In numerous cities of northern Kurdistan, the Kurdish New Year festival Newroz was celebrated this Saturday to welcome spring and to demonstrate the will of Kurdish society to resist oppression and barbarism. Even though snowfall and temperatures around freezing caused some places to be covered with a layer of white, the squares filled up early. The motto of this year's celebrations is "Now is the time for success".

The festival is intended as a prelude to freedom and peace in Kurdistan and an end to global wars and power struggles. This year's Newroz Declaration states: "We call on the peoples to say no to war and to build a barricade of peace against the war policies of their states." With regard to Kurdistan, the declaration speaks of a "totalitarian concept of war against the Kurdish people" that the AKP/MHP government is adhering to with its "neo-Ottoman dreams" in all parts of Kurdistan. This year's Newroz will therefore be celebrated as a festival of freedom and victory - in order to increase enthusiasm, anger and revolt and to loudly voice the demand for freedom.

The main demand of this year's Newroz celebrations is "Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan" - who, despite his efforts for peace and a solution to the Kurdish question, has been unlawfully held in the isolation and torture system on the prison island of Imrali for 23 years. There are also calls for the release of all political prisoners, and for sick prisoners in particular to be released from custody immediately. Another issue is the economic crisis in Turkey, which is leading to the impoverishment of broad segments of the population.

Şırnak

In Şirnak province, the celebration started with a minute of silence for the martyrs of Newroz 1992. On March 21 of that year, Turkish security forces turned the New Year's celebration in the district of Cizre into a bloodbath. Footage that went around the world showed women, children, young and old people in colorful costumes gathered in a public square to celebrate Newroz. Soldiers and paramilitaries fired into the crowd without warning. At least 50 people died, including twelve children. The subsequent wave of protests in Cizre and the Şırnak province resulted in around 100 more deaths.

After a minute of silence, the resistance song Çerxa Şoreşê (The Wheel of Revolution) was sung together. HDP deputies Ayşe Acar Başaran and Nuran Imir appeared as speakers. Both politicians expressed confidence that the "new life" would begin in the near future with a free Öcalan and a resolved Kurdistan question. Imir and Başaran then lit the traditional Newroz fire together with a group of women from the Peace Mothers Initiative. The celebration continued with a musical stage program.

In the district of Güçlükonak, a Newroz fire was lit for the first time in eight years.

Dargeçit

In Dargeçit district of Mardin, HDP spokeswoman Ebru Günay was one of the speakers. The politician first congratulated people on Newroz and then greeted the family of political prisoner Garibe Gezer, who died in Turkish custody in December after suffering torture under suspicious circumstances. Günay then stated: "The Kurdish people want freedom and liberty. These all too human demands are ignored by the rulers and answered with war and isolation. But if there is to be real democracy, which even this government keeps talking about, the rulers have no choice but to solve the Kurdish question and accept the political will of this people. They must turn their gaze to Imrali. The key to all problems is on the island."

Kızıltepe

In Kızıltepe district of Mardin, the crowd was greeted by HDP deputy Pero Dündar. Ahmet Türk, a political veteran, appealed to political parties and leaders in all parts of Kurdistan to work for a national unity of Kurdish society.

Elazığ

In Karakoçan district of Elazığ, the Newroz fire was lit by Arife Doğan, the sister of Mazlum Doğan, who is considered a "contemporary Kawa" by Kurdish society. Mazlum Doğan was a leading cadre of the PKK and imprisoned in the "Amed dungeon" in the early 1980s. On March 21, 1982, he initiated the resistance against the Turkish military junta there with a self-immolation action on Newroz.

Suruç

This year's Newroz in Suruç district of Urfa province was dedicated to Emine Şenyaşar. The elderly woman is the widow of Hacı Esvet Şenyaşar and mother of their joint sons Celal and Adil. The three men were victims of lynchings carried out in Suruç by AKP MP Ibrahim Halil Yıldız's armed bodyguards and relatives just days before the June 2018 parliamentary and presidential elections. HPD provincial association co-chair Çiğdem Karakeçili stated, "If Emine Şenyaşar wins her fight for justice for her family, the Kurdish people win."

Dersim

The celebration in Dersim took place under snowfall. Since Seyit Riza Square in the city center could not accommodate all the celebrants, part of the crowd headed for the nearby artists' quarter.

 

Other celebrations took place today in Iğdır, Bismil and Hakkari, among others. Newroz is also being celebrated in numerous cities in western Turkey.

Iğdır

 

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