Maxmur residents fired from job and threatened in South Kurdistan

KDP has banned exit from Maxmur Refugee Camp and fired hundreds of Maxmur residents from job in Hewler and Sulaymaniyah.

Hundreds of Maxmur residents have been fired from job and forced to leave Hewler during the past one week after being identified by a political board formed at South Kurdistan General Center of Asayish.

It has been found out that this political board has also launched an investigation against the Kurdish citizens from North Kurdistan that had to move to Hewler due to the Turkish state's political genocide operations under the name of “KCK cases”. These people have been subject to pressure, their shops have been closed and they have been warned to end their relations with the HDP (Peoples' Democratic Party).

The Maxmur residents working in Hewler were summoned to Asayish where they were forced to give their statements, sign a document, dismissed from their jobs and warned to not enter Hewler again.

These workers were also warned against participation in demonstrations, protests and events and they were forced to sign a pre-prepared document which states that they have accepted the impositions. Asayish officials furthermore recorded the ID details of these people, and directed them questions like why they came to Maxmur and why they stay in the camp. One of those running the investigation was a Turkish-speaking official.

Asayish also determined the addresses of the families who came from North Kurdistan due to "KCK cases" and reside in Hewler. These people were warned to not visit HDP office and they were forced to give fingerprints and to sign a document which they were not allowed to read.

Some Maxmur residents spoke to ANF and stated the followings:

Nurettin Ziravıki (Maxmur Workers' Committee Member) : What is being done to us in unacceptable. We cannot accept the dismissal of our workers from their jobs. We hope the South Kurdistan government and KDP give an immediate end to the policies they pursue against our camp and the people working in Hewler. If these practices of theirs continue, we will adopt a different attitude and reaction. No doubt we will defend our rights to the end.

We have not been provided with any information as to the reason of these practices. When this is the case, we are left with no choice but to associate these practices to the Turkish state's policy of suppression in all areas that is pursued against Kurds in North Kurdistan. We have learned that some of those partaking in the investigation of the Asayish center against Maxmur residents speak Turkish, which makes us think that the investigation is being run by the KDP asayish and Turkish MIT (National Intelligence Service) together. Still, we hope that these practices and policies are not being run together with the Turkish state, but that they are rather related with the popular protests of the recent days, even which is also unacceptable. The protests of public servants have ended but our people are not allowed to return to their jobs yet.

Aziz Kara (Maxmur Workers' Committee Member) : Hundreds of workers from Maxmur have been dismissed from their jobs in Hewler and Sulaymaniyah during the past one week. We are living in this camp for 23 years now and we have never harmed anyone. Then why are our people being fired? This must have an explanation but they don't have any.

As a matter of fact, this incident is totally political because all those subject to investigation are asked why they live in Maxmur and why they join demonstrations and protests. They are later threatened to not do such things again and forced to sign a document in this scope.

Hundreds of people from Maxmur have been dismissed so far and they are not allowed to work outside Hewler either. In the meantime, more Maxmur residents are being fired. Their goal is to disconnect Maxmur from Hewler and they intend to take possession of Maxmur in this way. The people residing in this camp moved to South Kurdistan due to the pressure and atrocity of the Turkish state. We came here for political reasons and now they ask us why we are doing politics. They exaggerate even a simplest problem and use it against the residents of the camp.

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