rojava syria relations

However, a growing chorus of allies are rising up around the world. Popular organizations prevented acts of revenge and destruction, protecting the still intact infrastructure. The next level is the district, which usually contains a city as well as the surrounding villages. is still noticeable, she said, and the authoritarian nature of Assads rule lingers in political discourse. As the political bodies, these, too, have been subject to dynamic changes in the past decade. In addition to Kongreya Star, Womens Houses throughout NES were opened. If an issue exceeds the capacity of the commune, it goes to the neighborhood, (sub-)district and then to the region. in North and East Syria. Our system is not a centralized system, it is rather based on the principle of decentralization, 20. is how Berivan Khaled sums up the importance of the communes. Afrin region which is under Turkish occupation has a relatively mountainous terrain named as Kurd Mountains. In some villages, semi-destroyed by the war, surrounded by green meadows and freely grazing cattle, families have decided to return and reinhabit land. She tells RIC that it is particularly important to include the will of the people in this process. The SDC creates a political framework for the governance of Syria along a decentralized, federal model. These were primarily due to the territorial changes that have characterized NES since the beginning of its existence. Joseph, 2000, P.201 To remedy this discrepancy would require a massive, long-term [], [] [17]https://www.peaceinkurdistancampaign.com/autonomy-institutions-in-chiapas-and-rojava-what-lessons/&https://rojavainformationcenter.com/2022/07/10-years-of-the-rojava-revolution-much-achieved-still-mu [], [] [17] https://www.peaceinkurdistancampaign.com/autonomy-institutions-in-chiapas-and-rojava-what-lessons/ & https://rojavainformationcenter.com/2022/07/10-years-of-the-rojava-revolution-much-achieved-still-mu… [], [] the revolution enters its eleventh year, many locals are enthusiastically involved in developing new institutions and [], [] tahun sebelumnya. On March 17, an SDC assembly of Kurdish, Assyrian, Arab and Turkmen delegates proclaimed, the establishment of a federal system of government as the Democratic Federation of Rojava Northern Syria. [1], The socio-political transformations of the "Rojava Revolution" have inspired much attention in international media, both in mainstream media[2][3][4][5] and in dedicated progressive leftist media. Former state buildings that people were not allowed to enter were transformed into so-called Peoples Houses, cultural centers and educational institutions. In fierce battles between 2012 and 2014, the militia succeeded in bringing several border towns under its control and proved to be the most effective force at controlling territory and defending Kurdish areas from the growing threat of armed extremist militias. We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. This report particularly part II aims to focus on the day-to-day challenges in order to provide an accurate insight into NES society ten years after the revolution began. Turkey, which has NATOs second-largest army, has stated unequivocally that it will not tolerate the emergence of an autonomous Kurdish region in northeastern Syria (similar to the Kurdistan region in Iraq). [99] Russia however denied any such deal was made, stating it had no plans to create additional military bases in Syria and adding that only a section of its reconciliation centre was located in Aleppo Governorate near Afrin for the prevention of ceasefire violations.[100]. Cockburn, P. 20 Dec 2018. Building on principles from the Kurdish liberation struggle, the inhabitants of NES organise [], [] en 2012, durante el segundo ao de la actual guerra siria, en lo que se conoce como la Revolucin de Rojava. The Washington Institute seeks to advance a balanced and realistic understanding of American interests in the Middle East and to promote the policies that secure them. In northern and northeastern Syria, many agricultural lands were taken from Kurdish landlords and distributed to the landless Bedouin Arabs. By enforcing such economic dependency, the regime hoped to avoid any secessionist attempts by the Kurds -- in striking contrast to the Alawite coastal region, which Bashar's father endowed with all the infrastructure needed to establish an independent sectarian bunker if the regime ever lost power in Damascus. London: Freedom Press, p. 62. https://rb.gy/6riqqj (www.hawarnews.com). Amina Omar sums up that, so far, a large part of the population has accepted and agreed to the social contract: This social contract is to the benefit for the people because it guarantees the rights and duties of each individual. highest legislative assembly and ensured the right of the people to establish democratic autonomous administrations and aimed at unifying all groups under the democratic federalism of North and East Syria. The Rojava Revolution began ten years ago in Kobane. Menurut anggota, mereka melakukannya sebagai bentuk solidaritas mendukung Revolusi Rojava yang pecah di bagian utara dan timur [], [] noen r tidligere. In addition to the military, diplomatic and economic disputes with the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad, it is above all the wars with Turkey and ISIS that threaten the very existence of the regions political project. In the frame of this kind of self-administration an alternative economy will become necessary.. Kirkuk is dominated by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), a KRG faction that is close to Iran and Baghdad, unlike the KDP. It is also the political counterpart to the Autonomous Administration, which takes on more administrative and executive functions. To this end, the SDF began forging alliances with insurgent Sunni Arab tribes and non-Muslim groups. Another specific committee is the problem-solving committee or the committee for reconciliation. ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Russia's foreign minister on Friday said that the negotiating committees in northern Syria (Rojava) "do not represent all the Kurdish components," describing the . Asked about the political-theoretical foundations of her work in NES, she refers directly to calans concept: The administration is based on the principle of the democratic nation, which means that the rights of all must be protected: including Kurds, Arabs, Syrians, Turkmen and Circassians,, how rich the society in North and East Syria is in terms of different groups and beliefs! Yezidi villages in this area were attacked by the FSA-ISIS coalition in 2013. David Graeber (2018): Majority Report with David Graeber on Democratic Confederalism in Northern Syria. Despite being located deep within Rojava, Qamishli Airport is still under the Syrian army's control. As politicians in Washington continue to spin plates, Rojava's best friends, it seems, are . However, the Kurds as hitherto a comparatively weak minority in the country, would not be able to induce significant changes in the absence of major transformations first taking place in the broader conditions of the Syrian security state.6 Relatively unexpectedly, Syria was struck by such cross-societal anti-government protests in 2011. The AANES, consisting of three regions (Afrin, Euphrates and Jazira), was formed in early 2014 in the context of the Syrian Civil War, a conflict that has caused the involvement of many different countries and international organizations in the area. The only caveats were the major cities of Qamishlo and Heseke, in the Jazeera region (then the Heseke Governorate). In December 2016, as Manbij was liberated and the battle for Raqqa stood before, the name was changed once again to the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria . Once we see our struggles as inherently interdependent with each other, and with the web of life itself, no army on the planet will be able to stop the inevitable transition. In 2011, in order to establish this democratic self-administration together with the constitution of the first communes and councils throughout Rojava the PYD established an organization that aimed to advance and cement the new ideas of autonomy and democracy in society: the Movement for a Democratic Society (Tevgera Civaka Demokratk; TEV-DEM). She is currently Co-Chair of the Executive Council of the AANES, which coordinates the work of the various commissions on health, nature, the economy, and a host of other institutions. The only caveats were the major cities of Qamishlo and Heseke, in the Jazeera region (then the Heseke Governorate). "The Biden administration has remaining legal routes to provide broad-based student debt cancellation," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said. However, Pervin Yusif also highlights that clandestine self-organization and political structures existed among the Kurdish population in Syria before the revolution. A Syrian Kurdish woman waves the flag of the Democratic Union Party during a demonstration near the town of Tel Arqam near the Turkish border on 6 October 2019. most important ally to the west in the region, radically democratic and decentralised self-governance, a justice system based on reconciliation and inclusion of minorities, British weapon manufacturers are actively selling weapons to Turkey. economics to politics and international relations. It was based on self-governance structures, including councils, which had been established in Turkeys Kurdistan region in 2007 within the framework of the Democratic Society Congress and have an even longer history within society. Accordingly, if the United States and its allies hope to prevent Tehran from establishing such a corridor, they will need to reinforce their own influence in Syrian Kurdish areas. It is flexible, multicultural, anti-monopolistic, and consensus-oriented. In an attempt to federalize the Administration and expand the model of democratic autonomy to areas newly-liberated and incorporated into the NES, the SDC was founded in December 2015. In addition, two social contracts akin to a local constitution were adopted in 2014 and 2016, as the product of a collaborative social process during which collective discussions determined which topics would be included. The first political structures adopted post-revolution were as shown above the autonomous administration of the Kurdish-dominated areas in the district of, , Kobane and Afrin, which formed an Interim Transitional Administration, adopted in 2013. A first version of the constitution of the Autonomous Administration, the so-called social contract, was accepted by the cantons and enacted in 2014; on three separate days, each canton issued its own declaration of democratic autonomy. The invasion followed the US decision to withdraw its troops from Kurdish areas. The group has also formed a women's academy with a range of courses on offer, including history of the Middle East, law and justice, philosophy of Abdullah Ocalan, equality in relationships and Jineology. It also aims to ensure the peaceful coexistence of different religions and ethnic groups. This "white gold" fed Syria's powerful textile industry and was exported for great profit. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. For Omar, the fact that the social contract is now being amended has much to do with the fact that, not all areas in northern and eastern Syria were liberated at the same time. The region has been safe since the Kurdish YPG expelled the jihadi forces. Finally, Pervin Yusif draws attention to the importance of the change of consciousness within society: What is important for me to say is that our revolution was not just a change of the system. ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Northeast Syria (Rojava) administration enjoys strong ties with Sweden, said a Kurdish official on Monday. It also aims to ensure the peaceful coexistence of different religions and ethnic groups. For outside observers with sympathies for the local political project acknowledging the latter has been difficult. Turkey first invaded Syria during its Euphrates Shield operation in 2016. This is an example of how a thoughtful constitution, an attitude of collaboration and strongly representative decision making can work well even in the midst of a complex and entrenched war. This makes them a means of democratizing all social life. In January 2014, the three Kurdish-majority cantons of Cizr, Kobane and Afrin declared their autonomy from the Syrian government. Another specific committee is the problem-solving committee or the committee for reconciliation the purpose of which is to solve the societal problems in the commune. The draft of the new social contract now contains 99 articles that define fundamental rights and freedoms, principles and social regulations, such as coexistence between population groups, protection of the environment, and womens rights. Carving Up Syria The Trump-Erdoan phone call came after an agreement last month between the US-led Coalition in Syria and the Turkish government, over a proposed "safe zone" in northeast Syria. As of 2018, the SDF controlled about 25 percent of Syria, including territory along the border with Turkey east of the Euphrates River, as well as Syrias richest oil and gas fields. A must read article! Democratic confederalism is an effort to build a democratic society beyond the state. Currently, in mid-2022, the contract is again being discussed and revised. See: UNHCR chart for the latest figures at https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria/location/5. Rojavas democratic organising principles made it easy for existing campaigners for the environment to join forces and work together. With the help of US air support, the YPG/YPJ and its allies fought back for over five gruelling months, eventually driving ISIS out of a Kobane reduced to rubble. Since February, however, Kurds have been able to send fuel through the Syrian army corridor between Manbij and Afrin via Aleppo. The purpose of the SDC is to work towards a democratic confederal Syria through conversations, consensus building and diplomacy. The original areas of the three non-contiguous cantons that first declared independence have a Kurdish majority population, but the extended area that these regions now encompass, as well as the regions that most recently became part of NES (Manbij, Tabqa, Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor) are largely Arab. Northern Syria has a diverse population. All rights reserved. Kobane an Eco Challenge for Humanity. Facilitating trade with Rojava helps Assad politically as well, keeping the Kurds under his economic influence while also benefiting key associates and family members such as Rami Makhlouf, owner of FlyDamas, the principal airline serving Qamishli. Furthermore, he contends that these "war-related shortages [have been] made worse by the presence in Rojava of more than a half million internally displaced persons (IDPs) from other parts of Syria," a situation rendered all the more complicated by the fact that "[l]arge international NGO's are virtually non-existent" there (2018, p.123). The Rojava courts have already tried and sentenced 7,000 ISIS suspects most of them Syrian, and some Iraqi. Turkey subsequently occupied Afrin with little to no international objections. Soon, they established the Peoples Defense Units (Yekneyn Parastina Gel; YPG), on July 20th. Shammar tribe which has a leading role in Jazira Region is the most crowded clan in Rojava. The SDFs territorial gains progressively helped the AANES. You can also change some of your preferences. ISIS fighters were notorious for raping and enslaving thousands of Yezidi women and girls during their rapid advance through northern Iraq. The 2014 Charter of the Social Contract of Rojava was reformed in 2016. In addition, violence against women is for the most part no longer tolerated, and the communes and committees actively support women and men in cases of (domestic or family) violence to solve these problems. As of September 6th 2018, the SDC adopted the current official name for the region, renaming it the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), sometimes translated as the Self-Government of North and East Syria. [] To begin our work, this unity of the people was necessary. To this end they focus on organic agriculture, ecological villages and cities, ecological industry, and alternative energy and technologies. The first political structures adopted post-revolution were as shown above the autonomous administration of the Kurdish-dominated areas in the district of Cizr, Kobane and Afrin, which formed an Interim Transitional Administration, adopted in 2013. 70% of the total budget in NES goes to the regions, whereas only 30% goes directly to the higher structures of AANES. A new land route between Hasaka and Kirkuk could allow Rojava to break its dependence on the Peshkhabur border crossing, which remains under full control by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the leading faction in Iraq's KRG. As a result of this revolution, a democratic autonomy project was proclaimed. In April, the group wrapped a cell phone towers electrical cables with rags, doused them in flammable liquid, and set them on fire to impede communications between police and military forces, according to the group. On October 9th 2019, Turkey re-launched its invasion of NES under the name of Peace Spring with the help of the Syrian National Army (SNA) and other Islamist groups. Rojava Information Center (2019): Beyond the Frontlines. The social contract of 2014 replaces the centralization imposed by the former ruling Baath party and allocates state tasks to the sovereignty of the cantons and the Autonomous Administration. These were primarily due to the territorial changes that have characterized NES since the beginning of its existence. The battle was the first decisive defeat of ISIS and led to its withdrawal from the region. Ecology and feminism are central pillars. HRW,October 1996, Vol. [] To begin our work, this unity of the people was necessary. Under the banner of the Mesopotamian Ecology Movement (MEM), they aim to decrease Rojavas dependence on imports, return to traditional water-conserving cultivation techniques, call for ecological policy-making at the municipal level and promote local crops and livestock and traditional construction methods. As early as October 2013, it formed an alliance with al-Sanadid, an Arab militia affiliated with the Shammar tribe to take control of the strategically important Yarubiyah border crossing and the town of the same name. Jihat Omar, co-chair of the External Relations Office of the Syrian Democratic Council. [94], In 2016, talks about the establishment of a French cultural centre in the town of Amuda began. In doing so, the cantons, consisting of their different district councils, also established their own transitional administrations. ", Working not only to "include women in the existing framework of knowledge, but rather to question and reshape this framework all together," Kongreya Star explains its strategy under five umbrellas: the organization of the communes; establishing a communal economic system; providing education; the organization of self-defense; and the development of women's sciencealso referred to as "Jineology.". This was the most important thing. Later, this was expanded to include the youth and sports committee, the committee of the families of the martyrs, and the arts and culture committee. "Our goal is to overcome all forms of domination, power, ownership and sexism to establish a truly free society," the report reads. "In both the heroic military defense against ISIS, as well as in the building up of a new society that breaks with patriarchal traditions, women have embraced and championed an active role in every aspect of society," the report reads. We don't accept Syrian politics without a place for all the people of Syria. Pervin Yusif, currently the Co-Chair of Qamishlo, spoke to RIC about her experience. Critically examining the PKKs nationalist and Marxist-Leninist past and creatively appropriating, in particular, the writings of American social theorist Murray Bookchin, calan defines democratic confederalism as democracy without a state., It is the federation of different ethnic, cultural, religious, intellectual, and economic communities that can autonomously configure and express themselves as a political unit., calan describes his concept as being open towards other political groups and factions. During the Battle of Sere Kaniye in 2013-2014, the YPG gained even more popularity among the population as a determined and capable defender of the (Kurdish) people. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Beheadings, rapes, lootings, forced conversions. 4 (E) The sobering lesson realized by the Syrian Kurds in the aftermath of the violent crackdown on the Qamishlo uprising was that they needed to form their own armed defence units. For outside observers with sympathies for the local political project acknowledging the latter has been difficult. Middle East Eye Police buildings were quickly cleansed of the emblems of the old state, and important files were confiscated. also had to be maintained. The vast majority of Syrian Kurds speak Kurmanji dialect. This report also seeks to breathe new life into the discussions around Rojava. The battle lines are becoming clearer. To solidify the anti-ISIS coalition and attract a broader alliance, in October 2015, at the behest of its US ally, the YPG/YPJ and its allies established the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a multi-ethnic coalition of militias. Central to the Rojava Revolution is the idea of a democratic nation and democratic confederalism developed by Abdullah calan, the imprisoned leader of the PKK. The only condition is that the communes decisions must not contradict the essence of the social contract (See below). The constitution maintains a commitment to private property, but Syrian Kurds are seeking to develop a social economy, in which co-operatives form the basis of the economic system. Moreover, KDP president Masoud Barzani and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan both oppose any strategic axis that opens Rojava up to the outside world and reinforces its geopolitical importance for Iran. Decision number 7 of this declaration states: 'The peoples and communities living in the federal system in Rojava/Northern Syria can develop their political, economic, social, cultural, and democratic relations with whom they see fit, or share their beliefs and culture with the people and communities on a regional and international level'. Of course, we cant say that such an agreement is 100 percent perfect, but in principle it is widely accepted.. The representatives of these committees receive education (including classes in literacy in the Kurdish language, history, democratic confederalism, women's rights and sexism) and training. Its tasks were the distribution of food and fuel, as well as organizing education, self-defence and justice. But Kongreya Star also aims to educate women on self-defense in relation to honor killings, rape and domestic violence. The Afrin canton, on the other hand, remained under occupation by Turkish forces, though AANES institutions also exist in Shehba, southeast of Afrin, and in the majority-Kurdish neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiye in Aleppo. November 7, 2016", "US Gen. Townsend rebuffs Turkish reporter with 'political agenda' against SDF", "Syrian Kurds apply to set up mission in Washington", "Rojava university seeks to eliminate constraints on education in Syria's Kurdish region", "L'crivain Patrice Franceschi veut crer un centre culturel au Kurdistan syrien", "Kurds plan to set up French institute in Syria", "Russia to train Kurdish forces at north Syria base", "Russia strikes deal with Syrian Kurds to set up base", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Foreign_relations_of_Rojava&oldid=1155020300, Politics of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, This page was last edited on 16 May 2023, at 04:33. Kurdistan Region and Rojava have mostly had thorny relations since the establishment of the latter, . 2010s, 2020s, Secure rights, Good food, Decent work, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/trump-syria-isis-military-withdrawal-turkey-sdf-russia-iran-resurgence-a8693426.html, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/oct/08/why-world-ignoring-revolutionary-kurds-syria-isis, https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/rojava-revolution-seven-years, https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/rojava-example-ecosocialism, https://www.ft.com/content/50102294-77fd-11e5-a95a-27d368e1ddf7, https://doi.org/10.1080/14683857.2016.1246529, https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/why-defendafrin-confronting-authoritarian-populism-with-radi/, https://www.resilience.org/stories/2018-02-14/agriculture-autonomy-middle-east/, https://steps-centre.org/europe-hub/report-from-rojava-revolution-at-a-crossroads/, https://www.slowfood.com/kobane-an-eco-challenge-for-humanity/, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/opinion/the-kurds-democratic-experiment.html. Mansur Selum, an ethnic Arab is the co-president of DFNS alongside with alongside with his Kurdish female fellow co-chair Hediya Yousef. the purpose of which is to solve the societal problems in the commune. Amina Omar sums up that, so far, a large part of the population has accepted and agreed to the social contract: This social contract is to the benefit for the people because it guarantees the rights and duties of each individual. Later, some of the soldiers returned to their families across the country, while another group stayed on to prevent the city from falling into the hands of the FSA. It is more multiethnic and multireligious in comparison to the rest of Syria. In northern Syria, the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) aims to promote a political and economic system based on self-sufficiency and local democracy. A popular delegation to the armed force demanded that they hand over their weapons but guaranteed safe passage. Afrin used to be religiously diverse and peaceful until Turkeys illegal invasion. A popular delegation to the armed force demanded that they hand over their weapons but guaranteed safe passage. This encompasses the Euphrates (the former Kobane canton, including Tel Abyad, Sarrin, and Ayn Issa), and. So, we organized ourselves in a struggle for freedom, for our identity and to be able to speak our own language. From Zionist plots to CIA conspiracies, Turkey's favorite pastime is believing that the world is out to get it", "HDP leader says Ankara has 'neither the power nor means' to eliminate Kurdish movement", "The U.S. should accept a Syrian Kurdish region, says Turkish opposition leader", "Build Kurdistan relationship or risk losing vital Middle East partner", "Syria conflict: On the frontline in battle for IS-held Manbij", "PYD co-president Muslim to speak at UK Parliament", "Salih Muslim will hold a press statement on Turkey's arrest warrant at UK parliament", "Syria conflict: Kurds declare federal system", "Pentagon chief praises Kurdish fighters in Syria", "Ignoring Turkey, U.S. backs Kurds in drive against ISIS in Syria", "Mark C. Toner, Deputy Spokesperson. Plenty of villages along the Khabur Valley are populated by Assyrians who were resettled there by the French in 1930s[5]. We did not change one system and put another into power, but we really tried to, and managed to a certain degree, was to change the society.

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