made Apocus, later PKK, different was that it decided to move its activities from Ankara, the capital city of Turkey, to Turkish Kurdistan, near the Syria-Turkey border. Unlike most Kurdish political parties, which adopted a rather conservative outlook and were organized around tribal leaders and structures, Apocus had a fierce stance, strong convictions, and a disciplined but decentralized organization which contributed to a steady rise and growing effectiveness Much of the early development was inspired by the rise of decolonization movements and their potential to be adapted to the Kurdish question. Apocular (1974–1978) The core of the organization established with 16 members, led by political science student Öcalan, later to be his wife Kesire Yildirim, Cemil Bayik, Baki Karer, Kemal Pir, Mehmet Sevgat, Mehmet Karasungur and ten other members with the name Ankara Democratic Association of Higher Education (ADYÖD). The organization was located in Ankara. During this period, Öcalan and his supporters were generally known as Apocus, in Turkish "Apocular". Today, there are only a few still living or following the cause, a result of a combination of factors, including disputes internal to the PKK. Although originally based in Ankara, Öcalan decided that there was a better base in south-east Turkey. Öcalan recognized that he can organize and build a secure base to perform activities by using the tribal system in the region. He focused on tribes that are not historically coexisting peacefully with the government. Thus, Öcalan focused much of his attention from 1976–78 to building a PKK structure in that region. It was a secret organization, but deciphered by Turkish Intelligence in 1977. On May 18, 1977, Haki Karer, who belonged to small group of confidants, a housemate of Öcalan, not a Kurd but a Turk from Ordu, was dispatched to Gaziantep to recruit new members. He was involved in a political discussion with another left Kurdish faction called Sterka Sor (Red Star) in a coffee shop. He was killed in Gaziantep, allegedly by members of the Kurdish group Sterka Sor. This was the first resistance against Apocular by a rival Kurdish group. From that moment Apocular become more careful, strict and violent. In the party's historiography, the death of Haki Karer is related to the decision to deepen and strengthen the struggle. On 27 November 1978, during a meeting in a village called Fis, in the district of Lice, north of Diyarbakir, it was decided to form