'We seek a federal state, PYD wants to control by force': Kurdish official

By Abdullah Ghadawi

(Zaman Al Wasl)- Faisal Yusef, a member of the General Secretariat of the Kurdish National Council, said that the Kurdish National Council parties worked under the oppression and tyranny of the al-Assad regime and the parties insist on their objectives to achieve a “federal democratic state.”

Speaking to Zaman al-Wasl, Yusef, a member of the foreign relations council in the Kurdish National Council, said that the Democratic Union Party (PYD) wants to control political life by force. He indicated that the National Council has a strong popular base other than its excellent relations with the other social components in the Syrian al-Jazeera area. Here we will present the details of the interview.

-In light of the control of the Democratic Union Party on the details of political and security life, has the role of the National Council inside Syria ended?

The Kurdish National Council is formed of decade old political parties. They did not care for the regime oppression and tyranny in all the previous stages, and persisted in their struggle for democracy for the country and eliminating the exceptional policies targeting the Kurdish people presence in Syria and recognition of their legitimate national rights according to the international covenants and conventions.

With the start of the peaceful Syrian revolution, these parties, in addition to dozens of coordination [committees] of the revolutionary youth movements in the Kurdish street and independent social figures, contributed to the convening of the first Kurdish National Congress in late 2011. From the congress, the Kurdish National Council emerged, and it continued to hold regular conferences and meetings until now, and the Council is a member of the National Coalition for the Opposition and Revolutionary Forces.

The Council maintains a broad popular support among the Kurdish people and good relations with the ethnic and religious components of the Syrian people. The Kurdish National Council plays an important role through its political struggle alongisde the various opposition forces to implement international resolutions aimed at solving the crisis in the country and communicating with all international forces to this end.

- What are your options given the ban on your political action?

* Kurdish parties in Syria in the previous era, were not all licensed and they worked under the preventative conditions and militants were arrested by the al-Assad regime security services, and these parties remained until this stage. They continue their political struggle to achieve their goals until a democratic system is realized and the Kurdish people enjoy their ethnic rights in Syria as a democratic federal state for all its people.

Do you have a vision of working together with the [Democratic] Union Party?

* Political document of the Kurdish National Council emphasizes the option of dialogue, cooperation and joint work with the Democratic Union Party through the implementation of the Dohuk agreement which was held in late 2014. The agreement determines the equal and effective partnership between the Council and the Democratic Union Party in the administrative, political and military fields, but the Democratic Union Party turns its back on the agreement and works singularly in an attempt to dominate the Kurdish National Council by force and obstruct its activities.

- In light of the distance between you and the Democratic Union Party, are there any internal initiatives or initiative from the Kurdistan Regional Government?

* The Kurdish National Council never opposed the return to the Dohuk agreement which was concluded under the auspices of Masoud Barzani, the President of the Kurdistan region.

- There are international allies for the democratic society movement, so who are your allies?

* Since the beginning of the peaceful Syrian Revolution, the Kurdish National Council’s option was to work with the other national opposition forces to achieve the revolutionary goals of freedom and dignity and to not initiate any negotiation or dialogue with the regime without it [remaining opposition forces]. The Council is now a member of the Coalition of the Opposition and Revolutionary Forces, and through its membership, it continues to communicate with the forces supporting the Syrian people. The Council enjoys the support of the majority of the Kurdish forces and at their helm the leadership of the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

- Compared to the representation of the Democratic Union Party abroad, how many representatives do you have abroad?

Historically, there is no way to compare between the Kurdish National Council parties and the Democratic Union Party. The parties of the National Council have existed since 1957 while the Democratic Union Party is new to political activity. The Kurdish National Council has many representatives in Kurdistan, Iraq, Turkey and Germany. Also, it has organizations in most European countries other than its reputation and the special relations it enjoys among Syrians.