MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

Mûş- In 2015, police raided the house of Remziye Birsin in the Gımgım (Varto) district of Muş province and detained her. She was released after a year in pre-trial detention. However, she was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison on charges of “membership in a terrorist organization”. In 2017, she was arrested and sent to the Muş E-type Prison. In 2022, she was released from prison after serving six years.

‘Our demand for peace remains unanswered’

In an interview with NuJINHA, Remziye Birsin said, “The Kurdish people have been struggling for their identity, language and culture for years. We have been struggling to preserve our identity, language and culture. However, governments have always remained blind and deaf to our culture and demand for peace. Whenever we demand peace, they attack us and put us in prison.”

‘I was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for demanding peace’

Before being detained, Remziye Birsin attended press conferences demanding peace to end clashes. However, I was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for demanding peace. Talking about the raid on her house, she said:

“Police raided my house and searched everywhere. The press conferences I attended were shown as criminal evidence. During the search, police found my shalwar (pajama-like trousers). They took it as evidence because in a photograph, a woman wore a similar salwar. There are dozens of women wearing such shalwar in Varto but police did everything to show my shalwar as evidence. I was sentenced to eight years and a half years because my shalwar was similar to the salwar worn by a woman; I was sentenced to eight and half years in prison for demanding peace.”

‘Sick prisoners are left for dead’

Speaking about sick prisoners, Remziye Birsin was held in a ward along with sick prisoners Besra Erol ve Muhlise Karagüzel.

Remziye Birsin said, “Sick prisoners face many difficulties in prison. Once, mother Muhlise felt unwell. Although we called the wardens, they came to our ward after hours. We pressed the bell many times but no one came so our friends in the ward began to punch the tables, chairs, doors and windows. Hours later, they came but they did not take her to hospital. They asked me to write a petition to transfer her to the hospital.Sick prisoners are left for dead.”

 ‘Prisoners are subjected to rights violations’

“Prisons are full of people demanding peace,” Remziye Birsin added. “The Kurdish people have been subjected to oppression for more than 40 years. I have witnessed everything that has been done against the Kurdish people since the 80s and 90s. There are many mothers demanding peace in prison. As a Kurd, I keep struggling despite everything. As the Kurdish people, we will keep struggling for our identity, culture and language despite everything. Many of our comrades are still behind bars. We should resist for them and for ourselves. We will keep demanding peace against the discriminatory policy of the system.”