We are struggling against capitalism, imperialism fascism and zionism
Our party Communist Party of Turkey 1920 (TKP 1920) [Türkiye Komünist Partisi 1920] is struggling against capitalism, imperialism, fascism and zionism since its foundation in 1920 as one of the members of Communist International, Comintern.
TKP was one of the illegal parties in Turkey. The Party attempted to work and struggle legally in Turkey for three times in the past. The first attempt was just after the foundation of our party during 1920s. The second one was after the World War II. And the last one was during 1980s after merging with Workers' Party of Turkey (TIP) under the name of United Communist Party of Turkey (TBKP). All those attempts were ended up by the closure and ban of our party by the Turkish bourgeoisie.
The roots of our party lie in the anti-imperialist struggles by the communist tobacco workers
In fact, the roots of our party lie in the anti-imperialist struggles by the communist tobacco workers against the occupation forces in Istanbul during and after the World War I. It lies in the heroic achievement of the brave communists like Mustafa Suphi and Ethem Nejat- the former was the founder and the first Chairman and the the latter was the first General Secretary of the TKP- in bringing together the progressive, socialist and communist forces of Anatolia and Thrace under the flag of TKP in Baku in September 1920.
Between the two World Wars our comrades had been at the forefront of the class struggle
In the early years of the Republic, many of our comrades had been sent to prisons under the pretext of being communist and propagating the ideals of communism. Like our 5th General Secretary, great poet Nazım Hikmet, many of them had been tortured and spent years in prisons. Nevertheless, in this period between the two World Wars our comrades had been at the forefront of the class struggle.
From the great organizing drive of 1973 to the military coup in 1980
And at the same time, our comrades had been the pioneers of the antifascist movement during the World War II as the ruling elite of Turkey supported the Nazi Germany. And after the World War II, the architects of propagating communist ideals in the society, especially in the working class organizations and trade unions, too, were TKP vanguards. And the great mobilization in the society launched in 1973 by TKP leadership was a turning point for TKP. This great organizing drive in the second half of the 1970s could only be stopped by a military coup in 1980.
From TKP to TKP 1920: The old and young cadres of TKP pioneers carried forward this long lasting struggle
The old and young cadres of TKP pioneers carried forward this long lasting struggle in the 1980s and 1990s under hard conditions. In the 2000s, TKP cadres, on one hand, fought for the creation of a democratic, independent and socialist Turkey and, on the other hand, endeavored to stop the invasion of Iraq by the imperialist powers. During those years, the efforts of the cadres were also focused on the recreation of our dissolved party and then created TKP under illegal conditions. TKP has organized many protest meetings against the intervention by imperialists into the sovereign countries of Middle East and North Africa.
And in 2012, all these cadres who wholeheartedly accept and respect the struggling tradition of TKP for 92 years came together from different regions of Turkey and established a legal party, TKP 1920.
Our party, the Communist Party of Turkey 1920, as a part of the international communist movement fighting for the emancipation of the working class and oppressed peoples will continue to raise the flag of socialism and communism.
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