People of Rojhilat are taking part in the general strike on the first anniversary of the killing of Jina Mahsa Amini in the custody of the so-called morality police in Tehran.
Today marks the first anniversary of the uprising in Iran and Rojhilat (East Kurdistan) following the killing of Kurdish woman Jina Mahsa Amini in police custody in Tehran on 16 September 2022.
The state femicide of Jina Mahsa Amini triggered a revolution under the motto "Jin, Jiyan, Azadî" (Woman, Life, Freedom) across the country. The women-led uprisings that spread from Rojhilat to the whole of Iran have created an irreversible revolution in people's minds, resulting in the deaths of at least 500 people and injuries to thousands more. Despite the family’s complaint against those responsible for Amini’s death, no action has been taken so far.
Parties and political movements from Rojhilat (Eastern Kurdistan/Western Iran) have called for a general strike in Kurdistan on the first anniversary of the "Jin Jiyan Azadî" resistance on 16 September. Defining the rebellion that broke out a year ago as the largest and longest-lasting uprising in the history of the Islamic Republic, the Kurdish organisations and parties called on "the fighting people of Kurdistan" to remember the martyrs of this new revolution, show their support to the political prisoners and keep the political movement alive.
The parties calling for a strike include Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan (PJAK), the Movement for Freedom and Democracy in Rojhilat (KODAR), the Democratic Movement of Kurdistan-Iran (HDKÎ), Komele (Communist Party of Iran), Sazimanî Xebat (Organization of Iranian Kurdistan Struggle), PAK (Freedom Party of Kurdistan) and Komeleya Zehmetkêşên Kurdistanê (Community of Labourers of Kurdistan).
Shops remain closed and people do not go to work in Eastern Kurdistan today. The strike is taking place in several cities, including Saqiz, Sine, Diwander, Meriwan, Bokan, Bane, Kamyaran, Kirmaşan, Urmiya, Mahabad, Dehgolan.
According to reports from the ground, the town of Saqez, especially the area around the Amini family’s residence and the roads leading to the Aichi cemetery, are besieged by heavily armed security forces and military personnel. The military presence has also been greatly increased in other Kurdish localities.
