Bergün Varan, a member of Grup Yorum and a revolutionary artist, has begun a hunger strike in solidarity with the Mapuche political prisoners in Chile—Óscar Cañupan, Axel Campos, José Lienqueo, Roberto Garling, and Bastián Llaitul—who are resisting imperialist capital as part of the Quilleco case. Drawing on her own experience of imprisonment, Varan once again proclaims the slogan: “One for all, all for one!” This act of support is not merely a greeting between resistance fighters on two continents; it is a concrete link in the international class solidarity of the proletariat and oppressed peoples against global capitalist plunder, fascist state terror, and imperialist exploitation.
Bergün Varan’s story of imprisonment reflects the systematic attacks of Turkish fascism on revolutionary art, popular organization, and Grup Yorum as a symbol of the socialist struggle. Arrested seven times, Varan has spent years in Silivri and other prisons. Most recently, on September 29, 2022, she was detained during a conspiratorial raid on the İdil Cultural Center and imprisoned for over a year on charges of “membership in an organization” and participation in Grup Yorum activities. The indictments are empty—filled with informant lies, police conspiracies, and accusations such as “singing revolutionary songs.” She has previously been detained and tortured multiple times for performing the Berkin Elvan march, protesting concert bans, and participating in choir work; her hair was forcibly pulled out, and her dignity assaulted. The state labels Grup Yorum’s efforts to bring songs of hope and resistance to the people as “terror,” because revolutionary art organizes the consciousness of the oppressed and breaks the cultural hegemony of capitalism. Every release Varan experienced was followed by a new arrest; every act of resistance met with renewed repression. She has previously put her body on the line in hunger strikes to break these chains—and now she stands with her comrades in Chile.
Why is Varan carrying out a hunger strike in support of the Mapuche prisoners? Because imperialism is one and the same everywhere. In Chile, multinational forestry monopolies (such as Arauco) plunder the lands of Wallmapu, while the Mapuche people defend their forests, water, and ancestral territories. Acts such as truck burnings are a legitimate struggle for land against this plunder; yet the Chilean state labels them “terrorism” and uses anti-terror laws to create political prisoners—just as in Turkey, where revolutionaries are isolated in high-security prisons to silence them. At a time when Axel Campos has been hospitalized during a dry hunger strike and the health of the five prisoners is critical, Varan’s support is a necessity of socialist internationalism: “The land belongs not to occupiers or capital, but to the people!”—a slogan echoing from Latin America to Anatolia.
This action is not merely individual solidarity; it demonstrates the universality of class struggle. Capitalism binds indigenous peoples, workers, and revolutionary artists with the same chains. While Turkish fascism attempts to silence Grup Yorum, the Chilean oligarchy seeks to crush the Mapuche resistance. The people know that the chains of imperialism can only be broken through international solidarity. Varan’s hunger strike is part of an anti-imperialist front stretching from Palestine to Chile to Turkey.
Bergün Varan and all revolutionary prisoners are saying “stop” to fascism by turning their bodies into weapons. This resistance is a new link on the road to the victory of the oppressed.
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