Rojava Asayish(public security) administrator Ciwan İbrahim stated that they were not above but within society, working towards identifying the source of society’s problems and solving these problems. İbrahim said that their approach to social problems was not based on ‘crime and punishment, and they do not implement temporary solutions through the punishment of individual criminals. İbrahim emphasized that they worked towards identifying the source of society’s problems and solving these problems.

Asayish was established on July 25, 2013 in order to fill the gap of security when the Rojava Revolution began. The Asayish began to play a critical role in the defense against gang attacks as well as the solution of social problems, and is composed of 6 main units and 26 smaller units. Rojava Asayish administrator Ciwan İbrahim spoke to ANF on their mission, principles, institutions, and problems.

ORGANIZED ACROSS ROJAVA WITH ALL UNITS

İbrahim stated that Rojava Asayish quickly organized institutionalized itself after its establishment on July 25, 2013, and is composed of 26 official bureaus that aim to provide security and solutions to social problems. The six main units of Rojava Asayish are Checkpoints Administration, Anti-Terror Forces Command (HAT), Intelligence Directorate, Organized Crime Directorate, Traffic Directorate and Treasury Directorate. In order to provide security for civilians, who become the targets of bomb attacks in urban areas, 218 Asayish centers were established and 385 checkpoints with 10 Asayish members in each checkpoint were set up. 105 Asayish offices provide security against ISIS on the frontlines across Rojava. Cities have general directorates that are responsible for all aspects of security including road controls in Derik, Cindresi, Serekaniye, and Qamishlo. Each Rojava canton has a HAT command and each Asayish center organizes itself autonomously.

WOMEN’S ASAYISH AND SUTORO AS PART OF ROJAVA ASAYISH

Women both have their own autonomous Asayish institutions and participate in the general Asayish system in Rojava. Women are represented in Asayish efforts and every town in Rojava has a Women’s Asayish center.

Assyrians also have their own Asayish institution called Sutoro, which is affiliated with the Assyrian Military Council and Rojava General Asayish. Sutoro is organized in every area with Assyrian population, provides security and solutions to social problems in collaboration with other Asayish units.

‘WE HAVE 3 MAIN MISSIONS’

Rojava Asayish administrator Ciwan İbrahim stated that there were tens of units, hundreds of checkpoints and thousands of personnel across Rojava, and listed the three main missions of the Asayish as; providing the security and peace of peoples in Rojava, eliminating terror units and illegal armed groups in urban areas, and fighting ISIS and similar gangs on the frontline. İbrahim said that it was their duty to provide security for peoples’ lives and properties, fighting crimes, and contributing to the struggle against ISIS on the frontline in harmony.

HAT CARRIES OUT THE OPERATIONS AGAINST ACTS OF TERROR

İbrahim stated that different units focus on different social issues, and anti-terror units (HAT) take part in operations against terrorist dangers and attacks. İbrahim emphasized that HAT works in coordination with other Asayish branches and is disciplined and organized against the attacks of terrorist organizations.

‘WE WORK IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE YPG’

Ciwan İbrahim underlined that Asayish was not the only security institution in Rojava, and worked in solidarity and collaboration with other organizations such as the YPG. İbrahim stated that YPG forces support Asayish when there is such a need in urban areas, and Asayish forces support the YPG when there is such a need on the frontlines. İbrahim said that the Asayish and YPG had shared cultures, perspectives, duties and responsibilities, and support one another when collaboration is needed in the fight against ISIS.

“WE ARE DIFFERENT FROM THE SECURITY FORCES OF THE STATES”

Ciwan İbrahim said the Rojava asayish was founded upon the social paradigm of Democratic- Ecological - Women’s Liberation, like all institutions in Rojava and that as the Rojava Asayish they act on the basis of strenghtening the moral and political fabric of society. İbrahim said the Rojava Asayish didn’t have a trans-societal understanding and that they act in line with the society. He continued: “First of all, our view on societal problems is not based on ‘crime and punishment’. What we want to achieve, in general, is not just to punish an individual in a criminal instance and thus employ a temporary solution. Our actual goal is to determine the cause of that problem and turn it around to make it ineffective and unable to turn into crime. For example, if there is a crime of theft or smuggling, we find the organizers and take down the network. This is the fundamental difference between us and other examples in the world. In this sense, the crime rate in Rojava is very low compared to neighboring countries and in the regions under regime control. Crimes like murder, prostitution or drug abuse are practically nonexistent. Many states don’t want to resolve the foundaitions of crime for their own interests, because they derive benefits from it and thus crime rates never fall.”

THE INSTITUTION TARGETED MOST BY ISIS

The Asayish is the institution that is targeted the most by the gangs. There have been a total of 86 suicide attacks targeting the Asayish forces. 124 Asayish members died in these attacks in three cantons. Ciwan İbrahim said there were small mine attacks on top of these, and lists the precautions Asayish takes against these as such: “We held frequent discussions, projects and studies against these attacks by ISIS. For example, we banned cars coming from outside of Rojava and the cantons. Syria is one country, you can’t divide it. Rojava takes its place inside this unity. But there is a war and there is an ISIS reality. Therefore, we took precautions against the vehicles coming from outside our borders. We took precautions against theft. Again with the help of the autonomous administration, we managed to procure technical equipment for some special search operations. We use these against explosives. We are also very sensitive against people unknown in Rojava. As everybody knows, the demographics change almost daily, and many ethnicities and diverse identities live together. If we don’t take these precautions, it will be very difficult to ensure the safety of this coexistence. Every identity finds representation in Rojava Asayish. All precautions are mostly societal and includes safety. The safety of all is taken into account, not just the safety of a party, institution or a political view. The Asayish doesn’t serve any particular political powers, it works to ensure personal and societal safety. It isn’t the work of Kurds or Arabs or any one nation. It includes all social groups and works with all social groups to ensure the safety of everybody cooperatively.”

“WE WILL PREVAIL AGAINST ALL ODDS”

Ciwan İbrahim stated that the reason for ongoing counterpropaganda against Asayish and other Rojava institutions is that the political problems between parties in Rojava aren’t solved yet. “The Rojava Autonomous Administration takes very soft decisions despite the terror and the war. Everybody is trying to take advantage of this moderate stance. When you look at it, you can see that there are many representatives, offices, writers and intellectuals in Rojava. All of them have different opinions and views. In this sense, the number of institutions and representatives in Qamishlo and Amude alone is greater than those in Lebanon. There were also severe problems with financial resources. The regime didn’t contribute anything to the Rojava Asayish. The problems in education, technical problems, etc... The Rojava Asayish forces had to defend themselves almost by their personal weapons, directly face to face, against car bomb attacks and such. This embargo and siege brought forth problems in training and equipment, but the work continued and counter-terror activity kept terror in a minimum level. As it is also known, life in all cities continue as normal and people do feel safe.”