The everyday people of the region are living remarkably stable lives, the children are going to school, the stores are full of food and products, and – most of the time – the lights turn on and there is water in the tap. In the the dust and heat, the people of Northeast Syria have built a functioning system, organized governance, decent electricity, water, and sanitation, the presence of local police forces, and even traffic and parking enforcement. I was surprised to see, on a main street adjacent to the city center in Qamishlo, near the so-called “Jewish market,” a set of pay-parking spots, hosting several cars with freshly-issued parking tickets on the windshields.

Northeast Syria is protected by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US ally in the fight to defeat ISIS. The region was ravaged by the brutal battles against ISIS, and has not seen a presence of the central Syrian government since 2011. Although the occasional Turkish bomb still falls on the region, and although the new Syrian military has engaged the SDF in small skirmishes at the southern tip of the region, Northeast Syria is full of people doing business, innovating, creating art, getting married, starting families, and living lives of an unlikely peace – given the circumstances.

This stability is especially notable for those who are interested in US policy toward the region, because for the entire year, the US government had been normalizing with the new government in power in Damascus, which controls the other two-thirds of Syria, and largely ignoring the northeast part of the country, which has been a reliable US ally, with US troops stationed in their region. The new government in Damascus is largely made up of militants associated with the religious extremism of Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham and the Al-Qaeda affiliate, Jabhat Al-Nusra. While I was traveling in the northeast, residents in the Damascus-controlled region were describing cities where police are absent, petty crimes occur frequently, and many people are out of work and can’t pay for basic needs. Many said they hadn’t seen the new government anywhere.

While there, I was able to meet with the co-mayor of Qamishlo, Northeast Syria, a city of about 180,000 residents. From her busy office, she described how the city funds these basic services, in between her assistants poking their heads in the door to ask questions about meeting times and contacts. The city of Qamishlo has 22 employees who go door-to-door through the neighborhoods, and collect 10,000 Syrian pounds (about $1 USD, or 1% of the average worker’s income) from each home. If a family is poor and cannot pay, she says, “the employee will look at their house and situation,” and if they appear poor, they just say thanks and walk away. No penalty. No service cut-off. They just do the compassionate thing and leave, without trying to collect.

I also met with the co-mayor of Hasakeh. Walking past residents bustling into and out of the busy municipal government building in the city center as they clutched papers and stacks of the undervalued Syrian pound, we found the co-mayor in a modest office under the loud whir of an air conditioner. She described the careful task of providing water for the 420,000 residents of the city since 2019 when the Turkish Armed Forces seized the Allouk water station, which was the main water source for the city, closing it down. In addition, in the past few decades, Turkey has built a series of dams on the Euphrates River in the southern part of Anatolia, Turkey, the Kurdish region, which severely restrict the water flow into Syria. The municipal government of Hasakeh has been trucking in water in giant water tankers, which are visible throughout the city. They fill privately-owned rooftop water tanks. In addition, the municipal government coordinates with several NGOs, who truck water in to fill public water stations, so anyone can access the water for drinking, cooking, and light washing. She also mentioned that 20% of residents also have access to water from wells, but this water is salinated and contains other toxins, so can be used only for washing and other purposes. This is paid for by taxation, including both household and business taxes. Business taxes are applied according to the footprint of the business in square meters.

The delivery of services in Northeast Syria is a complex, deliberate, and carefully administered system, which is functioning well. Until recently, when the new Syrian government began attracting refugees back into the Damascus-controlled region, Northeast Syria was more stable and prosperous than the rest of Syria. 

I emphasize this comparison because although the West seems intent on normalizing with the new Syrian government in Damascus, the reality on the ground is that Northeast Syria has substantive power. It must be reckoned with, not ignored. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have over 100,000 professional soldiers, men and women who were trained-and-equipped with help from the US Armed Forces and are battle-hardened over the past decade by the fight against ISIS. The forces of the new Syrian government, including affiliated militias, number at about 35,000 troops, with varied levels of training and experience.

While in Northeast Syria I visited the Free Syrian Women’s Foundation center in Qamishlo. Their women’s centers offer low-cost physical fitness gyms for women, women’s literacy and language classes, artisan workshops, and women’s empowerment lessons. They offer low-cost training centers for women to learn how to open a business in a trade such as tailoring and hairdressing, so that women who leave their husbands have a source of income. They also own and run a mobile health unit for women in rural villages, because traditional Muslim men will often not allow their wives or daughters to travel into town to seek medical care.

At this organization, they are afraid that Syria will become the next Afghanistan, and they will [see] the gains they have made rapidly stripped away.

“When the HTS comes here, everyone will be killed,” said one of the directors.

These women are terrified of the new government in Damascus. “They don’t accept strong women,” the director said. “They don’t accept our consciousness, and we don’t accept theirs. They want women to obey, and we want women to be stronger.”

“I am an old woman, but still, I am ready to pick up the gun to defend myself against the terrorists,” a 66-year old woman told me in Qamishlo, northeast Syria, when asked about women’s rights under the new Syrian government. The woman, who was nearly six feet tall and sturdily built, did not appear to be bluffing.

I heard a similar message when I met with a representative from the YPJ Women’s Protection Units. These women’s units of the SDF are known as the Kurdish women who battled ISIS in the trenches and won their freedom against the brutal system of ISIS, wherein they may have become slaves. These women’s militias are cautiously optimistic, but at the same time are remaining vigilant, trained, equipped, and prepared, in case they need to fight a new battle for their freedom.

The women of Northeast Syria carry the memory of extremists who abused and executed women who were too headstrong. They saw how independent women in Raqqa were dragged to the city center by ISIS and beheaded for the crime of speaking back to their husbands. They have now borne witness to violations, murders, and kidnappings of Alaawi women in Latakia in March. This time, it was not ISIS committing atrocities, but the very militants who now are making up the Syrian military. The world has additionally witnessed further terror in July and August — against women, men, doctors, patients, children, the Druze people — by these same militants in Suweyda, southern Syria. This prompted even the Israeli government to engage their military, until the violence ceased. While the new Syrian government promises to investigate the horrific events in southern Syria, the people of Northeast Syria have already arrived at the conclusion that the new Syrian government is to blame for the atrocities.

These women fear that, if the northeast falls to extremism, they will lose their freedom — and possibly their lives, just as Alaawi and Druze women did earlier this year.

For most of this year, US policy on Syria has focused on rapid normalization with the new president, Ahmed Al Sharaa, instead of slowing down and seeing whether he can even assert control outside Damascus. It also remains to be seen how the new Syrian government will respect the rights of women, and protect the gains of the women in Northeast Syria, or whether the region will take the painful path of Afghanistan, where women’s rights were rapidly put in shackles and hidden under a veil when the US withdrew support from the region.

The summer heat has now faded and given way to cooler weather. In December, the new Syrian government will have been in power in Damascus for a full year. Damascus has been in negotiations with the DAANES over how much and how soon Northeast Syria will be integrated into the rest of Syria. These negotiations are taking place on the edge of a knife – the religious extremism of the new government in Damascus pushes in the opposite direction than the more democratic ideologies in the northeast.

No one wants to see Syria fall back into civil war. But the task of uniting a diverse country with many different peoples is not a small one. A lasting solution will be one that reckons with the realities of an intact, effective government in Northeast Syria, as well as a large number of women who do not wish to give up their gains.

Raqqa – The Free Women’s Foundation, located in the city of Raqqa in North and East Syria, on September 10 launched vocational training on plaster decoration and the making of decorative items as a form and symbol of reviving the region’s famous heritage. Ten young women participated in the training.

Art Became a Source of Livelihood

Instructor Sawsan Ahmed says, ‘Since my childhood, I have had a love and inclination for handicrafts. By recycling old items, I discovered my ability to turn them into home furniture and decorative objects. Later, I began to develop my hobby and generate new ideas using digital media. I turned to the field of wax, granite, and plaster in order to create beautiful and original pieces and sculptures, some of which are used in home decoration. Today, this has become a way for me to provide my economic livelihood.’

‘It Opens New Styles and Horizons’

Also explaining her purpose in teaching, Sawsan Ahmed says, “In the past, I only worked from home and marketed my handicrafts through digital media. When I learned that the Women’s Handicrafts Training Foundation was opened, I proposed to share my experience and skills with young women of an age to master these handicrafts professionally. The stages of making plaster sculptures are simple and easy, but they require precision and focus. First, we mix plaster with water until it reaches the right consistency, then we add colors and create the necessary pieces. We leave the mixture to dry for about 20 minutes. I believe that handicrafts made of plaster, especially with women adding their own unique style, open up new horizons for creativity and art.”

‘Women Gain Self-Confidence’

Emphasizing that the training contributes to women’s self-confidence, Sawsan Ahmed says, “Women bear the greatest burden of crises, wars, and their consequences. They now struggle with life on their own and take responsibility for their children. Therefore, these trainings help women gain self-confidence, achieve economic independence, and establish their own income-generating businesses. My future plans include designing various decorative products and participating in upcoming exhibitions. I think these works will be special and remarkable. At the same time, I aim to expand my workspace in order to develop my ideas and skills in the field of handicrafts, to train more young women, and to establish a workshop where they can realize their own projects. I especially encourage young women who are interested in handicrafts to join vocational training, because women can make use of their free time and recycle old and worn-out items into original pieces.”

‘I Feel Happy’

Trainee Yamam Abbas expressed that her reason for joining the training was her love for this idea being ‘unique and original.’ Stating that her two sisters also joined the training to gain skills, Yamam Abbas says, “This is a profession that can be done from home. Over the past few days, I have learned to make various beautiful shapes out of plaster using special molds. It is simple and enjoyable work that does not require much effort. I am satisfied with this experience. I feel happy. It becomes even more meaningful especially when it is given as a gift or souvenir.

‘Cultural Heritage is Revived’

Trainee Dunya Dervish also drew attention to the importance of the vocational trainings organized by the Free Women’s Foundation, saying: “These trainings have enabled young women to learn different professions that will help them develop their skills and establish their own businesses. My interest was drawn because the training has a unique idea that is different from others. Plaster is an ancient heritage in handicrafts. In ancient times, people decorated their homes with plaster statues because they had no other alternatives. Therefore, these trainings contribute to the revival of the cultural heritage of the region.”

Expressing her satisfaction with participating in exhibitions, Dunya Dervish says, “We are currently preparing for upcoming handicraft exhibitions. We are working to produce handmade decorative pieces with original and beautiful ideas. I will participate with four of my works and I especially hope to inspire young girls; because these are works created with the creativity and sensitivity of women. Women’s hands and ideas bring out creativity and art wherever they are. They add light, life, and color to dark objects. After completing the training, I aim to start my own project and market the ideas I produce through digital media.”

The Young Women’s Union has opened a Women’s Support Center in Raqqa to help young women develop their skills.

The opening ceremony was attended by members of the Zenubiya Women’s Community, the Syrian Free Women‘s Council (Raqqa Branch), the Syrian Women’s Council, and the Council of Martyrs’ Families. The ceremony began with a moment of silence in honor of the martyrs.

Leyla El Ebid, an executive member of the Young Women’s Union in the cantons of Tabqa, Raqqa, and Deir ez-Zor, said in her speech at the ceremony that the center was opened to increase the role of women and develop their role in building society. The center will also provide opportunities for women to learn a profession.

Leyla said that the center will also offer training courses for young women in professions such as sewing, health, and computer skills. After completing their training, the young women will receive a license that will enable them to work.

The center consists of departments of education, communication, culture and arts, and sports. In these departments, young women will be able to discover and develop their strengths and talents.

Following the speech, the center was inaugurated by Itab El Def, mother of martyr Xelef El Buş.

The opening ceremony ended with dances.

Jinwar was officially opened on 25th November 2018, but the process of its establishment was a longer journey. The idea of building a women’s village was inspired by proposals of Abdullah Öcalan and discussed for a long time by the Kurdish Women’s Movement. With the 2012 Rojava Revolution, including the establishment of the self-administration and the withdrawal of the Baath regime from most areas these ideas became more realizable. Concrete plans started in 2016 by an initiative of different women organizations – Kongra Star, the Free Women’s Foundation, the Jineolojî Academy and the Martyr Families Council. The land, which had once been confiscated by the state, was initially cultivated after the revolution by an agricultural cooperative of Aboriya Jin (women’s economy committee) and then donated to the project.

In 2017 the construction of the village started. The houses of the village were built in a traditional way by forming bricks out of earth, water and straw. Some of the buildings were decorated with murals showing the spirit and the message of the women’s village. For example the image of Şahmaran as the bearer of an ancient knowledge symbolizes women’s struggle, strength of transformation and wisdom. The building process of this village connects to a long history of women’s struggle in Kurdistan, to the efforts and sacrifices of many women.

“Women are strongly connected with society – they are the ones organizing the basis of life, inventing methods and tools to solve problems in society and creating bonds of solidarity and mutual support. We are getting connected to this role again, organizing our life together, supporting each other and sharing our knowledge with each other.” says Sirîn, a woman currently living in the village. She came as a language teacher to the village. Previously she lived in Qamishlo where she was a school teacher, first under the rule of the Baath regime and then as part of establishing the new education system in the Kurdish mother-language in the system self-administration. Now she is teaching reading and writing, as well as other subjects, to the mothers and children in Jinwar in their own mother-tongues, both Arabic and Kurdish.

The life in Jinwar is based on communal values and principles such as ecology, democratic self-organization, women’s economy, women’s health, education and the building up of a common future. The women share their knowledge about gardening and ecological ways of growing fruits and vegetables. At the same time, their aim is to build a self-sustainable life that offers independence on an economic level. The women of Jinwar are building up a communal economy by working hand in hand with other cooperatives in the region. Furthermore, they run a bakery, a small village store and dry vegetables for the winter which are also sold. All decisions concerning the daily life, activities, new ideas and the village economy are discussed and made in the village council assemblies. The children and the youth have their own assemblies and spokespersons in order to participate in democratic decision making processes.

Connected to the village, is also the health center ŞifaJin (Healing of Women). The natural healing and health center opened in 2020 and has rooms for treatments, consultations, educational work, and the production of natural remedies. The project also includes a garden where medicinal herbs are cultivated. ŞifaJin’s ambulance ensures mobility in urgent cases and the cooperation with women from surrounding villages to collect and share traditional natural healing knowledge in connection with modern knowledge and treatment methods.

“The life in Jinwar is an example for women living and organizing together and finding their strength together. It is a place that shines around the world. Being here and talking to the women here, I really feel freer and hopeful. It is clear, we need more places all around the world like this village. It is our task as internationalists to build up these places everywhere and establish a network of connection between them”, concludes Julia after her visit at Jinwar.

More information and impressions about Jinwar, you can find here or here.

During the July 19 Revolution, known as the Women’s Revolution, women from the Kurdish, Arab, Syriac, Assyrian, Armenian, Circassian, and Turkmen components in Rojava and North and East Syria rose up against the actions of the authorities based on a patriarchal and sectarian mentality.

We present to you in this file the results of women’s efforts and activities, and the achievements they accomplished during the revolution, on the occasion of March 8, International Women’s Day.

The social contract

After the announcement of the Autonomous Administration of al- Jazira Canton on January 21, 2014, Kobani on January 27, and Afrin on January 29, 2014, the Legislative Council of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria met in the city of Amuda in the same year and ratified the Rojava Social Contract, which preserves the military, political, and social rights of women. The system of co-chair was adopted as a fundamental principle in all institutions of the Autonomous Administration.

The social contract was amended on December 29, 2016, and issues of freedom, justice, equality, education, health, environmental protection, women’s freedom, and the protection of women’s and children’s rights were fundamental in this social contract, with women’s representation in these areas reaching 40 percent.

In the context of people’s rights and women’s proposals, the Democratic Autonomous Administration amended the social contract again and ratified the new social contract on December 12, 2023. According to the contract, the representation of women in the public justice system in the region was set at 50 percent.

In 2024, preparations began for a social contract specifically for women, and work on it is still ongoing.

Women’s Authority

Women’s Authority is one of the bodies affiliated with the Executive Council of the Autonomous Administration. Its work involves addressing women’s social, economic, cultural, political, and legal issues, and it operates based on social justice and the democratic family.

The Women’s Authority includes the Women’s Protection Office and the Children’s Protection Office.

At the level of al-Jazira canton, the Amara Office was opened to provide psychological support to women who are subjected to extortion and abuse. Additionally, between 2022 and 2023, 7 centers named “Ahlan Simsim” were opened to develop children’s skills.

Women’s organization

With the aim of standing against all forms of violence and social problems and liberating from prevailing systems, and based on the principle of “Organize yourself according to the ideology of women’s liberation,” the Kongra Star was established as a union before the revolution in 2005, and it continues to manage community organization now under the name Kongra Star.

Kongra Star took the initiative to establish the first women’s councils and centers and organize them in the liberated regions of North and East Syria from ISIS mercenaries (al-Tabqa, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor). In 2021, the establishment of the Zenobia Women’s Assembly was announced, with its centers located in al-Tabqa, Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Manbij before being occupied by Turkey and its mercenaries in late 2024. It is concerned with organizing women on all levels, in addition to addressing social issues such as violence, child marriage, polygamy, murder, divorce, and inheritance.

Many institutions to combat the patriarchal mentality

To combat violence against women in North and East Syria, the Sara Organization for Combating Violence Against Women was established in 2013.

The Center for Research and Protection of Women’s Rights was established in 2020 with the aim of providing legal support to women and documenting the ongoing violations against them.

The Free Women’s Foundation in Syria was also established in 2014 with the aim of developing and empowering women in the economic, cultural, social, and health sectors.

The Women’s Environmental Platform was established in Rojava in 2022 to promote environmental awareness.

Alongside these organizations, many women’s councils have been established in the region. In 2019, the Women’s Council in North and East Syria was established, and in 2017, the Syrian Women’s Council, the Women’s Council in the Democratic Union Party (PYD), and women’s councils and offices in the Future Syria Party, the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), and the Democratic Society Movement (TEV-DEM) were established. These are important and significant organizations in the region.

Women’s unions for the Syriac, Armenian, and Yazidi communities were also established in the region, along with the Young Women’s Union and the Women’s Media Union (YRJ), as well as several associations and civil society organizations dedicated to women.

Women’s House

In order to protect women’s rights, combat violence, prevent child marriage, address harassment and rights violations, and tackle all social issues in various cities, as well as to solve social problems according to the model of a democratic and ecological society and to liberate women, the first women’s house was opened in the city of Qamishlo on March 20, 2011, under the auspices of the Star Union (now the Kongra Star). Today, there are 39 women’s houses in North and East Syria.

Also, in the cities of Qamishlo and Hasakah in 2019, under the auspices of the Syriac Women’s Union, the Ishtarot House for Women was established with the aim of finding solutions to the problems faced by Syriac, Armenian, and Chaldean women.

Women’s Justice Council

The Women’s Justice Council was established in 2016 and operated throughout North and East Syria. Under its umbrella, the Women’s House, the Justice Bureau, the Reconciliation Committee, and the Academy were organized.

After the expansion of the liberated areas, the Women’s Social Justice Council in North and East Syria was announced at al-Jazira Conference for the Women’s Justice Council (2018).

Family law

The Women’s Law, which guarantees women’s political, economic, and social rights without relying on patriarchal or masculine mentality and achieves justice and equality, was issued on October 27, 2014, under the auspices of the Kongra Star and consists of 26 articles. However, due to the absence of specific penal laws, the penal code of the Damascus Government was adopted. The Women’s Law was completed in 2016 with the approval of the criminal and penal laws.

In 2019, at the first conference of the Women’s Council in North and East Syria, which included 62 women’s organizations and independent women, the Women’s Law was discussed as principles for women, and a decision was made to issue the Family Law.

The Family Law consists of 6 titles: marriage, divorce, effects of divorce, alimony, kinship, and family-related crimes, and it includes 41 articles. The law stipulates a prison sentence of 10 years for those who commit crimes of killing women. The Family Law was approved for the first time in 2023 in the al-Jazira region, and it protects women, children, and family members.

The security and military field

The Internal Security Forces – Women took over women’s security practically in 2012 and was officially established in 2014. It includes the Syriac Women’s Protection Units (Sutoro), the Assyrian Internal Security Forces (Natura), and women also have a place in the traffic department.

The Women’s Protection Units (YPJ) were established in 2013. Additionally, women take their place independently within the councils of Kurdish, Arab, Syriac, Assyrian, and Armenian components affiliated with the Syrian Democratic Forces.

In order to protect the community security-wise and prevent the proxy war being waged in the region from abroad, the Community Protection Forces for Women were established in 2016.

Golden Crescent Movement

The Hilal Zerin Movement for Women’s Culture in North and East Syria was established in 2016, and today it has 5 centers distributed across the region’s cities. Under the umbrella of the movement, the Shahida Berxwedan Studio and the Women’s Cinema operate as two institutions managing artistic works such as films, music videos, and song releases.

In 2024, the Hela Zerin Movement for Women’s Culture in North and East Syria inaugurated the Higher Institute of Arts in the city of al-Hasakah.

In 2020, the movement also opened the Martyr Noyla School of Fine Arts and established a children’s music band of the same name.

Kobanê – Following the revolution in North and East Syria, women started participating in all facets of life, including politics, military and education. The Syrian Free Women’s Foundation was founded in northeastern Syria in 2014 to empower women in the region. In 2019, the foundation opened an office in Kobanê.

‘Women develop themselves by participating in our programs’

In an interview with NuJINHA, Şirin Muhammed, member of the foundation in Kobanê, gave information about the activities of the foundation. “The aim of the foundation is to educate and empower women in order to change their status in society. We have organized many awareness-raising programs with the support of the communes to eliminate the patriarchal mindset. Women develop themselves and strengthen their bonds with each other by participating in our programs. Now, they participate in all facets of life.”

Courses for women

The foundation also aims to promote women’s economic empowerment. “We have organized vocational training courses for women. Our sewing and hairdressing courses last three months. After attending the courses, women receive certificates. Then, they join the labor force or start their own business. All women aged between 18 and 50 can join the courses. Women develop their skills thanks to the courses.”

‘Women have realized their own projects’

Şirin Muhammed pointed to the increase in the demand of women to participate in the vocational training courses. “Our foundation has organized six different vocational training courses with the participation of more than 250 women. Some women, who received their certificates, have worked for the foundation while some have joined the labor force. Some of them have already realized their own projects. In 2024, we carried out many activities for women. For instance, we opened health centers for women and children by cooperating with doctors and health organizations. These centers provide free healthcare service to women and children. In addition, we held six handicraft exhibitions in Kobanê, Eyn Îsa (Ayn Issa), Sarrin and Raqqa.”

‘Women must overcome obstacles’

The door of the foundation is open to all women, Şirin Muhammed told NuJINHA. “All women are welcome to the foundation in order to strengthen their representation in society. As the foundation, we are here to support women. Women must overcome obstacles and break down the walls of oppression.” 

The Foundation of Free Women in Syria is one of the women’s organizations founded following the start of the revolution in Rojava and the establishment of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria. Founded in 2014, the foundation aims to support women in all facets of life and increase women’s labor force participation. Every year, the foundation organizes various training courses for women in order to encourage women to participate in the labor force, said Leyla Omer, the director of the foundation in Dêrik (Al-Malikiyah).

The aim of the Foundation of Free Women’s in Syria is to increase the level of knowledge among women through education and change the patriarchal society, Leyla Omer told NuJINHA. “When we say free women, we talk about free thoughts and philosophy. We make efforts to promote women’s economic empowerment,” she said. “In the beginning, we experienced some difficulties in society; people did not know that the foundation had been founded to support women and to create job opportunities for women. But we overcame all the difficulties.”

‘We will have more comprehensive projects’

We want to start courses such as sewing, health and technical courses, Leyla Omer said. “Each training course is supervised by a trainer and held at different hours. At the end of each course, the trainees receive certificates. The trainers make great efforts to ensure that trainees can successfully complete the training courses. We will have more comprehensive projects for women next year. Some of them are painting and musical instrument courses. In addition, we aim to open a Children’s Garden aiming at protecting children, providing a safe space for them and supporting working women. As the foundation, we will keep working hard for women and creating job opportunities for them.”

The center Shehmaran, which is named after the king of snakes known for wisdom, health and bringing happiness from Kurdish mythology, was founded with the help of the organizations Strade, Casa degli Angeli di Daniele, the Free Women‘s Foundation in Syria WJAS, Kurdistan Hilfe e.V.

In this center, four women work on a voluntary basis to care for the population in the difficult circumstances of flight and for the refugees in the various camps, as well as the entire population. A nurse, a midwife and two specialists in naturopathy and physiotherapy currently work in the health center, which was founded specifically for women and children, but treats everyone who needs assistance.

“I got a job opportunity in the workshop after mastering the profession, and I am now the supervisor of the sewing workshop in addition to working here,” Khalat told North Press.

Since its establishment in 2014, the Foundation has been seeking to enhance women’s role in society and economically empower them. To achieve this, the organization has provided projects and training workshops.

Economic empowerment

The organization specifically focuses on supporting uneducated women and those who face challenges in securing job opportunities due to a lack of formal education and skills.

“The Foundation seeks to build women’s capacities and economically empower them through training courses and workshops targeting hundreds of women annually,” Roken Khisho, an administrator at the NGO, told North Press.

The Foundation has opened branches in the cities and towns of Hasakah, Derbasiyah, Girke Lege (Maabadeh), Derik (al-Malikiyah), and Chel Agha (al-Jawadiyah), as well as in IDP and refugee camps such as Hawl, Roj, and Washokani, all located in northeastern Syria. It has opened other offices in the cities of Raqqa, Tabqa, and Kobani, northern Syria.

Organizational committees

The Foundation coordinates its operations through several committees. They include the Health Committee, Training and Rehabilitation Committee, Legal Committee, Projects Committee, and Diplomatic Committee. Each committee works on addressing practical and theoretical aspects.

The theoretical aspect includes organizing awareness lectures and campaigns for women within communes, houses, and institutions. Furthermore, the Foundation holds sessions to familiarize women with their rights and provide them with psychological and moral support, Khisho said.

On the other hand, the committees work on the practical aspect by implementing projects. The Projects Committee begins by conducting surveys among women to gather information and insights. Based on the survey results, the committee identifies projects to be implemented, aligning them with the specific needs of the women involved.

Khisho noted that the projects are implemented according to the available resources.

She clarified that the Foundation operates as a civil society organization and receives funding from both local and international humanitarian and charitable organizations. This funding is facilitated through its diplomatic committee, which collaborations with these supporting organizations. In total, the Foundation has made partnerships with nearly 50 organizations that provide financial support for its initiatives.

The Health Committee has implemented various projects, including the establishment of clinics in Hasakah, Kobani, Qamishli, and the village of al-Tabka in Qamishli countryside.

In addition, a mobile clinic provides medical care to residents of Derik and its surrounding villages, staffed by a pediatrician, a gynecologist, and a nurse.

The clinic aims to target women who cannot afford the costs of treatment in private clinics. Medical consultations and medications are provided for free.

Training courses and job opportunities

Through the Foundation’s offices, the Training and Rehabilitation Committee organizes training courses in sewing, wool knitting, hairdressing, first aid, computer skills, languages, and handicrafts in various areas of northeastern Syria, including camps.

In addition, the committee organizes literacy courses for women in both Arabic and Kurdish languages, and works on establishing kindergartens for the children of women enrolled in the trainings, in addition to providing psychological support for children, especially displaced ones.

The Foundation’s branch in Qamishli includes a sewing workshop, a knitting workshop, a store, and a women’s gym.

However, such workshops have not been opened in other areas due to lack of funding.

Khisho emphasized that upon completion of the training courses, the Foundation seeks to provide job opportunities for women. Some of them are employed in the Foundation’s workshops as needed. As for the others, the foundation coordinates with the Women’s Economic Office and the Economy Board, both affiliated with the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), to secure job opportunities for them.

Regarding some urgent humanitarian cases, the Foundation provides sewing machines free of charge for poor women, especially widows.

“We provide training to beginner girls and women who have an interest in learning the profession at affordable prices. The number of training workshops conducted per year varies, typically ranging from four to five, depending on the number of applicants,” Khalat added to North Press.

She highlighted that most women who express interest in sewing but struggle to find job opportunities are either uneducated or lack the necessary certificates and experience to work in public institutions or private companies.

The workshop, consisting of four workers, makes various types of clothing and fulfills requests for some institutions, such as school uniforms.

The workshop also offers services for sewing traditional costumes specifically tailored for special occasions like Newroz and International Women’s Day.

“We are three female workers in the knitting workshop, knitting clothes for children, women, and men. The Foundation always provides us with assistance and support,” said Viyan Ali, who works on a knitting machine. 

“We participate in exhibitions organized by some institutions such as the Culture Board [of the AANES], where we showcase our products which include clothes, handicrafts, and items made of wool,” she added.

“We have two handicraft workshops for women, one in Raqqa and the other in Kobani. They participate alongside us in the exhibitions and showcase their work.”

Viyan trains women who are interested in learning how to knit woolen clothes using knitting machines, aiming to help them get job opportunities in the future.

The products of the Foundation’s workshops are marketed and sold through stores affiliated with the Foundation in Qamishli, Kobani, and Girke Lege, at reasonable prices compared to the market prices, according to Khisho.

The Syrian Free Women’s Foundation was established in Qamishlo in 2014 under the name of Free Women’s Foundation with the goal of supporting women in the economic, cultural, social and health areas. The foundation expanded its activities and changed its name to the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation in 2021.

Working under the motto “A free woman is the foundation of a free society”, the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation also tries to reach women’s institutions around the world and to call attention to the living conditions of women in Syria and the Middle East. The Foundation opened offices in Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, Tabqa, Kobanê, Derik, Girkê Legê, Hesekê as well as in Washokanî, Girê Spi, Hol camps, and has also undertaken many projects in the cultural, health and social areas. It provided training to thousands of women in many regions of North-East Syria and offered a medical centre, kindergarten, tailor shop, overlock seam and music workshops, in addition to courses in English, Arabic and Kurdish.

TRAINING CYCLES

The Health Committee of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation conducted 716 seminars on first aid training and medical teams were established. 757 women were trained to become nurses. Moreover, 105 medical training cycles were offered for war preparations. The Arî Clinics serving women and children continued its activities uninterruptedly, providing treatment for 5,195 women and children.

A clinicar, organized by the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation with the help of a group of volunteer women, continues to visit villages. The clinicar served 219 villages and treated 1,326 patients. 5,195 patients were treated in medical centres in Qamishlo, Hesekê and Girkê Legê. On the other hand, an alternative medicine centre in Dirbêsiyê and Hesekê provided support for women and children, from natural remedies to physiotherapy.

Apart from health education, the Education Committee focused on ideological education for the construction of a democratic, ecological and pro-woman life. 381 training cycles were offered, and 546 families were visited.

Vocational training programs were also offered to support women financially. 108 sewing training cycles were thus opened, and 517 women received certificates at the end of the courses. 342 women received certificates in 85 hairdresser training cycles. The foundation, which considers children as its target group, offered playgrounds and music courses. In total, 381 training cycles were introduced for 2,755 people.

ACTIVITIES IN 2023

The priorities of the Foundation include opening alternative medical centres in other cities and procuring medicine for treatment from the rich lands in North-East Syria instead of purchasing it from foreign countries. The Foundation will also focus on the education of orphaned children and deal with their health problems in 2023. It furthermore aims to develop relations with other women’s organizations and institutions in Syria and the Middle East. Children’s parks will be built in the Washokanî Camp and other camps. Existing music education centres for children will be strengthened in cities where the Foundation has offices.

Speaking to ANF, Melike Hesaf, an executive member of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation, said: “The establishment purpose of the Foundation is to support and train women to provide job opportunities. The purpose of our health training is to make women competent in first aid. There has been an intense war in our region and our people want to possess advanced skills in the health area as part of the Revolutionary People’s War.”

Hesaf stated that they would undertake more efficient projects in 2023. She concluded: “We opened our health centre in Kobanê this year. We will increase our support for our office in Kobanê. We have alternative medical centres in Hesekê and Dirbesiyê. One of the priorities of this year is to open alternative medical centres in the cities where we have offices, primarily in Qamişlo and Dêrîk. We will supply alternative medicine materials from there. We will produce the herbs we need by our own means. Our music education centres for children will be more efficient this year, after some of our offices were suspended last year.”

Sadly this video does not contain English language subtitles.

Arî Clinic was opened in Hasakah Canton of North and East Syria three years ago by the Free Women’s Foundation. Women working at the clinic prepare cures and medicines by using various herbs and plants in the treatment of diseases. Ronida Nasser Khalaf, one of the employees at the clinic, says they serve the Syrian people, especially the people in the region. The clinic also holds free first aid and nursing courses for women.

 Indicating that they want to expand the clinic in the future, Ronida Nasser Khalaf said, “We make great efforts to reach all people.”

 ‘We treat skin diseases by using herbs and plants’

Another woman working at the clinic, Ahlam Al- Sayed learned how to use herbs and plants to treat diseases from her mother and grandmother. She told us that they treat all skin diseases by using herbs and plants. “We also offer physical rehabilitation to patients. We mix several herbs to treat patients suffering from paraplegic cerebral palsy without using chemicals. I make this mixture.”

Noting that women have used herbs to treat diseases for centuries, Ahlam Al- Sayed said, “Women continue to discover herbs to treat their children and diseases. Medicinal plants treat the disease from the root and cannot only stop it for a certain period of time even if it takes a long time.”

The clinic offers treatment to not only women in Hasakah Canton but also women from other regions.

The video below sadly does not contain subtitles.

The orphanage “Keskesora Alan” (Alan’s rainbow) in the northern Syrian city of Kobanê was set up in 2018 thanks to the international support from the Foundation for Free Women in Syria (WJAS). There is also a kindergarten run by the Women’s Foundation and a women’s education center with training rooms for young women on the site. Until now, a small infirmary was taking care of the medical needs of the children living there. This facility has now been expanded and also offers medical care for children in the area.

The fact that this project was made possible is mainly due to the family of internationalist Lorenzo Orsetti, who fell on 18 March 2019 during the final battle on the last ISIS bastion in eastern Syria. Thanks to a generous donation from the parents of the Italian fighter, the WJAS was able to expand the health centre, which has now been called “Medical Centre Lorenzo Orsetti”.

Şînda Osib, who works in the administration of Keskesora Alan said: “Thanks to this support, we were able to expand our medical centre and this ensures that a doctor can treat the children from the surrounding area as well three days a week.” However, the demand is much greater and, in the long term, goes beyond the current supply. One problem is that the cost of buying medicines is high and medical treatment has become expensive.

Next goal: A gynaecologist for the medical care of women

Osib added: “Only a small fee of 2,000 Syrian Liras is charged in the foundation’s health centre. That’s the equivalent of about 0.75 euros. We give away medicines free of charge and intend to continue to do so. Another long-term goal, however, is to add a gynaecologist to the health centre in order to improve medical care for women in the region. But we haven’t had the funding for this yet. Anyone who would like to support us in this project is welcome to do so with a donation to our foundation.”

Donation account Kurdistan Hilfe e.V.

Key word: WJAS

Hamburger Sparkasse

IBAN: DE40 2005 0550 1049 2227 04

BIC: HASPADEHHXX

Lorenzo Orsetti

Lorenzo Orsetti was from Florence and joined the Rojava Resistance in 2017. There he was organized in the internationalist units within the structures of the YPG and the TKP/ML-TIKKO. As an internationalist, he called himself Têkoşer Piling, and his friends affectionately called him Orso (bear). In 2018, Orsetti fought on the front lines defending Afrin against the Turkish jihadist occupation. When the canton fell on 18 March 2018, he went to eastern Syria and took part in operations against the Islamic State. Orsetti then fought with an Arab unit from the Têkoşîna Anarşîst (Anarchist Struggle) association in the final anti-IS offensive “Thunderstorm Cizîrê”. On the anniversary of his death, on 18 March 2019, the group was ambushed and all of its members killed. Just three days later, the Syrian Democratic Forces announced its military victory over ISIS.

Şinda Osib, member of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation based in the Euphrates Region also known as Kobanê Canton of North and East Syria, told NuJINHA that the aim of the foundation is to organize training courses for women in the region.

The name of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation was “Rojava Free Women’s Foundation” when it was founded in Cizire in 2014. But then, its name was changed into the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation to provide services in all cities of North and East Syria.

In 2018, the foundation opened an office in Kobanê Canton to organize training courses such as tailoring and language courses for women to offer them employment opportunities. The foundation also opened a children’s home for children, who lost their parents.

‘It has become a space for women to develop themselves’

Speaking about the activities and aims of the foundation, Şinda Osib said, “We, as the foundation, aim to empower women by organizing training courses so that they can join the labor force. The foundation has become a space for women to develop themselves and to raise awareness about women. In 2023, we will continue to open training courses for women to offer them employment opportunities. Women aged between 15 and 42 attend our courses. Children can stay in our Children’s Home until the age of 18. As it is known, Syria has suffered from a war for a long time. Children, who stay in the Children’s Home, are the children who lost their parents in the war. We make great efforts to meet their needs.”

‘710 women received certificates in 2022’

Reporting that the foundation carried out a health project and opened a health center to serve women in 2022, Şinda Osib said, “Now, we work to organize a health team. We held exhibitions in many cities such as Manbij, Sirin and Qamishlo to display handicrafts of women attending our courses. The aim of these exhibitions was to preserve the traditional handicrafts. In 2022, 200 women attended the hairdressing courses and they started their own business after receiving their certificates. 160 women attended the sewing courses and 200 women attended Kurdish and Arabic courses.”

‘We will develop new projects for women in 2023’

Speaking about projects of the foundation in 2023, she said, “We will keep organizing training courses in 2023. We will build a center for the children, who have stayed in the Children’s Home and completed the age of 18 to learn a profession. An education committee was formed by our foundation in cooperation with the commune and assemblies. Our education committee will keep working for women in 2023. Every woman can attend our courses. Our foundation is ready to support all women, educate them and create job opportunities for them. In 2023, we will continue to serve our society, women and children by developing new projects.”

The video below unfortunately does not contain English subtitles.

Although doctors have made incredible advances in science and various fields, chemical drugs have a negative effect on people unlike alternative medicine or natural medicine. Because of their natural base, herbal remedies do not have many of the side effects of chemical products. Herbal remedies are those with active ingredients made from plant parts, such as leaves, roots or flowers. As it is known, women were the first goddesses of healing. They were creative in every sphere of life. Şêrîn Welat, a researcher, herbalist and energy healer, established the Ninhursag Natural Health Center in the Qamishlo city of North and East Syria on June 28 along with several women. NuJINHA spoke to her about the activities of the center.

“I want to publish my research”

Speaking about how she decided to establish the center, Şêrîn Welat told us that the idea of establishment of such a center was developed in 2015 in order to promote herbal medicine.

“Because very few women are interested in herbal medicine and they slowly disappear due to religious and traditional gender role beliefs. I thought about this reality and decided to promote women’s role in herbal medicine again. I worked on herbal medicine in Afrin for a while. I did research on the role of women in herbal medicine and I want to publish my research.”

“Afrin is a region where alternative medicine is common”

Indicating that there are many medicinal plants in the Afrin region, she said, “Afrin is a region where alternative medicine is common.  There are still many herb plants in the region. I saw how the diseases that could not be treated by modern medicine were treated by using herbal remedies in the region. The people share their experiences with each other in order to prevent herbal medicine from disappearing.”

“All segments of society supported our project”

Underlining that all segments of society supported their natural center project, Şêrîn Welat said, “The Autonomous Administration, Women’s Council, Free Women’s Foundation and Health Council also supported our project. The Syrian Women’s Council provided financial support and a space to the center. In addition, the Heyva Sor a Kurd (Kurdish Red Crescent), the Syrian Democratic Council (MSD) and Health Council supported us after we opened the center.”

“Heal yourself”

Stating that their main aim is to prevent herbal medicine from disappearing, Şêrîn Welat called on people to “learn how to heal yourself. We want to teach our people how to heal themselves. Nowadays, people use chemical drugs. We want to make people trust their own strength. Now, the center has four doctors, who use energy healing methods such as herbal and massage therapy, yoga and physiotherapy to treat diseases. We named the center after Ninhursag, known earliest as a nurturing or fertility goddess. It is believed that she is the first doctor in the world, who saved people from death. Her name is very precious and meaningful for us as women.”

“People should trust in their own strength”

Calling on people to trust in their own strength and to be able to heal themselves, Şêrîn Welat said, “We will do our best to benefit our society, to raise awareness of the people. We will hold awareness-raising seminars. Our aim is to open many branches of the center across NE Syria.”

[The] Syrian Free Women’s Foundation was founded in 2014 in NE Syria. The aim of the foundation is to develop women in economic, cultural, social, and health areas. It also aims to develop relations with foreign women’s organizations and institutions to draw attention to the problems faced by women in Syria and the Middle East. The administration and members of the foundation have carried out their activities with the motto, “Free Women are the Foundation of a Free Society”. 

They have developed dozens of projects until now 

The foundation has developed dozens of projects to increase women’s participation in the cultural, health, and social areas and built a permanent cultural revolution for women and children. As a result of the efforts, many health centers, kindergartens, and orphanages, women’s shops, music institutes have been opened. It has also organized training programs with the participation of thousands of women in refugee camps, provinces, districts and villages of NE Syria. The aim of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation is to liberate women from the roles and social backwardness imposed on them. Ruken Xiso, the director of the foundation, spoke to NuJINHA about the works of the foundation. 

They keep working for women 

Stating that the foundation was founded by five women, Ruken Xiso said, “At the beginning, a questionnaire was prepared and more than 300 women filled out the questionnaire. We wanted to learn the thoughts of women to start projects for them. At that time, there were violent attacks on our regions. Our main aim was to start working as soon as possible. Before starting our projects, we provided health and protection training programs for women so that they could protect themselves from diseases and help sick people around them. We also organized ideological seminars on women’s reality.” Stating that the foundation formed committees and opened offices in cities, districts, and regions of NE Syria, Ruken Xişo said that they have kept actively working in liberated areas.  

Pharmacies for natural medicines 

[The] Health Committee is one of the committees of the foundation. The main aim of the committee is to organize health training to give necessary information about how women can treat diseases and heal injured people. The committee has held many seminars to raise awareness of women about gynecological diseases, particularly about breast cancer. After the Covid-19 outbreak, the committee has carried out awareness-raising activities. “We still carry out our activities to raise awareness of the public about the Covid-19 pandemic. We also have pharmacies selling natural medicines in Dirbesiyê and Hesekê. We plan to open such pharmacies in Qamishlo and Dêrik,” Ruken Xişo told [Jinha]. 

They work for the education of children 

The Education Committee is another committee of the foundation. Stating that the Education Committee has worked to provide theoretical and practical education, Ruken Xişo said that the committee organizes courses for both women and men to change the mentality of society. “The committee has also worked for the education of children. We have opened kindergartens in many cities. We opened a children’s house called Keskesor Children’s House for children, who lost their parents in the war. The foundation meets all needs of the children living in the children’s house.” 

New projects 

Indicating that the Project Committee develops projects according to the needs of the people, Ruken Xişo said, “We have a tailoring workshop. We organize training courses such as tailoring, hairdressing, and language courses. Our projects in Roj, Newroz, Washûkani, and Hol refugee camps continue. We provide both moral and material support for women. In 2022, we will develop more projects. We will provide more economic support for women.”

I do not see any problem in using the term “feeling”, because Jineolojî also challenges science which is largely devoid of feeling in terms of content. Just this term, which exceeds the limits of the mental models given to us and opens a door to a new science, fits to what I want to communicate. However, only “feeling” is not enough. The Jineolojî has supported the claim to define seeing, knowing, meaning, searching and analyzing adapted to life as a science of its own. In this text I will try to explain which way the Jineolojî has travelled in the course of about ten years to come closer to the claim of becoming a separate branch of science.

We can attribute the distance that Jineolojî has traveled – as in any other science – to the effort to establish itself conceptually, theoretically and institutionally. First and foremost, as in any social science, it was a matter of developing a scientific understanding of basic factors such as existence, knowledge and methods. It was based on the fact that the role of women and their knowledge had almost no place in the social sciences or that this place was very distorted, which only deepened the social problems. In a way, she dared to shout a truth that in the past many researchers who had tried to analyze the system had concealed. Thus, we knew where to place the missing pieces of the puzzle in our hands.

The river that finds its own bed

Jineolojî has challenged the informative entities of the system, proceeded with contradictions, objections and questions, and revealed the jinergy in every individual and area with which it came into contact. Jineolojî has aimed to take steps that satisfy the claim of being a science in the service of society and not of domination. Seeing that the fragmented approach to the social sciences of women, society, and nature easily led to exploitation by governments, it strove from the beginning to be established as a science with society for the needs of society.

How she did it? She held the discussion “What kind of social science will Jineolojî be?” not in academies, where the problems of society are always considered from a distance, but with society. First, she discussed with the pioneers of her own revolution, or, in other words, the pioneers who based the women’s revolution on such a science. Jineolojî did not emerge from a group that held abstract discussions about freedom.This community tried to reflect the principles of a free life that it had developed itself through the relations between men and women, the understanding of administration, nature and the way it dealt with every living being in it. It consisted of people who cut their ties to the existing system and felt freedom at that moment. Most importantly, it was a community based on creating freedom immediately.

It was this group, especially the free women’s academies in the mountains of Kurdistan and the building force of the Kurdish revolution, that set the basic building blocks of an alternative life in many different fields such as economy, culture, self-defense, justice and politics. Only the community that promised people a future and risked their lives for it could feel how a science should be in the service of society, and only such a structure could create that science.

Thus, a conference in the mountains of Kurdistan created a framework for Jineolojî’s critique of the social sciences, their methods and practices. With the motivation generated by this framework, Jineolojî developed in a different form in all fields. This was precisely the result that was consistent with the claim of being a social science. Therefore, we compare Jineolojî with the river that finds its own bed.

The first concrete studies

Let us now take a look at how this river has created its place in different geographical areas, breaking through the earth and seeping into the depths.

The first concrete studies on the science of women began in Rojava and undoubtedly produced the most results there. Since women were the founding force of the revolution in the fields of self-defense, politics, economy, culture, justice and many more, the quickly practiced social conventions of women, the institutionalizations formed according to the needs of women (Mala Jin, Jinwar, women’s academies and cooperatives …) formed the basis for the development of Jineolojî. This promoted the process of education in these institutionalizations and at the same time fed on it.

Seminars and trainings of Jineolojî at hundreds of academies in Rojava have played an important role in changing the mindset of the protective and founding forces of the revolution. In this way, she created her own institutionalizations. Jineolojî research centers established in Efrîn on August 16, 2017 (no longer operational due to the occupation), in Dêrik on September 22, 2017, in Minbic on January 2, 2018, in Kobanê within the borders of the Euphrates region on March 6, 2018, in Hesekê on January 8, 2019, on 25. November 2020 in Tabqa, on January 9, 2021 in the camp for people from Efrîn whose land is occupied, and in Aleppo on April 4, 2021. These are very important institutions that ensure the intimate relationship of Jineolojî with society. Female employees of these institutions try to fill the knowledge pool of Jineolojî in economics, demography, history, mythology, ethics, aesthetics, and so on. They research their own societies and their history and do so beyond the boundaries of state and patriarchy.

Sometimes they work in partnership with a woman healer, sometimes with a dengbej, sometimes with academics. The sociological analyses carried out by each center on the body are also considered as fundamental studies to get to the source of social problems. Let us also mention that the interest in Jineolojî is not limited to the regions where Kurds live. In cities such as Minbic, Tabqa and Raqqa, which were liberated from IS, the number of Arab women who volunteer for Jineolojî studies cannot be underestimated. In this way, the chance to access the sources (Arabic books and oral histories) where we can find information stored in the Middle Eastern countries increases considerably.

One of the most fundamental studies of Jineolojî in Rojava is her sociological research to solve social problems. For example, during the revolution in Rojava, sociological research has served to establish that women were the constructive force in Rojava.

The work, which deals with the connection of the present conditions with the first women’s revolution, and a people stuck between being refugees and war, and in a process of reconstruction, is completed. It is currently being prepared for publication in Kurdish.

One of the most promising works of Jineolojî has been the construction of Jinwar Women’s Village, which WJAR (Free Women’s Foundation in Rojava) launched as a joint project with WJAS (Free Women’s Foundation in Syria) and Kongreya Star (Women’s Movement in North Syria) in 2017.

Jinwar, where the construction of the houses ended on November 25, 2018, is now a living space that has a capacity, through the healing and health center “Şîfa Jin“, to care for the health problems of women along with those in the surrounding villages. The village has a trilingual school for students, a bakery and it has developed agriculture and animal husbandry. Jinwar is, so to speak, a village where Jineolojî is being practiced.

The Faculty of Jineolojî, which was opened at the University of Rojava during the 2017/2018 academic year, is one of the most important institutions of Jineolojî. The Faculty has been trying to restructure itself since 2021. There is a detailed preparation on many issues from curriculum to scoring system or an advisory board of the faculty. Various institutions that cooperate with the faculty are also involved in this process. In addition to the Emden University in Germany, efforts are being made to cooperate with various schools that have already been able to establish an alternative educational system in Latin America.

The Andrea Wolf Institute

The Andrea Wolf Institute (founded in May 2017) is another institution where women from different regions of the world work together. With its educational circles, research groups and artistic projects, Jineolojî is becoming an important resource that all women of the world will encounter. The studies carried out in the institute have already turned into a concrete product.

The leaflets entitled “Revolutionary Education and the Killing of Man,” published in different languages, and the book “Mujer, Vida, Libertad,” which includes the experiences of the Kurdish women’s liberation movement, are also products of a group of international women who carry out various works at the Institute. Published in Catalan, the book has been translated into Italian and met its readers at the end of 2021. Its second volume (the first is being prepared for the second edition) is in progress. The basic idea for the book “We know what we want” [„Wir wissen was wir wollen“], which has received great attention in Germany, also came about through discussions within the Institute. By intensifying the work of those who conducted not only external public education, but also community education and Jineolojî studies, products such as brochures and books were created. Ethical-aesthetic (in four languages) and politicization of emotions (in five languages) are among them. This decade also saw the publication of “Lecture Notes” describing all the theoretical and practical issues of Jineolojî, and the title “Democratic Modernity and Feminism”. In addition to the Jineological promotional brochures published in Europe in seven languages, some of the discussions in 21 different Jineolojî camps in Latin America and European countries have been delivered as brochures to the relevant circles. In this context, two Catalan and two German brochures have been published. A special selection from Jineological journals appeared in English, Arabic and Soranî. The Journal of Jineolojî, published every three months, is in its fifth year. Currently, issue 23 is being prepared.

What I am trying to say is that based on the education of social sciences, Jineolojî has formed a large complex in this short span of ten years.

The books and pamphlets mentioned above are actually the products of experiences that are thus transmitted to the future generation and recorded in intellectual production, perpetuating the struggle for women’s existence and freedom. This intellectual production process, starting from its own needs, can connect the information network. No experience and production is separated from the other field, all concrete results are collected in the pool of Jineolojî and even the production of one field motivates and nourishes another field. In other words, the flow does not originate from a need fixed at the top, but from the contact with the progress of the local towards universality. This is what you need to understand from the practice of Jineolojî.

Undoubtedly, there are many more practical results from the last ten years. The truth that is revealed is much more important to me. In this respect, the emotion I expressed at the beginning is significant. The transformation that every woman who engages in Jineolojî experiences is the most lasting result for me. To recognize the mental pitfalls that the male-dominated system lays for women, to embrace the ethical-aesthetic values that come through female connectedness, to gain consciousness to define one’s existence, to gain aspiration to overcome the knotted social problems, to realize one’s own potential, that is, to feel the jinergy, to gain strength in the struggle against the system – these feelings have appeared in every woman who got acquainted with Jineolojî and participated in the studies carried out on the basis of jineological thinking and living. This is the first position that we won against the way of thinking that tries to separate the thoughts, knowledge, feelings and intuition of women. Being able to arouse emotions while producing thoughts and relying on our intuition while pursuing knowledge.

The practice achieved during this time is very valuable. It is a necessity to make these values visible and to understand these results as a prerequisite for a science and as the beginning of a long march. It is only with such scientific output that it will be possible to change the information that today defines human memory.

Has Jineolojî been able to adequately analyze all social contradictions, or can it form a sufficient basis for the ideological and revolutionary rise of those who fight against the system? Every moment we deal with this question, encountering people full of contradictions, different cultures, identities, movements and minds full of insidious positivism, we ask ourselves this question. These encounters make us feel that we are at the beginning of the road. But we see contradictions and question marks as the beginning of transformation. We transform ourselves as we develop our conversion aspirations. We are learning as we seek to teach. We create our own identity as we pursue women’s truth. We don’t mind the long road to get there.

The efforts of women involved in Jineological studies in Europe to revive their own mythologies; following the stories of women who resisted against fascism; the stories that elderly people tell children in the Jineological Research Center in Dêrik; the child of a mute Ezidi mother who learned to speak after she started living in Jinwar – having had all these promising experiences at the beginning of this long road instills in us the courage, hope and desire to go the rest of the way as well.

In the midst of the successive events in the north and east of Syria, a major role for women has emerged in closely monitoring the situation, and finding a way out for women so that they do not fall under direct influence, as women in any conflict are exposed to egregious violations, and global statistics on violations of human rights indicate that women are the targets in the first place.

In order to reduce losses to a minimum, and direct women’s energies to protecting themselves and identifying themselves, their history, strength and capabilities, women in northern and eastern Syria worked on the local and regional arenas, to hold the Turkish occupation accountable for its crimes in the occupied areas, and to deliver the message of women in the Rojava revolution, which is called the Women’s Revolution, to the rest of the world’s women to join the convoy of revolution available.

Economy

• In support of women’s economy aimed at developing women financially and morally, the Women’s Economy Committee in North and East Syria has implemented many projects, opening projects that support and develop its economy, such as factories and ovens [bakeries].
• On January 1, extensive meetings were held in the context of achieving self-sufficiency for female migrants from Serêkaniyê by opening economic projects to support them. 5,800 dunums [decares] of agricultural land were allocated to women in the form of an association. For the cultivation of seasonal varieties of wheat and barley, the association included 78 displaced women.
• On January 2, the Women’s Economy Committee allocated an area of ​​7 hectares for onion cultivation, 12 hectares for garlic cultivation, three hectares for pea cultivation, two hectares for faba bean cultivation and five hectares for potato cultivation, which are grown for the first time in the villages of Kar Kendal and Mulla Marza in the Derik district in Qamishlo canton.
• On January 16, Potato was grown for the first time in Al-Hasakah canton, by the Women’s Economy Committee in Al-Hasakah.
• On May 30, the Economy Authority in Al-Jazira Region inaugurated the Women’s Department, Zozan factory for cheese and dairy, in Derik district, Qamishlo canton, which is the first of its kind in the region, and the second in the north and east of Syria.
•  On June 1, the Free Women’s Foundation in Syria opened an office in the city of Manbij to develop the role of women intellectually and economically.
• On November 8, the Women’s Office in the People’s Municipality in Raqqa opened a laboratory for detergents, the first of its kind, at a cost of nearly $4,000, to be a rare project and a first-of-its-kind experience for women in the region.

Diplomacy

• On June 22, a delegation from Catalonia, consisting of “Ilulia Regovat and Ruben Wagensbeeg, members of the Catalan Parliament, Laura Preeze, a member of the Barcelona city council, Montes, a member of the political and social organization Omnivim, Kifer Meckel, a member of the Movement for International Justice and Dignity for Refugees, and John Kerlt” visited journalist and director of documentaries on social issues.” Kongra Star Center in Qamishlo canton.
• On June 29, Rojava women in Germany announced the organization of the “Star Europe Conference” during the first conference held under the slogan “Women’s Revolution is a guarantee of a free life”.
• On June 29, the first founding conference of the Yazidi Women’s Union was held in Rojava in Al-Shahba canton, in the presence of 300 Yazidi women from Al-Jazeera and Afrin regions, under the slogan “With the thought of a democratic nation, Yazidi women will win in Rojava.”
• On September 21, the French city of Lyon honored the Kurdish political activist and former General Secretary of the Future Syria Party, the martyr Hevrin Khalaf, by naming a square in France after her.
• On November 30, a delegation of women from north and east Syria visited the Basque Country, at an official invitation from the region, the municipality of Duranco and the non-governmental organization “Suargi”, with the aim of strengthening relations between the two peoples.
• During the year 2021, the Yazidi House in Al-Jazeera region received 12 Yazidi women from the administration of Al-Hol camp, who were captured during the attacks of ISIS mercenaries on Shingal.

Organization

• On January 6, the official broadcast of the Women’s News Agency “JINHA”, which aims to find a new form and pattern for women’s representation in the media, in the face of “women’s lack of representation” began.
• On January 17, the Coordination of Kongra Star in Rojava launched the second phase of the campaign “No to Occupation and Extermination, Together We Protect Women and Life”, with the aim of shedding light on the violations practiced against women and families by the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries in the occupied areas.
• On February 5, it was approved that the women’s coordination would become part of the General Council in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, in order to find a suitable ground for resolving the obstacles and difficulties facing women within the administration.
• On March 6, Afghan, Iranian, Arab and Kurdish women held a joint conference via (online) application, and accordingly the committee announced the decisions that resulted from the conference.
• On March 25, Kongra Star set up a sit-in tent in Ari Park in Qamishlo city, to demand the disclosure of the health status of the leader, Abdullah Ocalan, and to lift his isolation.
• On April 11, the first conference of the Women’s Council was held in North and East Syria, under the slogan “The Women’s Revolution to Ensure a Free Democratic Society”, in which 21 members of the Women’s Council were appointed, seven of whom are members of political parties in North and East Syria.
• On May 26, the second conference of the Women’s Council was held for the families of the martyrs in northern and eastern Syria, under the slogan “The struggle of the free woman is to protect the values ​​of the martyrs and ensure the Rojava revolution.”
• On June 1, the establishment of the “Zenobia Women’s Gathering” was announced during the first founding conference held in the city of Raqqa and the election of an administration for the four regions “Tabqa, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Manbij“, which is the main pillar of the hopes and aspirations of Syrian women.
• On June 18, the first conference of the Free Women’s Stand in Syria was held.

Culture and Art

• On January 8, the new center for Jineolojî (women’s science) was opened in al-Shahba canton, after a 3-year hiatus due to the Turkish occupation’s attacks on Afrin.
•  On 1 and 2 March, the Women’s Literature and Art Festival was organized, with the aim of encouraging them to express their culture and history.
• On April 3, a center for geology studies and research was inaugurated in the neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh in the city of Aleppo.
• On June 25, the Women’s Authority in the Jazira region inaugurated the “Child Protection House” in the Al-Msherfa neighborhood of Al-Hasakah city, with the aim of providing the necessary care for children.
• On August 5, the Golden Crescent Movement in northern and eastern Syria inaugurated the Kazwan Center for Women’s Culture in the city of Al-Hasakah, with the aim of rehabilitating women from the technical side.
• The Education Authority in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria has included the Jineolojî subject in the new 2021-2022 curriculum again, after making amendments to it to suit the nature of the region.

Violations of the Turkish occupation against women in the occupied areas

• From January 1 to November 30, 13 women and 13 children were killed, and 75 women, 5 minors and a baby girl were kidnapped, according to statistics from the Human Rights Organization Afrin – Syria.
• On January 30, the second forum was held on the violations committed by the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries in the occupied canton of Afrin, under the auspices of the Organization for Research and Women’s Rights in Syria, a Human Rights Initiative organization, the Rojava Center for Strategic Studies, the Human Rights Organization Afrin – Syria and the Human Rights Organization in Jazira.

Programmes to combat violence against women

• In May, Kongra Star and the Women’s Council of the Future Syria Party from North and East Syria joined the campaign led by the Kurdish Women Relations Organization to oppose the policies of extermination against women under the title “We weave a protection network for life, stop the political extermination of women, and to revive  the pioneers, we will not allow new massacres against women,” in which 74 women’s organizations around the world participated, in addition to 181 women’s activists.
• July 30 and 31, the Second Women’s Conference in the Middle East and North Africa was held under the slogan “With women’s unity we will achieve the democratic revolution” in the Lebanese capital, Beirut. Its sessions focused on the events in the Middle East and North Africa, including wars, conflicts and disputes in which women were victims of the first degree, in addition to the repercussions of these crises on women, including displacement, captivity, assassination, and high rates of violence.
• On October 30, the Women’s Authority in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria announced, during its monthly meeting, the approval of a draft internal system for the Center for the Protection of Abused Women. The draft consists of 12 articles.
• On November 19, the third conference of the Women’s Council for Social Justice was held in the region of Al-Jazira, and a number of decisions were taken to reduce violence against women.
• On November 20, the women’s movements in northern and eastern Syria announced a program of activities for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and it continued until December 10.
• On November 30, thousands of men in Al-Jazeera region took part in massive rallies calling for the elimination of violence against women.

The spark of the Revolution in Rojava started in Kobanî on July 19 and it spread across NE Syria. After the revolution, women began to found women’s organizations. Syrian Free Women’s Foundation is one of these organizations. The foundation was founded in the Cizre region in 2014 and spread across NE Syria.

The main purpose of the foundation is to stand by women in every part of life. The foundation also carries out works for children’s education and psychology. It organizes training courses, such as tailoring and language courses for women to offer them employment opportunities. It also organizes seminars on women’s health and violence against women. The foundation also has a Keskesor Area, an area to learn English, Arabic, and Kurdish, and a special section for children who lost their parents in the war.

In 2015, the preparations for a kindergarten were started by the foundation, and the kindergarten was officially opened in 2018. This project is developed not just for the children of Kobanî but also for all children living in the West, North, and East Syria. 27 children from Cizre, Afrin, Aleppo, and Kobanî attended the opening ceremony of the kindergarten.  There are currently 13 Arab and Kurdish children in the kindergarten. The foundation has four committees; health, education, culture, and art and social committees.

The name of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation was “Rojava Free Women’s Foundation” in the beginning but after Ari Center, affiliated to the foundation, was officially opened on February 26, 2020, in Sirin city; its name was changed into the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation. The foundation has offices in Dêrin, Hesekê, Tebqa, Raqqa, Dirbesiyê, and Kobanî now. The foundation carries out works for women living in Aleppo and Damascus.

The foundation held its first congress on June 18. NuJINHA spoke to the members and managers about the projects and works of the foundation.

She is both manager and teacher

Diyana Ehmed is one of the Syrian Free Women’s Foundation managers and a computer teacher. “The people aged between 15 and 35 can join our 2-3 hour courses every day. After three months, we give them certificates so that they can work elsewhere,” Diyana told us. The women and children also take language courses; the language courses are free for them. The foundation also opens a free tailoring course this year. “We also hold seminars to raise awareness of women about their health and violence against women,” Diyana said that children attend language courses during vacations.

Women should know their health

Lara Himêdi is a member of the health committee of the foundation. “We give theoretical information about women’s health because there is no center to give women such information. Everyone should learn first aid. Pregnant women need to know what they should do when they have a problem. Women tell their neighbors what they learn here.”

Women learn many things

Medina Qadir is a tailoring teacher. She believes that every woman should work to get their economic freedom. “I have to look after my children and I come here to learn how to sew. We learn many things here,” said Enzilxe Bozan Oso, one of the course attendees.

Ari Center

Emine Şêx Elî, one of the managers of the Ari Center in Sirin city, told us that the Ari Center provides great opportunities for Arab women. Before the opening of the center, the women had difficulties going out in the city. “The society in Sirin is a feudal society. Women face many difficulties here. But after the opening of the center, many women visit our center and they attend our works.”

In addition to the central Assad-led government, both the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and various opposition groups control territory in the country— and will likely have some say in its post-war future. Yet their respective policies on women’s rights and representation are vastly different— an important distinction to make in assessing the country’s progress and determining international support.

Leadership and Representation

Women in the Autonomous Administration and the Syrian Democratic Forces hold senior leadership roles across policy functions and at all levels of their institutions. Ilham Ahmed, the co-chair of the Syrian Democratic Council, acts as the region’s de facto head of state, speaking before the U.S. Congress and meeting U.S. President Donald Trump last year. Further, the SDF operation to liberate Raqqa from ISIS control was led by a woman commander, Rojda Felat.

With the exception of women-only institutions, every deliberative body operates under a co-chair system, where all leadership positions are held jointly by one woman and one man. Offices and commissions within the Executive Council of the Administration, equivalent to cabinet departments, also use this system.

The Syrian opposition, however, lacks senior female leaders. In 2012, an early conference of the Syrian National Council elected no women to its 41-member decision-making group and the Syrian National Coalition has never had a woman president. In fact, the first woman to serve as the head of any opposition local council was only elected in 2018.

These disparities in senior leadership are reflected across the political structures of each faction. The Autonomous Administration’s constitution mandates that elected bodies and political parties, from the highest levels of the Administration to the smallest neighborhood commune, be made up of at least 40% women. Autonomous women’s organizations, like the Women’s Council of North and East Syria, exist in parallel to every mixed-gender institution, making the percentage of women actually serving in government slightly higher than men. These institutions have the ability to overrule and advise mixed-gender institutions on issues of women’s rights.

The Autonomous Administration’s constitution mandates that elected bodies and political parties, from the highest levels of the Administration to the smallest neighborhood commune, be made up of at least 40% women.

In contrast, a 2016 report from the Syrian Feminist Lobby quoted a study of 105 of the 427 local councils in opposition-held Syria at the time, which found that just 2% of their members were women. Just two women, including the Vice President, serve on the 23-member Political Committee of the Syrian National Coalition, and just 10% of the members of the Coalition’s General Body are women.

Based on this data, the Autonomous Administration would fall into the Middle East Women Leaders Index’s categorization of Ascending Representation— meaning women’s participation and leadership is high at all levels of government and across all policy areas. The report accurately classifies the Syrian government in the category of Aspiring Representation— meaning that women’s participation outside of traditional roles is still low. Despite claiming to represent a new future for the country, the Syrian opposition falls into this category as well.

Legal Status and Protections

New laws implemented by the Autonomous Administration contrast favorably with opposition laws and policies on women’s issues. In North and East Syria, the Women’s Laws address inequities in personal status that existed in Syrian law, and explicitly ban and criminalize child marriages, domestic abuse, and other forms of social inequity and gender-based violence. The region’s constitution states that “men and women are equal in the eyes of the law” and “guarantees the effective realization of equality of women and mandates public institutions to work towards the elimination of gender discrimination.”

Women who face discrimination or violence have significant institutional and social recourse. Women’s NGOs, like the Free Women’s Foundation and the Sara Organization for the Prevention of Violence Against Women, operate openly. Institutions known as “women’s houses” provide community-based mediation for domestic disputes and protection from unsafe home situations. Jinwar, an all-women’s village, is home to women who have lost their husbands in war, experienced sexual violence, and otherwise require support.

In opposition-held regions, no pretense of formal legal equality or legal protections is made. HTS, which controls much of Idlib, excludes women from political bodies and limits their basic freedoms, running gender-segregated schools,enforcing conservative dress codes, and forcing women whose husbands have been killed in the ongoing conflict to move in with a male “guardian.” These policies are enforced by ISIS-like morality police. Activists and civil society organizations that resist them face persecution, and must operate in secret; there is no legal resource for domestic violence, forced marriage, and other gender-based violence under religious law.

In opposition-held regions, no pretense of formal legal equality or legal protections is made. HTS, which controls much of Idlib, excludes women from political bodies and limits their basic freedoms…”

A recent UN report condemned the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army’s treatment of women in areas it has taken over, warning that “by targeting almost every aspect of Kurdish women’s lives…armed groups generated a palpable fear of violence and duress…[which] resulted in an undermining of women’s ability to meaningfully participate and contribute to their community.”

The report stated that these actions— like the assassination of Hevrin Khalaf, a former economy co-minister and then co-chair of the Syria Future Party targeted by Ahrar al-Sharqiya militants in October— constituted a concentrated attempt to “dismantle” the Autonomous Administration’s efforts to advance the status of women.

As the Index notes, laws and policies that regulate the lives of women and girls can either prepare them for political participation and leadership or act as obstacles to it. It is clear that the Autonomous Administration has done the former— while opposition groups have not been willing to implement such protections, and have even gone so far as to seek to force women out of public life altogether.

Why does it matter?

The Autonomous Administration provides a tried and tested blueprint for women’s political empowerment, a policy priority the opposition lacks. The gap in political and social opportunities for women between areas controlled by each faction is shocking. In areas that the SNA has captured from the SDF, like Afrin, Ras al-Ain, and Tel Abyad, the deterioration of women’s rights and basic personal safety is notable.

However, this dynamic has not factored into discussions on the country’s future, or determination of which factions deserve political and diplomatic support. Opposition groups that marginalize women have not faced any consequences for their actions— and the Autonomous Administration’s empowerment of women has not been discussed as a model for the rest of the country or a project that deserves support. Greater understanding of the fundamental differences on this issue, and the unique advances the Autonomous Administration has made, is essential for ensuring that women can play the role they deserve in all aspects of Syria’s future.

“After living under oppression for hundreds of years, our society was heavily influenced by patriarchy and the male mindset. This is why Kongreya Star was established… Our work has a good impact, for example we provide women facing domestic violence with the opportunity to leave the home and gain financial independence.” – Hamida Umma Mohammed, Kongra Star of Shehba, Afrin region

Kongra Star makes decisions through a conference every two years, as well as devolving decision making power to its various committees and member bodies. It is organized through communes and councils, as well as through academies, unions, political parties, cooperatives, associations and committees. Women organize as Kongra Star within the structures of the Autonomous Administration as well as through other structures such as the Syriac Women’s Union (for Syriac-Assyrian women) and in an independent capacity. Kongra Star organizes its work through the following committees: Diplomatic Relations, Participation, Media, Education, Municipalities & Environment, Justice, Culture & Art, Social Affairs, Political Affairs, and Women’s Collective Self-Defense Forces.

Kongra Star organizes and supports a wide range of activities and initiatives at all levels of society including demonstrations, training programs, participation in international partnerships, and setting up cooperatives. Although it has its roots in the Kurdish movement, steps are being taken to include women of all ethnic groups living in North and East Syria. There have been challenges in establishing a shared vision and practice of women’s liberation across all of society, but there have also been numerous tangible successes.

“We need to change the capitalist mentality – which is a patriarchal mentality – which seeks to make profit out of everything. But we cannot allow woman to become independent from man by putting herself in an exploited position [of employment]. It is not about integrating her into a capitalist system through work, it’s about building up a new economic system.”
Arin Khalil, Women’s Economy Committee in Qamishlo

Cooperatives, organizations and education

In different sectors, women developed autonomous structures and associations which are linked principally to Kongra Star, but also sometimes directly to the Autonomous Administration or SDC (Syrian Democratic Council). One example is ‘Sara,’ an association that campaigns against violence against women and works to change social perceptions and educate society. Another example is the Women’s Foundation (Waqfa Jin), which is establishing kindergartens, orphanages and specialized schools for disabled children. They also offer practical education to women in vocational skills.

A lot of work is also being carried out in the economic sphere: the Women’s Economy Committee of the Autonomous Administration and Kongra Star (Aboriya Jin) has supported the creation of a number of women’s cooperatives, allowing women to learn skills and become financially independent. These include bakeries, restaurants, tailoring workshops, factories and agricultural cooperatives. It is envisioned that women-only businesses will develop a mode of working different from more dominant, capitalist ways of working.

An interesting development in North and East Syria has been the growth of Jineology, translated as ‘the science of women.’ Jineology is a branch of academic study that seeks to develop a methodology and epistemology of liberation through connection with society and ‘revolutionary principles.’ Since 2011, Jineology has been developed across the broader Kurdish women’s movement. Its stated aim is to counter the preconceptions and methodologies of science as developed by a dominant male mentality, and to “rewrite knowledge from the point of view of women”, with the ultimate objective of “the emancipation of society”. In practice, Jineology works through local research centers, institutions and academies, conducting research, developing ideas and running seminars and training programs.

Jinwar, a village exclusively for women and their children, was founded in 2016 near the city of Dirbesiye. The Jinwar project entails the creation of a village where women alone develop the culture, economy, daily life and governance. Women also built the physical village, using traditional, environmentally sustainable techniques to construct clay houses, a communal kitchen and gardens. The village feature a school, a medical clinic, an academy, a bakery, herd animals, a shop, vegetable garden and several fields for crops. Women organize village life through a council and take part in running the collective economy of the village. However, the women and their children had to evacuate the village for some time following the October 2019 Turkish invasion due to shelling and the proximity of Turkish-backed forces to the village.

North and East Syria contains a network of ‘Women’s Houses’ (Mala Jin) in all cities and many smaller towns. The Women’s Houses exist to solve women’s issues, particularly domestic problems such as violence, marriage and divorce, and oppressive behaviors in the household.

This article is an excerpt from our report “Beyond the Frontlines – The building of the democratic system of North and East Syria”.

The goal of the Foundation is ambitiously high. Through their work, they want to support women in Rojava, Syria and South Kurdistan in the process of emancipation. They are working for a comprehensive psychological and medical support for women and children, managed by women themselves. Through their nurseries they are forming education for children of all ethnicities in every mother tongue, with the goal of equality between sexes, peoples and religions, and for ethnic and democratic coexistence. They make it possible for women to enter into the economy through establishing cooperatives, creating training opportunities and work for women in different fields, and open up spaces in which women can sell their handwork. Not last, they create living space for women, in which they have the possibility of working through their traumatic experiences of war and to develop their own abilities and talents.

To mark the first year since the Foundation it is worth looking back at what has been achieved, as a balance sheet and overview for further visions.

The establishment of the Foundation

The Foundation was founded by women themselves, dividing the work into five different areas: education, health, economy, press & publicity, and research & projects. The different fields clearly overlap, and indeed there is cooperation across them.

One of the first projects was started jointly with the Council of Yezidi women from Sengal (Sinjar) in Camp Newroz in order to improve the physical and mental health of the women in the camp (and later in Sengal) and their economic situation. The Foundation has set up a women’s sewing room in the camp. The residents wanted to wear their traditional Yezidi clothing; the women learn how to make these and many other items. Together with a psychologist, small and large psycho-educational groups have been held for the women in the camp, in which the impact of war and its psychological and physical consequences has been brought to light. With the help of members of the doctors’ council of Cizîrê canton, the Foundation also organises health checks for women and children, with medicines supplied in Sengal.

Soon after the establishment of the Foundation for the Free Women in Rojava, it began working with the umbrella organisation Yeketiya Star, for women of the communes and councils, so as to organise a survey of the women in the city of Qamişlo (Al-Qamishli), in order to learn about the living situation and monetary income of the women, and to ask about their life plans and desires. This focused in particular on their desire for education and employment opportunities, as well as education and care services for their children.

The development of the Foundation’s projects

The projects which the Foundation developed out of the survey are the construction of pre-schools, of women’s health centres, of women’s cooperatives and the establishment of women’s parks.

In Qamislo four preschools have been opened with 30-45 children. The teachers in preschools are all members of the Foundation. In weekly meetings, they can discuss problems and opportunities for the development of children’s problems and challenges, as well as opportunities for improving the quality of work. The Foundation will also organize, in addition to the daily preschool program, education for teachers, parents and children. For both adults and children this is providing an important opportunity to reflect on society and their role within it.

The first Women’s Health Centre was opened by the Foundation of the Free Woman in Rojava in Serê Kaniyê (Ras al-Ayn), where a wide range of plans are being made. Currently there is a weekly clinic for women and also a special clinic for children. Natural health options of collected and dried herbs have been offered from the start by members of the Foundation, as well as gymnastics for physical health. Seminars have been offered for prevention and information, again in cooperation with Yeketiya Star and the Council of Physicians in Qamislo. In both Serê Kaniyê and Qamislo the Step-by-Step Foundation provides a basic training for women in healthcare.

The construction of three women’s cooperatives (a tailors, an agricultural cooperative and a women’s café), was begun late last year together with the Women’s Council in Til Temir. By these means the women want to form an economic basis together. This work had to be stopped due to the war. Now that Til Temir has been cleared of the Islamic state (IS) and the residents have returned, the construction of a café for women’s cooperative has started. The Council of Til Temir has given the Foundation the café at the cemetery for the fallen.

With the agreement of the city council in relation to the use of park land, the Foundation has begun to design a women’s park in Qamislo. The park will be a public natural space available for women to leave their worries and the stresses of war: a natural environment is helpful for the development of new ideas. On completion, therapy and counseling will be offered, and a women’s cafe established.

The new Foundation’s latest project is the establishment of women’s villages. A women’s village will allow women to build an independent life together away from violent relationships. In the collective village life they can create a new perspective on collective social and personal life, discover and learn their capacities and talents, and construct an autonomous life independent of violent and oppressive relationships. The construction of the village has already begun.

Huge steps have been made in the Foundation’s first year. It has been clear from the start that the Foundation has to ask the needs of women so as to go forward together with appropriate projects. Unlike many other foundations, there is a basic relationship between the women and the Foundation, working promptly, creating a dynamic and building a relation of trust. For these reasons, the women see the Foundation as a partner with whom they can organize themselves in projects by which to independently develop solutions to the difficulties in their lives.

In this manner, an ethical way of working with civil society organizations is being redefined. If foundations, associations or charities are to be established, their approach and organization must correspond to the objectives of the target group.

Too often, only a very few of the suffering thousands of people, women, children and men are helped, although virtually all donations and donations go to benefit those in need, so it is claimed. To what extent do charities and foundations truly play a role in bettering the living conditions of refugees, needy and suffering? Or do they aggravate the suffering with their approach, supporting the domination and political exploitation of those who benefit from the situation?

The Foundation for the Free Women of Rojava has already shown this year that its work is on the side of women and children in need. It has made it clear by example that it is based on self-help and empowerment, corresponding throughout to the motto: ‘the free woman is the basis for a free society!’.

Opportunities to support and participate in the Foundation’s work

The Foundation’s work can be supported in three ways. For the organisation, solidarity for all peoples involved is the most important. The women’s Foundation encourages active coexistence between organisations, groups and individuals. This can be supported in three ways:

1. Activities for the recognition of the women’s Foundation are important, organising material and intellectual support for the Foundation. This can be done through events, interviews, fund-raising, etc.
2. The women’s Foundation educates women in different fields of work: healthcare, therapy, education and pedagogy, bakery and café organisation, land economy and tailoring. Women wanting to show solidarity in all lands, with an interest and related expertise, can share their knowledge in the form of seminars and educational work.
3. Financial support is of course also needed for the projects described above. Donations can be sent to our partner organisations. But material donations are also necessary for kitting out the women’s health centres (especially gynecology, physiotherapy and the lab), the pre-schools, sewing workshop, medications, etc.

To cooperate with the Foundation of the Free Women of Rojava, please send your details to the following contact:

Weqfa Jina Azad a Rojava (Foundation for the Free Women of Rojava)
jina.azad2014@gmail.com
Facebook: Weqfa Jina Azad
Website: www.weqfajinaazad.org

European contacts:
c/o International Free Women’s Foundation,
Beukelsdijk 149C , 3022-DC Rotterdam, Holland
Tel.: 0049 151 120 70 278
Mail: wjar2014int@gmail.com

Donations to our partner organisations in Europe should be specific with the keywords as give below, so that they can be forwarded to us:

International Free Women‘s Foundation
Keyword: WJAR
Internationale Vrije Vrouwen STG
IBAN: NL35 INGB 0006 2185 45
BIC: INGBNL2A

Kurdistan Hilfe e.V.
Keyword: Frauenstiftung in Rojava/WJAR
Bank: Hamburger Sparkasse
BAN: DE40 2005 0550 1049 2227 04
BIC: HASPADEHHXXX

Translation of article by Roza Nudem published in German “Kurdistan Report”, September-October 2015

This is a revolution in consciousness, not only in politics, and it has transformed the lives of countless women and men for generations to come.

Sometime in early February, I was excited to receive an invitation to participate in a women’s delegation to Rojava, the de-facto autonomous Kurdish majority region in northern Syria. The delegation was open to women journalists, activists and lawyers, and would be timed to coincide with International Women’s Day.

I arranged to go with two people I hadn’t met before: Ali, a friend of a friend, and Kimmie who I had interviewed over Skype for my book about female hitchhikers. She had already hitchhiked all around West Africa solo and had been blogging about Kurdish and Middle-Eastern issues recently, so she seemed like a good candidate for an adventure. None of us had any idea what to expect, not really. But we are all very open, flexible, and up for a challenge.

We needed that determination and flexibility to cross the border from the KRG – the Kurdish Regional Government in the north of Iraq – to Rojava. We had been informed that the border was “in the personal hands of” Massoud Barzani, the Prime Minister, and that we would need to get permission.

This proved unimaginably difficult, as nobody able to give the permission is willing to answer the telephone or email. To add to this, around the time we began planning our trip, Barzani’s Kurdistan Democratic Party, who are allied with Turkey, decided that the border crossing was no longer open to freelance journalists. Soon after that it was no longer open to any journalists, except for representatives of very large and well-known media agencies. Since we visited, the border has been completely closed down.

We finally got permission after two days of emails and phone-calls from our hotel room in Zakho, and a full day waiting at a checkpoint just before the official border crossing, a river that slices between the two countries. You cannot imagine the excitement we felt on that rusting blue boat as we drifted across the waters to Syria.

I had grown sceptical from years of organising in social movements: ecological, anti-militarist, feminist, movements for democracy, campaigns against fracking and motorways and airport expansion and wars, and wars, and wars. What I had learned was this: we can make tiny changes, we can have small successes, but what we are fighting is so much bigger than us. I learned to do positive action for its own sake, rather than dreaming of success. I learned how to not let defeat cripple me. But now, was I about to see a revolution with my own eyes?

We managed to arrive just in time for International Women’s Day and we marched alongside thousands of women in colourful and ornate dresses, whooping and singing, through the streets of Derbesi – a village sliced in half by the Turkish-Syrian border. “Jin! Jiyan! Azadi!” we chanted – woman, life, freedom! Many of the women and girls carried flags or banners. All of them smiled at us with warmth in their eyes, even the women guarding the march with ageing Kalashnikovs, who kissed and hugged us just like all the other mothers, sisters and grandmas we met that day.

Over the next few days we had a whirlwind tour of projects. We visited a women’s health centre in Serekaniye, run by a highly committed young doctor from the Netherlands on very scant means, with three Kurdish co-workers who she is training up. Between dealing with patients, Dr Ronahi answered our questions patiently, always smiling, switching between Kurdish, English, Turkish and Arabic. “Some women walk for many miles to reach the health centre from villages,” she told us as a small group of women in black chadors arrived with children in tow.

The health centre was opened by Weqfa Jina Azad a Rojava, the Foundation of Free Women in Rojava, who are aiming to open a women’s healthcare centre and a preschool in every neighbourhood in every city in Rojava. We also visited two preschools that they have already opened, as well as a women’s academy.

It was becoming obvious after only the first couple of days that we had all massively underestimated the scale of this experiment. I had known about the women-only armed forces as they have been heavily covered by western media, and I had heard a lot of talk about the strength of feminist movements in the region. But what we saw was way beyond feminism as we know it.

Women in Rojava have completely taken control of their own systems in every aspect of their lives, from healthcare to education to law-making and justice, as well as three separate defence forces and an independent economic body.

Across the region, the society is organising itself into a coordinated democratic system that works from the bottom up, like a tree. This system is called democratic confederalism, and it comes from the ideas of Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned leader of the PKK.

In this system, people first meet together at the local “commune” level, which can include a whole village or from 30 to 400 or more households. The communes then send elected, rotating delegates up to the next “neighbourhood council” level, comprised of the coordination boards of 7 to 30 communes. From there delegates go up to the District People’s Council. Decisions are made at the level they affect and all representatives are elected, with one male and one female for every post.

There are commissions to deal with issues such as defence, economics and justice. There is a separate Women’s Council at every level, and women-only commissions that work together with the general commissions, such as the economics commission. Kongira Star is the women’s movement umbrella organisation which, like all other commissions and public bodies, are represented in The Tev Dem, or Movement for a Democratic Society.

Many laws have recently been passed in Rojava, thanks to the strength of the women’s movement. They have outlawed polygamy and forced marriages and brought the minimum legal age for marriage to 18. Women now automatically get custody of their children in the case of a divorce. Women facing a wide range of issues can now go to the Mala Jin or Women’s House. So far, there are thirteen Mala Jin in the Cizire canton alone.

Problems they deal with include husbands taking second wives, forced marriages, inheritance issues and domestic abuse. As a house of justice, the Mala Jin takes a mediation approach, involving discussions between all affected parties where possible – a couple, a family, two or more families or tribes – and finding a solution together. In serious cases, the women of the Mala Jin can decide on a punishment for the perpetrator, such as a period of banishment, or they can send him to the official court system, where he may face prison, though the women we interviewed in the Mala Jin expressed a strong wish to move away from prison and other non-restorative forms of punishment.

The women’s economy unit, or Aboriya Jin, are largely involved with co-ordinating co-operatives. They told us proudly that they had just given a grant of 700 cubic metres of land to a group of women who are going to use the land collectively. They also talked about a seed bank project that is being developed. Later, we had the chance to visit a cooperative that is just being set up.

The Greenhouse Project is a little piece of heaven in what used to be the front-line. This is where I saw trees and even a butterfly for the first time in Rojava, and where the air is the cleanest. A woman with mischievous charm and a contagious energy showed us around the project she is setting up. After everything is running smoothly, women from eighteen communes will take over from her and grow food collectively, as a cooperative. They are also establishing an on-site education facility to teach women farming skills, traditionally seen as men’s work.

A great deal of importance is vested in education at every level of every system. A huge percentage of the population is illiterate. The Kurdish language was banned by the Assad regime in Syria, as well as by the neighbouring Turkish state, and the region kept economically poor. Add to this an incredibly patriarchal culture with entrenched ideas about women and we can begin to get an idea of how incredible this transformation really is.

Women are now attending academies where they learn about a wide range of topics, including the history of the region, leadership and responsibility, ethics, law, democratic politics, the system of Rojava, legal self-defence, the autonomy of women, ecology and more. Classes are taught on women’s history, based on Ocalan’s sentiments that “Housewifisation is the oldest form of slavery”. This is really radical stuff. Women in communes, villages and refugee camps are being taught about their own bodies and reproductive systems, challenging centuries of shame and self-hatred. Lessons are participatory, involving discussions and debates rather than the traditional top-down teacher-student dynamic. Classes are also taken out into the community and organised within communes and councils.

Women have their own separate defence forces at three different levels, which are run alongside, but independently from, the male forces. Aside from the YPJ – the women’s military force, which has been the subject of many western documentaries and news reports, there are the asayish, who are often described as being like a police force, and the HPC, the newly formed civilian defence force.

Criticism and self-criticism are built into the system at every level. Women in the organisations we visited often asked us, “Do you have any criticism for us? What could we improve?” Women in Jineology or “women’s science” study and critically analyse feminist movements in other countries, as well as other kinds of social systems, liberation movements and ideologies, including feminist, anarchist, socialist and libertarian movements and ideas. They see western feminist movements as highly reformist.

Our second week in Rojava was very different from the first. We were no longer treated as visitors, no longer on a tour, but were a part of the fabric of Rojava. We were staying in the newly opened International House, taking part in daily activities like cooking collective meals, participating in somewhat lengthy meetings about household issues, going to Kurdish language training and social events alongside other European people who have chosen to live in Rojava – people who are making documentaries, people who are founding projects, people who have been fighting or are in the process of training to fight.

This is where I began to understand what life inside Rojava could really be like for me if I stayed.

We all thought about staying. For me, these thoughts were always fleeting. I had a husband waiting for me back home, unfinished commitments and responsibilities that made staying impossible, or at least highly irresponsible. Ali changed her mind several times, but ultimately decided it wasn’t quite the right time to make such a large spontaneous decision. But Kimmie decided to stay.

Saying goodbye to Kimmie was tough. The day we left, she came with us in the car as Jiyan – the woman who had been our translator, guide and friend – drove us back along the seemingly endless road, through a string of cities and villages interspersed with the same oil wells and dreary countryside, then into some mountains, and finally the river that divides Syria from Iraq.

I remember feeling that I was not quite the same person who had been in the little rusting blue boat two weeks earlier, seemingly a lifetime ago.

The day after we left Rojava, the border closed. Since that day, nobody has been able to enter or leave legally, except a handful of medical professionals. People leaving by irregular means are arrested and imprisoned in Iraq.

Rojava is now facing an escalating crisis: not only sandwiched between ISIS, Assad and a very angry Turkey, but the supply route has been cut and a large scale famine is on the horizon. The chemical fertiliser that the agriculture depends upon has now run out and crop production has decreased dramatically. Only a third of the usual wheat harvest will be produced this year. Food and fertiliser imports have ceased because of the embargo. The region must become completely self-sufficient, and fast.

Some friends in Rojava are now raising funds for an ambitious project to transform the region from a chemical-dependent wheat monoculture, into a diverse organic farming culture. The plan is for the region to make all of the organic fertilizer it needs by collecting biological waste from the towns, villages, and farms, alongside a full education programme to teach residents how and why they should separate waste.

All these years of organising in social movements in Europe taught me that hope was futile ­– but I was wrong. There is a real revolution happening now, in my lifetime, and it’s more beautiful than I imagined possible. It isn’t perfect, nothing ever is, but the strength, love and determination of the women in Rojava has shown me what struggle really means. They have shown me the real meaning of solidarity, and they have given me hope.

People ask me if I think this revolution will last, will somehow make it. I don’t know what the future will bring. But I do know that this revolution is not only bottom up, it’s also inside out. This is a revolution in consciousness, not only in politics, and it has transformed the lives of countless women and men, perhaps for countless generations to come.

In some ways, the revolution has already won.