Zehra DOĞAN - JINHA

DERSİM – Seyit Rıza's nephew Menşure Doğan  said since they have been lived in exile her grandma has not spoken any Turkish word. Menşure Doğan: ‘My grandma damned her tongue in order to not to speak any Turkish word. My grandma said ' they were sent away us from our homeland. But they can not make us forget our language and culture'

Speaking on women position in Alevi society Zeliha Polat, grand daughter of Seyit Rıza, says;  women are  seen as holy and a peaceful mission granted to women in Alevism. Zeliha, who called  attention  that during the period of Dersim Resistance women pioneered in solving a social problem , stressed that women from Dersim have been has the equal rights with men in the same comunity   for  seventy years. Zeliha showed the pioneers of Koçgiri Resistance, Zarife and Alişer ,as the greatest example of the equal life that women and men lived and Zeliha remembered Zarife with these words'' Zarife was a brave  warrior and a cultured woman. She joined battle with her husband.''

'Shut up! I had to stay alive '

Speaking on women position in Alevi society Menşure Doğan ,Seyit Rıza’s nephew, draws attention that women has a firm stance in Alevism. While Menşure emphasizing the struggle for survival of women at Dersim 38 Resistance, refers to followings:

'' My grandma lived a hundred and ten years. Her husband and her children died in 38 Dersim genocide. Her uncle, after losing Seyit Rıza, had to hide constantly as he was  from Seyit Rıza's family. From my grandma's family no one was left. All were killed with bayonet or bombed or hung... The villagers had hidden our family. After  the amnesty; our families, my grandma had been sent into exile . Altough my grandma was far away she took refuge to sanctums. She prayed to Ana Fatma and was said to God;'' In the other world I will  call  to account . I will ask you why did you give me all of these sufferings. After we were grown up  when  she told us that  violence We were saying to her that  'you were obdurate! ' how could you stand up all of those sufferings. But she,said that 'Shut up,it is sin, do not say so. I had to survive. I had to take care of the rest of our relatives' .

‘She damned her tongue in order to not to speak Turkish’

Seyit Rıza's nephew Menşure Doğan  said since they have been lived in exile her grandma has not spoken any Turkish word and Menşure adds eventhough her grandma knew Turkish she did not speak Turkish. Menşure says ‘’ My grandma damned her tongue in order to not to speak any Turkish word. they were sent away us from our homeland. But they can not make us forget our language and culture'

‘A life without losing your language and faith …’

Menşure emphasizing that her grandma constantly advise them that not to forget their language also she underlines that her grandma did not find it true that youngs marry Turks even her grandma  wanted to block those marriages. About ethnic background  Menşure says followings:

‘In response to those who says what is the difference between Turk or Kurds we say followings:’

 ‘If you forget your Turkish identity then we forget that our Kurdish identity. After we forget our identity ,we can do a new etnic background for ourselves. But we know that they do not accept. And also we do not accept. Our only wish for new generation is continued for further life in the egalitarian life without losing their faith, their origin ,their language.” 

Photo -Camera: Zehra DOĞAN

(zd/gk/hp)