This year's Newroz celebrations in Northern Kurdistan and Turkey are being launched with declarations by various alliances in Amed and Istanbul. The main demand is the freedom of Abdullah Öcalan.
In Northern Kurdistan and Turkey, preparations for this year's Newroz festival are in full swing. The New Year celebrations under the motto "Time to Win" (ku. Dem dema serkeftinê ye, tr. Şimdi kazanma zamanı) have been announced in 62 places. Newroz is regularly celebrated as a resistance festival at the beginning of spring on 21 March, and a Kurdistan Alliance plans to announce a declaration in Amed (tr. Diyarbakir) on Thursday. On Friday, another declaration of a left alliance will follow in Istanbul. The main demand of this year's Newroz celebrations is "Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan". Other topics are the Turkish army's occupation attacks on southern Kurdistan (northern Iraq), which have been going on since April last year, the political prisoners in Turkey and the economic crisis, which is leading to the impoverishment of broad sections of the population.
The Democratic Society Congress (DTK), the Free Women's Movement (TJA), the Democratic Regions Party (DBP), the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), the Kurdistan Communist Party (KKP), the KDP-Bakur, the Azadî Party, the People and Freedom Party (PIA) and the Revolutionary Democratic Kurdish Association (DDKD) are represented in the Kurdistan Alliance. The alliance advocates intra-Kurdish unity.
In Istanbul, HDP and HDK are to celebrate Newroz together with the "United Fighting Forces" (BMG) and the parties and organisations of the "Democracy Coalition". The coalition includes TIP, EMEP, TÖP, EHP, SMF and the People's Houses.
The first Newroz bonfire is to be lit on 15 March in the town of Beytüşşebap in Şırnak province. The finale of the celebrations will take place in Amed on 21 March.
