Redwan Adalat - Humans of Kurdistan

"In 1974 I was employed at the College of Sciences with Dr. Hadi. Not long after that I was transferred to the Book house with Ibrahim Amin Baldar, the teacher who taught us our ABCs. He traveled to Germany to bring a printing machine. Initially, it was just me and a few other people who started working at the printing house, but later we grew to 50 people. Kamaran Mukri was also supervising us. It was the only printing house in Sulaimani University. Our first publication was Sulaimani’s telephone guide. Gradually, the printing house grew and they brought new machines and all the printing necessities, until we became a great printing house. I worked there for a long time, but later moved to the Sulaimani Public Library. Dr. Fazil Hama Qaftan was the administrator of the Sulaimani library then." ...

Apr 22 2020

April 22, 2020

"We were not here in 2004, we lived in the areas around Khurmal, Halabja, and Hawraman. I came to Sulaimani, I was young then and the currency had recently changed. I realized I only had 500 dinars. I had gotten a new job and I was supposed to go to work. It was my first time in Sulaimani and I didn’t know my way around. I took the wrong bus and only realized it when I got down, so I had to walk. When I got to work, it was already 11:00, I was supposed to be there at 7:00. They got really mad at me… I have been working since then and have been able to create a new life for myself." ...

Apr 22 2020

April 22, 2020

"My wife has been at a mental hospital since December, she has a mental illness. I have four kids; two sons and two daughters. I take the boys out with myself every day, they are not doing well either, they have the same illness. I leave my daughters at home even though the doctor said they might have it as well...

Apr 21 2020

April 21, 2020

"I was accepted at grade half at Chwarta school when I was a kid, Abdulwahid Nuri was a teacher there, he was a communist. We were 3-4 kids with my uncle, they told us you are too young so we will put you in grade half. We were 5 siblings, our parents died early on. We grew up in my uncle’s house, he raised us like his own children." "In 1945, I was still a kid, I was 13 years old then, I became a communist with the central committee. Since then, because of my affiliations, I saw prison, I endured suffering, I suffered many kinds of torture, and experienced criminal investigations, all the dreadful things happened to me. I was sentenced to prison in 1953 until Malik Faisal’s monarchy fell and Abdulkarim came to power. That is when we were freed." ...

Apr 20 2020

April 20, 2020

"I liked photography since primary school. I finished the College of Fine Arts at the end of 1989 and started photographing. I had decided that is what I want to do. It was 1993, I went to a wedding celebration in a village in Sharbazher. When I went to the house, they immediately called me, saying 'Kak Awat, come eat first, food is ready.' They brought me a huge amount of food on a tray, and I love food. After I ate, I came out of the house and I saw they had prepared food on the roof and they were just about to eat. When they saw me, they didn’t know I had already eaten, so they called me up to sit with them. So, I quietly sat there, and had that much food again. But when I got up to work, my eyes were wide open." "When the wedding started, I started taking photos, I found something very strange. I saw the groom had a crooked leg when he was standing with bride, but when he was dancing Halparke, he was fine. I couldn’t hold back and asked one of the people there 'why is he like that?” He said, 'He is a shepherd, he is always riding a donkey so his leg has taken that shape." ...

Apr 19 2020

April 19, 2020

"I have been trying to buy a house for a long time , but I have not been able to achieve that. I would try every way and would still fail; Whatever job I would start, I would lose a lot of money, It is very difficult to collect money. Before I opened this store, I would work with food a lot. But I didn't succeed. I rented a school cafeteria for 15 million IQDs a year, by the end of the year I only made 8 million IQDs. Half of it was just a loss. But thankfully we run this store with my brother now and it is much better than my previous jobs." ...

Apr 19 2020

April 19, 2020

"We are originally from Penjwen, but I was born in Sulaimani in 2004. I really hated studying from the beginning, I didn't like school. But I got to 4th grade and then I dropped out of school. I started working. Initially I would sell biscuits and stuff in the food stalls on the streets, then later I worked in a tea shop. This job is much better, but it's been a while since the shops have closed due to the Coronavirus. I am waiting for the shops to re-open, so I can make more money and change my motorbike." ...

Apr 18 2020

April 18, 2020

"My wife has been sick for a while now, she has a brain tumor. They have told me that even a surgery in the US will not be successful. It really troubles her at night, sometimes she cannot move at all.I started a family in 1975, but after 3 months I was sent to military service. It was mandatory and every young boy had to serve once they turned 18. But it was a very hard and upsetting service. I remember once a guy besides me laughed, the sergeant came over to him with his hands full of soil, he told him, 'Open your mouth!' He put the soil in his mouth and told him, 'now chew that well.'' ...

Apr 18 2020

April 18, 2020

"I have been working on wrought iron machinery in the bazar for 20 years. I always thank God because if we look back at Sharia law, we see that every problem has a solution, so I am never afraid. It's true that life is full of hardships, but I have tried to simplify things for myself. The one thing that always concerns me is raising my children because it is a difficult job. If I don't take care of them, it will get out of hands and it won't be the same anymore. Parents never realize that their children are growing up. I didn’t relate to that saying when people would tell me, but now I understand what it means." ...

Apr 17 2020

April 17, 2020

“Happy is the home that has good fortune', I always remind myself of this quote. Life is hard, but it needs hard work and effort. When I look back at my life, I realize I had no enjoyment. But I never gave in and still move forward. My daughter is a student, I put aside 2 million IQDs each year for her studies, just to see her have a bright future. I have been living in Sulaimani for 20 years, I swear my whole life has become work. It will affect me if I don’t work for a day. That is why I cannot make time for anything else. Who would understand this? No one, except yourself. But I never appear that way and always try to look cheerful.” ...

Apr 17 2020

April 17, 2020