CULTURE

Latest News

• World Council of Churches writes to Erdoğan on Hagia Sophia 

  WCC letter to President Erdogan to keep Hagia Sophia as the shared heritage of humanity.
• "Ev der Heftanîn e" - New song by guerrilla band Awazê Çiya 

  The music group Awazê Çiya, consisting of guerrilla fighters, continues with their artistic work even in times of the most severe attacks on the Medya Defense Zones.
• Turkish Court allows conversion of Hagia Sophia into mosque 

  The world-famous Hagia Sophia will again be used as a mosque. This was decided by the highest administrative court in Turkey. UNESCO had warned against it because of its world heritage title.
• New book on Kurdistan by French writer Franceschi 

  The 60-page book highlights the new Turkish state's invasion attacks against Rojava in October 2019.
• Turkish destruction of historical sites in Afrin must be punished 

  70 historical sites have been destroyed since the invasion of Afrin.
• Ji bo Azadiyê reaches cinemas in Switzerland 

  The film made its European premiere at the Rotterdam International Film Festival just before the coronavirus outbreak.
• "Nightingale of Amed" Seyidxanê Boyaxcî passes away 

  Kurdish dengbej Seyidxanê Boyaxcî died at the age of 87 years in Amed. The "Nightingale of Amed" last suffered from paralysis due to an infection.
• In open letter, academics warn over status of Hagia Sophia 

  “Hagia Sophia is too beautiful a monument and too precious a historical document to serve as a pawn in regional politics,” say academics.
• Guerilla band releases memorial clip for Hasret Gültekin 

  The guerrilla music group Awazê Çiya has released a clip in memory of the Kurdish-Alevite musician Hasret Gültekin, who was burnt to death 27 years ago in the Sivas massacre.
• Children's Peace Festival in Tabqa 

  The content of the festival was prepared in line with the demands of the children.
• Yerevan Radio publishes 4 books 

  A while ago, the 900-strong Kurdish songs archive belonging to Yerevan Radio went digital.
• Rojava filmmaker Şêro Hindê talks about his new documentary 

  Dengbêj are Kurdish poets, bards, those orally passing on to the new generation the traditional songs of different genres, without musical accompaniment.
• Kurdish singer sentenced to 3 years and 9 months in prison 

  The Turkish regime continues its political genocide operations against the Kurdish population.
• Rojava Film Commune releases new doc on Shengal dengbej tradition 

  The trailer of the new documentary bi Rojava Film Commune director, Şêro Hindê, is about the different dengbej traditions in Shengal.
• 18th International Women's Film Festival goes online from today 

  The festival is organised in sections: Right-Based Cinema, Women's Cinema, Our Body are Ours, Sex-Gender-Sexuality, Feminist Frame, Feminist Memory and Consecutive Films.
• Ali Jiyan publishes first solo album, Arîn Mîrkan 

  Ali Jiyan published his first solo album, Arîn Mîrkan: 12 songs all written by the former Agirê Jiyan singer.
• Online event on Democratic Confederalism on Wednesday 

  The event is titled Democratic confederalism – construction and resistance!  and will see the participation of author Janet Biehl and Havin Guneser, spokeswoman for the International Initiative Freedom for Abdullah Ocalan.
• Grup Yorum reacts to Governor refusing permission for concert 

  “The application was declared as “not approved by the Governorship”. Based on what?” asked the band.
• Catharsis: The tribute of a daughter who never met her father  

  Savaş Buldan was the husband of today's HDP leader Pervin Buldan, who gave birth to a daughter on the day of his murder.
• PKK Culture Committee: Our language and culture are our existence 

  The PKK Culture and Art Committee called on everyone to join forces against the increasing fascist attacks on culture and language.
• Freedom Lecture by Rojava Film Commune to be broadcast today 

  Freedom Lecture by members of the Rojava Film Commune will be screened today at 16:30 hours as part of the We Are One: A Global Film Festival, on You Tube.
• UK Musicians Union joins Freedom for Öcalan Campaign 

  Big trade unions in the UK have been running an active campaign for Öcalan for years. The latest affiliation to the Freedom for Öcalan campaign is that of the Musicians Union.
• Kobane documentary to help Heyva Sor Italy 

  Before that the coronavirus pandemic stopped the activities planned by Heyva Sor Italy, the association had begun screening the documentary On the road to Kobane by Enrico del Gamba.
• Documentary film "Siya Avê" freely available on YouTube 

  The documentary film "Siya Avê" by journalist Metin Yoksu, produced by the MA news agency, is freely accessible on the Internet. The film tells the story of two women whose village in Hasankeyf was flooded by the Ilisu dam.
• International campaign for Kurdish musician jailed in Turkey 

  An international campaign has been launched to demand the release of the Kurdish musician Nûdem Durak, who has been imprisoned in Turkey since 2015.