A Newroz reception was held at Munich City Hall. At the invitation of the city council group of the Left Party, numerous guests gathered in the conference room of the town hall on Friday evening to welcome the Kurdish New Year and gain an insight into the world of Kurdish culture. The Association of the Kurdish Women's Movement in Germany (YJK-E) was also involved in organizing the event.

The event began with a welcoming address by City Councillor Brigitte Wolf and a presentation on the significance of Newroz by a YJK-E activist. The social and historical reality of this day, which is celebrated in Kurdistan on March 21, was also discussed. According to mythology, it was a blacksmith named Kawa who organized resistance against the tyranny of King Dehaq in Media, also known as the Medes, in 612 BC and liberated the people from oppression. As a symbol of resistance and in view of the ongoing oppression of the Kurdish people, Newroz still plays a special political role today. The YJK-E activist pointed out that the women's resistance, which developed under the leadership of Kurdish women in the Middle East and found expression with the slogan "Jin Jiyan Azadî" (Woman, Life, Freedom) is a meaningful response to the cruel Dehaqs of today.

Artist Corina Toledo, who founded the initiative Frau.Kunst.Politik (Woman, Arts, Politics) was also among the guests at the Newroz reception. She explained that there are similar resistance festivals to Newroz in many other countries, from Latin America and Europe to Africa and the Middle East region, and emphasized that it is important to bring together and expand this resistance. Kurdish politician Leyla Imret from the German representation of the DEM Party addressed the war-induced reality of Kurdistan, which results from the violent refusal to find a solution to the Kurdish question. She paid tribute to the resistance of the Kurdish people against oppression and, in this context, pointed to the isolation of PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, whom she described as a key player for a democratic solution to the decades-old conflict. 

Imret also addressed the shift to the right in Germany and emphasized that Kurds are repeatedly the victims of racism and fascism, both in their countries of origin and in exile. It is important, she said, especially in view of the AfD's high poll ratings, that such experiences are transformed into joint struggles and that women and young people in particular, regardless of their nationality, stand in solidarity with each other in the resistance against fascism.

Nicole Gohlke, a left-wing member of the Bundestag, also spoke at the Newroz reception in Munich. She criticized the Turkish government under Erdoğan, addressed its wars and invasions in Rojava and South Kurdistan and the human rights violations in Turkey. In her speech, Gohlke also called for the lifting of the PKK ban in Germany, which is used to criminalize politically active Kurds and prevents a solution to the Kurdish question. She also welcomed the international campaign "Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan and a political solution to the Kurdish question".

The last speech was made by the co-chair of the Kurdish umbrella organization in Germany (KON-MED), Emine Ruken Akca, who invited everyone present to this year's central Newroz celebration, which will take place next week on Saturday in Frankfurt. The evening continued with culinary delights, a musical performance and ended with extensive dancing.