Category: Democracy

Democracy is one of the three main pillars of the Rojava Revolution and the stateless self-governance model of the Autonomous Administrations of North and East Syria (AANES), as well as the Kurdish freedom movement more broadly, which initiated the revolution.

Democracy here is not the same as the representative democracy model found in Western countries such as the UK, Germany and France, where one person speaks on behalf of a large number of people whose interest they do not necessarily share. This is a more radical form of democracy, which aims to build up the entire society, giving everyone the chance to participate in making decisions on issues which affect their lives.

The most basic democratic unit is the commune, or neighbourhood assembly, which meets regularly and discusses issues affecting the community. There will be a number of committees in each commune which function like working groups to focus on particular issues, such as security, agriculture or conflict resolution. There is also an autonomous women’s council in every democratic structure in the AANES. Co-chairs of different genders (and usually different ethnic or religious backgrounds) are chosen to represent the neighbourhood at the district level assembly, and from there to the city-wide assembly, and so on.

Below you can find articles with more information on the evolving democratic system of the AANES and how people are taking control of their lives and learning to work together as part of a stateless system of self-governance in North and East Syria, and southeastern Turkey.

Sara Organization, a place to fight violence against women

The Sara Organization for the Fight Against Violence Against Women has reported 388 incidents of violence, human rights violations and crimes against women in the last 10 months in Northern and Eastern Syria.

IWD2025: The residents of Jinwar women’s village are standing strong

For International Women's Day 2025, we take an in-depth look into life inside Jinwar women's village in Rojava’s Cizîrê Canton, in northeast Syria. Kurdish News platform Mezopotamya Agency recently carried out an important interview with village residents about life and collective resistance at Jinwar.

The Status of women in North and East Syria

Kurdish, Arab, Syriac, Assyrian, Armenian, and Turkmen women have achieved numerous legal, political, military, cultural, and social accomplishments in North and East Syria during the July 19 Revolution (Women's Revolution). Preparations are currently underway to draft a special social contract for women.

Syrian Free Women’s Foundation aims to empower women

The Syrian Free Women’s Foundation aims to empower women by organizing vocational training courses and awareness-raising activities.

Small village in far NE Syria thrives via self-sufficiency efforts

Jarudiye is a sparsely populated village on the Turkish-Iraqi-Syrian border triangle in the countryside of Derik, far northeastern Syria. Despite its small size, the residents have taken it upon themselves to manage the affairs of the village to achieve self-sufficiency and supports its development.

Inclusion in Times of War: The Organization Nûdem

In 2021, Nûdem was founded as a non-governmental organization working with and towards the needs of people with disabilities in the Autonomous Region and the whole of Syria. The focus is on pedagogical and societal works aimed at societal change.

Communal work in Tirbespiyê gives results

The communes in Tirbespiyê work together with the municipalities to solve the problems of citizens such as water, electricity and agriculture.

Kobane – after 10 years of liberation and current attacks and resistance

In the wake of the people's uprisings against despotic regimes in North Africa and the MiddleEast, the protests against the Assad regime in Syria also began in spring 2011. The Kurds in Rojava (Western Kurdistan), who had been oppressed for decades by the nationalist policiesof the Ba'ath dictatorship, demanded both a fundamental democratisation of Syria and recognition of their political and cultural self-determination. On 19 July 2012, the people of Kobane urged the Syrian military and the state apparatus to withdraw from the city. This was the beginning of the Rojava Revolution.

Interview: “We aim to ensure that women play a part in constructing the new constitution” – Mona Youssef, Syrian Women’s Council

Mona Youssef, administrator of the Jazira Canton office of the Syrian Women’s Council spoke to RIC about the recent developments in Syria, potential avenues for change and action in the current situation, and the work of the Syrian Women’s Council therein.