YJA Star Guerilla Agirî Qamishlo talked about what the Rojava Revolution meant and means for her...

“The Rojava Revolution opened the eyes of everyone, women, youth, society and the whole world. We were asking ourselves how will we take place as young women and women in the reality of revolution, where will we put ourselves?

The militants had a deep impact on us whether we wanted or not, they want to liberate the lands of Kurdistan and are sacrificing their lives. Rêber Apo [president Ocalan] sheds light on the Rojava Revolution in his defenses despite the solation he was subjected to and helped growing it with his work.”

Guerrilla Qamishlo continued: “All of this had an impact on us. The Rojava Revolution is actually an act of conscience, and nobody can close their eyes, ears, or remain silent. Because it is a task on our shoulders. Who will do it if I don't, and when will I do it if not now. The impact of the Rojava Revolution on us was not a light one. For the first time, as a people, we fight for ourselves, we govern ourselves. We are not saying that the state should come and govern us, we are not saying that they should come and protect us. It is he people who defend what has been achieved. It was with this enthusiasm, with this spirit that I joined in 2013.”

Guerrilla Qamishlo added that “another thing that impressed me was the fact that the women led this process. In our society there was a cliché that women are passive in war, and even when they are active, they can only play a role in logistics and militia. Actually, the revolution showed that this was not true. Women can participate in the revolution at 360 degrees: They can fight, defend, carry out diplomatic and political work. It was with this feeling that I too saw myself responsible as a woman."

‘The revolution opened my eyes’

Guerrilla Qamishlo reminded that she underwent “some training in 2013 when I joined. This training gave me a foundation. As a person, a cadre, an Apoist youth, they were the basic training we needed to organize people, to wage war.”

She added: “"On this basis, I carried out youth work for a long time in Rojava. This period was a learning period for me. I got to know the reality of my own people, the youth, and actually my own reality. I was living in society as a young woman, but actually I did not know what I was living. Thanks to this work I became aware of many things. The revolution opened our eyes in many aspects, mentally, socially, personally, spiritually. We were able to know our being. And we realized that we had indeed been living in a great deception.”

‘The Sherildan of Şeladize reflects the spirit of youth’

Guerrilla Qamishlo underlined that “undoubtedly we should properly and deeply evaluate what is going on in Bashur, in South Kurdistan. We know that the special war policies implemented by the enemy target especially the youth in Bashur. The enemy wants to spread capitalism especially in Bashur and does everything it can to prevent the Bashur from playing their role in liberating Kurdistan. Bashur youth should be aware of this reality. The Sherildan in Şeladize showed the patriotic spirit of the young people in the South to everyone. Actually, this poses a huge threat to the enemy. Young people there said ‘No matter who you are, whoever you make an alliance with, you cannot invade our land, you cannot invade the lands that gave so many martyrs’. The spirit seen in Şeladize should be revived."

'The people of South Kurdistan should choose the third option’

YJA Star Guerilla Agirî Qamişlo emphasized that there is a special war policy being waged against the young people of South Kurdistan and added: "The enemy is trying to deceive the youth. If a young person in Bashur is unemployed and cannot provide for his family, the enemy puts him in front of two options: join the peshmerga, public order, etc. or go to Europe. The Bashur youth should know that there is a third option. And this option is the PKK, is joining the resistance and fight for your land and people. Young people in Bashur should chose this third option and join the resistance.”