We interviewed Leyla Ahmed, co-chair of the Kobane Canton. We talked about the system of democratic confederalism, the role of women in it, the current situation in Kobane and in the North and East of Syria and the perspectives for the future.
The Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration in northeast Syria announced on Thursday the inauguration of the first foodstuff factory in the country’s northern town of Kobani.
Turkey has reduced the flow of water from the Euphrates River into northeast Syria, while its proxies have cut the flow of water from the Allouk water station, depriving hundreds of thousands of people of access to clean water. In addition, the reduced water flow has caused electricity shortages in a region dependent on electricity generated by the Tabqa dam.
House of Supplies or "Vina Jin" is considered one of the most important economic projects that help women - working in the project in particular, and women employed in the city of Kobani, in northern Syria in general - to enable them economically.
Since the invading Turkish state and its mercenary allies have interrupted the work of Elûk (Alouk) Water Station many times, serious water problems occur in the region.
Wheat and other crops that the people of al-Mansoura town, southeast of Tabqa [Tebqa / Al-Thawrah], rely on in their daily survival have declined to less than half as Turkey continues blocking the flow of the Euphrates river, which constitutes a violation of the Convention on the Law of Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses. The Euphrates passes through Turkey, Syria
Turkey has always shown little understanding of the environment, also from an ecological point of view. It has shown no mercy towards nature and people, destroying the landscape and burying a millennia of history under water. One of the most perverse and ruthless ways of interfering in a country without actually entering it is by cutting
The agricultural project that started last year in al-Sheikh Maksoud neighborhood achieved positive results in achieving an economic return for the families that adopted it, in a way that helped them expand it to include livestock breeding and launch future plans.
North and East Syria faces serious challenges in the fight against COVID-19. 600,000 IDPs and refugees live in camps across the region, their situation already precarious without a pandemic. Ongoing attacks by Turkish forces, Turkey-backed militias, and ISIS complicate the security situation and threaten essential civilian infrastructure like water lines. According to the Rojava Information Center,
Despite the attacks and threats, the people of Rojava and Northern Syria continue to build their communalist social model.
Sozda Ahmed is the co-chair of the Water Bureau for Heseke canton. She was interviewed on 8 April 2020.
The Municipality of Al-Arisha, in cooperation with the Water Directorate in Al-Hasakeh, activated a mini drinking water station, and contracted with tanks to transport water from the wells to cover the needs of the people of the region.
The Rojava Gardens in Serekaniye’s Eziziye village has become the livelihood of many migrant families with the vegetables and fruits grown.
Shehba is the region where hundreds of thousands of people displaced from Afrin live and their primary needs are met by the commune to which each house is connected.
The municipality of the people in Al-Shahba district was able to implement lighting projects, and solved the largest part of the sanitation and drinking water problems, within a year of continuous work.
As part of the efforts to make Shehba and its villages greener, the people of Afrin have implemented a project for 4,000 saplings with support from the Agriculture Committee. Ornamental plants and saplings for fig, Aleppo pistachio, grape and rose trees. Shehba Agriculture Committee Member Basel Osman said, “Our fundamental goal is to turn the lands ravaged by the invading Turkish state and their allied gangs back into good places to live.”
"We hope that the people outside of Kurdistan also open their eyes, and are not silent about the attacks by Turkey. Maybe we cannot give [displaced people] back their old life, but we can help them to create a better future. I know that many people do not think much about what happens to people from other countries, but we should not forget our humanity. Because as we know, it could one day be us. The people of Afrin are happy about the solidarity from outside and they know that they have not been forgotten. Let us work together to create a better world with the revolution in Rojava, because together we are strong."
The People's Council continues to provide basic services to the people of the town and its villages. In a short period of time, the council was able to take a positive step towards the reconstruction of the town and to provide drinking water and irrigation to the town and its villages.
The House of Co-operatives in Girkê Legê district seeks to establish more co-operative societies in order to promote the principle of the participatory economy and to consolidate social ties among all groups of society.
ISIS was defeated in the military arena, but now the Northern and Eastern Syrian Federation is fighting against fires. With the start of the harvest season, suspicious fires have destroyed decares of cultivated lands.
The Committee of the Union of Co-operatives in the region of Tell Hamis in Qamishlo held a special meeting for women in the village of Nayem to discuss women’s rights in the co-operatives societies and to encourage them.
Before the beginning of the 2011 protests against Bashar al-Assad, structures like the Kumin and Mala Gel already existed among the Kurds. Because of the harassment at the hands of the state forces, the Kurds created their own informal organs of self-administration, which were judged as illegal by the central state. The Mukhabarat (secret police) could arrest anyone participating in them. After the government forces departed from the territory of Jazira, the Kumin and the Mala Gel took government functions upon themselves. A little over a year ago, representatives of the Kurdish, Assyrian and Arabic communities decided to give the political system its current form. In January 2014, the forming of the cantons Jazira, Kobanê and Afrin and the unifying territorial entity of Rojava was announced.
After an explosion of media attention following the Turkish invasion, coverage ebbed away as Turkish proxy forces advanced and settled in for an indefinite occupation. Millions of people around the world were left wondering what had become of the people and political project of north-east Syria. That’s why the Rojava Information Center published ‘Beyond the Frontlines’, the most in-depth explanation to date – with diagrams – of the political system here in North and East Syria.
On September 7, The Self-Administration of North and East of Syria celebrated its first anniversary of its establishment in Ein Eisa, with participation of various components of Northern and Eastern Syria from clans and civil institutions, in addition to participation of the Syrian Democratic Council and a delegation from International Coalition to fight ISIS. During
A plastic plate with pink flowers is floating in the small water basin underneath the trees on the northern bank of the Euphrates. On its rim small glasses of fresh tea are standing. Five broken plastic chairs around it. In one of the trees a yellow garden hose is wrapped around a branch. Tiny holes
The Syrian Democratic Council announced a new unified administration in the areas controlled by the SDF in North and East Syria, after a Thursday meeting that included officials from several local councils.
It is cities like Kobane or Qamishlo which are best known outside of Rojava as strongholds of the revolution, strung out along the heavily-mined border wall separating them from their sister cities in Turkish-occupied Kurdistan.
The Economic Committee in Manbij has opened many co-operatives to improve the economy and curb monopoly.
The Administration of Co-operative Societies related to to the Economic Committee in Manbij held a meeting with members of the Agricultural and Veterinarian Pharmacy Co-operative at the Centre of Economics to distribute the co-op's dividends.
The democratic autonomous model implemented in Rojava and the North of Syria has been presented at Terra Madre. Terra Madre Salone del Gusto is an international gastronomy exhibition that takes places every two years in Turin. Organized by Slow Food, the Region of Piedmont and the City of Turin, the event brings together food producers
The people of Fars al-Ghanam village in the countryside of eastern Manbij have formed a co-operative society to run an electric generator in co-ordination with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Economic Committee in Manbij.
The House of Co-operatives has coordinated with the Economic Assembly has to hold a meeting with the share holders in the Manbij Consumer Co-operative.
Before the Turkish occupation, Efrîn was a center of the ‘women’s revolution’ that North and East Syria has become famous for. Women’s institutions based on direct democracy and aimed at addressing gender inequality and other social challenges were active, and laws and policies mandating political equality had been put into practice. Efrîn Canton saw minimal
An interview with Sozdar Ehmed of Heseke water bureau regarding the current water situation in Heseke.
Already for some days there are increasing signs that a renewed offensive of the fascist Turkish army could soon be imminent. We have always stressed that the war was never stopped, but only changed its form. But the warfare of low intensity could soon turn into new open fronts. The enemy is again pulling together
Turkish-backed violations intensify in Northeast Syria: why we should not be surprised.
This report by the Information Centre of Afrin Resistance was first published on 25 January, 2018. Sadly, Afrin is now completely under the control of Turkey and its Jihadist allies. We are publishing it now because we believe it is important to maintain an awareness of the situation of Afrin and its history.
Communes have been working in Afrin Canton to organise society by supporting co-operation among the people and encouraging them to help and trust one another, especially during the harsh circumstances that the region is going through. Communes have now been established in every street and area, and they are working overtime to help people. Many houses are destroyed
After two months of hard work, Inanna Agricultural Co-operative, which is supervised by Kongreya Star in Afrin has started harvesting the crops of green onions and garlic, and selling them in the markets of the region.
Inanna Agricultural Co-operative began its first agricultural project in the area of Rajo in Afrin by planting wheat, onion and garlic.
“Because this model” Dr. Yusuf says, “is the model by which the history of humanity will be brought back to life our chances of winning are high.”
The Rojava revolution is under attack. Debbie Bookchin and Emre Şahin share their thoughts on this unique revolutionary process after recently visiting the region.
Fawza Youssef’s statements came during her participation in the annual meeting of Qamishlo Canton Council for 2019 held in Aram Tikran Hall for Culture and Art in Rumailan town. In her speech, Fawza Youssef touched on the overall current situation in the region, focusing in particular on the economic conditions in light of the depreciation
The university has academic departments in petroleum, petrochemical and agricultural engineering, Kurdish literature, fine arts, education and women’s studies. Its main campus is in Qamishli, a city on the border with Turkey. Subjects related to petroleum are taught at a facility in Rumeilan, 40 miles farther east in the region’s oil-producing area.
Important decisions were made at the seventh congress of Kongreya Star. The congress was held under the banner, “We will make the women’s revolution a communal revolution!” The conference was held in Aram Tigran Cultural Centre in the city of Rmelan in the canton of Qamishlo, and it was attended by about 700 representatives.
Binefsh Water Filtering and Bottling Plant Co-operative is another step toward enhancing participatory work, achieving self sufficiency, supporting people with limited income, and creating jobs.
In early December an international delegation visited Rojava’s Cezire [Jazira] canton where they learned about the ongoing revolution, cooperation and tolerance.
The bakery produces 4 tons of bread daily and tries to meet the needs of the people with overtime in case of higher demand.
The women of Deir ez-Zor have started to take on a leading role in all areas after the region was liberated and are now strengthening their economies through the cooperatives they build.
Turkey is once again using the "international weapon" of international waters, the most important natural and economic resource, against the Syrians in the northeast of the country, in addition to bombing agricultural crops this summer to burn them, violating international covenants and laws.
Millions dealing with sporadic water shortages, crippled health services in north-east Syria.
Farmers in Al-Jarniyah have had to stop harvesting summer crops as a result of Turkey cutting the flow of the Euphrates river. The farmers rely on the flow of the Euphrates to irrigate their crops. About 70% of the people in Al-Jarniyah and its countryside use farming as a primary source of income, but a disastrous
The Agriculture Directorate of the Economic Committee in al-Tabqa is currently rehabilitating the agricultural site of Abu Qubea, which is estimated at 135 hectares due to the destruction and negligence when mercenaries controlled the site.
The People's Municipality is repairing the water drainage systems and sewers of the Tabqa city bazaar on demand by the shopkeepers.
The House of Co-operatives in the Democratic Self-administration in Tabqa in co-ordination with the city council has inaugurated the first co-operative society in Tabqa, Almustaqbal - the Future Society for Tailoring Co-operative. The new co-operative will create jobs and motivate people to form co-ops.
The House of Co-operatives that belongs to the Economic Committee in the Democratic Administration of Tabqa is working to improve the communal economy, which benefits all members of society, especially women. The communal economy solves social problems such as unemployment, and empowers women.
Administrators in the House of Co-operatives in Northern Syria organised a meeting for the people of Tabqa to explain what co-operative societies are and how they work.
The Women’s Council in Tabqa organised a meeting with the women who are registered to work in new projects. These projects will be supervised by the Women’s Council there, and will raise awareness about the role of women in society and the importance of these kinds of projects to create more jobs for women, and
Across the world, states are coming under pressure for their response to the coronavirus crisis. Some fail to adequately protect their citizens, some use Covid-19 as an excuse for authoritarian power-grabs, and some do both simultaneously. Here in North and East Syria, the autonomous region more commonly known as Rojava, 4m Syrians;– Kurds, Arabs, Christians
Women are leading the campaign to make Raqqa green.
A group of women founded the al-Fardos Co-operative to care for the needy in Raqqa. The co-operative is open especially at mealtimes and gives the needy the opportunity to eat for free. The women have been working on the project in the neighborhood of al-Fardo in the war-torn city for five months.
Turkey’s war is directed at the achievements of women. Interview with the Council of Jinwar (Meclisa Jinwar).
In an interview with Sozdar Ehmed, representative of the Institute for Water Affairs in the Hesekê region, we talked about the current water situation in the region in times of the Covid-19 pandemic, after the water supply was interrupted for the fifth time by Turkey.
Almost 7,000 people now live in the Washokani camp, which was built for displaced persons from the Turkish occupation zone. For most of them the difficult conditions are the same. "In any case it is better than a life under occupation", they say.
Sara Montinaro, project manager at Kurdish Red Crescent, explains the water situation in Heseke after the latest cut-off of Allouk water station which is under Turkish occupation. She was interviewed on 11 July 2020.
The House of Co-operatives in Sheddadi has been working on many projects that aim to improve the economy in and around the city.
The region is expected to be self-sufficient thanks to the increase in projects based on local production.
In many places in Rojava water has been scarce since the invasion. Getting enough water for all people is a big challenge in the shadow of war, embargo and coronavirus emergency. At least the problem in the Washokani camp could now be solved.
More than a million people in Kurdish-held areas of north-east Syria are being put at risk of a mass Coronavirus outbreak as Turkish-backed groups repeatedly cut off the water supply to a region in which health services are already severely damaged by almost a decade of war.
The Kurdish umbrella organisation Kongreya Star supports various cooperatives in Rojava in which women work autonomously and thus stand up for themselves and the community at the same time. There are now 16 new cooperatives in Cizîrê despite the war.
The House of Co-operatives has initiated a project of building a bakery in Girkê Legê to satisfy people's need for bread.
The bakery project will be finished in a few months, and once it’s ready it will be supervised by a co-operative society that includes families of martyrs.
Eleven people participated in the co-operative. The price for a share is 60,000 SYP.
The year 2016 was characterised by the advance of economic projects that aimed to improve the communal economy in Rojava, especially the projects that were connected to women.
Five years ago, four women founded an agricultural cooperative in Tirbespiyê. Today, forty women work there and the cooperative covers a large part of the demand for vegetables in the Northern Syrian region.
The cultivation of vegetable project in Tirbespiyê area contributes in fulfilling part of the region's need for seasonal vegetables, in addition to securing jobs for women.
The women's cooperatives in Tirbespiyê in Northern Syria are working on building alternatives despite the permanent threat of war and have meanwhile become examples of collective forms of work.
Al-Raed Co-operative in Tirbespiye is specialised in making guest lounges with harmonious designs and colours. It was formed a year ago, and it has five members, each of whom paid 700,000 SYP [around £1,080]. The Centre for Co-operative Societies has donated 1,5000,000 SYP for the project.
After the economic success of agricultural co-operatives in the last few years, 20 women from Tirbespiye formed a co-operative called Rojava Wheat Spikes Agricultural Co-operative. The Economic Committee was so impressed they decided to give full support to the emerging co-operative. The co-op will cultivate 1,330 dunam (decares) of agricultural land. The women have already started cultivating wheat on 800 dunams.
Co-operative societies in Tirbespiye have been giving economic support for many families, and contributing in developing the communal economy. Women have played the largest role in establishing and developing these co-operatives.
The economic sector has been reorganised anew in a more democratic way. For each canton an “assembly on economy” has been developed which consists of five sub-sectors: Industry, Trade, Agriculture, Co-operatives and Women's Economy.
A journey into the heart of the revolution and the strategies of transition towards a social economy: the multiplication of communes and cooperatives, and experimentation with new models of social, political and economic organisation.
In Rojava, the significance of the co-operative system lies in efforts to democratise all sectors of society, including the economy. For this reason, creating alternative means and avenues that allow traditionally marginalised groups such as women to actively participate and engage with the market is an essential aspect of the radical democratic model.
Lack of international recognition as a state has disastrous consequences on an area already suffering from war and displacement.
In the context of the community initiatives undertaken by the people of northern and eastern Syria, “Lavin” sewing workshop produces 500 pieces of medical scrubs on a daily basis as an aid to doctors and hospitals.
After dissolving the agricultural committees, the Centre for Co-operative Societies has started to cultivate barley in the agricultural lands in the Easter Dam. The co-operative has 340 participants, and the size of the land is 10,366 dunams [decares].
The Women’s Committee under the Hesekê Economy Directorate has developed several projects to develop women’s economy in the region.
In the women's village of Jinwar in northern Syria, the residents are preparing fields and gardens for the next growing season. In times of crisis it becomes clear how fundamental the possibility of self-sufficiency is.
Residents of the women's village Jinwar protect themselves from Covid-19 with their own system of autonomy and self-sufficiency.
Şîfa Jin is a health and healing center for women and children based on natural and modern medicine and has been a fundamental part of the village since the beginning of the construction of JINWAR.
“Natural medicine is more than just herbs. We want to defend the health of society,” says the healing and health centre in women’s village Jinwar in northern Syria.
The documentary collective Şopdarên rojê ya çandê have made a short film about Jinwar, the free women's village in Rojava.
Akri Ibrahim – Ahmad Darwish The Economic Council of Dirbêsiyê [Derbesiye / Al-Darbasiyah] succeeded in making several socio-economic achievements in less than one year. The Economic Council of Derbesiye that was formed more than a year ago has managed to develop community economics in the region, and has made six economic achievements to date. 5,161 citizens participate in co-operatives. The Economic
Dirbêsiyê ─ With the start of June, agricultural and livestock co-operative Kasrek [Qesrik], the largest co-operative society of Jazira Canton [Kantona Cizîrê / Cezîre], began harvesting their rain-fed and irrigated crops. They will distribute the profits among 5,300 members. Kasrek Co-operative, a project of The Centre for Economy in Derbesiye [Dirbêsiyê / Al-Darbasiyah], is considered the largest co-op in Jazira
In Kasrek [Qesrik] village of Dirbêsiyê [Derbesiye / Al-Darbasiyah], a co-operative society with 4,000 members started working on its economic, agricultural and livestock projects that will boost the community economy in the region. After a series of meetings of the people in the region, organised by the Economic Council in the Dirbêsiyê area, a new co-operative was formed
Eleven women have successfully formed a co-operative society by buying a power generator. These women were previously stripped from their natural right to work and were distanced from contributing to the communal economy, but thanks to the Rojava Revolution they have reinforced the women's economy and reinstated a role for women in their society.
“The co-operative societies in Serekaniye are based on social, co-operative and communal principles. They are not established only to make profits, and for that reason the administrators of the co-operative societies form meetings and seminars with the participants in the villages and cities, in order to raise awareness and introduce the ideas of co-operatives to the people. It is important to rely on small businesses and encourage participation in co-ops. The organisers in those meetings and seminars also get a chance to listen to the complaints and the needs of the people.”
After the Democratic Autonomous Administration was able to establish a democratic way of life in Northern Syria, they introduced the socio-economic model of co-operative societies. As the revolution has developed, people have begun to form co-operatives. Hundreds of co-operatives are now operating in the area. One of the areas where many co-operatives have spread is in Serêkaniyê city, where residents began forming co-operatives in 2014.
Qamishlo residents expressed their satisfaction with the measures of the Autonomous Administration with regard to the living reality, which is considered a temporary remedy to contain the economic crisis in the regions of northeast of Syria. The economist Aladdin Farhan described these measures as "positive", indicating that these steps will be a success by studying them more deeply.
A lot happened since our last picture gallery published only one month ago. During those weeks, we notably went to a village called Rêhanik to help Kurdish friends there to build a new communal park where families from the village can gather to spend time together. But we mostly focused on the plantation of vegetables
Hevrîn Khalaf has played an unforgettable role in the women’s revolution of Rojava and for the unity of peoples. She was executed in an ambush by a jihadist gang allied with Turkey. Havrin Khalaf, or Hevrîn Xelef, was born in 1984 in Dêrik city of northern Syria. She grew up as a child in a
“In the liberated areas, every harvest is a revolutionary act. Our enemies aim to destroy the revolution by starving us – through embargo, arson, and violence. The collectivised lands we harvested this week lie in the shadow of a militarised imperialist border that divides the Kurdish people from each other, and in sight of fields
After the first snow since four years in February, spring has come to Rojava and we are happy that we could start again our ecological work at the internationalist commune. In the last months we were not able to do practical work because of the war, so there‘s a lot to do. In the last
As April is one of the last months before the summer, we were focusing on the work at the site of our academy. We were continuing to work on our park of the internationalist martyrs and planted trees in another segment of the academy site. In that area we were mixing olive, pomegrenate, grapefruit, almond, plum and mulberry trees. In other different places we continued with planting vegetables and small bushes.
Over the last two weeks we finally planted the first badge of olive trees on the area of our academy. The trees are still small, but already change the appearance of the place a lot. We got the trees from a nearby tree nursery. When the war in Afrin was getting more intense many olive trees were cutted as saplings and brought to the other parts of Rojava, also to that tree nursery. In that way we see on the one side of Rojava the Turkish is brutally acting against people and nature – olive orchards have been burnt down – on the other side we try to contribute to the reforestation of the region.
Sarhad Farm is the second biggest livestock-breeding project in Derik. The project is expected to be launched within one month, and it will be owned by a co-operative society with 400 members.
The House of Co-operatives in Derik has started cultivating the 1,550 dunams (decares) of agricultural land that belongs to Axa Welat Co-operative in the village of Haji Matri, one of the villages around Derik in the Qamishlo canton.
Pêşketin Co-operative Society is one of the co-operatives that has taken an important position in the region of Derik. It is divided into two parts, livestock and agriculture. The co-operative has accomplished partial self-sufficiency since its inception, and it has a participatory nature.
The co-operative started with the participation of 50 women who work the land, cultivating, planting and overseeing the growth of the crops.
Adar Bakery is the first bakery to be founded and run by women in Rojava. With the support of the TEV-DEM Women’s Economic Committee, six women were organised in a cooperative and began production in April 2016, communally making the bread and sharing the revenue.
The Women’s Agricultural Co-operative was established in 2015 by Kongreya Star and the Committee of Women’s Economy. It includes 135 members from Derik and the villages of Braaf and Kojerat, who each participated with 65,000 SYP, and planted on 380 dunams of land.
It's been one year since the US bombing of Kobanê—then partly occupied by Daesh [ISIS/IS]—and most of the buildings are still in tatters. Kobanê is in Rojava (meaning 'West' in Kurdish), a Kurdish majority region in the north of Syria that declared autonomy from the Assad regime in 2012.
According to the Til Hemis Water Committee, the main problems are the electricity interruption.
3 women raising sheep in the co-operative they founded in the Tenuriye town in Qamishlo are strengthening women’s economy.
Sewal Darî is a cattle-raising co-operative in Mizgafta. This co-op started in February, 2016 with a herd of 96 lambs. After breeding this grew to more than 179 heads. In order to keep the herd in good health, a special vet has been appointed to look after them.
The bakery has been working well every day, and the bread is being distributed to everyone in the area. The bakery has made 5 million SYP in 6 months. The families of martyrs have received 3 million, and the rest have been used to buy more necessities for making bread such as new machinery and flour.
The Economic Committee of Kongreya Star has opened a grocery shop for three women.
One of the power generator co-operatives in Qamishlo is Jiyan Co-operative. The generator started work a year and two months ago [September 2017]. It has more than 150 members, and the price for a share is 25,000 SYP [around £40]. The project cost 7,400,000 SYP [around £11,500]. The House of Co-operatives donated a fair amount of the cost. The generator needed other equipment in order to operate, including a tablet which cost 400,000 SYP [£620], a battery that cost 100,000 SYP [£155], some cables and other items.
A food manufacturing co-operative society called Yekbûn has been opened by some women in the Hilaliyah neighbourhood in Qamishlo. Yekbûn means "to be one".
The two communes of Shehid Mohammed Amin and Shehid Bahuz, which include 150 families in the Sweis neighbourhood of Qamishlo, have formed an electric co-operative society called Ronak. Their objective is to solve their problems autonomously and serve their neighbourhood. The administration includes seven people, and the price is 1,000 SYP [Syrian Pounds] per amp. The electricity generator will work from 12:00 to 17:00, and from 20:00 to 00:00 on a daily basis.
There are 21 co-operative societies in Qamishlo that are embodying the ideas of communal and participatory life, creating a collective environment at work, and building solidarity among the members of society.
After the announcement of the Democratic Self Administration in 2014, institutions were organised and local councils and committees were formed which concentrated their efforts on the economic situation in the region. One of the missions of the Economic Committee was to support the agricultural, industrial and commercial projects throughout Rojava, with the aim of reaching self-sufficiency, curbing monopoly and exploitation, reducing unemployment and activating the work force, both male and female.
85 members of the Union of Pharmacists formed a medicine co-operative called Zanîn in order to prevent the selling of expired medicines.
Zanîn is a co-operative for medical, dental and pharmaceutical supplies and equipment for hospitals and clinics. The idea for this project came from a group of doctors who work in Jazira. Zanîn is a communal co-operative, and the price of a share is 100,000 SYP. There are a total of 5,000 shares which are collectively worth five hundred million Syrian pounds.
House of Co-operatives in Qamishlo has distributed flyers to introduce people to the concept of co-operative societies, explain how they work, and strengthen the relationship between people and co-operatives.
''Considering the economic situation, the deterioration of the living conditions and the lives of some of the people who live around the two communes, some steps have been taken to help them and support them financially. By letting people participate in the co-operative as members and workers who sell necessities at reduced prices, we help the people to endure the living conditions in the suburbs. There are some people who live in the neighbourhood working in the two projects, and that is reducing unemployment and creating a workforce. We are aiming to increase the economic projects around the commune in order to include more people, help them and cover their needs.''
A group of mostly women residents of Qamishlo set up Shîlan Co-operative for the sale of underwear on 7th January, 2017 in Hilaliya, a neighborhood in Qamishlo. They were able to establish the co-operative with the support of the local council of the city.
The spread of co-operative societies in the region has strengthened the communal spirit and increased participation, many people from villages and towns have approached the centres of co-operatives either to propose projects or to participate in them. In 2014, Nisrîn Co-operative was formed to manufacture cleaning products. There were discussions about it in the commune
Nisrîn is a co-operative society for cleaning products that was formed in Qamishlo five years ago by seven members who collaborated to serve the area of Hilaliyeh, which is far away from the market. In these times there was a lot of monopoly. Each participant contributed with 75,000 SYP. They bought cleaning products from the market, put some shelves up, and started selling them for lower prices than in the market.
Avîn went to Turkey looking for work at the beginning of the Rojava Revolution, but she couldn’t endure the injustice in the treatment of the workers. She returned to Qamishlo and now works in Nisrîn Co-operative. Avîn saiys that in Turkey, they were treating the workers like slaves.
The Women’s Office in east Qamishlo [Qamişlo / Qamishli / Al-Qamishli] has opened a bakery called Lilit to make pastries and manakish. The opening was attended by many of Qamishlo’s residents, as well as members of Kongreya Star [the women’s movement umbrella structure], local councils and institutions of civil society. We headed to Qamishlo’s eastern municipality to get more information,
