An impressive celebration of the Kurdish New Year, Newroz, took place in Bologna, Italy. The political collective Làbas, which runs the community and cultural center in a former monastery in the heart of Bologna, invited people to the event at the Centro Sociale Làbas. Numerous guests participated in the event on Wednesday evening to experience a political, musical and cultural evening.

The event began with a presentation and subsequent debate on Abdullah Öcalan's call for peace to the Turkish state and the end of the armed struggle of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in order to pave the way for a democratic solution to the Kurdish question. The Italian journalist Alessia Manzi was one of the speakers and reported on her last trip to Rojava.

After the talk, the guests enjoyed an extensive buffet with dishes from Kurdish cuisine. The proceeds will go to a crowdfunding campaign by the collective “Ya Basta Bologna”, which is collecting money for the reconstruction of the cinema in the city of Amude.

After dinner, a documentary film by the Kurdish filmmaker and actress Maysoon Majidi was shown. The artist fled Iran at the end of 2023 and was recently still in Italian custody because she was accused of human trafficking.         

The entire evening was accompanied by music and songs by Kurdish acts, including a performance by the singer Belçim Atay. With extensive dances, accompanied by slogans such as “Bijî Serok Apo” (Long live leader Öcalan) and “Jin Jiyan Azadî” (Woman, Life, Freedom), there was something else to celebrate besides Newroz: Abdullah Öcalan's honorary citizenship, which was awarded to him a few days ago by the city of Bologna. “In this sense: Happy Newroz and a successful new year of struggle,” said a member of the Làbas collective.

Video and images by Làbas