Mehmud Gulo is the owner of the house where Koma Çiya was founded. He is also one of the first members of Koma Çiya group. He was part of Koma Çiya for two years and of Koma Ararat group for one year. After Mehmud, his three children join the Koma Botan group, following in his footsteps.

Koma Çiya member Mehmud Gulo told ANF about the establishment of Koma Çiya, its activities, its transformation into Koma Ararat, the Newroz celebrations of the period and the pressures of the Syrian regime. Mehmud Gulo said that he got to know Newroz thanks to the PKK. "We learned what Newroz is, why it is celebrated and its meaning after the PKK arrived here. It was the PKK that raised public awareness and showed the truth. The PKK taught us all this. There were so many parties for years, but no one did anything. The PKK told us the Kurdish truth. That's why we got to know ourselves in the PKK."

New Newroz atmosphere

Mehmud Gulo said that the idea of celebrating Newroz was with a picnic in 1985. "A new Newroz atmosphere has been created. It was different from other years. It was celebrated with a picnic, as it is celebrated in Bashur Kurdistan today. A new process has begun. There were flocks to the Newroz area from everywhere. Thousands filled the fields. If you look at the Newroz photos of that period, you will see this. It was an endless crowd.”

Kurdish clothes and music prohibited

Opportunities and resources were limited, said Gulo, remembering that they would use the bedboards as a stage. “There were many difficulties… There was intense pressure from the Syrian regime. No one could go to Newroz in their Kurdish local clothes. Including those in Koma Çiya. We used to go to the field in normal clothes and change into traditional clothes there in the tent. We were performing in public. Those who filmed the concerts had their faces covered. Otherwise they would have been caught and arrested too. We used to take the sound speaker system in trucks and tractors to the concert areas. Otherwise, the regime would have seized them. There were so many difficulties, yet it had meaning and taste.”

Koma Çiya

Mehmud Gulo said the following about the establishment of Koma Çiya: “Preparations were made in 1984. Koma Xelat was disbanded. Koma Çiya was founded in 1985. Its members gathered and named it Koma Çiya. There were Mehmet Salih, Lokman, Cuma and many more. They also came from other groups. Koma Çiya made significant contributions to the Kurdish language. Most of the first members to take part in Koma Çiya were from our family. That's why they called it 'Koma Mala Gulo'. Martyr Mazlum Doğan had celebrated Newroz and said 'Berxwedan jiyan e'. That sentence became essential for Koma Çiya. The people were also very attached to Koma Çiya. There were not just bands; there were also sketch and theater groups. Plays involving the betrayal of the revolution were also performed.”