Organized annually to commemorate Zilan (Zeynep Kınacı), who lost her life during an action of sacrifice in Dersim in 1996, the International Zilan Women’s Festival was held for the 12th time in Dortmund, Germany. Thousands of women from Germany and other European cities gathered in Dortmund and filled the festival area with colorful posters, flags, and images of Kurdistan freedom fighters that have fallen as martyrs. The main theme of this year’s festival was “Let us enhance the freedom struggle in autonomous areas.”

This year’s festival had a rich program including panels, political speeches, and musicians and dancers from Kurdistan and Latin America. Participants often chanted slogans such s “Woman Life Freedom,” “Long live the struggle of the North (Kurdistan),” “Long Live Leader Apo” and “Long live the PKK.” Democratic Society Congress (DTK) Co-President Leyla Güven, TJK-E Co-President Dılşah Osman, Dersim Co-Mayor Nurhayat Altun and CİK Co-President Hatice Turhallı gave speeches during the festival.

DTK Co-President Leyla Güven recalled the on-going resistance in Kurdistan, and praised the participants for showing solidarity with the aforementioned resistance. Güven described Zilan as the embodiment of Öcalan’s philosophy enlightening Kurdish women, and emphasized that Kurdish women continue to resist in Rojava and other parts of the world. Leyla Güven condemned Turkish state forces’ attacks in North Kurdistan, and said that Kurdish people would follow the footsteps of resistance martyrs such as Mehmet Tunç, Asya, Pakize, Sêve and Fatma.

TJK-E representative Dılşah Osman also spoke during the festival and stated that Turkey’s hostility towards Rojava increases because of the resistance of Kurdish people in all four parts of Kurdistan. Dersim Co-Mayor Nurhaya Altun stated that Zilan put up a historic and epic resistance, and women’s struggle in Kurdistan would rewrite history in the region. Lastly, CİK Co-President Hatice Turhallı emphasized the equality between men and women during her speech.

Saarbrücken Children’s Choir, Hungarian artist Petra Geşti, Afyer Düzdaş, Rojda, Tevçand women’s folk dance group, folk dance groups from Kurdistan and India, Gaby Baca and Ezidî women’s band were among the artist that performed during the festival, which ended around 18:30 yesterday.