With the Turkish invasion of northern and eastern Syria, the Civilian Defense Forces have assumed a particularly important role in protecting the population. ANF spoke to members of these autonomously organised structures.
In July 2012, the Kurds in Syria succeeded in driving the Baath regime out of the regions of Afrin, Cizîrê and Kobanê largely without bloodshed through an initiative of the People's Council of Western Kurdistan/Rojava (Meclîsa Gel a Rojavayê Kurdistanê, MGRK). A new model of society was immediately begun, based on the values of grassroots democracy and the acceptance and integration of all ethnic and religious identities, gender liberation, a just economy and a sustainable ecology. Under wartime conditions, self-government was established. Against attacks and threats from outside, the population organized itself in civil defense units. These self-defense militias were directly linked to the grassroots organization in the form of councils, and from 2015 they finally structured themselves in the system of the Civilian Defense Forces HPC (Hêzên Parastina Civakî). The new self-defense system of Rojava was introduced after the ISIS massacre of Kobanê on June 25, 2015 to defend the cities and prepare the population against possible attacks. The HPC units were recruited from civil society and take on the task of setting up defence positions and guards in their own villages and districts. Their members receive the necessary military, political and ideological training for this. Women organise themselves according to the same principle: as in all structures in the self-governing areas of northern and eastern Syria, they are organised autonomously in the self-governing forces of the municipalities. As HPC-Jin, women form an independent institution.
With the renewed invasion of the Turkish state and its Islamist militias in northern and eastern Syria, the HPC have taken on a particularly important role in defense against the occupation. In Kobanê ANF talked to Osman Xelîl and Şukriye Muslim about their work.
According to Osman Xelîl, the fate of a society is determined by the resistance it generates. "We created the HPC and the Women's Defence Forces to defend society effectively. The society is aware of its problems and able to organize solutions. The Turkish state has occupied our cities, razed them to the ground, killed our women and children and plundered our property. All this happened in front of the eyes of society", Xelîl said.
Not attack, but defence
"A dirty war is being waged against us," Xelîl continues, recalling that there has been no attack by Northern and Eastern Syria on the territory of another country that would justify Turkey's action. "We are only trying to protect our homeland and the societies of this region. The Turkish state intends to destroy the achievements of all peoples in Rojava. We as one of these societies are arming ourselves against this in order to defend our gains. The HPC is not a fully armed movement. It is solely about our own self-defense. We are only organizing to ensure the defense of our society, our homes and our lands. We do not do this to attack the territory of other countries. This is our home. It is our towns, villages, our streets and houses that we defend. Our self-defence is not only military, but we also extend it to ideological and psychological socialization. Our enemies attack us. It is only natural that we as a society take our place in the defence against them. The principle of pluralism is the foundation of HPC. That is why all population groups - Kurds, Arabs, Syriacs and Armenians - organize themselves in our structures," explains Xelîl.
We bear responsibility for the people and the women
Şukriye Muslim from the women's defence forces HPC-Jin is a mother of three children. Her husband died in 2017 in the fight against the terrorist organization "Islamic State" (ISIS) during the liberation of Raqqa. One of her sons was wounded in the Kobanê resistance in 2014. Her daughter is with the YPJ. Muslim herself has been organized with the HPC-Jin for four years. She wants to express her responsibility towards society and women, she explains. "The social defense is a very important issue for us. There are threats and attacks on the country we live in from several fronts. Against them, we, as the women and men, young and old of society, are building our defense."
No fear of the enemy
One knows only too well why the Turkish state is attacking northern and eastern Syria. "We never wanted a war, but we must defend ourselves against the attacks of the Turkish army and its militias. We are not afraid. Our enemies are specialized in dirty warfare. They target women to weaken and push us back. We haven't flinched, we've stayed on the front lines. Martyrs like Hevrîn Xelef, Barîn Kobanê, Avesta Xabûr, Amara Rênas and many other women show that we are not afraid of the enemy and do not bow down to them. Our maxim is to continue the way of the martyrs and to resist until the last moment. It is our enemies who are afraid of our resistance."
Achievements will never be abandoned
The women of Northern and Eastern Syria are determined not to retreat despite the invasive attacks. On the contrary: the defence of women must be strengthened, explains Şukriye Muslim.
“The revolution of Rojava is a great opportunity for women. That is why we will never stop talking and turn away from the achievements of this revolution. Whether it is organising society, taking up arms, getting to the positions on the front - whatever is asked of us, we are ready to do it. If it is not possible for a woman to fight at the front, she simply raises her children as fighters. Each one of us is aware of her responsibility and organises herself accordingly. It is relative how and in which way the Turkish state attacks: we as women will fulfil our responsibility and duties."
This soil is soaked with the blood of our martyrs
It would be illusory to believe that the Turkish state and its jihadist auxiliary troops could invade and occupy northern and eastern Syria with their arms wavering, says Muslim: "This soil has been soaked with the blood of our martyrs. The hearts of all mothers are burning. Leaving the land to the aggressors is out of the question for them. The common demand of all mothers is to chase away the invading troops to do justice to their children.
Of course, it was and is not always easy. Fighters who have protected us with their bodies like shields will never be forgotten. Here, in this country, history has been written. We are here to defend that history. We will not allow those who massacre our people to put their dirty feet on this ground. We will defend ourselves to the end."
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