ISTANBUL - Faik Yeşilkaya, the father of Vedat Yeşilkaya,  who lost his life in the Rojava Revolution, said the revolution is a matter of honor for the Kurdish people, adding, “Despite all of the suffering, we will remain committed to peace.”

 

Following the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the peoples of Syria and Rojava showed strong resistance against ISIS and the Assad regime in many areas, particularly in Kobanê. As a result of this resistance, self-administration was declared on 19 July 2012. This date has since been recognized as the beginning of the Rojava Revolution. 

 

As the self-administration, declared under the slogan “Democratic Syria, Autonomous Rojava”, marks its 14th year, the Rojava Revolution has left its mark on history through great struggle and sacrifice. At that time, not only the people of Rojava but also women and young people from across Kurdistan crossed into Rojava to join the struggle.

 

People from all four parts of Kurdistan, as well as from major cities in Turkey and Europe, joined the Rojava Revolution. One of them was Vedat Yeşilkaya (Gelhat Serhed). The Yeşilkaya family was forcibly displaced from the Dîgor district of Qers in 1993 and has been living in Istanbul for 33 years. Vedat Yeşilkaya joined the Rojava Revolution in 2015 and lost his life in the clashes in the Zirgan region of Haseke on 19 October 2019.

 

Speaking about his son, Faik Yeşilkaya highlighted the significance of the Rojava Revolution. 

 

Yeşilkaya said his family had been forced to move to Istanbul 33 years ago and added: “At that time, the movement (PKK) had just begun to establish a presence. Since I was involved in political activities, the state was looking for me.” Stressing that they never abandoned the struggle after moving to Istanbul, Yeşilkaya said: “I was active in all of our political parties, including People’s Labor Party (HEP), Democracy Party (DEP), and the People’s Democracy Party (HADEP). Wherever there was a protest, rally, or event, we attended as a family. I never raised my children detached from the struggle. Even before the Kobanê resistance, Vedat (Gelhat Serhed) regularly took part in protests and political activities from an early age. But the war in Kobanê became a turning point for him. It had an impact on him. While the struggle was continuing in Kobanê, protests were also taking place here. Youth demonstrations in Esenyurt were particularly intense. One of Vedat’s friends was injured during the protests. Vedat took him to the hospital, but they were unable to leave. Because the hospital was surrounded by police, they could be arrested as soon as they stepped outside since the police knew who they were. Later, my eldest son and I managed to get both Vedat and his friend out safely.”

 

THE LAST CONVERSATION…

 

Yeşilkaya said: “After he left, we did not hear from him for many years. He called only once, on 18 March, during the war in Efrîn. He told us they were in a safe place and that they were doing well. Even at such a difficult time, he tried to stay positive and reassure us. We spoke for about half an hour. We could not talk much because the line kept cutting out. We never heard from him again until we learned of his martyrdom.”

 

Describing the Kobanê resistance as a turning point in his son’s life, Yeşilkaya said: “Vedat was always selfless and humble. They embraced all the hardships of their homeland and their people as their own. They reached a point when they were willing to make any sacrifice without hesitation. They had only one goal; the freedom of their people and the cause they believed in.”

 

‘ROJAVA IS A MATTER OF HONOR FOR THE KURDISH PEOPLE’

 

Emphasizing that the Rojava Revolution is a matter of honor for the Kurdish people, Yeşilkaya said: “The fact that Kobanê did not fall became a major setback for the enemy. At that time, they kept saying, ‘Kobanê has fallen or is about to fall.’ But the people said, ‘We will not let Kobanê fall,’ and it did not. That became a great source of pride for us. We lost tens of thousands of martyrs. Yet we are proud, and we hold our heads high. There was a time when Kurds in Rojava did not even have an identity. Now, however, we have achievements there and we have gained recognition. That is a source of pride for us too.”

 

‘THE RESPONSIBILITY IS NOW OURS’

 

Stressing that they have remained committed to peace despite all the suffering, Yeşilkaya said: “Our Leader (Abdullah Öcalan) has brought the process to this stage. Now, the duty and responsibility is ours as a people. The people must do their part and struggle to move the process forward. There have been 28 uprisings so far. This is the 29th. All of the previous uprisings ended in massacres, executions, and repression. But what has the 29th uprising achieved? It has brought the Turkish state to the table. In other words, we have succeeded in bringing a century-old state mentality to the negotiating table. This is a major and significant point. What happens next depends on the people. If we remain silent, they will continue to come after us as before. The Leader is fulfilling all of his responsibilities. If the people do not fulfill theirs, it seems this process will have no end.”

 

 

‘WE MUST LEARN FROM OUR HISTORY’

 

Saying that the government has been dragging out the process, Yeşilkaya said: “That is why it is the people who must put pressure on the state. The people, especially in Rojava and across Kurdistan, do not accept this. The state showed the same attitude in 2015. What happened?  Once it no longer served the state’s interests, it quickly reversed course. That same mindset and danger still exist today. If the Turkish state sees that conclusion of the process no longer poses a problem, there is a strong possibility that it will derail that as well. We would end up reliving what we experienced in 2015. That is why we must learn from our history and our past experiences.”

 

‘WE CANNOT BE FREE WITHOUT OUR LEADER’

 

Yeşilkaya said: "For weeks no one has been able to meet with our Leader (Abdullah Öcalan), including lawyers. This is a result of the state’s strategy of delaying the process. What the state must do now is fulfill the reforms and promises that have been made. The guerrillas burned their weapons and withdrew their forces. In response, the Turkish state should have passed a law. Under such law, ill prisoners would have been released, trustees would have been removed, and the Leader would have been freed. But the state has fulfilled none of these commitments. It aims to take the process back to 2015 by acting this way. We will not allow that to happen. Finally I would like to say this: I respectfully bow before the memory of all the martyrs of Kurdistan. I want freedom for our Leader and our people. We cannot be free without our Leader.”

 

 

MA / Roza Arpa