Ilham Ahmad gives Damascus government choice between dialogue or colliding with impregnable wall

A dialogue seminar is being organized in the city of Qamishlo in the North and East Syria region by the Democratic Union Party under the slogan "Defining the Kurdish Identity and the Syrian Peoples in the Democratic Nation System".

During the seminar, the co-chair of the Department of Foreign Relations in the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, Ilham Ahmed, spoke in her intervention on the second theme, which came under the title "The Kurdish political and organizational identity that was formed before and after the revolution and the prospects for resolving the Kurdish issue and the Syrian crisis."

Ilham Ahmed stated that with the 19 July revolution, great changes have occurred, saying: "After about 13 years from the beginning of the Syrian crisis until today, the Kurds have reached an important level in solving the Kurdish issue in NE Syria. During this period, they made great strides towards resolving the Kurdish issue, as before the revolution, the struggle was being waged across Kurdish parties in Syria organized at their level. But this has taken a different form since 2011. Also in Syria, the process of having rights, culture and relations between peoples has begun a new process."

Ilham Ahmed pointed out that there is a legacy of the Kurdistan liberation movement in Syria and Rojava, and spoke about the achievements of the revolution: "Many great alternatives were presented in exchange for preserving and highlighting the identity of the Kurdish people, and for achieving gains for the Kurds. But there are groups or parties and individuals who work against and target these gains, especially the Kurdish language, for example, who do not accept their schools and their Kurdish language, and send their children to the regime's schools, even though there are tens of thousands of children who are learning in our schools."

"It is impossible to go back to the pre-2011 era" With these words, Ilham Ahmed pointed to the future of the region: "There are about a million students, lack of awareness and undeveloped struggle violate the right of society. It was the desire of every Kurd to send his children to the Kurdish teacher one day. Today, this dream has come true here; but what confronts our efforts to achieve this hinders its development. These opposing policies weaken the struggle of the Kurdish people, our society should not allow this. This is the most important and fundamental achievement of the revolution."

Ilham Ahmed pointed out that the NE Syria region has achieved another achievement represented by military forces capable of defending the region, and said: "One of our other achievements is our military forces. Our strength is what prompted everyone to ally with the people of the region, and this is what will push to recognize the region, then we also met some by saying that the presence of the defense forces is not a necessity, they are still blackmailing our people and our forces, here we must protect our forces and be proud of them, those forces that everyone is talking about and allying with."

Ilham Ahmed stated that the institutions of the Democratic Autonomous Administration are working despite all the attacks, and said: "There is another achievement that in organizing the Autonomous Administration, starting from the commune through the councils to the bodies and committees of the Autonomous Administration. Also, one of the gains of our revolution, we may criticize some of its mistakes, but we should not publicize them and not be disappointed, because there are attacks by the Turkish occupation state against our institutions. Despite all this, our institutions work without fear, we must protect these achievements and push for their development and prosperity in their respective fields."

And pointed out to one of the other achievements of the July 19 revolution "One of the achievements of the July 19 revolution also is the creation of a new consciousness. If this awareness is reached and translated into reality, then it will be the greatest  revolution, but so far we have not reached it, the history of the Kurds has always been full of resistance. Kurdish resistance for a new life. This is what we are continuing in our revolution. Through this, and with the alliance of peoples, we have thwarted many attacks and plots."

"The basis for solving the Syrian problem will be based on solving the Kurdish issue" With these words, Ilham Ahmed referred to the position of the Damascus government towards the Kurdish issue, and said: "The Damascus government must recognize our cultural rights, especially the Kurdish language, and our forces, our basic rights and our autonomous-administration within the Syrian constitution. The regime must make changes from now on, the system of autonomous-administration and decentralization must be accepted in the Syria and the Syria must become decentralized. Either it accepts us or the regime will face an impasse, before now there have been many meetings to resolve the Kurdish issue, but so far the regime has avoided even allowing the teaching of Kurdish for 2 hours a week in schools, which means that it completely denies the right to learn in Kurdish. They don't even give us permission to operate as a Kurdish party."

Stressing the importance of the alliance of Kurdish parties, Ahmed said that the people must play their role: "It is said that the Kurdish or national alliance if there is no agreement between the parties, it means that there is no national alliance. High-level coordination is important. But to say that this is not possible is wrong. In fact, society can play a role in this. If society insists on this, believe me, it will bring the parties to the table within a week. So far, society has played no role. Society should say either you come for dialogue or we don't accept you at all. Our society must have a role and a project."

In conclusion, Ilham Ahmed pointed to the opportunities available to the Kurds as well as the risks: "There is a determination from Syria, Iraq and Turkey not to recognize the identity of the Kurds. For example, all achievements were taken away from Southern Kurdistan, and with the latest coalition brought the Turks to Bashiqa. This means that the Iraq file will be managed by Turkey. They are trying to destroy all the achievements of the Kurds. The Turkish state participates in alliances against NE Syria, and Deir ez-Zor is a case in point. The current picture is not bleak, there are risks but there are also chances of success and there is a need to join hands and strengthen the protection system."

 Sh-S

ANHA