EVÎN ZENDA

Shengal- Despite the special war policies carried out by the sovereign powers, the Yazidis of Shengal, particularly Yazidi women, show a great resistance not to leave their lands. The women, who make a living with their labor in Shengal, rebuild Shengal.

“Life gets better every year”

Delal Hesen is from Behrava village of Shengal. During the genocide committed by ISIS against them, she settled in the village of Xanesor. After living there for a while, she decided to return to her village in order to rebuild her life. Stating that they have a good life in Shengal, Delal Hesen said, “We struggle for life by workşng. Life in Shengal gets better every year. We have been planting cucumbers for two years. We also breed the sheep. Since we are in our own land, these are enough for us.”

 “The Yazidis will beautify Shengal”

Emphasizing that Shengal will only become more beautiful with the efforts of the people of Shengal, Delal Hesen said, “The Yazidis living in the Kurdistan Region say that Shengal is not beautiful and there is no job opportunity in Shengal. This is not true; people can rebuild the place where they live. You cannot expect someone to do this for you. You should work to rebuild your lives. The situation in Shengal is not different. If we do not work to rebuild Shengal, no one will rebuild it. Yazidis must stop fleeing and not live in other people's homelands. Shengal is our homeland. We had four houses and they were destroyed by ISIS. But we never give up on our homeland.”

Stating that she plants cucumbers along with her husband and daughter, Delal Hesen told us that they collect cucumbers in the morning. “Our land is our home,” she said, calling on the Yazidis living in the Kurdistan Region to return to their homeland. “They will return to their homeland sooner or later. The sooner they return, the better for them. They should not accept the pressure on them because the Yazidis never accept to bow down. We are here with our resistance and we will always be here.”