Many people from different regions of Syria have migrated to Rojava to find a better life there. Salih Hussein Khadir (Xidir) is one of them. The father of eight children comes from the village of Sheria near Hama. He is 57 years old and has 26 years of greenhouse farming experience. In Rojava he works with his wife and daughter in an agricultural cooperative in Rimêlan. Cooperatives are a central building block of Rojava's economy, which is based on solidarity.

In 1998 Khadir left his village of Sheria and moved to Tartus to work in agriculture. As the crisis escalated, conditions there became increasingly difficult. So Khadir went back to his village in 2014. Because of the heavy bombing, he only stayed there for nine days. Desperate, he went with his family to a refugee camp in Idlib.

In this interview with ANF, he described life in the camp as just as bad as in Tartus. “Wherever we turned, the doors were closed to us and the miserable conditions made it difficult for us to survive,” says Khadir, describing the time. “One of my sons was in Rojava, so we went there, to Rimêlan, in 2015. In 2016, I was able to continue my work in the greenhouses here. We came here because we wanted a safe and stable life. The working conditions were also good. There is a diverse work environment here.”

Working to be autonomous in economy

Khadir reported that before the introduction of greenhouses, agricultural products had to be imported to Dêrik, Girkê Legê and Rimêlan and continued: “Greenhouse cultivation has spread in Northern and Eastern Syria, and imports have decreased significantly. Greenhouse cultivation should be further expanded to ensure self-sufficiency. Our products do not contain hormones, and we see it as our principle to create a healthy society using natural farming methods. With greenhouse cultivation, we can provide our population with cheaper vegetables than current market prices. In this way, we reduce the economic problems of the people here.”

“We can take a breath”

Khadir underlined that life had changed for him and his family in Rojava. “We were looking for a life where we could breathe, and we found that in Rojava. I couldn't find anything better for my children's safety than Rojava. I serve the people here by growing healthy vegetables in the greenhouse, which makes me very happy. Six families work in this cooperative. By working in solidarity in the greenhouse, we lead a peaceful life.”