Women from across the Middle East expressed their support for Abdullah Öcalan’s efforts and called for his physical freedom in letters they wrote to him.
Women from various countries across the Middle East have sent letters to Abdullah Öcalan, expressing their support for the ideas he represents, particularly those concerning women’s freedom and the liberation of society. According to a report by Nujinha, the letters have reached Öcalan.
In their messages, the women also called on women around the world to stand in solidarity with the Kurdish people.
The letters addressed to Öcalan were published by Nujinha.
Letter by Dr. Farnaz Attia
In her letter, Dr. Farnaz Attia, a lecturer at Cairo University, wrote:
“To my leader, Abdullah Öcalan…
To the one who struggles, who defends, who sacrifices and never gives up; the rightful owner of a just cause, who has endured countless hardships to bring happiness to future generations; who walked thorny paths and planted millions of flowers along the way for the free and the revolutionary; whose thoughts have flown beyond the walls of captivity and isolation and found their way into the hearts, minds, and consciences of millions across the planet.
From beloved Cairo, from the land of the dark-skinned Nile, from the soil of the Pharaohs, from the land of a seven-thousand-year-old civilization, I send you fragrant bouquets of lotus flowers and laurel wreaths, symbols of freedom and heroism. Along with them come the greetings of every free man and woman who has attentively read and reflected on your defenses.
I send all of this to the dreadful Imralı Prison, a place of absolute darkness, filled with injustice and tyranny, the chains of oppression, and the brutality of despotism, a prison where only a glimmer of hope and the radiance of your ideas shine. These are Öcalanist ideas that continue to illuminate the path for thinkers, revolutionaries, and free people, guiding them toward liberation from the savagery of capitalism and exploitation.
I learned from you
Your reflections on struggle and resistance have transformed my outlook on life. They guided me to a deeper understanding that a person must strive for a higher and more sacred purpose than the chaos of daily life, which often distorts thought and distances us from truth. Every fighter’s just cause is their desired goal, their noble aim and no matter the cost, they must never shy away from reaching it or achieving it. I learned from you that a true warrior never hesitates to stand by the oppressed, the ones crushed under Western colonialism, whose rights, power, and bodies are erased by the capitalist imperialism adopted by the West. Those whose lands have been occupied, whose wealth has been plundered, whose dreams have been shattered, whose lives have been devastated, and whose talents have been stripped away, true warriors defend them without fear or hesitation.
Your ideas have produced profound solutions
A philosophical leader must be an internationalist, one whose thoughts are not confined to a single people or region, but who expands their liberating ideas to embrace all peoples. Because struggle is a holistic and comprehensive process. Your thoughts and theses on the Kurdish question and the concept of a democratic nation have transcended time and place, offering meaningful solutions to the shared problems facing the Arab world, the Middle East, and even the peoples of the world as a whole. In place of the false Western democracy imposed on us, whose bitter consequences we continue to suffer, and which fits neither us nor our societies, you have created a unique model of true democracy rooted in the values and traditions of the East.
From you, I also learned the value of labor: that it is a sacred duty, one that must be an inseparable part of both individual and collective life. Labor holds great significance in the pursuit of liberation and progress. I have come to understand the necessity of focusing on productive work that serves society, contributes to personal and communal growth, and expands our collective capacity for freedom.
I felt proud with admiration
As a woman, when I encountered your words, “a beautiful woman is a free woman” and understood that female enslavement is a yoke imposed by both a reactionary male past and an opportunistic capitalism, I was filled with deep pride and admiration for the ideas you instilled in me. This yoke must be shattered, always and everywhere, so that the energy of women in a free society can burst forth, elevating their communities, families, and countries shoulder to shoulder with men, in what you describe as a “participatory life.” This vision provides a foundation of stability for revolutionary work. It makes women an active force in both success and failure and declares that the liberation of society lies in the liberation of women. The concept of honor and morality is not exclusive to women; it is inherently tied to society itself. Honor must be associated with freedom, surrounded by dignity, and linked to the end of humiliation and slavery. You taught us that morality is the living practice of good deeds that benefit the community, the memory and conscience of society, and the cohesive force that holds it together. Morality is also the applied essence of politics, and the core principle that organizes the human mind between analytical reason and emotional intelligence. A society rooted in sacred morality thrives in its virtue; one that loses its morality, spirals into collapse. The concept of “honor” when applied exclusively to women, as often seen, is in fact detached from any true legal or ethical framework. Fanatical obsession with so-called “female honor,” exaggerated in its absoluteness, reflects a deeper, collective dishonor. It reveals a state in which women are burdened with exaggerated expectations of loyalty, while society accepts or even ignores its own degradation. Clinging to a distorted notion of “woman’s honor” while neglecting the honor of society as a whole exposes a profound contradiction. In truth, to protect a society’s honor is to protect the dignity and freedom of its women. The so-called defense of “female honor” often emerges from the weakness of a morally and politically exhausted masculinity, from a desire to assert dominance over women in order to compensate for its own failures, or to restore its strength by enslaving women. It stems from a desperation to regain control by exerting authority over women, in the face of a system that has alienated men from both themselves and their society.
Self-defense for women
The system of self-defense is inherent to all beings in the universe. Resistance is a form of self-defense, an instinctual act that every particle, every element in existence undertakes to protect its life. This principle of defense applies to all members of the human community, including women. The function of self-defense is universal. No one is excluded from it, and it is not limited to any one species or gender. Since the 1980s, you have worked to highlight the role and visibility of women in the struggle for liberation. You have especially emphasized their role in self-defense and in defending their nations and communities.
All these thoughts I’ve expressed are just the visible tip of the iceberg, scribbled swiftly through my fingers. Yet your thoughts and ideas remain an inexhaustible source, a well we drink from without ever being satisfied. In closing, I hope this message reaches you in good health and peace. And I hope that very soon, you will be embraced by the majestic mountains and lush green hills of Kurdistan, where the gentle air caresses the contours of your smiling face filled with hope, where warm breezes carry the scent of freedom, and where doves of peace circle you with olive branches, bowed but never broken.
With all my respect and love.’’
A letter from the heart of Palestine: Nevin Nimer Adel Abdel Aal
Nevin Nimer Adel Abdel Aal from Gaza wrote in her letter:
“To Leader Abdullah Öcalan…
From the land of Palestine, from the heart of pain, from resisting Gaza, trapped between the teeth of oppression and towering walls, I send you a greeting of freedom.
I write to you as someone who has carried the flag of freedom against all forms of tyranny, as someone who has raised their voice in defense of women’s humanity, dignity, and essential role in building resistant, conscious societies. We deeply thank you for your liberating thoughts, your awareness, and your revolutionary consciousness that has helped women reclaim their rightful place on the path of struggle and dignity. What you have said about women is in itself an intellectual revolution and has become a source of inspiration for all who believe that freedom cannot be achieved by marginalizing half of society, but only through women’s self-realization and recognition of their role.
I write to you as the daughter of martyrs… I lost my father, mother, and all my siblings in a war that left nothing behind but sorrow and grief. Today I live alone, holding on to the light that remains in the corners of this dark life. I walk their path, and the path of all those who came before us in the struggle for freedom.
As a daughter of Gaza, where war, destruction, and deprivation have become our daily reality, I write to you as a woman filled with pain, pain that speaks from a place where women fight on countless fronts every day: the front of survival, the front of motherhood, the front of education, and the front of dignity. Sometimes, Gaza’s women are left alone in the darkness and are deprived of their most basic rights, yet they do not falter. They make life bloom among the rubble; they carry the homeland in their arms and in their wombs. Because we believe that women are not victims, they are leaders, agents, and creators of the future.
We know that your voice has pierced the long silence, and we hope our cries reach you as echoes of your own. We hope your words became a new light in Gaza’s long night. You are one of the rare voices that have spoken for women not as a slogan or symbol, but as a value, a meaning, and an inseparable part of a comprehensive liberation project. As a daughter of Gaza, and a daughter of martyrs, I find in your words a comfort that soothes my alienation, a strength that renews my will, and the reassurance that we are not alone in this struggle.
We are grateful to you to giving us a vision through which we can rebuild ourselves, and a language in which we can write both our pain and our dignity. Your words are a light in the darkness of this silent world.
From the daughters of Palestine and the daughter of martyrs, with all loyalty and gratitude.
In spite of everything, we are thankful to you.
A hopeful and resistant greeting from the women of Palestine.
The daughter of Gaza,
Nevin Nimer Adel Abdel Aal”
Dr. Sahar Hasan Ahmed: The key to life
In her letter to Abdullah Öcalan, Egyptian academic Dr. Sahar Hasan Ahmed wrote:
Message to philosopher Abdullah Öcalan
After reflecting on your ideas and reading what you have written about women, I felt compelled to write this letter. Through your thoughts and vision, I was led to call woman “the key to life”, for in truth, woman is life itself. The image of man in your writings no longer carries the same weight as in traditional Middle Eastern narratives. Instead, it is infused, wherever it appears, with a sense of attention, care, and even sacredness toward women. This vision, made possible by your positive approach, has evolved into what is now studied as Jineoloji, the science of women, an intellectual foundation that deserves to be seen as the starting point of true freedom in the eyes of the world. The journey toward freedom begins at the root. And as you have said, “a free woman means a free Kurdistan.”
Through our belief in your ideas, freedom, equality, integrity, tolerance, and the peaceful coexistence of all nations in society, the Kurdish question has become one of the most vital issues in the Middle East. We believe that if it can be resolved, Middle Eastern societies will finally experience peace and security. The Kurdish issue is the mirror image of the Palestinian question. Your 26 years of isolation, in which even the most basic right to visits has been rarely granted, has been an effort to suffocate and suppress this issue. Yet that very isolation stands as the clearest proof of your sincerity and the just nature of the cause. Despite the silencing of your voice, you have managed to reach the world with your message of peace and freedom. Your ideas have become the only possible way forward for resolving the complex issues of the Middle East.
As a woman who believes in your right to freedom and in the dignity of your struggle, I can offer only my deepest respect and appreciation. Your writings and ideas have become a focal point and even a driving force, within Arab and broader Middle Eastern societies.
Dr. Sahar Hasan Ahmed
Academic researcher in the field of contemporary Egyptian history, expert on identities and nationalities, associate professor at the International Academic University, and lecturer at various universities across Egypt
