The Newroz reception at the London City Hall building was attended by a large number of elected representatives and members of various institutions, including Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, Mayor of Hackney Philip Glanville, Mayor of Kensington Therese Rossi.

The reception was organised by the Center for Kurdish Progress and the Kurdish People's Democratic Assembly of Britain. Speakers at the reception condemned Turkish attacks against the Kurds.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan opened his speech by welcoming Newroz. He remarked that the cultural and economic role played by the Kurdish community in London was very important and that he was honored to celebrate Newroz in the city hall.

Khan said: “Today we celebrate the Newroz holiday, which is very important because in London we don't tolerate differences, we respect them and we celebrate them. Today we celebrate the Kurdish new year, Newroz, which is the day of new beginnings, of building bridges between peoples against those who want to build walls between peoples.”

Glanville: People’s will must be respected

Mayor of Hackney Philip Glanville said that the Turkish government should respect the will of the people at the next local elections scheduled for 31 March. He called on the United Kingdom government to play a role in ensuring that the will of the people is respected.

Ibrahim Doğuş from the Kurdish Studies Center also spoke, followed by Türkan Özcan from the British Kurdish People's Council.

Özcan reminded of the hunger strike led by HDP deputy Leyla Guven and spoke about the role of the Kurdish freedom movement in the four parts of Kurdistan for freedom, equality and democracy and against fascism.

Özcan called on everyone to stand up to the Turkish authoritarian and fascist regime.

The Newroz reception was accompanied by live music and halay [traditional dance].