Netherlands – Revolutionary Action: Long Live Ibrahim Kaypakkaya!
We hereby share an unofficial translation of a statement by Revolutionary Action, as well as pictures of a graffiti action published by REBEL! Magazine on the 18th of May.
53 years after the death of İbrahim Kaypakkaya, Revolutionary Action commemorates the death of İbrahim Kaypakkaya, a revolutionary who remained steadfast against fascism, repression, and betrayal until his last breath.
As the founder and first leader of the TKP/ML, Kaypakkaya played a decisive role in the development of the revolutionary movement in Turkey. He broke with revisionism and opportunism and defended the necessity of a revolutionary line based on the struggle of workers and peasants against imperialism and the reactionary Turkish State.
One of his most important contributions was his sharp critique of Kemalism. At a time when large sections of the left still regarded Kemalism as a progressive or anti-imperialist force, Kaypakkaya exposed it as an ideology of the Turkish ruling class, built on assimilation, state violence, and the oppression of minorities. He pointed to the massacres against the Kurdish people and other oppressed communities, and clearly stated that true liberation could not come from the legacy of Mustafa Kemal, but only through the revolutionary struggle of the masses themselves.
He also provided a clear class analysis of Turkish society, viewing it not as a fully capitalist country, but as a semi-feudal and semi-colonial one. The first step for Turkey, therefore, is to break the chains of imperialism through a democratic people’s revolution. In this analysis, he emphasized the importance of organizing in the countryside among the poor peasants in the people’s war, which continues to this day.
On May 18, 1973, Kaypakkaya was murdered by the Turkish fascist state after months of severe torture in the Diyarbakır prison. The state sought not only to destroy a revolutionary body but also the ideas for which he fought. Yet, more than fifty years later, his legacy still lives on in the struggle of oppressed peoples and revolutionaries worldwide.
Kaypakkaya resolutely sided with workers, peasants, revolutionary youth, and all the oppressed. He resisted imperialism, fascism, and state repression. Despite torture and inhumane conditions, he refused to betray his comrades or his convictions. In doing so, he became a symbol of revolutionary steadfastness and unyielding resolve.
Today, we see that the systems Kaypakkaya fought against still exist. Imperialist powers wage wars, support genocide, and enrich themselves through the exploitation of peoples worldwide. In Turkey and Kurdistan, revolutionaries, journalists, students, and the Kurdish people still face arrests, violence, and political repression on a daily basis. In Europe, too, states are increasingly criminalizing revolutionary resistance and international solidarity.
We commemorate İbrahim Kaypakkaya not as a figure from the past, but as an example of uncompromising struggle against oppression and fascism.
Revolutionary Action honors the memory of İbrahim Kaypakkaya and all the martyrs who fell in the struggle for liberation.
Long live international solidarity!
Long live the struggle of the oppressed peoples!
Long live İbrahim Kaypakkaya!
Long live the Democratic People’s Revolution in Turkey!
We include below pictures of a graffiti action in Utrecht and a poster made by Revolutionary Action published by REBEL! Magazine.
