Kurds are not welcome in southern Kurdistan

Kurds are living in tragic and complicated conditions in Southern Kurdistan, especially those who came to the region to work during the past years. Kurdish citizens consider that the authorities of Southern Kurdistan create great sensitivity towards them, while Turkish manifestations and flags are spread freely there, especially in the cities of Hewler and Dohuk.

ANHA's agency obtained testimonies from citizens who went to Southern Kurdistan to work there, and learned about their bitter experience and the level of despair they reached in light of the inappropriate treatment by the authorities of Southern Kurdistan there.

A journey between countries and Southern Kurdistan is the worst stop

(F.S.) is a married citizen and she has one son, whose origin from the city of Kobani and refused to disclose her name for fear of arrest in Southern Kurdistan. She left her home in the Syrian capital, Damascus, in 2012, following the fierce battles on the outskirts of the capital, and settled in Kobani for many years, only to leave it again during the ISIS attack on the canton in 2014, and live for a few months in the city of Raha in Northern Kurdistan.

(F.S.) moved to Sudan with her husband in 2016, and settled there in the capital, Khartoum. Her husband worked in the field of well drilling for years in many Sudanese states, and the plan was for this small family to settle there in light of the timid prosperity that Sudan is witnessing in many fields, the most important of which are development projects.

On April 15 of last year 2023, battles broke out between government forces and the "Rapid Support", and quickly spread to dozens of cities and towns, including the capital Khartoum, where heavy weapons and warplanes were used in battles that are still ongoing to this day.

Tens of thousands of Syrians fled Sudan, including (F. S.) and her son, and headed to the city of Kobani to live there, but circumstances forced the husband to stay in Sudan and then cross to Egypt in a tragic journey, not without dangers in the desert extending between Egypt and Sudan.

The husband decided to travel to Southern Kurdistan for work, and upon his arrival, he invited his wife, who lived in Kobani, to join him. With the difficulty of official procedures and the high cost of travel, F.S. was forced to take an illegal route to reach Southern Kurdistan. She started her journey from Kobani to Damascus, then flew to the Iranian capital, Tehran, where she was smuggled through a network of smugglers to the Iraqi border, accompanied by 12 other people.

After an arduous journey that lasted 9 days, F.S. arrived in Southern Kurdistan, specifically the city of Sulaymaniyah, where the journey was one of her successive tragedies during a decade of moving between countries and regions in order to settle down. At the end of the journey, hope collided with reality, resulting in a state of complete collapse.

 “It was a tough journey, going back and forth between Hewler and Sulaymaniyah,” says F.S. “I was hoping to find respect in a part of my homeland that I had always dreamed of visiting.

I tried to approach many government institutions for help in settling there, but I found harsh treatment of Kurds everywhere.”

I was assuring them that I am Kurdish woman from Kobani, this was provoking them even more, my husband and I stayed wilderness several days in misery situation and I wondered why they treat the Kurds this way, isn’t this part of Kurdistan, until I said to myself that they are opening the way for Turkey to penetrate 60 kilometers deep into Southern Kurdistan, but they do not allow a Kurdish citizen to reside here in his homeland, it is difficult.”

She added: “They accuse every person who comes from Rojava of baseless accusations, and they are exploited in the worst ways, and even if they allow you to settle there, this comes after you distribute bribes in large amount to the sponsor, the security leadership and other institutions. It is a painful reality to be treated this way in Kurdish cities, at a time when Turkish manifestations and flags are widespread in public facilities and in cities. I have visited a number of countries, but I confirm that Southern Kurdistan is the worst station in terms of treatment, especially with the Kurds.”

(F.S.) and her husband and son settled in the homes of one of the sons of Rojava for a number of days and there is still a refusal by the authorities of Southern Kurdistan to accept their residence there, which is the case of many citizens who are treated in this way.

Theft of dues and difficult living conditions

(M.H.) is a young man whose family has lived in the Rukn al-Din neighborhood in Damascus for nearly 3 decades. He decided to travel to Southern Kurdistan to work there in light of the family's difficult financial conditions. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Law at the University of Damascus.

(M.H.) went to the city of Hewler in Southern Kurdistan since the summer of last year, looking for any work to support the family. He was handed over by a taxi driver to the security there, and was imprisoned for a week without any reason. He was beaten because he mentioned that he was from the city of Kobani. He was accused of working for the "Kurdistan Workers' Party and the Autonomous Administration", noting that the aforementioned person has not visited Rojava for 12 years.

After his release, (M.H.) went to the house of one of his relatives and searched for work for 3 months without success, as it is difficult to find work there, especially in light of the security harassment against the Kurds, but he worked for specific days of each month during the current year in various jobs such as transporting cement bags, transporting tiles and ceramics, or as a building guard, but they were temporary jobs that barely enough his personal expenses.

(M.H.) worked for two months for a Turkish contractor in the Kasnazan area near Hewler transporting building materials, and when he demanded his dues estimated at "1,400 dollars", they told him that the contractor had gone to Turkey and had not returned. After weeks of trying to get anything from the contractor, his attempts were unsuccessful, as the process of catching up on the matter and filing a complaint became more difficult than the process of getting money in light of the security complications, especially since these people are not allowed to file complaints in the first place.

 (M.H.) says: “I have reached to state of deplorable. Is it possible for a young man like me to be unemployed? The family is in a miserable state. This reality is driving me crazy. I have knocked on every door but I stayed between jobs. When I did get a job, they stole our dues. The racist view prevailing here is the reason for this. We suffer greatly and we have no rights in Southern Kurdistan.”

T/ Satt.

ANHA