Qamişlo opens stadium to remember victims of massacre
QAMIŞLO (DİHA) – The city of Qamişlo has opened a stadium to commemorate Assad regime forces' slaying of 32 citizens at a football match in the city on the March 12, 2004, an event that has become a symbol of the regime's cruelty and violence against Kurds before the Rojava revolution.
"The reason we're not in the same place today is because we stood strong against the regime's chauvinistic nationalist policies," said Hediye Yusuf, the co-chair of Cizîrê Canton. "With our struggle, we proved to the Ba'ath regime that we will never be their victims. We proved it with the Rojava revolution." Hundreds attended the opening of the stadium, called March 12 Martyrs' Stadium. Kurdish, Arab, Armenian and Assyrian representatives of the Cizîre Canton government showed up for the opening, along with families of those who lost their lives in the resistance, wounded veterans and civil society groups.
The opening started with a minute of silence for those lost. Henife Hesen, the director of TEV-DEM (the grassroots umbrella political movement in Rojava), spoke, saying that the massacre eleven years ago was designed to break the resistance of the Kurdish people. She reminded those present that after the massacre, uprisings began across Syria. It was by taking the route of forming the YPG/YPJ, in contrast to the advice of some Kurdish parties, thatthey were able to achieve the Rojava revolution and to set out on the road to democratic, autonomous administration.
The opening ceremony included music and poetry readings in Kurdish, as well as tae kwon do and karate demonstrations for the crowd. Kobanê Canton representations and representatives from the armed liberation groupKomalênJinên Kurdistan (KJK) released statements denouncing the massacre yesterday.
(cm/nt)
