Despite the heavily militarizing environment of Rojhelat (eastern Kurdistan), Kurdish youth celebrated women’s international day.
Youth Movement of Eastern Kurdistan (KCR), associated with PJAK distributed statements in the streets of Meriwan.
On 7th March 14 youth declared a statement and greeted this day to the women in all the world and especially women in Rojhelat. In the statement the memory of Rosa Luxemburg and Clara Zetkin was cherished. A part of the statement starting with “Kurdish women freedom fighters are the leaders” was as follows:
“There are many of Kurdish women who participated in the revolutionary process of Kurdistan and have demonstrated themselves to be strong and animus. They are now remembered as heroes among people; Leyla Qasim, Merziye Feriqi, Zilan, Mizgin, Silav and Sakine Cansiz, Fidan Dogan and Leyla Saylemez , who were assassinated in Paris, are all heroes to be mentioned and name a few. This assassination is done in the center of Europe, France. We do not want such assassinations and conspiracies repeat once more. Also in Kurdistan especially in Rojhelat we can see women are confronted a patriarchal society and government; obvious examples are the murder and suspicious death of two female Kurdish students named as Seher Choyini from Meriwan and Sheyda Hatemi from Urmiye at the universities of Hemedan and Urmiye respectively. We need to extend our effort and thus prevent such aggression, murdering and systematic oppressions extending in the society”.
At the end of the statement the KCR (Kurdish Youth Movement) mentioned the theories of Abdulla Öcalan and said:
“With his philosophical and sociological theories, Leader APO manifested the value of women in the society once more and thus established a revolution for Kurdish women and women in the region. This revolution was not limited to the theory only, yet in practice achieved a big success and established the ideology of women’s liberty. In the philosophical perspectives of Leader APO women are seen as the 50 percent of society’s potential and thus created values in which says society would not achieve liberty unless women are free; the importance of women’s liberty has the same value as Kurdistan’s liberty. Therefore, we need to allocate as much as effort for women’s liberty as afforded for liberty of society. Self-organizing, unity and equality is the main functions of each individual Kurd in which they need to do in order to gain women’s right and Kurdish right”.
Increasing the security pressures in Sine around 8th March
The city of Sine was completely militarized and the security forces were spared all over the city prior to the international women’s day. The mobile phones, land lines and internet had a lot of problems in order not to allow people to contact for celebrations and preventing any activities.
Creating such environment caused many of the civilians frustrated as they were also confronting the security forces heavily controlling them. On 7th March 150 civilian youths were arrested as a result of taking part in the 8th March celebration.
It has also been reported that a women activist was arrested named as Meryem Nasiri and transferred to an unknown place.
March in Sine for national women’s day
Despite all the security forces, 8th March was honored by people in Sine.
According to a report from the committee of workers organizations, on 10th March many of people in sine took part in a march and greet 8th March to all women and people of Kurdistan. At this march people were holding placards and saying slogans against gender inequality.
Holding this march was in the meantime that many women activists were warned and the city was highly militarized.
The Iranian institution does not recognize 8th of March as the women’s day and is against all the gender equality movements.
Rojhelat.info