THE BIG STORY

UNBOWEDTurkey is bent on extinguishing a beacon of women’s

liberation in northern Syria. But the women of Rojava are not giving up, writes Dilar Dirik.

22

Early every day, Ilham, a Kurdish woman in her sixties, gets up to make her way to her Mala Jin – or Women’s House – in the Northern Syrian city of Qamishlo (aka Qamishli). There, with colleagues ranging from teenage girls to women her age, she tries to help resolve issues raised by women in her district.

Among these are domestic violence and so-called ‘honour killings’. The Mala Jin helps women to leave abusive partners, supports economic independence and organizes against sexism and violence in the community.

Ilham listens and follows up on individual cases by visiting the women who have confided in her. Since the

NEW INTERNATIONALIST