Vareen Ismail
The Kurdish new year Newroz (which translates to ‘new day’) is a time of celebration for the 30 million Kurds around the world. Newroz has roots in Zoroastrian religious traditions. For the 300,000 Zoroastrians in the world it is a holy day, including Zoroastrian Kurds. However, the majority of Kurds celebrate Newroz as a secular national day paying tribute to Kurdish culture. It is also seen as a day where we pay our respects to martyrs who have died for Kurdish liberation and the Kurdish people’s resilience in the face of various oppressive regimes that have tried to eradicate us.
Every year on 21st March we congregate in parks and have picnics surrounded by friends and family. We dress in colourful, hand-crafted Kurdish dresses, sing traditional Kurdish folk songs, dance and eat delicious Kurdish food. Dolma is my family’s favourite dish to make on Newroz. It consists of vegetables stuffed with rice and drenched in a tangy red sauce. Dolma takes an hour to prepare and an hour to cook. It is the only dish that manages to bring all of my family together and eat at the dinner table without fail. Here in England, I can celebrate Newroz without fearing for my safety and just enjoy time with my friends and family. I can forget that celebrating Newroz is inherently political.
This message of resilience and hope can be found in the legend surrounding the Newroz. The legend tells the story of Kawa the blacksmith’s perilous journey to slay the evil king Dehak and end his tyranny. During Dehak’s reign, the sun refused to shine and crops refused to grow. When Kawa successfully killed the evil king he lit a bonfire on the Zagros mountains which showed the villagers that he was alive and that they were finally free.
My mother told me stories of her brothers and cousins jumping over bonfires to herald the Kurdish new year. I have never attempted this daring feat but you can watch videos on YouTube showcasing the daredevil attitude of many Kurds who have taken the leap of faith. Don’t try this at home!
The parallels to real Kurdish struggles against oppressive regimes are very clear. The Governor of Kirkuk Rakan Al-Jabouri announced on 15th March that Kurds would only have three hours to celebrate Newroz from 4 pm-7 pm on 2oth March and must celebrate it without “ethnic slogans’’. Kirkuk is a city in Iraq with a large Kurdish population, as well as Arabs and other ethnic minorities.
There has been a resurgence in ethnic tensions between Kurds and Arabs since 2017 because of Kirkuk’s decision to vote to join an independent Kurdistan in a referendum held by the Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s government, held on 20th September 2017. The referendum has been declared illegal by the Iraqi government and has caused a rift between the two administrations. Rakan Al- Jabouri has been criticised by multiple people and activists for his inflammatory anti-Kurdish statements and his decision to limit Newroz celebrations was widely condemned and was eventually reversed.
In the cities of Cizer and Nusaybin, Newroz marks the 30 year anniversary of the horrific massacre carried out by Turkish forces in 1992. Government troops opened fire on peaceful Kurds who were celebrating Newroz, killing 117 people in broad daylight. This year’s Newroz celebration has also been overshadowed by the worsening political suppression of the Pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP)- which is the third-largest party in the Turkish government.
An ongoing court case has threatened to disband the party due to alleged links between 421 HDP politicians and Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which is classified as a terrorist group by the Turkish Government. Despite this millions of Kurds in Turkey descended on Diyarbakir and celebrated from 15th-21st March. Thousands were prevented from entering the event and nearly 800 civilians were detained for simply wearing traditional Kurdish dress. The Kurdish community also came out in full force to celebrate Newroz in predominantly Turkish cities Izmir and Istanbul, demanding their rights to be treated as equal citizens with full democratic representation and that they will no longer hide in the shadows.
According to the Kurdistan United Front, an advocacy group fighting for the rights of Kurds in Iran, mass arrests have occurred throughout the Kurdish province of Iran. During Newroz celebrations 30 people were arrested in Sanandaj. The Iranian regime also released a list of banned activities during Newroz that went viral on Twitter.
All of the banned activities targeted Kurds such as prohibiting Kurdish music, Kurdish political symbols such as traditional Kurdish dress and waving Kurdish flags. The Iranian regime claims its policies are to prevent separatist uprisings but their policies are designed to force Kurdish assimilation into the wider Iranian state.
Our very existence as Kurds who are proud of our culture, language and traditions is a so-called threat to various regimes’ notion of statehood. Newroz is a testament to the survival of Kurds despite the many inhumane genocidal campaigns carried out by despots.
It is a very significant day for me because it allows me to stay connected to my Kurdish identity and also to draw strength from previous Kurdish generations. Their stories inspire me to have the resilience and courage to face my own troubles. It reminds me that no matter how dark things get, eventually, the sun will rise again.
Featured image courtesy of Levi Meir Clancy via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to the image.
