Pharma Land Company, in the city of Manbij, north Syria, has been working for two years to produce types of medicines such as anti-inflammatories, antipyretics, and skin ointments, while it seeks to produce a new line that includes branded medicine such as blood pressure and diabetes.
The Turkish state uses water as a weapon against the population in North and East Syria.
A female-only ecological village, which welcomes displaced women of all ethnicities and religions of northeast Syria, represents one of many feminist practices that have been born of the women's revolution.
Women in Manbij were able to break the barrier of marginalization and participate in all administrative institutions in order to develop themselves after the city was liberated from the Islamic State (ISIS), an official of the Democratic Civil Administration institutions in the city of Manbij, northern Syria.
Recently, the countryside of Hasakah, northeast Syria, has seen an increasing demand on installing solar panels amid continuous power outage.
Along with three other displaced women, Zeyneb Battal, an IDP [internally displaced person] from the city of Afrin, northwest Syria, is busy preparing kibbeh (a fried ball of spiced ground meat, onions, and grain, popular in Middle Eastern cuisine) and other dishes in a small restaurant in the town of Fafeen in the northern Aleppo countryside.
The Syrian regime under the Ba’ath Party of Bashar al-Assad is not only infamous for its war crimes and human rights abuses during the war in Syria, but also held a thick record of systematic violence prior to the uprisings in 2011. Apart from its extensive intelligence apparatus, its law and justice system enshrined authoritarianism and state power in the legal realm. The population of Syria, and minorities in particular, were taught to fear the law as the representative will of the oppressive state. In northern Syria, since the beginning of the revolution in Rojava in 2012, manifold initiatives have been systematically launched to undo the state and its domination not only in the realm of politics and society, but also in the psychology of people, who experienced not only Assad’s regime, but more recently the fascist rule of ISIS. Efforts are led not only in the sphere of law and justice, but also in the realm of grassroots-organizing, education and political, economic and social action. There are many difficulties however. What could an alternative, non-statist justice system look like? Let us take a look at Anja Hoffmann’s observations from an Arabic language justice academy in Tel Marouf…
In light of the conditions that Syria is currently facing, water has been cut off from North-east Syria and Iraq, and a policy is being pursued to starve and dehydrate millions of innocent civilians. This is not only happening on top of the current political conflicts in the region and its associated inhospitable living conditions but amidst the corona pandemic – all of which is taking place in front of the international community.
Thirty more water stations have been deactivated in northeast Syria, as Turkey continues to cut off the water supply from the Euphrates River.
On Saturday, the Economic Committee in Deir ez-Zor, east Syria, provided six electrical transformers for agricultural associations in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor in coordination with the Basic Services Program supported by the Global Coalition after the water level of the Euphrates River decreased. The Head of the Agriculture Committee in the city of
Head of Water Directorate in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor Terki al-Jamala said on Tuesday that the project to rehabilitate the water network in the town of Hajin is nearly complete.
The water station repaired by the People's Municipality of Baghouz town in Deir ez-Zor, is expected to be put into service in 25 days.
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
Women in Sheikh Maqsoud, Aleppo turned the roofs of their houses into vegetable gardens. The women are trying to resist the embargo their own way.
The Democratic Society Movement (TEV-DEM) has continued its organizational activities with different professional associations in Aleppo's Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyah neighborhoods in 2020.
Sheikh Maqsud is a unique enclave within Aleppo, one of the oldest and most populous cities in Syria. Aleppo is under Syrian Government control, but the majority-Kurdish Sheikh Maqsud and Ashrafiya neighborhoods retain autonomy and ties to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria. Within the tumults of the civil war Sheikh Maqsud gained independence from Syrian Government forces, and since then its population has been organizing according to the same democratic principles as the AANES. Azad from the General Council of Sheikh Maqsud explains how the district organizes its communes, self-defense forces, health care, and education, and to what extent it is able to cooperate with the central Syrian Government.
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.
Member of the Economic Authority in the Agricultural Affairs Department of Afrin Region, agronomist Basem Othman, said that the Turkish occupation state and its mercenaries deliberately targeted agricultural crops and burned them in al-Shahba, as they did last year.
With the arrival of the harvest season, displaced women from Afrin and women from Shahba in North East Syria have begun working in the fields together in a communal spirit.
Regarding language, history and religion, we can divide the Christian community in North and East Syria into three groups: Syriac, Assyrian and Armenian. The first two are culturally close to one another and share a common heritage, but separated on points of language and by historic theological differences.
Developments in aid delivery and NGO sector in NES since 2011 In the face of the mass displacements the region has seen in recent years, aid from international organizations has been slow to arrive and inadequate to meet the needs. The situation is stabilising as aid efforts become more coordinated and organized. The primary health
Farmers protest the embargo imposed on Shehba by the Damascus government, saying that agriculture has become impossible due to the embargo.
The vegetable market will be opened after the Eid al-Adha, from 7 am to 7 pm and 60 women will work in it.
Project mangers said that their work will be expanded to produce yogurt, pepper and tomato paste and added that products will be sold and profit shared among women.
A number of communes in the Al Ahdath area of Al Shahba canton, in a co-operative work, installed light bulbs in the streets.
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.
Co-operatives opened in Til Hemis provide employment for citizens and contribute to the social economy.
On Sunday, the Economic and Agriculture Board of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) opened the first cheese and dairy factory in the city of Derik, far northeast Syria.
Thanks to the primarily-Kurdish female fighters in the YPJ militia, many people now know that a women’s revolution is underway in North and East Syria (NES), the autonomous region more commonly known as Rojava. Women are organizing autonomously in civil society, and participating as co-chairs with guaranteed 50% representation from the highest levels of the new
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.
Agricultural areas in Ain Issa risk drying out as the Turkish state reduces the water flowing through the Euphrates River.
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.
Co-president of the Manbij Electricity Administration Meha Haj Elî stated that the Turkish state used the Euphrates River as a political blackmail and did not comply with international agreements.
The case of Manbij, liberated from ISIS by the SDF in August 2016, shows how women in a multi-ethnic Syrian city used AANES [the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria] frameworks to build institutions, take on leadership roles, and organize in their communities to change discriminatory attitudes.
With a view to empowering women and developing themselves economically, the Women's Committee opened the Women's Economy Center in Manbij city and its rural areas on 20 November, 2017 as a starting point for launching plans to activate the role of women in the economic sphere, and confirm of [their] basic role and [their] achievements in work at all levels.
The ten workers in Al Barakah Co-operative are about to finish making the winter supplies, such as dried vegetables, pickles, pumpkin jam and olives. The Women’s Council announced the formation of this co-operative, in co-ordination with the Committee of Economy and Municipalities. The co-operative is called Beit Al Barakah [House of Delight], and it aims to get women
The Women’s Committee in Manbij formed a co-operative for women on 6 September in co-ordination with the Economic Committee. It included a number of women who will make winter foods and distribute them to the markets. The co-operative includes 10 workers who joined as members by buying 16 shares.
The Women's Committee of the Civil Democratic Administration in Manbij started working in the sewing workshop which was named on behalf of the Martyr Sakina Asalieh.
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 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.
In 2021, too, the war in Kurdistan has a great impact on the struggle for an ecological society there. So we need to take a closer look at how these two issues relate to each other and what an ecological stance can look like in times of war. To that end, Make Rojava Green Again conducted an interview with Kamuran Akın from Humboldt University in Berlin.
The nation has been accused of breaking its agreement to ensure a flow of 500 cubic metres per second of the Euphrates flows through to Syria.
A member of the AANES Women's Economy Committee has shared information on the role of women's co-operatives in re-building a "free and independent" economy in northeastern Syria.
A novel Middle East Women Leaders Index, published by the Middle East Women Initiative, ranked Syria relatively low in women’s representation and leadership in the public sector. The data used (primarily from the World bank and UNDP) for the index covered the status of women in the Syrian government and areas it controls. However, the situation in Syria today is far more complex, almost ten years into the conflict.
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
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 greenhouse project initiated in Rimêlan provides vegetables for nearly 450 thousand citizens. About 100 people are employed in greenhouse projects.
Women from all parts of North and East Syria held events to celebrate International Women’s Day, March 8, 2021, despite economic hardship, military occupation, and instability. These events represent only a few of the hundreds of gatherings and commemorations that have occurred.
TEV-DEM was founded in 2011 to build up the democratic system of communes and assemblies. This is the role that it played in the previous system, in the three initial cantons: Afrin, Jazeera and Kobane. In Manbij, Raqqa, Tabqa and Deir ez-Zor regions, however, the SDC took on the role of implementing the democratic confederalist
Women's movement Kongreya Star is a motor for the development of women's cooperation and the economic independence of women in North and East Syria.
The Rojava revolution is under attack. Debbie Bookchin and Emre Şahin share their thoughts on this unique revolutionary process after recently visiting the region.
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.
A local official in the Autonomous Administration in Raqqa, northern Syria, warned that the low water level in the Euphrates River heralds a disaster that may affect the agricultural and livestock sectors in the region.
Hesekê General Water Directorate completed the preparations for the water station in al-Elwa, south of Shedadi. The station will deliver water to Hesekê.
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.
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
In the bible it is called the great river. The Euphrates fed the cradle of civilisation in ancient Mesopotamia. But, for Turkey, it is another weapon of war.
Almost the first sight that greets new arrivals in Rojava is endless ranks of oil derricks stretching out into the desert, hauling up tens of thousands of barrels of low-quality crude every day and leaving the surrounding soil polluted and oozing when struck with a spade. For international volunteers drawn to the Kurdish-led autonomous regions by their vision of a feminist, direct-democratic, ecological society, it can be a shocking sight.
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.
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
In Raqqa, one of the leading cities of agriculture-based economy, employment rate increases with the beginning of the harvest season.
Four years since Raqqa was liberated from ISIS, women are playing a leading role in rebuilding the Syrian city. Their activism shows that socialist feminism isn’t just about gender parity in top jobs — it’s about women taking control of their own lives.
Naya Detergent Factory was opened by Raqqa Municipality Women’s Bureau four months ago. Only women have worked in the factory. 40 percent of the factory's income will be used for new projects promoting women's employment.
As part of the project women grow different vegetables and sell the tomato paste and pickles they prepare.
Currently, North and East Syria (NES) faces enormous economic difficulties: rampant inflation, a partial embargo, war and the draining of resources by occupying Turkish forces in Sere Kaniye, Tel Abyad and Afrin. In this crisis context, NES is developing an economic model which aims at self-sufficiency and sustainability. The economic program of the Autonomous Administration
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.
The front lines may have stabilized, yet Turkey’s war on North and East Syria continues through its weaponization of water. The dry river beds of the once-mighty Euphrates River are just another image of the brutality of the illegal Turkish occupation of the region.
60 decares of land was allocated to the newly established co-operative.
Co-operatives affiliated to the Women’s Economy Committee launched ‘Gula Buhare’ project in which 25 women will work.
After inadequate rains throughout North and East Syria, people in Shaddadi have begun to plant vegetables in order to meet daily vegetable need.
Şeddadê District Women’s Economy Committee provides employment opportunities for women with economic difficulties, unemployed or trapped in the home, in the Al-Hasakah (Hesekê) canton of North East Syria. Developing new projects to integrate women into economical life, the committee also continues to support ongoing projects of women. The committee previously founded a bakery in the
Fahed Khedair, an official in Shaddadi City Council’s Economic Committee, said on Sunday that they had obtained approval to increase the quantities of flour in bakeries in order to solve a bread shortage.
Considering the shortage of bread around the villages of Sheddadi, the Committee of Co-operative Societies in Hasakah has opened Erisa Bakery Co-operative in the village of Attala, 10 kilometres north of Sheddadi.
The House of Co-operatives in Sheddadi has been working on many projects that aim to improve the economy in and around the city.
Sheep raising experienced recently a significant turnout in the countryside of Til Kocher eastern Syria’s city of Hasakah due to higher margin rates and Syrian currency collapse. People of the countryside of Til Kocher, which is located to the east of the city of Hasakah on the borders with Iraq, tend to raise sheep as
Vegetable greenhouse projects promoted in Heseke provide food self-sufficiency in the region.
Iman Süleyman bought a bag of flour to make bread in Til Temir and now she has her own bakery. “Women can work in every field under all conditions. We can heal the wounds of war with solidarity,” she said. Peoples in Syria, particularly Kurdish people, lived under the pressure of the Ba’athist regime for
Despite the simple capabilities under the capitalist economy, and the constant attacks of the occupier on the regions of northeast and Syria, the economic toil of women has bore fruit to good results during 2020, as they played a leading role in easing the economic crisis that the region suffer from.
Firik is planted in the fall and grows over winter to be harvested in early summer. Some researchers say that Firik is a type of wheat and grows especially in the Euphrates basin. These days, Firik has been harvested and it will be one of the basic foods such as bulgur and rice. People serve Firik when they have special guests.
Aya Plastic Factory, in the town of Girke Lege in northeastern Syria, seeks to develop its production, especially of household electrical wiring supplies.
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.
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.
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.
Eleven people participated in the co-operative. The price for a share is 60,000 SYP.
After the success of the winter vegetable growing project in its first year, the Women's Economy Co-operative, which aims to support the social economy and spread the idea of working together, grows vegetables this year as well.
Women have come together to help each other find work.
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.
Faced with a war economy and massive historical obstacles, it is remarkable that the AANES has been able to create one of the most stable and self-sufficient economies in the country.
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.
Here it was, at last, the signs of the meaningful democracy I was searching for.
Kongreya Star Women's Economy Committee has developed agricultural projects for the immigrant women from Serêkaniyê on 5,800 decares of agricultural land.
The Women's Economy Committee in Amuda district opened a market for vegetables and foodstuffs to break the price and monopoly.
The ideology of the Kurdish liberation movement contemplates ecologism as one of its fundamental pillars. Even so, owing to nine years of war, barriers remain to its implementation.
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 following I will give a short insight about my experiences during the time with the economic committee of the cantons of Qamişlo and Hasakah in Rojava, North-East Syria. I will especially focus on the cooperative economy that is being built up in Rojava. As a second step, I will discuss to what extend
After a three-week interruption of the water supply in Greater Heseke by Turkey and allied militias, the autonomous administration was able to partially restore the supply through a well drilling program.
The second anniversary of the building of the women’s village in Rojava, Jinwar was celebrated with great enthusiasm on Wednesday.
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
This article analyzes women’s political representation in Kurdish-majority regions of Turkey before and after the 2019 crackdown on elected mayors from the People’s Democratic Party (HDP), as well as women’s political representation in the Syrian region of Serekaniye (Ras al-Ain) before and after Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring.
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.
Drawing on first-hand experience in Rojava, Ramazan Mendanlioglu explores how radical decentralisation and self-administration look in practice.
On 17 August 2018, the Kongreya Star Economy Committee opened the Lara cake shop in the neighborhood Enteriyê, east of Qamishlo, to promote women's economy.
Wajed Barho, from Derik north east Syria, is working accurately and in harmony with the machines and with other women employees in a cables company in Derik.
The Energy and Communications Office in the Jazira region in northeastern Syria said, on Sunday, that the amount of water import from the Turkish side through the Euphrates reached 100 m3/s on Sunday.
“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
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
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
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.
Kobane Canton Municipalities Committee and Water Directorate will launch a project for supplying drinking water to the city.
Turkey’s massive dam and hydropower construction has reportedly reduced water flows into northern Syria.
Young people in Kobanê are ensuring the economic autonomy of their community through cooperatives being grown to feed needy people.
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.
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.
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.
The city of Qamishli witnessed the opening of an exhibition of local industries in North and East Syria with the aim of supporting self-sufficiency, bolstering the local economy, encouraging investment, and providing job opportunities in the local market.
Jazira Region Democratic Autonomous Administration Economy and Culture Committee, in coordination with the Union of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, opened a fair in Qamishlo which saw the participation of 60 workplaces and companies.
The women’s market in Rojava aims to develop women’s economic autonomy, enabling them to forge social ties and giving them confidence. This souk project is being set up by women in the heart of a region, Syrian Kurdistan in northeastern Syria, where unprecedented political experimentation has been taking place for ten years. Municipalism, or democratic confederalism,
50-year-old Aliye Musa is a victim of child marriage. She was subjected to violence by her husband for years but she has started her own farm to end violence. Aliye has planted hundreds of trees and fed animals on her farm. She has also employed many people. “I can tell all women what they should do to stand on their own feet,” Aliye said.
The Women's Products Market opened by the Qamishlo Municipality is both a workplace and a space for women to socialize. Women working in the market read books written by female authors while drinking coffee or tea. Now, women have 14 stores in the market and they earn a living by selling their products.
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,
