yezidisinkurdistan

8/3/2019 yezidisinkurdistan

1/11

EuroKurd Human Rights-EHRNr: 7, December 2008- Stockholm

A report on:

Yezidis situation in Kurdistan

Gabar iyan / EuroKurd News

interviewed persons

- Mecd Heso - author and economist- Dr. Ismail Beiki - sociolog and author- Loqman Baris- Journalist- Serhan Isa - Journalist and author- Ali Seedo Rasho - President of Yezidi Cultural Association in Iraq


2/11

2

Mecd HESO

Born in 1967 in Southern Kurdistan. In 1986, read high school in Duhok. Studiedeconomics at Baghdad University (1990). Did master's degree in economics atthe Free University of Dan Hague, Holland (2007).He was editor of the magazine Pela Serbest (freedom game) in DUHOK, themagazine Lalish in DUHOK, the newspaper Kurdistan in Germany, and is theowner of the magazine Today's Kurdistan (Kurdistan IRO) of Germany. He is acolumnist for www.lalish.de ...Heso is a member of the Kurdistan Institute for Science and Research inGermany, Kurdish PEN Center, a director of Mala Ezidiyan Berlin, head of Center

of Halabja-Chaka in the area of Berlin ...

How many Yezidis are there in the world?The number Yezidis is unfortunately not known because there is no clearstatistics. The number of terms they Yezidis in the current Kurdistan (parts ofTurkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria). Today living around 650.000-700.000 Yezidis inKurdistan. The number Yezidis throughout the world is about. 1 million people. Inaddition to Kurdistan, there are a large number of Yezidis in a part of Russia,Georgia, and Armenia.

How can one describe Yezidis ethnicity, and faith?Faith on Yezidism spread among Kurds in 1400 years before Islam.

Yezidis language is Kurdish. Preserving Yezidis Kurds ancient language, tradition,religion and well and living. Yezidis hold their prayers in Kurdish.

The word "Yezidi" means: "Yez + da" ie "Almighty God". Or equivalentsynonymies "Xwed" or "Xweda." The word consists of two syllables. "Xwe"means self, and "de-da" means created themselves. That means, no BUSHELgod, god BUSHEL himself. This means that it gave more say gods throne, andcreated a god believer from Yezidis vision.Religion has great relationship with nature. Besides God and the angels is fire,water, earth and wind importance for Yezidis.

How do Yezidis situation in Iraq? How can we strengthen their security?

Since the overthrow of the Iraqi regime is the crisis in the country. Despite theU.S. military presence in Iraq, the country is not stable. Since 1991 belongs to apart of Yezidis territory to the KRG and the central government in Baghdad.Yezidis need more help. Disputes between the two governments affect Yezidis. Inrecent years, the number of terrorist attacks against minorities has increased.According to human rights organizations in Iraq emigrated in 8395 people in oneyear.February 15, 2007 led a family to the outbreak of conflict and violence in theKurdish town of Sheikhan. During the unrest was attacked by Kurdish Muslims


3/11

3

Yezidis in a brutal way.14 Aug 2007 several trucks loaded with explosives. They exploded in theprovince Shingal. The villages Geir Ezer and Shkhidir in Shingal became theirtarget. More than 500 people were killed within an hour.

During the past year, the situation of Yezidis in Iraq has become very critical.

They need urgent help from the Kurdistan Regional Government KRG, the EU andUSA.

"Either all Kurds Yezidis or so, there is no nation that name of Kurd," said theKRG's President Mesud Barzani in his speech.It is expected that President Barzani after his speech. Yezidis need KRGs support.The government must have a plan to strengthen Yezidis human rights,economics and security.

Kurdish government must improve the situation and intervene. In my opinion,should a conference be organized as quickly as possible in Arbil. We must discussthe matter, and improve their situation.


4/11

4

Dr. Ismail Beikci

Dr. Ismail Besikci was born in 1939 in the city of Corum. He became interested inthe Kurdish issue during his military service in Kurdistan (1962) and studiedsociology at the Kurdish town of Erzeroms University. Besikci was finished withhis training and he wrote his doctoral thesis in 1967. His analysis focused on theKurdistan Social Affairs: The social transformation of the Kurdish tribes ineastern Anatolia was published in book form in 1968. Later i 1969 published hissecond book: Changes in the East - Structural issues in the Kurdish nomadictribe Alikans. These books cost him his job at the university, and nearly 14-yearsentence.

Last, he was prosecuted and imprisoned in 1993 for one of his earlier books hehad written in 1977: The Scientific Method 1 - implementation in Turkey:deportations and assimilation of Kurds.Besikci has been sentenced to more than 200 years' imprisonment and thecorresponding million Swedish Crones fines for their books. Besikci has beenmonitored by Amnesty International and the International PEN writers' clubcarefully. Thanks to those taking national organizations, he has finally beenreleased from Turkish prison after spending nearly 20 years of his life in prison.Besikci has not given up. Most recently, he was in one of his articles in the

journal Serbesti (Freedom), gave his views on why the Kurdistan distribution andoppression of its Kurdish nation.

A list of some of Dr Ismail Besikcis books:- Bilim Yntemi, Trkiye'deki Uygulama Krtlerin Mecburi Iskani 1977 (Thescientific method - the implementation of Turkey deportation and assimilation ofthe Kurds) - Devletlerarasi Smrge Kurdistan in 1990 (Kurdisan - aninternational colony).- Bilim, Resmi Ideoloji, devlet, Demokrasi ve Krt Sorunu 1990 (Science, theofficially ideology, state, democracy and the Kurdish question).- Bir Aydin Bir rgt ve Krt Sorunu 1990 (An intellectual, organization and theKurdish question)- Tunceli Kanunu ve Dersm Jenosidi 1990 (Act of Tunceli and genocide inDersim).

What do you think about Yezidis and how can we ensure their rights?Yezidis are Kurds. The residents of Mesopotamia since several hundred years, BCYezidis has preserved ancient Kurdish religion and faith.

During the course of history became Yezidis attacked by Muslim Arabs andKurds, leading to the collapsed. Despite all Yezidis fought for Kurdish nationalidentity and freedom.

It is very important to the Kurds who have Muslim faith know about these


5/11

5

events. And not to lose sight of the story of how Kurds converted to Islam bythreatening people with swords. Many agreed to convert Yezidis but did not giveup; they fought to preserve the Kurds' faith, tradition, language and customs.

In order to raise Yezidis security needs of their area linked to the KurdistanRegional Government, KRG. Lalesh area is controlled by the KRG. But the area

Shehkan lacks security. To Yezidis be able to practice their faith, they need asoothing situation. Therefore you need to strengthen their security even moreand spend more on religious freedom in those areas where they live. This is theKRG's main task to perform. They must also provide financial support fordeveloping Yezidis area.

In recent months became Yezidis and Assyrians attacked in Iraq by extremistgroups belonging to Arab nationalists. They want to blame all this on the Kurds.It should open their eyes and see this as a danger! Therefore KRG should beaware of this and improve Yezidis and the Assyrians and security situation in asystematic manner.


6/11

6

Loqman Baris

In 1975 born in Northern Kurdistan, the town of Urfa. After high school he beganstudying philosophy at Hannover University. Has worked as a television journalistin the television, Roj TV, Me TV... He is chief editor of the site Dergush Com. Hesits on the Board of The Union for Yezidis associations formed in 2004 inGermany, and has many member associations behind. They are working to

preserve ancient Yezidi Kurds religion, culture and tradition.How do you think about Yezidis security and human rights?

There are about one million Yezidis in the world. Many live in Kurdistan, others inRussia, Kuakas and Siberia. More than 100 000 Yezidis living in Europe, mostly inGermany.Yezidis as well as Kurds live in different parts of Kurdistan. Their needs and thesituation is very different from each other. In the southern part of Kurdistan(Iraq) is lacking religious freedom and live under threats against life andexistence. North of Kurdistan (Turkey) during the 80 - century lived during thelocal clan heads of the press. Since they lacked even religion. Over the past tenyears, the Kurds' struggle for their national rights made progress. Thisdevelopment has created respect for Yezidis rights. Biggest problem for Yezidis inEurope is to become assimilated.

For about a year ago I was in southern Kurdistan in order to make a filmdocumentary. During the time I was there I saw how Yezidis violated. WhenYezidis largest area Shengal was attacked by terrorists and many people werekilled, I was there!The Kurdish Muslim view against Yezidis in southern Kurdistan is not positive.According to Kurdish Yezidis Muslims are not believers and have no religion.Because of all oppression is Yezidis only like to move away. Shengal lackssecurity and may at any time be attacked by extremists. The area is forgotten byboth the Iraqi government and Kurdish government! There are living with fear,hunger, unemployment, etc.. UN aid is not reaching them. The area is underIraqi government but controlled by Kurds political parties.

In order to assure Yezidis security and human rights must Kurdish parties andthe KRG to change their views and behaviours towards them. KRG must have aprogram to improve their situation, both economically, culturally and theireducation. We must combat prejudices that exist among the Kurds. This is thefirst step towards an improvement, then you can work with their security andhuman rights even more.


7/11

7

Serhan Isa

Born in 1974 in South Kurdistan. After high school he began to write poems. In1997 came his first poem collection "longing" out, then came "mourning pink"out in 2001. In 1993 he formed and a part of Yezidis intellectuals' AssociationKaniya SPI. " The association has its head office in Germany with the goal of

preserving Yezidis ancient culture, tradition, and help for their human andreligious rights.Isa lives in Germany and is the editor of the Web page Kaniya SPI, and studyingin Denmark on media and communications line.

In recent years, there have been terrorist attacks against Yezidis, in thearea Senghal. Can you summarize the events?Senghal is Yezidis largest area. There are 400 000 inhabitants in Senghal, about80 percent of the population consists Yezidis. Senghal lies west of the southernKurdistan, and is located 120 km from the city of Mosul. Western part of the areaextending towards the Syrian border. Senghal is part of Kurdistan. Despite thepersecution and massacre during the course of history have Yezidis be held atthe Kurds' ancient culture and religion.

After Saddam Hussein's defeat Yezidis thought that their dream of human rightsand religious freedom would come true. But it was the opposite.

August 14, 2007 became Senghal attacked by terrorists. It ended up more than311 people were killed, 304 people were injured and 300 houses collapsed. 3050buildings were destroyed and 170 small businesses were affected.After the events, decided the government in Iraq that they should contributewith ten million dollars for the people who were severely affected. The terroristattack against Yezidis protests were hard from many politicians from variousparts of the world including The White House, human rights organizations, theIraqi president Celal Talebani and the president of Kurdistan region MesudBarzani. Despite promises from the Government of Iraq, Kurdistan, and from theoutside world, to make effort for the victims, the victims have not receivedenough help.

In recent years, there have been several terror attacks against Yezidis in three oftheir areas. Seyhan, 14-16 February 2007, Behzane, April 7, 2007 and Mosul, 22April 2007. That affected people very hard. Even today, there has been noinvestigation of the incident from the Iraqi government and Kurdistan RegionalGovernment - KRGs direction.

Yezidis has any representatives in the Iraqi government or the KRG?In the first elections in 2004, there were three representatives. During Prime


8/11

8

Minister Iyad Al-alawis government had yezidis a ministerial post in charge ofsocial issues. During Prime Minister Ibrahim Al-Ceferis management (2005-2006)took away their representatives. Today there are only three left in the KRG. Thepolitical parties in Iraq wanted to get rid of these three individuals with, whichmeans they have removed the "Law 50". With the result that they will not havethe right to send their representatives to the regional government. Despite KRGs

promises to Yezidier to retain their representatives in Parliament so are theirrights under threat.


9/11

9

Minority Rights in Iraq Under Threat After Removal of Election Provision

The religious and ethnic minorities rights in the new Iraq are under constantthreat, the most obvious being the Parliaments removal of Article 50 from theProvincial Elections bill. On July 22, 2008, the Iraqi Parliament ratified theProvincial Elections bill. Article 50 of this law provided seats in provincialgovernment to minority groups, such as the Yezidi, Shabak, Assyrian, and

Sabaean. Although the seats under Article 50 did not allocate enough seats tobe proportional with the minority population (only 1 Yazidi representative for apopulation of 600,000), it was welcomed by these groups since it recognizedtheir rights as true citizens of Iraq. The ratified law was rejected the followingweek by the Presidency Council and returned to Parliament. After two months ofpostponed dialogue, the bill was finally voted on again. On September 24, due toan agreement between the Kurdish and Shi'a political groups, Parliament ratifiedthe law without Article 50. The decision of the Iraqi Parliament to remove Article50 is an obvious testament to the lack of legal rights among Iraqi minoritygroups

By removing Article 50, the Iraqi Parliament deprived Iraqs minorities of theirlegal right to representation in government. Consequently, this preventsminority groups from fair participation in Iraqs future. This lack of politicalrepresentation will encourage the insurgents to intimidate minorities usingviolence, and will lead to internally displaced persons and migration of minoritiesfrom their homelands and heritage. I have come to the conclusion that there aremany elements within the Iraqi government who desire to rid Iraq of itsreligious, ethnic and indigenous minorities and occupy their land.

There have been many instances of intimidation directed at Iraqs minoritygroups. Twenty-four Yezidi textile workers were massacred in Mosul on April 24,2007 and four horrendous blasts in Al-Qahtania and Al-Jazeera villages onAugust 14 of that year killed approximately 400 Yezidi and injured at least twiceas many. After these attacks, all Yezidi and most Iraqi Christian university

students left their higher education at Iraqi universities. Students who graduatedfrom secondary schools in the past two years are still at home and cannot pursuehigher education. There have also been kidnappings and assassinations ofChristian priests and destruction of churches. There are a number of questionsthat must be answered. Who is responsible for this problem? How can it besolved, and by whom? Minority group members are being killed by insurgentswhile they are deprived of political representation in government.


10/11

10

As human rights defenders, we have informed international organizations of suchsituations for many years and they are well aware of the danger caused suchkinds of discrimination. We urge these organizations to apply more pressure onthe Iraqi government to respect the rights of minority groups. The removal ofArticle 50 from the Provincial Elections bill indicates that Iraqi minorities areafforded few rights. Under the current structure, there is no political mechanism

for minority groups to express their grievances.

As a result of the current situation, we request the following:1. Equal representation proportional to population in provincial and federal

government.2.A fair part of the Iraqi national wealth on the basis of residency, as

minority groups have been deprived of their rights inside and outside Iraqand most of them have been displaced or have fled to Europe.

3.A semi-autonomous region under the protection of the internationalcommunity.

Most of Iraqs minorities live in a limited geographical region on the Ninevehplain, so they can consolidate efforts to encourage the international communityand international human rights organizations to address these concerns throughthe following means:

1. Empowering an international lobbyof political parties, NGOs, and otherhuman rights defenders around the globe to manage an advocacycampaign.

2. Organizing demonstrations and advocacy campaigns at the United Nationsand the embassies of the U.S., UK, China, and Russia in the U.S., Canada,and Europe, and provide the embassies with copies of the two laws (beforeand after ratification) and a memorandum of our criticism.

The religious and ethnic minorities rights in the new Iraq are under constantthreat and the decision of Iraqi Parliament to remove Article 50 is an obvioustestament to the lack of legal rights among Iraqi minority groups.

As a human rights defender, I am requesting the international organizations todo their best for this very serious situation, which concerns the legal survival ofindigenous peoples and groups that have called Iraq their home for thousand ofyears

Ali Seedo Rasho

President of Yezidi Cultural Association in Iraq &

Human Rights Activist


11/11

11

EuroKurd Human Rights-EHR

EuroKurd Human Rights-EHR is headquartered in Stockholm. The organizationwas founded by Swedish Kurds.

EHR puts its greatest emphasis on issues of human rights particularly for Kurdsand other minorities who are vulnerable.

The work is based on journalistic research, and thorough investigations ofviolations of these rights and international conventions governing the rights.

The organization is free from political ideologies, economic interests andreligions.

EuroKurd Human Rights research human rights violations. It is exerting pressureon leaders to stop these violations.

In order to increase knowledge about human rights, we also work withinformation, research and advocacy.

Examples of our key issues:

- The right to freedom of opinion and expression- The abolition of torture- No one shall be subjected to discrimination, for example, of political or religiousaffiliation, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation- To stop violence against women and children- To research, and inform the issues of honor and honor-related violence- Refugee and Migration Affairs- The right for the most marginalized to have their economic, social and culturalrights recognized- Cooperate and establish contacts with organizations, the EU institutions on thematter- Start various projects on the matter

Contact us

Organisation: EuroKurd Human Rights EHRNews Service: Zarathustra NewsAddress: Elin Wgners gata 29, 129 51 Hgersten- SwedenHome page: www.eurokurd.netE- mail: [email protected]

Documents

yezidisinkurdistan