Dear Visitors of this Site! 

Dear friends of Jemal Nebez, dear Kurds!

September is a month marked by many days of remembrance for the injustices suffered by the Kurds. Among the numerous days of remembrance, there is one that commemorates the death of Jina from Saqqez.

On the anniversary of the Jin-Jiyan-Azadi protests, Rojhelat particularly vulnerable

On September 16, a year ago, a young Kurdish woman from the Kurdish regions of Iran, named Jina (or Mehsa, which name is registered in her official Persian-language documents), from Saqqez, who was on a visit to Tehran, was violently arrested by the country's Islamist morality police. At issue was the way Jina had tied her headscarf. When Jina realized that she was going to be arrested and taken to the police station for isolated questioning, she bravely resisted and this was documented.

Shortly after her arrest and while still in police custody she died and became widely known throughout Iran, partly under her Persian name Mehsa and partly as Jina. For months, there were repeated protests by young people there, mostly students. What happened in Tehran on September 11, the brutal violation of the human dignity of one of their own, and her subsequent death had turned into an urgent call for change. However, the authorities remained steadfast. Where major protests occurred, security forces cracked down, especially in Rojhelat (Eastern Kurdistan), in the Kurdish region of Iran. 

The majority of death sentences handed down by the country's religious courts have been against Kurds since the beginning of the Jin-Jina-Azadi protests.

The irreconcilable course against Kurds stems from Ayatollah Khomeini

Precautionary, so to speak, as a reminder that the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran is faithfully carrying on the legacy of its Islamic revolutionary leader Khomeini, as it has since (after his death on June 3, 1989).

Indeed, it was Ayatollah Khomeini (who himself orchestrated the Islamic Revolution in its early days) who after some tactical stalling finally met the Rojhelat Kurds' reluctance to participate in the Islamic Revolution with extreme harshness,

Indeed, it was Ayatollah Khomeini, who played a pivotal role in orchestrating the early days of the Islamic Revolution, that after some tactical stalling reacted harshly to the reluctance of Rojhelat Kurds to participate in the revolution and would not listed to their explanation that it was an autonomy for Eastern Kurdistan within the future Islamic Iran they were after.

The Kurds, led by Dr. Abdulrahman Ghassemlou as chairman of DPK-Iran even devised a plan for their inclusion in the emerging Islamic State. However, Khomeini, the religious leader dismissed these efforts by the Rojhelat-Kurds, instead raised an Islamic fatwa against them, collectively, and when the Iraq-Iran war commenced on September 22, 1980 (with an attack by the Iraqi army under Saddam Hussein's command), revolutionary leader Khomeini capitalized on the situation to effectively quash the Kurds' aspirations for self-determination and autonomy.

When the war ended eight years later with a cease-fire signed by Khomeini himself, after countless casualties of Kurds on both sides of the Iraq-Iran border, including chemical gas attacks on civilians,  the Ayatollah maintained his stance of no autonomy, no self-determination for Kurds within Islamic Iran. 

Simultaneously, there may have been some optimism among the Kurds. They believed they had an opportunity for negotiations when Dr. Ghassemlou agreed to meet alleged official negotiators in an apartment in Vienna on July 13, 1989. However, it became evident that these negotiators had orders to execute him, as documented by the Vienna police.

After Khomeini's death on June 3, 1989 his policies and methods lived on

The new leadership that took over after the revolutionary leader's passing continued along the same path. Three years later, on September 17, 1982, more Kurdish politicians were executed while in exile. These were members of the remaining DPK-Iran leadership who had come to Berlin at the invitation of the Socialist International. They, along with a friend who was with them in the back room of a restaurant, were all executed by machine guns. Some of the perpetrators couldn't escape, and after a lengthy trial, a Berlin court conclusively determined that the killers had acted on behalf of the state leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

Regrettably, while the court ruling was significant, it didn't bring about any changes at the political level.

In an unusual development, the president of the WKI congratulated the HDP on its successful congress

It's worth noting that the HDP, a party repeatedly threatened with banning in Turkey, had received fewer votes in the last elections. Its two co-chairs, who are currently serving prison sentences, had resigned. Meanwhile, the Washington Kurdish Institute, in existence since 1996, openly supports the HDP. They explicitly expressed their support in a mailing dated August 29, with the headline "WKI President congratulates HDP on its successful congress." Despite constant threats from the Erdogan regime, the HDP has found a way to address the potential shutdown of their party.

The HDP, once a successful political force since 2015, has faced ongoing sieges by security forces and repeated attacks by right-wing extremists in Turkey. However, the party has recently undergone a revival and presented itself with renewed hope at its 4th Extraordinary Party Congress. During this congress, two new co-chairs were unanimously elected with a special mandate.

A special mandate, and two historic speeches

This special mandate outlines what should be done if the HDP were to be banned before the local elections in Turkey in 2024. In such a case, the two chairpersons or other HDP delegates could still get elected, whether as members of other parties, small leftist parties, or Left Greens. No vote cast in favor of improving the situation of Kurds in Turkey would be lost, even if the HDP were to be banned.

New in Turkey! Small Leftist parties don't mind being named pro-Kurdish

Notably, current media reports have begun to characterize not only the HDP but also other small leftist parties as pro-Kurdish. This offers hope for a movement towards more open solidarity with Kurds, who have often felt isolated in the public eye.

The speeches of the two new HDP co-chairs - one given in Turkish, the other one Kurdish - are published on the HDP website. 

Those who go there and have them Google translated may also conclude that they are worth preserving and, above all, worth ingesting. 

On our own business

Regarding the tribute to our 2023 Jemal Nebez awardee that is still pending this year, we are continuing our efforts to find an appropriate solution.  At present, we can only reiterate that we are proud of her steadfastness and her outstanding work in the service of Kurdish language education in Rojhelat or Kurdish areas in Iran. It is our immanent wish to make her and her work as widely known as possible.

With all good wishes.

Reez w silav

Jemal Nebez Stiftung

Here in the gallery below we show some books and writings of our namesake, which are listed on his former website  www.jemalnebez.org.

https//:jemalnebez.org is now administered by the Jemal Nebez Foundation.

Who has a not listed writing of Jemal Nebez in his possession, please let us know, gladly via our contact form. The goal is a comprehensive directory of the works and writings of our namesake. Any help is welcome.