The Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK) issued a written statement on the occasion of the 11th anniversary of the attack by ISIS gangs on Shengal on 3 August 2014.
The statement said: “There is still a need for broad support from our people for Shengal to be saved from the threat of genocide and to attain freedom. Shengal and the Yazidis are symbols of the struggle for freedom and democracy for our people. On the 11th anniversary of the Shengal genocide, as PJAK, we condemn the attacks of ISIS and its supporters and once again declare our support for the Autonomous Administration and the people of Shengal. Shengal and the Yazidis are a trust entrusted to the Kurdish people.”
The statement added: “The Yazidi people of Shengal are a symbol of the historical identity of the Kurdish people and carriers of a thousand-year cultural resistance. The role of the Shengal people and the Yazidi faith in preserving the existence of the Kurdish people is significant and undeniable.”
The statement recalled that the attacks on Shengal took place with the support of the Turkish state, and that the KDP and Iraq failed to defend Shengal, adding: “Today, similarly, Shengal remains under siege, and thousands of people are still waiting to gain their freedom. Turkey-backed new occupation and massacre plans are continuing. Strong support from our people is still necessary for the liberation of Shengal and its salvation from the threat of genocide. The Kurdish freedom movement and guerrilla forces have stood against the plans of massacre and annihilation with great sacrifices. Thanks to the sacrifices of thousands of martyrs from all four parts of Kurdistan, the Shengal Democratic Autonomous Administration was established.”
The statement underlined that “this achievement is a symbol of the struggle of the Kurdish people and all the oppressed. Shengal and its self-governance are symbols of existence and will for the peoples of the Middle East. Protecting it means protecting freedom; its destruction would mean obstructing decades of progress in the struggle for freedom and democracy. Today, multi-faceted plots against Shengal continue with the old calculations of certain forces. The future of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region is directly linked to the freedom of the Shengal people and the democratic structure of its self-governance.
The people of Shengal can preserve their existence only through their own defense forces and the Democratic Autonomous Administration. The usurpation of Shengal’s self-governance is an attack on the freedom of the Kurdish people in all four parts of Kurdistan. Every conspiracy against Shengal equates to completing the genocide carried out by ISIS. Therefore, beyond prosecuting the perpetrators of genocide, it is the duty of the Kurdish people and all advocates of freedom to protect Shengal as a symbol of self-governance for the peoples of the Middle East.”
Source: ANF News
