A women’s revolution began twelve years ago in North and East Syria, known as Rojava. The inhabitants of the multicultural and multiethnic region, which was able to liberate itself from the Assad regime in the course of the Arab spring, have since been demonstrating that an alternative to nation state systems is possible. An autonomous administration based on the principles of a democratic nation, women’s liberation as well as an ecologically just society is a reality in Rojava. Society is self-organised into communes, councils, cooperatives and academies – it is a revolution from below. This seminar will explain the methods and mechanisms of the autonomous administration, based on the newly developed social contract as well as the achievements and difficulties encountered while setting up the revolution.
The origin of the word „Jineolojî“ comes from the Kurdish words Jin/Jîn (woman/life), and the Greek word Logos
(science, lojî in Kurdish). It is the science of women and of life as a whole, working towards the development of a democratic and ecological society centred on the liberation of women. Developed by the Kurdish women's liberation movement, Jineolojî has gradually spread throughout the Middle East and Europe. Today, hundreds of women from different cultures and backgrounds are united around this new science and are organising together to carry out their research, action and educational projects.
Founded in 2017 in Brussels, the Jineolojî Center is a center for research in the human and social sciences developed collectively on the basis of the knowledge and experiences of women from Kurdistan and around the world. The Jineolojî Center's projects aim to promote the foundations of this new science and to enrich it through the work of its members throughout Europe, in connection with a wide network of local associations and collectives struggling for women's rights and liberation. Rather than studying women's lives and cultures from an 'outsider's' perspective, Jineolojî invites women from different communities to research and (re)write their history, and to define their concerns and interests so that they can act together. The members of the Jineolojî Center organize and take part in exhibitions, seminars, training courses and workshops, as well as writing and publishing articles and books, based on the sharing of knowledge, meetings and debates. The research, analysis and educational work carried out by the center aims to inform women and society so that they can take action against violence and the patriarchal system, while leading a struggle for social transformation.
Sarah Marcha is a member of the Jineolojî Center of Brussels since 2017. Born in 1988 in the north of France, after five years of higher education in the fine arts, she developed her artistic and research work around social issues. She took part in various projects of the Andrea Wolf Institute in the Autonomous Administration of Northern and Eastern Syria, between 2018 and 2021.
Necîbe Qeredaxî, born in Sulaymaniyah in Southern Kurdistan (Iraqi Kurdistan), is a writer, a journalist and researcher. She has been working as a journalist, in print media as well as in various Kurdish TV and radio outlets as a producer and presenter. Necibe Qeredaxi is a member of KNK (Kurdistan National Congress) and since 2016 she has been a member of Jineolojî Center in Brussels as educator and researcher.
