The Political Thought of Abdullah Öcalan: Kurdistan, Women's Revolution and Democratic Confederalism

by Abdullah Öcalan

These are the essential writings of a man who inspired a new, egalitarian socialist regime in the Middle East, which is currently fighting for survival against religious extremism and state violence.

Abdullah Öcalan led the struggle for Kurdish liberation for more than 20 years until his capture in 1999. Now, writing from prison in Turkey, he has inspired a new political movement. Called Democratic Confederalism, this revolutionary model is developing on the ground in parts of Syria and Turkey; it represents an alternative to religious sectarianism, patriarchy, capitalism and chauvinistic nationalism, providing the blueprint for a burgeoning radical democratic society.

This selection of Öcalan’s writings is an indispensable introduction for anyone wanting to engage with his political ideas. His central concepts address the Kurdish question, gender, Democratic Confederalism and the future of the nation. With The Political Thought of Abdullah Öcalan, his most influential ideas can now be considered and debated in the light of his continuing legacy, most notably in the ongoing revolution in Rojava.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Feminism, Philosophy, Theory, Middle East, History

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2017

About the author

Abdullah Öcalan is the founder of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). From 1984, under his leadership, the PKK fought for Kurdish liberation. Since his kidnapping and arrest in 1999, he has been in solitary confinement in Imrali Island Prison.

Since his imprisonment, Ocalan has written extensively on Middle Eastern and Kurdish history. With his books he has significantly influenced the course of Kurdish politics in the last two decades.

He argues for the concepts of Democratic Autonomy and Democratic Confederalism that are considered an alternative to a Kurdish nation-state.

From 2009-2015, the Turkish state held negotiations with him about a solution of the Kurdish Question. Since the collapse of the talks in 2015, Öcalan has been under total isolation.

Reviews

[Louis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked some sections of this book; but I found that it was too vague and had too many assertions for me to really get into it.

For example - every time Öcalan juxtaposes the capitalist nation-state with his model of democratic confederalism, he seems to throw around a lot of adjectives about an ideal confederalist society (inclusive, tolerant, autonomous) without properly fleshing them out. I don’t want to assume that a confederalist society will just ‘be’ these things, I want to know how.

For example, where do the power holders in the existing structure fit in? Would these people be excluded from the democratic process, or included and given a platform to continue airing their exploitative views, catering towards the lowest common denominator? Öcalan advocates for the empowerment of women, yet also stresses the need to acknowledge and respect local applications of the law, acknowledging in the same book that Kurdistan and the Middle East are rife with tribalism and antiquated legal practices that serve to impede and degrade women. How would he propose that these structures are challenged?

I liked the general themes and intuitively believe Öcalan’s model has merit, but it left me with too many unanswered questions. 6/10

[Karlo Mikhail · Rating 5 out of 5]

These were originally written as pamphlets so the ideas explored here are explained in broad strokes rather than with theoretical precision. They nevertheless offers a glimpse of a different way of thinking national liberation, women liberation, socialism, and democracy. Öcalan is a must-read.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of four pamphlets neatly edited together:
- War and Peace in Kurdistan
- Democratic Confederalism
- Liberating Life: Woman's Revolution
- Democratic Nation

Well worth a read by anyone trying to understand why modernity has very few positive aspects and why even those are being severely limited by nation-states and capitalism.

It is absolutely remarkable what Abdullah Öcalan managed to write while in prison isolation since 1999, being allowed only one book at a time, and having no one to talk to about his ideas. The transition from a Marxist-Leninist politics to the radically transformative politics contained herein is absolutely remarkable. Not only is the writing deeply original and aware of cultural and historical proclivities of the Middle East, it is concise, and easy to understand. No wonder it sparked the most important social revolution ever to be seen: that of the "Democratic Federal System of Northern Syria" formerly known as Rojava.

At the time of writing this review April 2017 Turkey has started invading the above region because of historical reasons that are very well outlined in this volume. And anyone pretending to understand what is happening in the Syrian Civil war (and even greater potential disaster brought on by the Turkish nation-state) without knowing the politics of northern Syria is a fool, and/or a hack. This book helps bridge that gap of knowledge.

[Josiah Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most jarring of the essays is the liberation of women. Ocalan goes through the history of society as a matriarchy and then it moved to a patriarchy (which we still find to this day) through power, religion and the rise of capitalism. This was the enslavement of women. We must break the enslavement of women before we can begin freeing everyone else.
The Kurdish people are in a positively ground breaking position to promote Democratic Confederalism as the Kurds don't have any borders. They are scattered throughout countries like Turkey, Syria and Iraq. They are fighting ISIS. They're women are powerful and fight along with the men. With no borders they work together in a democratic manner to focus on their ecology and social goals. The history through Ocalan is eye opening.

[Irene Doda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sicuramente una raccolta di saggi da leggere per interrogarsi sulle forme istituzionali che diamo per scontate (stato, mercato e famiglia tradizionale). Ocalan dà degli spunti di riflessione che servono a costruire, sono dei mattoni importanti per iniziare a lavorare per una società diversa. Ho avuto l'impressione che i suoi scritti vadano in qualche modo contestualizzati in diversi ambiti e non presi necessariamente alla lettera. Per quanto mi riguarda è stato molto arricchente, a tratti esaltante, anche avendo presente in parte l'esperienza di autogoverno del Rojava e della Siria del Nord Est.

[Jacob Hilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read Öcalan.

[Pacific Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wide and sweeping look into Apo, the ideological leader of one of the most relevant revolutions of the modern era.

[Emmott Baddeley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Before reading this, what I knew about Öcalan’s thought and Kurdish freedom ideology was only gleaned from discussion with people involved in solidarity struggles in the UK. I don’t feel like I finished the book with much more to be honest. I understand that this is a compilation of pamphlets written for popular consumption, however compared to others doing similar writing (e.g. Lenin) I found the writing superfluous and difficult to follow, with few concrete points or propositions.

Considering the core of Öcalan’s advancements on Marxism-Leninism are on the function and role of the state, especially in the context of Kurdistan, he does a very poor job of laying out his definition of the state before launching into his defence of his “Democratic Nation”. I’m very interested in understanding how his theory has developed in the context of Kurdistan, and his background on the national/region is useful, but I don’t feel like this provided sufficient context for his outline of his theory.

Finally, at times the writing strayed into idealism, particularly around the role of women. A greater degree of substantiation is needed to understand Öcalan’s analysis of women’s oppression, and therefore his (poorly laid out) propositions for women’s liberation. I found it very interesting that he sees women as the “initial oppressed nation” and would have appreciated more discussion of this in the context of class suppression; why is resolving the contradiction between men and women so central to him, over other contradictions between oppressed and oppressor classes?

In summary, I may go on to read other writings by or about Öcalan but not in a hurry.

[Patrik Plvan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book serves as a handy introduction to political thought of Öcallan, as well as a quasi-handbook/manifesto of modern anarchist thought, applicable not only to Kurds, but an inspiration for everyone who thinks beyond the contemporary institutionalized idea of democracy, nation and the state.

[Adam Schlesinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting attempt to synthesize a non state democratic socialism. I found the Kurdish bits to be interesting context and background, which was surprising. Of the four essays, I think liberating life is probably the strongest.

[Natú · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's a lot to be said about this kind of book, which is very intentionally and openly trying to be a bird's eye view of the political philosophy of a particular movement or thinker. As I see it, this book is an example of just what the pros and cons of that approach are.

First of all, this book is dense with assertions, but due to the nature of the pamphlets these selections are drawn from, they are largely not fleshed out but rather serve as support or evidence for the broader arguments being made about the nature of the nation-state, democracy, women's issues, etc. This should not be seen as an indicator of the flimsiness of Öcalan's theories, but a byproduct of the goals of the texts, which again, are to paint broad strokes and outline general lines and positions. Indeed, I've been promised that this book is so valuable within Öcalan's writings precisely because it is an accessible and friendly reference among otherwise very dense and wide-ranging pieces. That said, the speed at which Öcalan drops huge assertions in these texts one after the other can leave your head spinning, and certainly left me wanting to read his other work to get a better understanding of the foundational thinking undergirding these big ideas.

In general, I thought the first and fourth essays, on the Kurdish Question and the Democratic Nation, lent themselves better to the medium and were very digestible. I thought the middle two pieces, about Democratic Confederalism and Women's Revolution, the latter in particular, suffered a bit from the lack of expounding upon and drilling down into the issues at hand. Without the historical and material analysis that, to be fair, I believe is there in his larger works, Öcalan's claims about the nation-state, patriarchy, and above all women and men, can come off as essentializing or moralizing. In addition, while I have seen issues of sexuality and trans/non-binary people raised within the broader milieu of the KLM/Democratic Confederalism Movement (though never in much depth, that I've seen, maybe I've just missed it), their absence here is unfortunate, and made me wonder how much of the so-called inherent characteristics of men and women cited herein were representative of historically-attested realities (within the region if not elsewhere) or indeed just retroactive projections of the idealized conceptualizations of men and women that arose from capitalist modernity in the first place.

Overall, as is a theme in my reviews, my rating is based less on my initial impressions of this book and more on how it met what I believe to be its purpose. In the end, I felt like I wanted more and had more questions than answers, but as an introductory sketch of the thought propelling the KLM, one which would inspire readers to delve into the really meaty stuff, this book definitely does a good job.

[Sugarpunksattack Mick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abdullah Öcalan is a Kurdish leader and co-founder of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) and is currently be held as a political prisoner by Turkey on a remote island with limited access to the outside world (including limited access to lawyers). It is in this context and limited resources that each of the essays in this book are written. The facts of Öcalan's case are important to keep in mind while reading these essays. For one, it is remarkable that each essay is not full of vitriolic, anger, or clear feelings of revenge given the nature of his brutal captivity. Likewise, Öcalan's does not come across as despondent nor are there admissions of feeling defeated. The essays are thoughtful, yet uncompromising.

The book is a very readable, accessible, and wonderful introduction to Öcalan's thought and to the Kurdish perspective and political project. Öcalan explains Kurdish history, both the more recent past as well as historical development, which makes this book a crucial introduction for anyone interested in the history and philosophy of the Kurdish struggle. The first essay provides an essential overview of the 'kurdish problem' and their proposed solution. The second essay explains their new political project of Democratic Confederalism. The third essay outlines Öcalan's view of revolution as resting upon the foundation or fundamental connection to women liberation. The final essay sketches a vision of the 'democratic nation' vs the nation-state.

This book should be widely read. It is essential for those interested in an alternative to the state and especially those grappling with how to understand recent uprisings all across the world as well as histroical ones. Öcalan emerged during a period where liberation movements sought statehood and acts as a bridge to our current moment that seeks a different sort of solution with those historical lessons in mind. There are certainly similarities between this work and others of the anarchist persuasion such as Makhno and Bakunin (especially his federalism and 'God and the State', which is very similar to Öcalan's view), but grapples with the murky in between. How do you build an alternative democratic (i.e. non-state) society, while hostile nation-states still exist around you?

[Bîrgul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deeply rooted in the legacy of a man considered among the most visionary thinkers of the modern era, The Political Thought of Abdullah Öcalan provides a deep exploration of his intellectual framework. By identifying women’s oppression as the root of all social problems, Öcalan’s ideas have driven the most significant revolutions across Kurdistan—from the Rojava Revolution to the women’s uprisings in Rojhilat—the prominence of his vision is undeniable. As Nadje Al-Ali states in the foreword, “In many revolutionary and liberation struggles, women were told to put aside their specific concerns.” In that sense, Öcalan does not only mention but insists on a revolution led by and for women. “All other slaveries—child and male slavery—have developed in the footsteps of women’s enslavement,” he states, while criticizing the centuries-old male dominance entrenched in Kurdistan. His focus on women consists not only of practical outcomes but also a profound “analysis of the phenomenon of woman.” Öcalan’s thought has influenced millions of women—from Kurdish and Arab to Afghan and Armenian—igniting the spirit of Jin, Jiyan, Azadî throughout the Near East and beyond.

His methods and solutions extend beyond Kurdistan and the Kurdish people; he advocates for a transformed Near and Middle East. By addressing a region plagued by perpetual warfare and power-hungry regimes, he proposes a pragmatic approach to lasting peace. Albeit difficult under the oppression of the nation-states colonizing Kurdistan, his vision has already transcended borders and led to remarkable achievements. For those looking to grasp his most recent insights, this work serves as an ideal and general introduction, providing a clear roadmap to his revolutionary ideas and his blueprint for social transformation.

[Edward · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was a collection of 4 different writings by Ocalan. They were all very good and I found myself highlighting most in 'Democratic Confederalism' and 'Democratic Nation'. (I didn't fully understand the former untill I read the latter) It was very thought provoking and energizing to read in the context of this theory being put into practice in the AANES. I didn't find myself disagreeing with much of the book. Ocalan emphasized the primacy of women's liberation (and the building of institutions specifically for women to build their liberatory movement) to any revolutionary project. He provides a useful understanding of the state and its dialectical relationship to democracy to express how the nation-state cannot be used as a tool for liberation. He also puts forth an answer to the 'national question' (hope I'm using that right) that's takes into account the failures of 20th century socialism and attempts to create a new path. Overall the writings felt very insightful and useful for us to orient ourselves around as we try to build liberatory movements that can replicate the successes and transcend the failures of 20th century socialism.

[rojîn ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a man

[Vuk Trifkovic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Long chunks of relatively unoriginal and uninspired writing punctuated by flashes of brilliance. Taking the entire story into consideration - admirable.

[Pierre-Olivier · Rating 5 out of 5]

A travers le contexte kurde et historique du Moyen-Orient, Öcalan ( qui est en prison depuis les 20 dernières années par cause de ses positions politique révolutionnaire) nous présente son confédéralisme démocratique. Inspiré du municipalisme libertaire de bookchin et du communisme libertaire de kropotkine. Cette méthodologie politique sort l’anarchisme contemporain du théorique et le met en perspective réelle au Kurdistan. Le concept de révolution féministe par la destruction du patriarcat et de fait même l’émancipation de toute la société par la libération du premier esclavagisme historique qu’est la soumission de la femme à l’homme est magistral. Cela remet aussi en perspective historique toute les structures de domination et de hiérarchie qui se concrétise dans l’état-nation bourgeois que Öcalan invite à détruire. La mention spéciale aussi de l’importance de focuser sur la révolution idéologique et culturelle pour créer la nouvelle société et les nouvelles citoyennes actrice de l’émancipation est primordial , c’est toute la théorie d’hégémonie de Gramsci qui s’applique ici avec la stratégie kurdes. Bien important de suivre le peuple kurde à travers sa révolution qui nous amène vers une grande lueur d’espoir de l’autodétermination des peuples et de sont émancipation du capitalisme néolibéral. Bémol : encore une fois les grandes lignes du système politique est présenté mais sans vraiment expliquer historiquement le processus matériel et pragmatique qui est une partie plus qu’importante pour comprendre le plan d’action du PKK.

[Simon Parent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Philosophe, politicien, poète, Öcalan a été enfermé par l'état Turc illégalement, depuis maintenant 24 ans. Depuis la prison, il nous raconte l'histoire du parti des travailleurs du Kurdistan, la répression intense subie par le peuple Kurde, scindé par la Syrie, l'Irak, et surtoût la Turkie, qui les massacre dans un contexte ethno-nationaliste. Bien qu'étant initialiement un mouvement insurrectionnaire nationaliste Kurde, le PKK (Parti des Travailleurs du Kurdistan) s'est détourné d'un désir de séparation national, pour se concentrer sur l'auto-détermination de leur peuple. Ce livre explore entre-autre ce qui constitue un peuple, une nation, une identité, d'une manière ancrée dans le local, à une échelle qui fait du sens socialement, en confédération.

La libération de la région Kurde passe donc par la démocratie directe locale. Il faut que les gens s'impliquent politiquement, ce qui signifie se rassembler et discuter des issues qui les confrontent. Öcalan voit ce projet comme une implémentation des écrits de l'anarchiste Murray Bookchin, qui documente sa vision éco-socialiste dans le livre "Ecology of Freedom".

Mais avant tout projet de réelle démocratie, et spécalement dans la région du Kurdistan, il est question d'abolir la première subjugation, le péché originel à la base de tant d'autres exploitations: le patriarcat. Öcalan en détaille l'histoire d'une façon très claire, et souligne fréquemment à quel point la libération des femmes est importante. Rojava est un merveilleux projet, j'espère qu'Erdogan ne les massacrera pas tous.

[josh bates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting perspective and opinions on politics. Ocalan claims there cannot be democracy where there is capitalism, they are in a sense binary. He believes the nation needs to be free of capitalism as it enslaves people to paid labour, with a large proportion been unemployed. Creating a large wage gap between the general population and the bourgeois. He also expressed the needs for democratic autonomy which i believe is a good idea, small communities should be able to operate independent of the state. Blanket rule for a country does not suffice, there is too much cultural differentiation.

He describes the downturn of ruling as the three sexual raptures, these are the three main events that degraded women to enslavement. The first being matriarchal to patriarchal society, the second being monolithic religions and the third being capitalism. I agree with his viewpoints on this, women have been downplayed and pushed to the backseat for a long time. It is time for the rise of the woman back to an equal member of society.

All round a very thought provoking book. I wish the best for the Turks and hope they can establish an independent state of there own. Ocalan is passionate about pursuing the legitimisation of his people and ensuring they have a safe future.

[Sahand Kaveh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Öcalan's writings provide a revolutionary vision for an alternative vision to the nation-state model that achieves true democracy and freedom from the state, with feminist and communal principles. The application of this vision in Rojava is testament to the value of these ideas. Even though not all of his big theories are fully fleshed out in this book, the new perspective he provides is invaluable and provides a path for politicisation of society. Even though some may say he is utopian in his thinking, there is a strong pragmatism to his vision of how democratic Confederalism can exist within the current nation state model.

I think his writings may serve a glimmer of hope for the people of middle-east who have faced severe and oppression from the nation states that have ruled them.

It is incredible that he created these radical writings whilst imprisoned alone with limited access to literature. Superseding his Leninist tendancies in such conditions is remarkable.

[MacQuaid Hiller]

I'm a big fan of democratic confederlism, and I've been following the ongoing struggle for freedom in Rojava and Bakur, where the PKK and its allies are most active. These essays express the PKK's ideology well, all things considered, and have definitely contributed to my political consciousness. Many of the Middle East's problems are present in the US too, and some of the solutions Öcalan suggests here could be adapted for an American context. I'm also just happy to be reading leftist leaders outside the Western European and Marxist-Leninist traditions. Unlike many leftist writers, Öcalan actually has experience organizing and fighting for liberation, so he's definitely worth thinking about. That said, this is clearly a book written by a man in solitary confinement. It's not super polished, and although that's not a huge problem, it does make it a bit harder to read and parse.

[∃Ⓐ∀ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the sort of book that I believe every young person who becomes interested in left wing libertarianism, anarchism, social ecology, and radical feminism should read, more so than any book by Chomsky or some dead philosopher from a 100+ years ago. Some omissions in terms of gender are clear (Öcalan only mentions heterosexual man and woman in his analysis), yet the ideas that he brings to light around democratic nations, democratic confederalism, and cultural pluralism, coupled with a necessary dose of realistic and modern understanding of the world, are incredibly inspiring, refreshing, and hope inducing.

[Noina]

Je sais bien que c'est pas vraiment le but de ces essais d'être bien écrits mais là c'est quand même la cata. Je me suis arrêtée au milieu de l'essai sur la libération des femmes car j'en avais marre de sa vision essentialiste des sexes. Bon, il écrit depuis sa prison dans laquelle ça fait des années qu'il est enfermé seul donc il a peut-être pas eu accès aux derniers concepts émergeant des Gender Studies... Pour le moment, je l'abandonne (environ 50%), je le finirai peut-être quand j'aurai une plus grande disposition d'esprit.

[Juan Vigeuras · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un conjunto de ensayos que escribió Öcallan, padre ideológico de la actual Rojava, en prisión (en la que todavía sigue porque Turquía y los derechos humanos ya tal). Algunos más interesantes que otros, pero te ilustran un poco las ideologías sobre las que se construyó el proyecto actual de independencia de Rojava, desde la lucha armada como autodefensa a las asambleas populares feministas. Algunos ensayos me los salté, porque sentía que me faltaba mucho contexto anterior para entenderlos bien.

[BookTeehu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, Inspiring and honestly, it just brings something hopeful to a world that's ever so continuously falling into a pit of cynicism and despair.

Apo's words bring struggle into hope. A better world is possible. For women, for minorities, for all. Now, as of the 9th of December, with the Civil War back in full swing, with all odds being stacked against Rojava and the YPG/YPJ, this is more relevant than ever before. The blood they spill is for this attempt at a better world.

Jin, Jiyan, Azadi. Biji Serok Apo. Biji Rojava.

[Maren · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interessant og teoretisk. Særlig var kapitlet "womans revolution" spennende. Overall både gode og dårlige poeng. Utrdag fra kapitlet om womans revolution:

"all slavery is based on housewifisation"

"no other society has had the the power to develop and systemise the exploitation of woman to the degree that capitalism has"

"The male has become a state and turned this into the dominant culture"

Rating: 2,5⭐️

[Y · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many amazing thoughts. This is going to be the first of many books I will read about Ocalan’s philosophy and life. Only critique is that it would have been nice to have the dates of when each short essay was written

[Humphrey Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating glance into Öcalan’s ideas and theories, though it is just a glance. Nonetheless, it is a valuable introduction to his views and I cannot fault it for being exactly what it says on the tin. 100% worth reading, it would only take you a short while anyway :)

[Dante · Rating 3 out of 5]

7/10

[Chandler · Rating 4 out of 5]

The prison writings of Abdullah Ocalan outline very well his concept of democratic confederalism. A valuable read if one is to understand the ideological origins of the Rojava Revolution.