Residents of Çil Agha demand official recognition of Kurdish language in Syrian constitution

Today, the city of Çil Agha in the Jazira region witnessed a mass rally attended by hundreds of residents, students, male and female teachers, as well as members of civil and service institutions. The participants called for the inclusion of the Kurdish language in the Syrian constitution and its recognition as an official language for education and teaching.

The march set off from the Women’s Roundabout, with participants carrying banners emphasizing the status of the Kurdish language as part of the identity and existence of the Kurdish people, alongside slogans demanding guarantees for the Kurdish people’s political, cultural, and constitutional rights.

During the march, participants chanted slogans including “There is no life without language” and “Our language is our existence,” before proceeding along the main street toward the city center and the central market, eventually reaching Martyr Masoum Square, where the march turned into a mass gathering.

During the gathering, participants observed a minute of silence, followed by a speech delivered on behalf of the school administration and students in Çil Agha by Yunis Haji, a member of the School Administration Committee.

In his speech, Haji stated that one of the most significant achievements of the Rojava Revolution was learning and teaching in the Kurdish language, noting that protecting the Kurdish language has become a collective responsibility that requires preserving and defending the gains of the revolution.

He added that the Kurdish people had succeeded, through generations, in protecting their language despite policies of denial and erasure that targeted it, thanks to the efforts of Kurdish intellectuals, historians, and pioneers who preserved it until it reached the current generations.

He also pointed to ongoing attempts to distance Kurds from their language, stressing that teachers, students, and the Kurdish people reject such policies, emphasizing that they are no different from previous exclusionary policies.

Haji stressed that recognition of the Kurdish language should not be limited to temporary decisions or decrees, but that the rights of the Kurdish people must be constitutionally guaranteed in Syria, foremost among them the recognition of Kurdish as a language of education and teaching.

The participants concluded the march by chanting the slogans: “There is no life without language” and “Our language is our identity and existence.” 

A-H

ANHA