Dear Friends,

It deeply saddens me to watch as my Kurdish friends, once again, sit down to fast for human rights so basic that they should never require struggle.  Such rights should be automatic, beyond any question, above any argument.  And yet for the Kurdish people such rights remain but a dream for which they must continue to suffer.

It saddens me to think that my friends must fast in order to be heard on such issues as self-determination, cultural and religious freedoms, and ethnic recognition and respect.  The Kurdish peoples have no homeland, and suffer abuse and repression in many countries.  One of their foremost leaders, the courageous Congresswoman Leyla Zana, has been imprisoned under brutal conditions in Turkey.  What was her crime?  She merely spoke out, here in Washington D.C., on behalf of the people she represents.  In this respect she is not alone.  Other Kurdish leaders have been imprisoned for similar reasons.

The time must come when all peoples are respected for their race, their ethnic origins, their cultural heritage, and their religions.  The persecution and repression of those who are different must come to an end.  We all have the right to be who we are, and to determine and control our own lives.

I offer my profound sympathy and solidarity with the Kurdish people today as they begin their fast, and call upon our national leaders to press for the release of Leyla Zana and all other similarly and unjustly detained Kurdish leaders.

Sincerely,
Jennifer Harbury