A Newroz reception in Paris brought together French and Kurdish politicians on Thursday, with former French President François Hollande delivering an inspirational message highlighting the courage of the Kurdish people.
The event, organised by the Democratic Kurdish Council of France (CDK-F), was attended by a number of dignitaries, including the French Minister of Education, Jean Michel Blanquer, members of parliament, intellectuals, representatives of the Kurdish community and other eminent personalities.
The reception served not only to celebrate Newroz, the Kurdish New Year, but also to strengthen solidarity with the Kurdish struggle in different regions, especially in North and East Syria, commonly known as Rojava.
Speeches at the event touched on the historical resilience of the Kurdish people, the revolutionary developments in Rojava and the wider struggle against reactionary forces in the Middle East, including the Islamic State (ISIS). The speakers underlined the shared values and historical partnership between the Kurdish people and France, especially in the context of the fight against ISIS.
The message of former President François Hollande was also read out during the Newroz reception. In his message, Hollande said:
“I know that when the Kurdish people celebrate Newroz, they are not only celebrating the New Year, but above all they are rejecting oppression and reaffirming their commitment to freedom. In defending their fundamental values, they are showing extraordinary courage that should inspire us. Dear friends, I wish you a New Year more peaceful and beautiful than ever before, and I assure you that many of our hearts are with you today.”
In his speech, French Minister Blanquer celebrated the festival of the Kurdish people and highlighted the importance of the revolution in Rojava, saying “Rojava shows us the way of resistance”. Blanquer concluded his speech by calling for greater solidarity with the Kurdish-led autonomous administration in northern Syria.
Speakers at the event also reiterated calls for the freedom of imprisoned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan.
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Following the murder of Kurdish activists Sakine Cansız, Fidan Doğan and Leyla Şaylemez at the Kurdistan Information Office in Paris in 2013, Hollande had said that he knew one of the three women killed. Describing the incident as “horrible”, Hollande stated at the time: “I know one of them. She is known to me and to many political actors because she used to meet us regularly.”
The name Hollande was referring to was Fidan Doğan. Doğan was at the time a very successful diplomatic representative of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) who had attended many diplomatic meetings with top French politicians, including several meetings with the former French president and NGOs in Paris before the assassination. She was such a respected political figure representing the Kurds in Europe that the European Parliament held a minute’s silence after her murder.
The victims, Cansız, 54, Doğan, 28, and Şaylemez, 24, were each shot in the head by a Turkish gunman in Paris on 9 January 2013.
The only suspect, Ömer Güney, who allegedly had links to the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT) and was arrested after the attack, died in prison in suspicious circumstances a month before the trial was due to start in December 2016.
The 2013 attack took place in the midst of peace talks between the Turkish government and the PKK. At the time, many in Turkey saw the assassination as an attempt to undermine the negotiations, which eventually collapsed in 2015.
Kurdish organisations in Paris believe that France is protecting Turkey by not carrying out a proper investigation into the two attacks. France’s refusal to lift the confidentiality order on the case files still prevents the public from knowing who was behind the attack. They accuse the French authorities of prolonging – and deliberately not completing – the investigation into the 2013 attack.
