BERJÎN KARA

Makhmour- Newroz celebrations, annually held on March 21, are an uprising against injustice and oppressive regimes. The Kurdish people in four parts of Kurdistan and abroad are getting ready to celebrate Newroz with great enthusiasm. NuJINHA spoke to Arzû Îlhan, member of the İştar Assembly in Martyr Rustem Cudi Camp (Makhmour Refugee Camp) about the meaning and importance of Newroz.

 ‘Newroz is an uprising against oppression and occupation’

 Newroz is a stand against the government, slavery and the oppression of nature, Leyla Arzû Îlhan said. “According to ancient legends, Kawa the Blacksmith led an uprising against Assyrian tyrant Dehak on March 21, in the year 612 B.C. Newroz is the day when Kawa the Blacksmith started a struggle against the brutality of the Assyrians. Today, Newroz is an uprising against oppression and occupation. Although the ruling powers define Newroz as a festival and the arrival of spring, Newroz is an uprising. Today, the Kurdish people celebrate Newroz with great enthusiasm.”

 ‘It is a day of resistance’

The struggle of the Kurdish people led by the Kurdish Freedom Movement makes Newroz even more meaningful, she said. “Newroz has been celebrated for 2,650 years but the second Newroz fire was lit by fire that Mazlum Doğan lit in Diyarbakır Prison against the oppression of the Turkish state (Mazlum Doğan et his body on fire on March 21, 1982 in prison to protest the oppression of the Turkish state). Mazlum Doğan resisted oppression and torture with three matchsticks and said, ‘You cannot break our determination to fight against oppression and torture’. Thus, Newroz became meaningful once again. Many revolutionary women such as Zekiye, Bêrîvan and Rewşen showed that Newroz is not a festival but an uprising against oppression and a day of resistance.”

 ‘We will light the Newroz fire against the conspiracy’

Leyla Arzû Îlhan concluded her speech saying, “The Medes, led by Kurds, rose up against the brutality of the Assyrians and managed to establish a social confederation in which all people could live together. Today, leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan) has shown how the people could resist oppression with the Democratic Nation Paradigm. This year, we will celebrate Newroz in our mountains, valleys, villages and cities. We will light the Newroz fire against the international conspiracy. I wish a happy Newroz to leader Apo and the freedom fighters of Kurdistan.”