Redwan Adalat - Humans of Kurdistan

in Humans of West

“I am interested in collecting artworks and vintage goods, especially our ancestors’ memories. My father left me many things that he got from his grandfather. So, he has some goods that go back to 200 years ago. Preserving these vintage goods is my source of happiness. I used to roam around the market looking for vintage goods and artworks to buy and keep in my room. I have a special room for them now, you can smell the past in that room.I have a son who lives in Hawler. When he returned to Qamislo, he brought me a very old baby pillow. It made me really happy, because he knew how much I like old things. I will leave these for my children, and they will do the same for their children. This inheritance has to continue to be passed on and preserved forever.” ...

Aug 31 2020

August 31, 2020

in Humans of North

“I started medical work in Amed in 2012. I now work in a children’s clinic in the newborns department. At the same time, I lead the Amed Doctors Union. All over the world and in Kurdistan as well, a doctor’s work is not just being a doctor, because it is not just treating someone’s health. We fight for human rights as well.This job has its own difficulties. It’s true that it used to be very difficult, but it has increased even more now. Health departments in Kurdistan are currently under a lot of crises and issues.The Coronavirus was the most difficult for us and the problems are always on the rise. Health department workers used to work a lot, but the number of patients recently increased due to the Coronavirus, and their work increased along with that. We used to do one job, but now it’s two jobs and our work keeps increasing.” ...

Aug 31 2020

August 31, 2020

“All the things that have happened in my life have been much more compared to my age, sometimes I feel like I have lived longer. Whatever I have longed for or planned for, I have been able to achieve. Even with many barriers that have often stopped me or have made me wait, I have never regretted my goals. When I was 12 years old, I started playing music at Kaziwa, Kurdistan Save the Children and chose violin. My sister gifted me my first instrument. After a few years, I became a teacher there, which was one of my childhood goals...

Aug 30 2020

August 30, 2020

in Humans of East

“Before he wakes up in the morning, I find a way to sneak out of the house. But when I come home at noon, I have to take him to work with me. He holds on to the motorcycle and has learned to be careful. They have often told me that it is dangerous, but he will have an outburst if I don’t take him.We have planted strawberries with my father for many years. He stays with me and my father until the evening and gets busy with the strawberries. The bad thing is that he gets dirty and bored, so I have to take him back to his mother. On top of that, he prepares himself the next day to come to work with me. But it makes me happy that he is already my companion.” ...

Aug 29 2020

August 29, 2020

“I always dress in traditional Kurdish clothes when I go to visit someone or even when I go to the bazar. We are not Europeans, we are Kurds and we live among the mountains. It is a shame to ruin your own culture. I once went to Sulaimani for office work. I was standing at a pickles’ shop when I overheard a young boy tell his friend: Hama have you seen anything like this? He said: no. Then he said: who do you think it is? Hama said: It is either Sheikh Mahmood Namr or Khula Pisa.” “My name is Taha, I am better known as Mam Taha Shirayi. We have been a poor community, but we have become strong and powerful because we lived in the mountains.We have always served Peshmerga fighters and I have been a Peshmerga myself. No one should be disloyal to his nation. I love vintage things, I have a binocular that Mam Jalal gave to me and I still keep it. I have kept and preserved many of my old weapons. I have bullet belts from 1974. When the Baath government chemically bombed Balisan, we became homeless and moved to Betwata. The government blew up our house, saying it is government property. They buried many people alive, they did all kinds of terrible things to the Kurds.” ...

Aug 28 2020

August 28, 2020

in Humans of North

We used to do farming and herding, it has been almost two years that we have started farming again with six of my friends. We thought about starting herding again, but we came up with this new idea and started it. We saw the decrease in produce, so we started. People are successful when they have their own products. This is not just for an income, it is also to encourage people to go back to farming and production. Any country that doesn’t have products will cease to exist. That is why we value this work in Dersim and it is necessary for everyone to do something and produce something. ...

Aug 28 2020

August 28, 2020

in Humans of West

"I live in the city of Derek, I study Kurdish literature at the Rojava university in Qamislo. I started acting in 2016 through funny short videos. I also act in Kurdish short movies, sometimes taking the role of several characters. I publish my work in my personal Facebook and YouTube accounts. I recorded only 20 episodes in the month of Ramadan. But I do not have access to a recording camera and laptop for montage. So, I do everything with my phone. That is where it gets difficult. I have been able to make a lot of people happy through my content and that makes me very glad. I hope that in the future, Kurds can also have their own cinema that is echoed around the world." ...

Aug 27 2020

August 27, 2020

in Humans of East

"I was born in Bijar, a small city in Eastern Kurdistan. My studies didn’t last long because I was a mischievous student and I gave it up early on. I did various jobs, from a teashop worker to an officer and even a dam worker. My recklessness took me to prison and introduced me to the different kinds of people in society. But I have always tried to stay clean and not be hooked on any job that I will regret later, even though my appearance says otherwise.I have been an ironworker for a few years now, I get my income from it and I love my job.My name is Ibrahim, but I have been called Ibra so much that I have forgotten my actual name." ...

Aug 27 2020

August 27, 2020

"When the Kurdish authority ceased in Kirkuk, I didn’t stay there anymore. I have been living in Erbil for a few years, I liked Erbil even as a child. Erbil is honestly the city of inclusivity, I am very happy here. They have never regarded me as a non-Hawleri since I have been here. I stay at a hotel for free and there is a restaurant whose owner hasn’t made me pay since I have been here.I was a political prisoner and my body still has signs of torture. I do not have a single Dinar for a salary. I hope one day I can be heeded to so that I don’t look for others to support me and I can stand on my own feet." ...

Aug 26 2020

August 26, 2020

"When birds grow, you can train them to stay around you and not fly far off. But I start training them before they can fly. That is for them to realize that I give them freedom and show them the places. At the same time, I train them to stay with me and not fly away. I teach the birds to live outside the cages.My love for animals started at an early age. They have always given me a special feeling. Back when we lived in Baghdad, we had a big garden. Whatever animals I saw there, I would take care of, be it turtles, hedgehogs, dogs or cats. After we moved to Sulaimani, I didn’t have space to take care of animals, which was very difficult for me, it made me really upset." "Another terrible situation is when people ward off animals because of the Coronavirus. Someone told me of a family who had thrown out two birds and that their mother had died. This is terrible because these animals cannot give you the virus.Although I used to rescue cats and dogs more often, this year I am mostly rescuing birds. Once when it was windy, I had not closed my window well, it opened and one of my birds flew out, even though he didn’t mean to fly off because he still couldn’t fly well, but he had gone to a neighbor’s house. I found him in 24 hours through social media and animals’ organizations. I once took Ascander with me to a trip in nature. I saw that even though he was scared, he was still very happy to fly in nature. I got in contact with a few places after that so that they could publish Ascander’s story and show people that birds’ home is not a cage and you can train them to be free and stay with you as well." ...

Aug 25 2020

August 25, 2020