The Circassian diaspora in Turkey organized commemoration ceremonies in Kefken, Kocaeli, and in Ankara, yesterday, May 21, which is the symbolic date for the Circassian exile and genocide.
The first place where a ceremony was held was Kefken this year again where the Abkhazian Associations Federation (ABHAZFED) organized a ceremony.
Qur'an was read out in the graveyard in the Karaağaç neighborhood in Kefken, which is a symbolic coast in Kefken. Then the Circassians left a wreath and carnations to the sea on the Babalı shore.
A "Nart fire" was lit on the shore and a "gravestone watch" was kept around it until the sunset. People then marched with torches at night.
The group also visited the "Caucasian Exile Monument" which was built with the support of the Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality.
“We are here and we will return one day”
The Caucasian Associations Federation (KAFFED) chose to commemorate the exile and the genocide in Ankara this year.
The Circassians meeting in front of the Beşevler metro station in Ankara walked to the Anıtpark silently.
They carried slogans that read, "We do not want revenge, we want justice," "The name of this is genocide," "Russia, we will return," and "May 21, 1864". The participants also carried a Circassian flag and they condemned the exile.
The Republican People's Party (CHP) MP Deniz Demir and the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Ankara MP Murat Alpaslan were also present at the commemoration.
"We are here, and we will return"
KAFFED Chairperson Ümit Dinçer gave a speech and he said that May 21 was not only a day of mourning and commemoration. The genocide and the exile were continuing even today, he stated.
"As a society, we avoided saying that we were subjected to genocide. For a period, May 21 was a commemoration and mourning day for us. But we believe that it is now time to make May 21's something more than a day of mourning. We have to be able to look over May 21 and imagine a future; this should be our standpoint.
"May 21 is not only a mourning and commemoration day. It is a day of determination for a struggle, for uniting, for resurrection, for demanding our rights and for saying, 'We have not been slaughtered, we are here and one day, we will return.'"
"Tsitsekun"
The Jewish genocide is named ‘Holocaust’, the Armenian genocide ‘Meds Yeghern’, the Syrian genocide ‘Seyfo’, and the Dersim genocide "Tertele."
In 2014, the Circassians named the Circassian genocide and exile using the word "Tsitsekun" in the Ubykh language now extinct. The word means "mass murder, slaughter."
The word is listed in the Ubykh dictionary published in 1963, prepared by Hans Vogt, a linguist from Norway, and attributed to Tevfik Esenç, known as the "last Ubykh" who carried out studies with Hans Vogt, and also Georges Dumezil and Şeraşidze and prepared a dictionary for the language that no one is left speaking. (HA/PE)
Kurds celebrate Newroz in Diyarbakır with massive attendance
Every Newroz has been a bittersweet time for us, a time we’ve wished for peace. Today, we renew that hope. We want to live in freedom and democratic peace,” says one participant.
Thousands have gathered for Newroz celebration in the Kurdish-populated Diyarbakır province, held under the theme “A Democratic Society for Freedom."
A new stage was installed at the site, replacing the old concrete platform. Banners bearing the Kurdish slogan jin, jiyan, azadî (Women, life, freedom) and other Newroz-related slogans were hung across the stage. Security was tight, with police setting up six separate checkpoints at the venue. Attendees arriving from early morning passed through five layers of screening before being allowed entry.
Police announced that no party flags or banners, including those of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party, the largest pro-Kurdish party in Turkey and main organizer of the event, would be permitted within the celebration area.
Öcalan's message missing
Large posters of Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), flanked both sides of the venue. The posters featured photos taken during his Feb 27 call involving the İmralı Delegation. Youths in the crowd also held up additional posters of Öcalan.
As the symbolic Newroz fire was lit, chants of “Bijî Serok Apo” (“Long live Leader Apo”) rang out from the crowd, reflecting ongoing support for the PKK leader.
However, a message from Öcalan could not be conveyed to the celebrations as the authorities left an application by DEM members to meet him before the celebrations unanswered.
In a statement, the DEM Party’s explained, “Contrary to expectations, the İmralı Delegation was not granted access, so Mr. Abdullah Öcalan’s message did not arrive for this year’s Newroz. Instead, his most recent photos and audio were shown on the stage screen. With the slogans shouted in the square, the people once again demonstrated their support for the call he made on Feb 27.”
Many prominent Kurdish politicians have attended the celebrations, including DEM Party Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan, Democratic Regions Party (DBP) Co-Chair Çiğdem Kılıçgün Uçar, and Sebahat Tuncel.
Leaders from Iraq's Kurdistan region, Nechirvan Barzani, president of the regional government, Massoud Barzani, head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), and Bafel Talabani, leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), as well as Özgür Özel, leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), send messages to convey their greetings.
Newroz is the traditional New Year celebration observed by various cultures in the Middle East and Central Asia, including Persians and Kurds. For Kurds, it holds particular significance as a symbol of freedom and resistance, rooted in the legend of Kawa the Blacksmith, who is said to have led a revolt against a tyrannical ruler, liberating the people.
'We are the Kurdish people'
Among the attendees was 55-year-old Sakine Y., who wore a traditional dress despite rainy conditions and helped tie a yellow-green-red scarf around her friend’s head. “Today, we see the photos of Kemal [Kurkut, killed by police during 2017 Newroz], Selahattin Demirtaş, and most importantly the İmralı Delegation on display. These are our realities. We’re not just here to celebrate. Newroz is joy, it’s resistance, it’s fire,” she said. “It might rain and we’ll be covered in mud, but we’re here in our traditional clothes. We are the Kurdish people, we forget neither our past nor our present.”
Ahmet T., a 22-year-old student, attended with friends and emphasized the emotional significance of the day. “Every Newroz has been a bittersweet time for us, a time we’ve wished for peace. Today, we renew that hope. We want to live in freedom and democratic peace,” he said. “To my friends resisting in İstanbul, I say: don’t be afraid. Peace is for all of us, not just the Kurds. Together, we will overcome this oppressive order.”
Barzani calls for Öcalan’s freedom
KDP leader Masoud Barzani expressed support for Turkey’s new peace process and called for Öcalan’s release.
“I hope Abdullah Öcalan will be freed soon. We support the peace and resolution process in Turkey. Peace is the only path to solving these issues. I also hope the suffering of Kurds in Syria ends quickly,” Barzani said.
YNK leader Bafel Talabani's message read, “On this Kurdish Newroz, which coincides with the resistance in Kirkuk, the Jerusalem of Kurdistan,I extend my heartfelt congratulations to all the people of Kurdistan, wishing everyone peace, comfort, and happiness. Newroz is a message of renewal, unity, solidarity, and fraternity in the Kurdish struggle for freedom and independence.
"May this Newroz inspire peace, organization, and support for the Kurdish cause everywhere. The Kurdish people are a people who deserve an honorable life. Let us join hands for lasting peace and work toward the victory of Kurdistan. May your Newroz be blessed, joyful, and proud.”
Özel: ‘No tyrant could ever break our unity’
In his message, CHP leader Özgür Özel emphasized unity and shared struggle: “Dear people of Diyarbakır, my beloved brothers and sisters. As we celebrate Newroz, the harbinger of spring, we continue to resist the tyrants of our time, like the legendary Dehak. These ancient lands are a cradle of coexistence, where different cultures, languages, and faiths thrive together in solidarity and hope. No oppressor, no Dehak, has ever broken our brotherhood, and none ever will.
"We are committed to building a country where no one feels excluded, where everyone lives with equal rights in peace. Guided by our belief in democracy, justice, and freedom, we will together create a Turkey where all are equal citizens. May the warmth of Newroz, like today’s fire, illuminate our hearts and strengthen our hopes for the future. With these sentiments, I wish all my brothers and sisters in Diyarbakır a happy Newroz. Newroz pîroz be!” (ED/TY/VK)
Çalışmalarını ağırlıklı olarak Diyarbakır ve çevresindeki Kürt illerinde sürdürmektedir. Meslek hayatında, Gazete Duvar, MLSA, 5Harfliler, Kadın İşçi, 9. Köy ve Fikir Gazetesi gibi pek çok...
Çalışmalarını ağırlıklı olarak Diyarbakır ve çevresindeki Kürt illerinde sürdürmektedir. Meslek hayatında, Gazete Duvar, MLSA, 5Harfliler, Kadın İşçi, 9. Köy ve Fikir Gazetesi gibi pek çok platformda haberleriyle yer aldı. Dicle Fırat Gazeteciler Derneği'nde (DFG) medya ve basın sorumlusu olarak görev aldı. Bağımsız gazetecilik anlayışını benimseyen Evrim Deniz, kadın emeği, insan hakları ve toplumsal adalet gibi konulara odaklanmaktadır. Şu anda Bianet’in Diyarbakır muhabiri olarak görev yapmaktadır.
The mother sat next to two empty bowls, bereft of life, not moving in the small area of green encircled by flats. A place we call paradise in this concrete jungle.
I went down and tried to comfort her, though separated by species, she knew what I meant. But it wasn’t always like this…
As winter moved in at the tail end of last year, the dog now lying below me with only 3 paws, the other blown off by hateful zealots, was brought to our patch, followed by her three puppies.
Each day they would dance in the field and in our hearts. People in the area came to life, in minutes a home was built for them, so good one half expected it to have central heating.
The father was brought from the village and we had our family, completed now with a half-sister puppy.
They loved each other and we loved them. And then, someone passed by, foreign to these parts. Looked out of their car window, phoned, and in the morning, they were gone.
Everyone’s faces were bowed down, the children glanced over with tears in their eyes. “Where have they gone?”
As the weeks passed the grass grew over “their patch.”
Until one day at the dead of night a lorry opened and the pitter patter of paws could be heard once again. (DM/VK)
David R. Mellor is from Liverpool, England. He spent his late teens homeless on Merseyside. He is currently writing and performing in Turkey. His work...
David R. Mellor is from Liverpool, England. He spent his late teens homeless on Merseyside. He is currently writing and performing in Turkey. His work has been featured by the BBC and the Tate, and his published collections of poetry are What a Catch (2013), Some Body (2013), Express Nothing (2019) and So This Is It (2020). His collection of stories An Englishman in Turkey – Türkiye’de Bir İngiliz is recently published in Turkish.
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