"The moment I crossed the border at Peshabur from Iraqi Kurdistan (KRG), the semi-autonomous Kurdish-controlled region in northern Iraq, into Rojava it was obvious I was somewhere quite different," Rahila Gupta wrote. "There were no malls, no motorways, no skyscrapers, no billboards; the only hoardings were pictures of "martyrs" who gave up their lives to defend the revolution."
Going to Rojava —
"The moment I crossed the border at Peshabur from Iraqi Kurdistan (KRG), the semi-autonomous Kurdish-controlled region in northern Iraq, into Rojava it was obvious I was somewhere quite different," Rahila Gupta wrote. "There were no malls, no motorways, no skyscrapers, no billboards; the only hoardings were pictures of "martyrs" who gave up their lives to defend the revolution."
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta
"Since the Arab Spring in 2011, Rojava's predominantly Kurdish population of around 3-4 million has effected a bottom-up transformation of society into a direct democracy, organized into three self-governing, Swiss-style cantons." - Rahila Gupta
A fragile experiment —
"Since the Arab Spring in 2011, Rojava's predominantly Kurdish population of around 3-4 million has effected a bottom-up transformation of society into a direct democracy, organized into three self-governing, Swiss-style cantons." - Rahila Gupta
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta
"For the U.S., the Kurds of Rojava are the only reliable, effective fighting force against ISIS on the ground." - Rahila Gupta
On the frontline against ISIS —
"For the U.S., the Kurds of Rojava are the only reliable, effective fighting force against ISIS on the ground." - Rahila Gupta
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta
"Many of the women I met could not read or write before the revolution and had been wed in arranged or forced marriages, sometimes as young as 15," Rahila Gupta writes. "Now, they were attending academies and delightedly practiced reading subtitles on the TV news."
Married young and illiterate -- now learning to read —
"Many of the women I met could not read or write before the revolution and had been wed in arranged or forced marriages, sometimes as young as 15," Rahila Gupta writes. "Now, they were attending academies and delightedly practiced reading subtitles on the TV news."
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta
"Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria -- all of which have substantial Kurdish populations -- have attempted to erase Kurdish identity, with varying levels of brutality, fearful of losing territory to a possible future nation-state of Kurdistan." - Rahila Gupta
Kurdish identity —
"Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria -- all of which have substantial Kurdish populations -- have attempted to erase Kurdish identity, with varying levels of brutality, fearful of losing territory to a possible future nation-state of Kurdistan." - Rahila Gupta
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta
Women have had an important role in driving change in Rojava.
Participation of women at every level —
Women have had an important role in driving change in Rojava.
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta
Abdullah Ocalan -- a founder member of PKK, (Kurdistan Workers' Party), pictured on the wall of the House of Women, which deal with violence against women. Ocalan's ideas have been an important factor in the Rojava experiment.
Abdullah Ocalan —
Abdullah Ocalan -- a founder member of PKK, (Kurdistan Workers' Party), pictured on the wall of the House of Women, which deal with violence against women. Ocalan's ideas have been an important factor in the Rojava experiment.
Courtesy of Rahila Gupta