MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

 Amed (Diyarbakır)- Although the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) won most of the municipalities in Northern Kurdistan, the government removed the elected mayors from office and replaced them with state-appointed trustees in 2016. In the local elections held in 2019, the HDP won a majority of municipalities in Kurdish cities; however, the government removed the elected mayors from office and replaced them with state-appointed trustees again. In the local elections held on March 31, 2024, the Peoples' Democracy and Equality Party (DEM Party) won the majority of municipalities in Kurdish cities.

The state-appointed trustees (mayors) closed down 43 women’s institutions affiliated to the municipality, renamed or made dysfunctional the others in Amed. The Amed (Diyarbakır) Metropolitan Municipality is getting ready to create a “Women’s Council” to support women, solve the problems faced by them. Co-mayors of Amed’s districts and municipal council members will be members of the Women’s Council to reach all women in the city, its districts and villages.

‘The appointed mayors left no space for women’

NuJINHA spoke to Nevin Oyman, member of the Women’s Commission of the Amed Metropolitan Municipality, about the council and its aims. Speaking about the destruction caused by the appointed mayors in the city, she said, “When the city was governed by the state-appointed mayors, women in the districts and villages received no support. The appointed mayors left no space for women. During that period, survivors of gender-based violence had no spaces to take shelter. Before the appointment of the unelected mayors, women’s institutions affiliated to the municipality were active, supporting women living in districts and villages. However, the state-appointed mayors closed down, renamed or made dysfunctional them. Therefore, women had no space protecting them from violence, providing legal and psychological support to them.”

Nevin Oyman also gave information about the Women’s Council to be created by the municipality.

“We had a meeting with the participation of all co-mayors and municipal council members and decided to create a women’s council to solve the problems faced by women in Amed, its districts and villages. The members of the council will be only women. We will first listen to the problems and demands of women to support them.”

Pointing to the high rate of violence against women in the city, Nevin Oyman emphasized that the special war policies implemented in the region caused the increase in the violence against women.

“We have learned that the municipality governed by the state-appointed mayors only provided sewing and embroidery, Quran and rug weaving courses to women. It provided no legal and psychological support to the survivors of violence. In other words, women’s institutions affiliated to the municipality did provide no support to women. The Women’s Council to be created by the municipality will provide support to all women in the city. Our women's institutions will become active again. We will discuss the problems faced by women such as gender-based violence, femicide and how we can provide employment to women. We will carry out awareness-raising activities against gender-based violence and femicide. We will create spaces for women so that they can improve themselves and start their own business.”

‘We will focus on women’

The council aims to reach all women, Nevin Soyman emphasized again and said, “This council will be a space for women to find solutions to their problems. We will focus on women and how to make their lives easier.”