations cohorts in particular – “feel more themselves online than they do in the real world”.  Why not, she suggests, teach children to use online platforms more safely?  Children, she analogises, should be taught how to swim, rather than being banned from swimming itself.  Instruct the young to swim; don’t ringfence the sea.

Rather appositely, Lucas Lane, at 15 something of an entrepreneur selling boys nail polish via the online business Glossy Boys, told the BBC that the proposed ban “destroys… my friendships and the ability to make people feel seen.”

Already holed without even getting out of port, this bill will serve another, insidious purpose.  While easily dismissed as having a stunted moral conscience, Elon Musk, who owns X Corp, is hard to fault in having certain suspicions about these draft rules.  “Seems like a backdoor way to control access to the internet by all Australians,” he wrote to a post from Albanese.  One, unfortunately, among several.

Binoy Kampmark was a Commonwealth Scholar at Selwyn College, Cambridge. He lectures at RMIT University, Melbourne. Email: bkampmark@gmail.com. Read other articles by Binoy.

 

Is God on Your Man Card?

by Vern Loomis / November 23rd, 2024

More than 50 years ago, John Lennon wrote, “God is a concept by which we measure our pain.” Toying with his lyrics, it’s possible to express another observation: “God is a concept by which we muscle our gain.”

Man’s individual will to dominate and assert himself began thousands of years ago, long before the flowering of collaborative aggression that permeates much of humanity’s recorded history. As with other mammals, human males possessing an abundance of muscle and mass had an advantage over less endowed males. Bigger and stronger males could push aside weaker rivals for a first-in-line chance to swim in the gene pool. But with our strong two-legged ancestors, there was a covert hitchhiker; a swim through the pool was enhancing more than just muscle and mass. Along with the amplification of physical attributes, something else was growing: intelligence and the capacity for abstract thought. Homo sapiens (“wise men”) were emerging from the gene pool with more powerful brains that could both compliment and challenge the sovereignty of muscle and mass. Muscle, mass, and intelligence were stronger than muscle and mass alone, and intelligence increasingly became Homo sapiens’ pre-eminent attribute.

While the gift of enhanced human intelligence was not delivered exclusively to males, muscle and mass continued to be disproportionately allocated to them. Size still mattered; an equal distribution of intelligence did not alter the male-female imbalance of power. Larger and stronger males continued to dominate smaller and weaker females of comparable intelligence.

Meanwhile, the emergence of human abstract thought neatly coincided with another emergence: God. Seemingly, wherever human beings ventured, God followed. All around the world, every founding enclave of human expansion has articulated a concept of God (or gods). Whether in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe, Australia, or the Americas, God, in some form or another, has provided context to the mystery of existence. But God provided more than an answer to mystery. Wise men learned that God could be cited to influence and manipulate human behavior. Wise men realized that God could offer an enhancement to muscle, mass, and intelligence. It was a moment of enlightenment: wise men with God were more powerful than wise men without God.

God’s arrival was not an equalization factor. From the outset, males controlled the God narrative. Already holding the reins of tribal/cultural power, the evocation of God provided a ready extension to male dominance.  Unsurprisingly, males with ample power and charisma were the privileged recipients of nearly all acceptable godly communications. Strong males with superior “god-muscle” conveyed God’s will to those with less god-muscle (or none at all), and God became a convenient adjunct to male power and ambition. It’s been a near universal occurrence: where God appears, male power is enhanced and validated.  Nowhere has this been more apparent than with the Abrahamic religions that pervade Western culture.

The refrain was set early (6,000 Biblical years ago). God created the first human couple (Adam and Eve) and placed them in a lush garden with but one stipulation: stay away from the apple tree. Were it not for a disobedient and gullible female, mankind might still reside in the earthly paradise of Eden. But Eve disregarded God’s clear warning and approached the tree where she allowed herself to be duped by a devilish snake. She then enticed Adam to join her in tasting the prohibited fruit. God was not pleased with their insouciant transgression, and as punishment, transformed Eden into the less than heavenly world that mankind populates today. Humans must now struggle on an imperfect planet because the first female allowed herself to be beguiled by a snake, and the first male allowed himself to be compromised by a female. Lesson learned: women are most gullible and require male oversight. Fittingly, through his prophet Moses, God instructed husbands to henceforth rule over their perhaps well-meaning, but naive wives. Women were declared subservient to men (Genesis 3:16), not simply because of male brawn, but because God (as proclaimed by a man) deemed males to be more scrupulous and of sounder temperament than females.

So, through the ordained word of Moses, thoughtful and compassionate men could point to something other than their biceps as justification for male dominance; faithful men were not just flexing primitive muscle, they were piously heeding the will of God. And faithful women, for their part, were not just bowing to male authority; they too, were following the will of God.

For thousands of years, godly men and women promoted (or at least accepted) the male-female power imbalance decreed by God and proclaimed through Moses. Perhaps because women were deemed less credible than men, or perhaps because it was men who compiled the tome of Biblical history, God almost always chose the mouth of a male to speak through. Nearly all prophets were male. In the 4,000 years of Old Testament recordings, there were a few females who actually did achieve minor prophetess status, but usually as advisors to decision-making men. Of the 55 prophets named in the Old Testament, 7 were women and of modest import. It seems that in whatever the societal strata, be it as rare prophet or as common home-making spouse, a pious woman was deferential to the men around her.

About 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ appeared and was proclaimed by some to be not just a prophet, but the actual son of God. Those who believed he was the son of God became known as Christians. Those who believed that Jesus and his followers were exaggerating his gravitas held back and continued to honor their traditional faith. They became known as Jews. About 600 years after Christ, Mohammad came along and declared himself to be God’s final and most essential prophet. Those who believed him to be God’s ultimate messenger became known as Muslims. So, there came to be three main branches to the Abrahamic religion: Judaism (Jews), Christianity (Christians), and Islam (Muslims).

While they diverged in chosen prophets, all three branches maintained one common adherence: God-muscle was a male endowment (and some males were more endowed than others). In Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, God chose men for deliverance of important communications, and men were the appointed caretakers of God’s imparted will. In all three Abrahamic religions, the traditional prophets consulted for guidance were men, as were the clerics who nurtured the reverence for God and his prophets in temple, church, and synagogue.

The power dynamic governed for thousands of years. In much of the world, even where theocratic governance waned or disappeared, its legacy lived on. With or without a current godly decree, the male/female power imbalance had assumed a normalized acceptance. It was simply the way things were; mutual recognition of male ascendancy was a comfortable and time-honored compliance that avoided excessive conflict. Acceptance was enduring and broad enough that it hardly required the continuance of religious remembrance or justification. What had once been the thread of a godly proclamation was now woven into the fabric of societal perception. Male oversight was natural. Everything was male dominated: religions, governments, industries, and families (ostensibly) were controlled by men.

And then something happened. After nearly 6,000 years of relative stasis, much of the world’s population upholding the Abrahamic tradition wavered: perhaps a woman’s voice deserved political relevance. Hardly more than a hundred years ago (1920) and after almost 80 years of organized struggle (led by women), the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, and women in the United States were politically enfranchised on an equal basis with men. The United States wasn’t alone, or even the first. Similar struggles were going on in many European countries and in other nations around the world. In little more than the blink of an eye (relative to 6,000 years) women in much of the Western world gained some political power; they could now vote for the man of their choice. And that limitation too, was soon upended; in the U.S. and elsewhere, women sought and attained political office. About a quarter of U.S. Congressional seats are now held by women. Governance is no longer an exclusively male fiefdom. While female representation still lags behind that of their male counterparts, more than a few countries have female lawmakers, and even heads of state.

So, have men stopped using god-muscle to subordinate women? If living in the United States or another such secular democracy, the ready answer might be a qualified “Yes!” While gender prejudice/discrimination still exists in governance and commerce, female political inclusion appears both obvious and culturally embedded. For citizens now living in most Western democracies, women’s suffrage has been a lifelong constant and shared male/female political power is an established norm. But even in our modern-day secular societies, religions continue to play prominent and ambitious roles. Clerical stewardship continues to be a male dominated privilege carrying the weight of a 6,000-year-old tradition. Comparatively, gender realignment has occurred in just an eye-blink of time (100 years). So, is the realignment truly permanent, or could it be reversed in another eye-blink? Were it to happen (as perhaps through an autocrat’s grab for power), our male dominated religions are still present and standing by, available to offer their 6,000 years’ worth of traditional assistance.

Meanwhile, in much of the world, the answer to the above question is a resounding “No!” In many countries, the use of god-muscle to suppress women is still religiously and governmentally sanctioned, and in some countries it’s more severely imposed than ever before. The Saudi Arabian monarchy, under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, can be credited with easing some of the strictures imposed through Wahhabism. Nevertheless, god-muscle still affirms male domination in the country and allows Saudi men to nurture a hostile environment for women. Godly-sanctioned misogyny in Iran was put on world-wide display when Mahsa Amini was arrested by “morality police” for violating the Islamic Republic’s hijab mandate and died of head injuries while in captivity. The 2022 incident sparked protests across the country that were met with state-sponsored violent suppression. The hijab dictate is but a visible manifestation of the many repressive strictures placed on Iranian females. God-muscled male oversight provides “guidance” to nearly all aspects of female mobility. Probably nowhere though, is male god-muscle more severely exercised than in today’s Afghanistan. Their supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzad, guides the Taliban in exacting his version of Islamic domination over females more brutally than in any other country on Earth. Under his watch, women and girls have lost all semblances of freedom and independence and have been subjected to unspeakably violent atrocities perpetrated by men who pose their cruelty as reverence to Allah.

Will it ever end? We humans (mostly males) have wielded god-muscle through all of recorded history, and not just over women. God-muscle allows us to portray our ambitions and lust for power over one another as expressions of God’s will. When our endeavors are self-seeking, inhumane, or violent, we like to pretend they are in service to God. Putting God on our “man card” allows us to repress, enslave, murder, or exterminate fellow human beings as if in holy observance of the will of God, rather than as a rabid expression of self-indulgent aggression. When hearing, “To the glory of God,” or “Allahu Akbar,” outside of church or temple, there’s more than a slight chance that something terrible and ungodly is being ascribed to God

Vern Loomis lives in the Detroit area and occasionally likes to comment on news and events that interest him in whatever capacity available. Besides Dissident Voice, his other musings can be found at Transcend Media Service, ZNetwork, CounterPunch, The Humanist, and The Apathetic Agnostic. Read other articles by Vern.