MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

 Amed- On September 15, the Free Women’s Movement (Kurdish: Tevgera Jinên Azad-TJA) held a press conference in Riha (Urfa) and announced that they would launch a campaign called, “Bi 'Jin Jiyan Azadi'yê ber bi azadiyê ve (English: Towards freedom with ‘Jin Jiyan Azadi’)”. The campaign will kick off in the Silopi district of Şırnak on September 20 and in Istanbul on September 23. The aim of the campaign, which will last until March 8, International Women's Day, is to draw attention to the isolation imposed on Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, special war policies, femicide, destruction of nature and oppression of Kurdish language. As part of the campaign, the women of the TJA will go from house to house and hold meetings with women.

At the press conference, the TJA called on all women in Turkey, feminist organizations and women all over the world to raise the struggle for freedom together.

‘The main aim is to lift the isolation’

NuJINHA spoke to Green Left Party Amed MP Halide Türkoğlu about the campaign. “We have launched this campaign due to the recent misogynist policies, the increase in the cases of femicide and against special war policies,” she told us. Speaking about the main aims of the campaign, she said:

‘The main aim of the campaign is to lift the isolation imposed on Mr. Abdullah Öcalan; women will start a mobilization to break the isolation. The continuation of the isolation means that war policies are experienced in this country every day. Without lifting the isolation, the organizations and movements defending democracy, women’s rights and environment cannot unite and act together. For this reason, the first aim of the campaign is to lift the isolation.”

‘We will raise our objections’

Speaking about the special war policies carried out in Kurdistan, she said, “Femicide, drug addiction, prostitution and the policy of impunity    at the highest level. We will hold workshops to raise awareness. We will raise our objections on the ground to the recent attacks on women’s gains. Society needs to form a defense mechanism against the misogynist language of politicians and the reactionary alliances it has formed in the parliament.”

Halide Türkoğlu gave information about the activities to be carried out as part of the campaign.

“This campaign aims to form a network of struggle everywhere. Awareness-raising activities and gatherings will be carried out as part of the campaign. The main agenda of the campaign is to raise solidarity everywhere.”