“At 4pm on October 9th, the Turkish occupation army and its Islamist allies began their long prepared war of aggression against the liberated areas of northern Syria.”
RiseUp4Rojava – October 2019
In Rojava women, queers and people of all backgrounds come together to fight patriarchal injustice from the Turkish occupation, and to defend their safe, autonomous spaces. Rise Up in support of the Rojavan Revolution and against the Kurdish genocide by the fascist Turkish leader, Erdoğan!
Official Hashtags: #RiseUp4Rojava #RojavaRevolution #RojavanRevolution #Solidarity #Rojava #queersagainstfascism #Kurds #Kurdistan #freeKurdistan #StopArmingTurkey #stopErdogan #boycottTurkey
Ways You Can Help:
- Donate to Heyva Sor, which goes towards medical and relief aid.
- #boycottTurkey – see the bottom of this page for a helpful list of companies and brands. You can encourage others to boycott these, as well as targeting them in campaigns to expose their profiting from ‘blood money’.
- Hold your own solidarity demo/ event/ action in your area on World Resistance Day (2nd November) to raise awareness and support of the situation in Rojava.
- Contact the Secretary of State for International Trade, The Rt Hon Elizabeth Truss MP, to insist Britain puts an embargo on Turkey.
- Students and university staff: contact your University Management and Student Union to get their support in the Academic boycott – see the #boycottTurkey section at the bottom of the page.
- Students: contact the NUS Projects Manager and tell them that you want your university (and all British unis) to take part in the Academic boycott.
- Performers & artists: contact your agents, producers and talent companies and get them to join the Cultural boycott – see the #boycottTurkey section at the bottom of the page.
- Ecological & democratic groups can support the call to ‘Stop Turkish State‘s Brutal War on North-East Syria! Solidarity with Rojava!’ by emailing the Mesopotamia Ecology Movement.
- Those with money can donate to the reforestation of Rojava.
- Keep up to date with Brighton Kurdistan Solidarity to see how else you can support the Sussex Kurdish Community and beyond.
World Resistance Day was held on 2nd November, 12pm @ The Cowley Club. Multiple grassroots groups came together with the Kurdish community to raise £800 for Heyva Sor. Which towards frontline aid such as much needed medical supplies. You can read more about the day here.
More Info on Rojava:
Rojava (or Western Kurdistan) is part of the Kurdish led region in North Syria. Rojava is formed of three cantons: Afrin Canton in the West; Kobane Canton in the center; and, Jazira Canton to the East. Rojava has been targeted for the better part of a century, by those looking to eliminate the Kurdish population. Over a hundred thousand Syrian Kurds were made Stateless in 1962, as part of a racially motivated agenda to diminish the kurdish population in kurdish centred areas. This was as much entangled with the Turkish-Kurdish conflict then, as the current threat of Kurdish genocide by Erdoğan.
“Turkey launched a broad assault on Kurdish controlled areas in northeastern Syria, with intensive bombardment paving the way for an invasion made possible by the withdrawal of US troops.
USA Today – 18th October 2019
UK academics have criticised the move by Trump to revoke American troops from the Kurdish regions, and therefore allowing Erdoğan and Turkey’s military to begin a new round of illegal and inhumane strikes in North and East Syria.
The withdrawal of US troops in the area has not only seen an increase in the suffering by Kurdish troops but also civilians. UN chemical weapons inspectors are currently in the area collecting evidence against Erdoğan’s crimes, which include the probable use of White Phosphorus against children and others.
“The international community owes the Syrian Democratic Forces a debt for their sacrifice in stopping and defeating ISIS and building peace and stability in the region.”
Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan – 15th October 2019
Abdullah Öcalan, a Syrian-Kurdish leader and founding member of the PKK (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan; translated – Kurdistan Workers’ Party), has been held in Turkish imprisonment since 1999 on the alleged charges of treason and separatism. It was from prison that he developed and published his work on ‘democratic confederalism‘ which has been applied through the Charter of the Social Contract (2014). This contract is namely built on principles of direct democracy, ecology and women’s liberation.
“Up to 40% of the resistance fighting force against ISIS was made up of Kurdish women.”
The Kurdish Project – February 2015
Kurdish women have the highest representation in both military and government roles compared to the rest of the world. In fact the Kurds have an all female battalion called the YPJ (the Women’s Protection Units).
#boycottTurkey
Below are a list of companies and institutions to use in the boycotting of the Turkish State and fascist leader, Erdoğan.
“British arms sales to Turkey amounted to £11 billion in 2018.”
Boycott Turkey – 2019
- Stop trading arms with Turkey:
“Tourism in Turkey funds genocide, ethnic
Boycott Turkey – 2019
cleansing and war. There is a direct relationship between the tourist industry in Turkey, the Erdoğan regime and the arms trade. Money spent on your holiday may be spent on killing Kurds.”
- Stop tourism in Turkey:
- Don’t fly on Turkish Airlines, SunExpress and Pegasus.
- Protest against TUI and Thomas Cook. Demand they stop advertising hotels in Turkey.
- Demand that all tour and travel agencies immediately end services to and within Turkey.
- Stop people from using Divan Turizm and their hotels in Turkey.
- Nurol (holidays and arms company) and their hotels in Turkey.
- Cultural boycott:
- All musicians, artists, sports people, philosophers or any other cultural personalities or workers, to refuse to participate in any concerts, exhibitions, conferences, or any other related field in Turkey.
- Protest against the international tours organised by: state-sponsored musicians; artists and musicians with links to the Turkish state, or those who promote the state’s racist, nationalist agenda; and, tours by Turkish national sports teams. Here is a list of Turkish State-Artists.
- All musicians, artists, sports people, philosophers or any other cultural personalities or workers, to refuse to participate in any concerts, exhibitions, conferences, or any other related field in Turkey.
- If you are an artist, cultural worker or academic please sign the new call to ‘boycott Turkish government sponsored academic and cultural Institutions’.
- Academic boycott:
- Stop/ resist from participating in joint projects and research collaborations with Turkish universities
- Pressure international academic institutions to sever all connections with Turkish academic institutions
- Encourage your trade unions to make a commitment to support the boycott of Turkish academic institutions.
- Other companies and brands to boycott and target for actions:
Solidarity with the anti-fascist forces in Turkey, Kurdistan and in the whole Middle-east!
Queer AF Brighton 