URFA - Afrin, where all identities and beliefs were ignored during the Syrian regime, became the shelter of hundreds of thousands of people after the Rojava Revolution and became the center of a free and equal life.

 

The protest actions that started on March 15, 2011 for the reform, democratization and freedom of the prisoners in Syria, soon turned into a civil war with the active involvement of the hegemonic powers in the region. Both the continuation of Syrian President Bashar Assad's repressive policies and the existance of many paramilitary groups further aggravated the civil war. Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their lives so far, millions of people have had to leave their country.

 

The Kurds, who did not stand with the regime and the paramilitary forces against it during the civil war, started to fight together with the other peoples in Northern and Eastern Syria (Rojava) with the 3rd Way strategy. The peoples of Northern and Eastern Syria organised under the roof of the Democratic Society Movement (TEV-DEV), the seeds of which were planted after the Qamishlo serhildan (revolt) in 2004 and was founded in early 2011. While the local people's councils were being formed, a new life began to be organised, from health to education and municipal services. In parallel, defense committees were formed. These committees were later organized under the name of the People's Defense Units (YPG).

 

The first spark of the revolution was lit in Kobanê on 19 July 2012, after the organisational work was largely completed. On that date, which is also remembered as the "day that shook the Middle East", the establishment of the Council, which consists of the dynamics of the region, was announced. The Council, which consists of 82 members, included names from all peoples and faiths living in Northern and Eastern Syria. Then the Cizre, Afrin and Kobanê cantons were declared.  

 

ÇIYAYÊ KURMÊNC 

 

Afrin, one of the cantons, has been the safest region of the country from the outbreak of the civil war until 2018. Afrin, also known as the Kurdish Mountain (Çiyayê Kurmênc), is an area of 3,850 square kilometers. Afrin, located in the western part of Northern and Eastern Syria, was dependent on Aleppo before the war. Afrin, inhabited by Kurds, Arabs and Armenians for centuries, was cleared of regime forces after the declaration of the revolution. After the war, it welcomed hundreds of thousands of immigrants from neighboring cities such as Aleppo, Dera, Homs, Idlib and Raqqa. The security of the immigrants was provided by the the YPG and YPJ fighters.

 

As in other cantons, the Rojava Social Contract (Rojava Constitution) was taken as a basis after July 19. The administration of the region passed to the councils that took their power from the people. Women from different faiths and sections established unique councils and committees in each village and neighborhood. As women began to actively participate in production process, intellectuals, teachers, artists, doctors, lawyers, athletes and young people also joined the union.  

 

The Kurds, whose identities were not accepted and all their rights were usurped during the Syrian regime, had the opportunity to open places serving in their own culture and language for the first time after the revolution. In 2015, for the first time in the history of Rojava and Syria, educational materials in Kurdish began to be used in schools. Education in mother tongue started in schools. Many culture and art centers were opened within the scope of cultural studies. The first university and institute providing education in Kurdish and Arabic was established along with the Viyan Amara Institute. Approximately 500 students were educated by 82 teachers who are experts in their fields.

 

Educational studies started at Afrin University with 51 lecturers. Consisting of faculties of Medicine, Electromechanical Engineering, Journalism, Economics, Agriculture and Kurdish Literature, the universities turned into prisons after Turkey attacked Afrin.

 

Afrin, the safest region in Syria, became the target of Turkey and its affiliated paramilitary groups on January 20, 2018. After the attacks that started with the green light of the international powers and 5 years passed, nothing remained as it was before. 

 

AFRİN BEFORE REVOLUTION

 

Afrin Autonomous Administration Council member Hesen Osman spoke about the situation in the Afrin region before the attacks and the model built after the revolution. Noting that 98 percent of Afrin's population consisted of Kurds when it was under the control of the Syrian regime, Osman said, "Although the Kurdish population was so large, the Kurds had no rights. All administrative units were in the hands of Arabs. 2 percent of the population ruled 98 percent of Syria. The Kurds had no existence in the institutions of the regime. All their rights were taken away. The Kurdish people could not even freely sell the crops they planted. Students could not go to school. The Syrian regime did not accept and included the Kurds in any way."

 

ESTABLISHMENT OF DEMOCRATIC NATION

 

Stating that after the "Arab Spring" that started in Syria, they did not the regime or the path drawn by its opponents, but that they chose their own path, Osman said, "When the Syrian regime was in power, the Kurdish people did not even have an identity. We were neither included in the regime nor in the opponents of the regime. We created our own path. We took the Democratic Nation model as a basis. Thanks to this model, an atmosphere of equality, peace, tranquility and trust was established in Afrin."

 

Osman, who said that they opened public houses as the first thing after establishing the administration, said, "Later we built councils and communes. We established education, health, agriculture, security and economy committees. Everyone lived on the basis of equal citizenship."

 

SAFE ZONE

 

Noting that the model they adopted and the life they established was an inspiration for the people in the region, Osman said, "According to the official census in Syria, 526 thousand people lived in Afrin until 2010. After the Syrian civil war started, more than 400 thousand people lived in Aleppo, Damascus, Homs. Until 2014, Afrin's population approached 900 thousand to one million."

 

Reminding that attacks continue from time to time in some places after the establishment of the canton, Osman said: "But these attacks were on a small scale. The people of Afrin carried out their own defense with the self-defense forces they established and provided the necessary environment for peace and tranquility."

 

MA / Ömer Akın

 

Tomorrow: Afrin Resistance