ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (NES) declared on Tuesday that the opposition Kurdish National Council - an umbrella group consisting of several Kurdish parties in the region - can now open offices without requiring permission from the NES.
The NES leadership also dropped all legal cases against Kurdish National Council (ENKS) members and formed a committee to investigate opposition claims that ENKS members are being held in NES prisons for political reasons. The decision was welcomed by Kurdish people and opposition political parties in the region.
“Based on the initiative launched by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to create a united Kurdish political discourse, and based on building a real partnership in the administration and our faith in the importance of this initiative for interests of the public, we announce that there is no legal obstacle before the Kurdish National Council in Syria to open organizational and political offices and practice their political and social activities without requiring security approval,” read a statement from the NES.
The decision was welcomed by citizens in the Kurdish-populated city of Qamishli in northeast Syria (known by Kurds as Rojava).
Qamishli resident Fuad Ibrahim told Rudaw, “The sooner Kurds get unified, the sooner we get our freedom and our country will develop.”
Kovan Osman, who also lives in Qamishli, stated that Kurdish unity will guarantee a better position in talks with other regional actors, including their enemies.
“[Kurds] will be stronger and have an influence in the world. They can even have more influence on the enemy. On the contrary, when we are not united, people will see us as weak,” he said.
Despite welcoming the decision, Qamishli resident Sayf al-Din Bahri said that the Kurdish authorities and parties were late and “must have taken such steps earlier when Afrin was being invaded.”
The Syrian city of Afrin, which is predominantly Kurdish, was invaded by Turkey in March 2018. It is still under Turkish control.
This decision to allow opposition political activity in Rojava represents a policy reversal: in 2016, the Rojava authorities banned the activities of ENKS in the region, closed about 40 of their offices and jailed hundreds of ENKS members who were later released.
The NES has said that there are no ENKS political prisoners in Rojava, but ENKS has submitted a list of ten of members they claim are being held in NES prisons. The NES agreed to form a committee to investigate the fate of these prisoners.
In the past, ENKS has refused to recognize the administration in Rojava, accusing it of being unwilling to share power. ENKS chose not to follow some NES procedures for opening political offices, which led to the 2016 crackdown. In the wake of this NES announcement, ENKS will not have to follow these procedures and can openly engage in political activity.
The Movement for a Democratic Society (TEV-DEM) is the umbrella group for the ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its allies. TEV-DEM struck a number of power-sharing agreements with ENKS in Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province between 2014 and 2016, but none of the agreements were implemented. Each side blamed the other for failing to honor the agreements.
Fesla Yousef is a member of the ENKS leadership. She welcomed the NES decision but called for its immediate implementation.
“We see it as a positive step. We hope that it is seen in action as soon as possible so that it can become a step forward in favor of Kurdish unity, especially in the current sensitive situation in Rojava,” she told Rudaw from Rojava.
Foza Yousef is a member of TEV-DEM. She told Rudaw that ENKS are the “owners” of Rojava as well.
“We have to hold unconditional meetings. We meet with our enemy, so why should not meet together [with the ENKS]. What prevents us from meeting? We are both the owners of this soil,” she said.
The Turkish attack on the SDF in northern Syria on October 9 (Operation Peace Spring) encouraged Syrian Kurds to reengage in serious efforts to build unity.
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