“Victory to the resistance, for social justice and human liberation. Towards a new life whose seeds are sown in Rojava and all over free Kurdistan. Let the spirit of Newroz renew hope that peace and justice will come through all our efforts and dedication.”
PEACE IN KURDISTAN
Kurdish people will be commemorating the 50th anniversary of Newroz on 21 March 2022 in cities, towns and villages, in urban areas and rural settings, right across Kurdistan and in the diaspora. Newroz is a time of unity, solidarity and community.
The mass communal gatherings of Kurds are a splendid sight to witness, as anyone who has had the good fortune to experience such events at first hand will confirm. Newroz brings together Kurds from all different social backgrounds, uniting Kurds of all ages and bridging the generations, as families, individuals, youth and elderly, along with friends, join together in song, music and dance to reaffirm their common humanity and dignity as a nation and people.
Peace In Kurdistan sends greetings to everyone marking Newroz 2022 and we stand in solidarity with the Kurds equally in their celebrations and in their continued resistance until peace is won.
We remember the political prisoners languishing in jail who are prevented from joining in the celebrations in person, but who will no doubt be celebrating in their own way.
We send our solidarity to Abdullah Ocalan and all these political prisoners and demand their release, noting that Turkey carries on filling its jails with unjustly detained Kurdish activists, artists, journalists and civil society leaders.
Our thoughts are also with the martyred Kurdish men and women, who are fallen heroes in the historic struggle to liberate their people. Their selfless sacrifices will never be forgotten, and they live on forever in the collective memory of the Kurdish people, and especially in the hearts of their grieving families and loved ones.
We stand in solidarity with those facing violence and oppression from the state forces in the Kurdish region, in particular those on the frontline who endure the bullets and bombs every day as attacks by Turkish military against Kurdish homes and civilian residences go on unchecked.
Peace in Kurdistan notes the brazenly hypocritical position of Turkish leaders in respect of the conflict in Ukraine where Ankara is currently posing as a peace broker, while relentlessly waging its war against the Kurds.
The international community of nations must be even handed in its approach to conflicts, and we must condemn the selective sympathy with the victims of war and aggression in different conflict zones. The Western powers’ support for the people of Ukraine comes in stark contrast to the refusal to even acknowledge the destruction inflicted on Kurdish communities by the Turkish military which has been going on uninterrupted for years with hardly a word of criticism and a complete lack of action to stop it.
The right and honest response is surely to extend solidarity to human suffering whenever it occurs without favouritism or political bias.
It is now fifty years since the Kurds took their fate into their own hands heralding the start of a new phase in the Kurdish people’s struggle for self-determination. The Kurdish spirit of solidarity and resistance flourishes today as a result of the political leadership of Abdullah Ocalan and the Kurdish Freedom Movement.
The people’s unflinching determination to win their liberation remains as solid as the rocks on which they are building their new community out of the ashes of the old.
Newroz is a time to reaffirm our commitments. Peace in Kurdistan sends greetings of solidarity to Kurds wherever they are celebrating.
Victory to the resistance, for social justice and human liberation. Towards a new life whose seeds are sown in Rojava and all over free Kurdistan. Let the spirit of Newroz renew hope that peace and justice will come through all our efforts and dedication.
Peace in Kurdistan
Campaign for a political solution of the Kurdish Question
Email: estella@gn.apc.org
https://www.peaceinkurdistancampaign.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/peaceinkurdistan1/
Contacts Estella Schmid: 07846 666 804 & Melanie Gingell: 07572 430903
Patrons: John Austin, Baroness Blower of Starch Green, former GS NUT, Prof Bill Bowring, Julie Christie, Noam Chomsky, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Maggie Cook, UNISON women activist; Prof Mary Davis, Lord Dholakia, Simon Dubbins, UNITE International Director, Jill Evans, former MEP, Desmond Fernandes, Lindsey German, Convenor STWC, Melanie Gingell, Christopher Gingell, Prof Dr. Michael Gunter, Secretary-General, EU Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC), Rahila Gupta, journalist, Nick Hildyard, policy advisor, Dafydd Iwan, Former President Plaid Cymru, James Kelman, Bruce Kent, Jean Lambert, former MEP, Dr Les Levidow, Open University, Elfyn Llwyd, John McDonnell MP; Aonghas MacNeacail, Scottish Gaelic poet, Mike Mansfield QC, David Morgan, journalist, Doug Nicholls, General Secretary, GFTU, Dr. Jessica Ayesha Northey, Sinn Fein MLA Conor Murphy, Dr Thomas Jeffrey Miley, Kate Osamor MP, Margaret Owen OBE, Ali Gul Ozbek, Former Councillor and Mayor of Haringey; Gareth Peirce, Dr Felix Padel, Maxine Peake, actor, Dr Thomas Phillips, Liverpool John Moores University, Trevor Rayne, writer, Joe Ryan, Bert Schouwenburg, International Trade Union Adviser; Tony Simpson, Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation, Stephen Smellie, PIK Trade Union Liaison Officer, Jonathan Steele, journalist, Steve Sweeney, journalist, Gianni Tognoni, General Secretary Permanent People’s Tribunal, Dr Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, Dr Federico Venturini, Associate Researcher, University of Udine, Italy; Dr Tom Wakeford, Dr Derek Wall, Julie Ward, former MEP, Kariane Westrheim, Chair, EU Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC); Hywel Williams MP.