One of the leading figures of the Kurdistan Freedom Movement, Xalide Engîzek, spoke about Berfîn Nûrhaq (also known as Hanım Xanê Demir), who was martyred in a Turkish state airstrike targeting the Medya Defense Areas on 13 December 2021. Engîzek underlined that Berfîn Nûrhaq, who was martyred in the line of duty, was a fighter whose place cannot easily be filled, stressing that her martyrdom represents a profound cost for both the Kurdistan Freedom Movement and the Kurdish people.
Engîzek said that Martyr Berfîn stood out as an exemplary figure through her struggle, labor, sacrifice, stance, and comradeship, adding that Berfîn Nûrhaq left a lasting mark on the Kurdistan Freedom Movement as a pioneering woman.
Engîzek made the following remarks on Martyr Berfîn Nûrhaq: “First of all, I commemorate Comrade Berfîn with respect and gratitude on the anniversary of her martyrdom, and I bow respectfully before her memory. Without a doubt, Comrade Berfîn was a comrade whose heart beat for freedom in our history of struggle, and who fought for this cause for 32 years. Until her martyrdom, she served in the most difficult areas and always joined the struggle without hesitation, with enthusiasm and determination. Not for a single day, not for a single moment, did the smile ever leave her face. For this reason, Comrade Berfîn left her mark on the Kurdistan freedom struggle and the women’s freedom struggle as a dignified, honorable, courageous, humble figure, a dervish, a sage warrior. I consider myself very fortunate to have known Comrade Berfîn and to have shared comradeship with her.”
Her family and our people cannot be proud enough of Comrade Berfîn
Engîzek also said: “I often thought about Comrade Berfîn. A person could only be this worthy of the efforts invested by Abdullah Öcalan. She truly lived up to that effort and developed herself accordingly. Comrade Berfîn had found a place in all of our hearts. For this reason, her martyrdom was extremely heavy for us; it challenged us deeply and affected us profoundly. She was a great value of our struggle. For this reason, Comrade Berfîn’s family, our people, and all oppressed peoples should be proud of her to the very end. I once again extend my condolences to Comrade Berfîn’s family. They should be proud of such a great revolutionary. She followed in the footsteps of Besê Anuş, Atakan, Erdal, and Kasım. She became a revolutionary and left her mark on our struggle. For this reason, the people of Kurdistan and Comrade Berfîn’s family cannot be proud of her enough.”
She joined after being inspired by Martyr Zîlan’s action
Engîzek said: “Comrade Berfîn joined the movement in 1997, one year after the action carried out by Martyr Zîlan. The years between 1996 and 1998, apart from the final tunnel wars, were the heaviest period of our struggle. An international conspiracy was underway; they wanted to eliminate Abdullah Öcalan. An assassination attempt had taken place in Damascus, and in response to this attack, Martyr Zîlan carried out a self-sacrificial action. Our war in the mountains was being waged at the highest level. At the same time, certain acts of betrayal and liquidation were also unfolding. During that period, Comrade Berfîn was studying at university and taking part in youth work. She was fully aware of the struggle and of what was happening. Martyr Zîlan’s action had a profound impact on our movement and became a turning point against attacks targeting Öcalan and against internal betrayal. Abdullah Öcalan himself defined Martyr Zîlan’s action as a manifesto on how we should live and how we should fight.
Comrade Berfîn was already within the struggle at that time and closely followed the developments. She was deeply influenced by Martyr Zîlan’s action. There was armed conflict both with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and with the Turkish state, which firmly believed it could eliminate the movement. It was precisely at this moment, in 1997, during the most difficult phase of the war, that Comrade Berfîn joined the movement. She left university in her fourth year and joined the guerrilla. She researched the party and read extensively. She already had a strong foundation of patriotism, but she also sought to understand the party and Abdullah Öcalan, making a conscious and ideological choice. She set out on the path of struggle for the freedom of Kurdistan, for the existence and freedom of the Kurdish people, and for a free life for women.”
Engîzek also said: “Immediately after joining the party, she moved directly to the area where Abdullah Öcalan was active and received leadership education there. She developed herself further in ideological and organizational terms, then went to the mountains with a group of comrades. She carried out her first guerrilla activities in the Metîna area. Between 1997 and 1998, Abdullah Öcalan sent comrades to the mountains in groups. Particular importance was placed on the development of the women’s forces. Comrades who had reached a certain ideological level were deployed as teams so that they could bring about change and transformation, assume their roles in life, challenge male-dominated mentalities, and create transformation in the style of warfare.
After Martyr Zîlan’s action, Abdullah Öcalan focused even more on the women’s question. For this reason, major changes took place within the movement with the establishment of the Free Women’s Units of Kurdistan (YAJK). After completing leadership education, Comrades Sarya, Baran, and Berfîn moved to the Metîna area. When you read what Comrade Berfîn wrote in her diary about guerrilla life, you see how deeply she fell in love with the mountains and with guerrilla existence. As a woman, the way she gives meaning to the mountains and to guerrilla life could not be expressed more accurately.
In Kurdistan, nothing can be achieved without struggle; not even breathing is possible. The form of struggle in Kurdistan is guerrilla warfare in the mountains. This carries deep historical meaning, because our ancestors always turned to the mountains in times of hardship to sustain their existence. At the same time, contemporary guerrilla warfare defines the mountains of Kurdistan as a strategic advantage.”
Enemy-bound anger as vast as the Amanos
Engîzek said: “Guerrilla life is not limited to taking positions or fighting the enemy. It is a communal way of life, a revolutionary way of living, and a measure for relations between women and men. Guerrilla life reveals the ability to build relationships, the capacity to lead, the power to fight, and the skill to use terrain; it reflects collective strength and communality. Everything in guerrilla life lays itself bare in such a way that life is not complicated. The more you understand it and the more you participate, the more you truly exist. Comrade Berfîn understood this very well and gave it deep meaning.
She approached everything with gentleness and purpose. Whether it was a flower, a living being, a tree, or a comrade, she treated everyone and everything with care and awareness. This was precisely what set Comrade Berfîn apart.
At the same time, she carried an anger as immense as the Amanos Mountains, the Taurus Mountains, and the Nûrhaq Mountains. She recognized the reality of the enemy, understood the reality of assimilation, and carried a deep rage against oppression directed at women and against the male-dominated system. In this sense, one could only live with such awareness to that degree. She held both a profound anger and a clear consciousness of the enemy reality and patriarchal domination. At the same time, Comrade Berfîn possessed the ability to win people over and to help recreate them anew.
Comrade Berfîn acted consciously in her choices and in the criteria of struggle. As a pioneering woman in the Kurdistan freedom struggle and the women’s freedom struggle, she stood out as an example, in guerrilla life and warfare, in leadership, and as a comrade. Through her way of life, her relationships, and her approach, she demonstrated what a free life should look like. She first built the values she defended within herself; she practiced them before anything else. What was necessary was expressed through what she did. Comrade Berfîn had clarified her criteria of freedom, and her ideas were clear. For this reason, her life, her approach, and her comradeship were deeply inspiring.”
Martyred while on duty
Engîzek said: “Comrade Berfîn had stayed in Shaho together with Comrade Jiyan. Whenever I spoke about Comrade Jiyan, her beauty as a woman, her leadership, comradeship, labor, and the struggle she carried out, I would think that a person could not praise a comrade more than that. Comrade Berfîn was in love with Shaho. She carried out guerrilla activity and practice there. She spoke constantly about Shaho, its flowers, its mountains, its trees, its stones, everything. There was Metîna once, and Shaho twice. These two regions held a special place for Comrade Berfîn. One was where she first became a guerrilla, the other was where she first assumed responsibility. Whenever she spoke about these two areas, she truly did them justice.
After every period of practice, we would come together with Comrade Berfîn. I first met her in 2000. We saw each other again five years later. For two or three years, we served in the same leadership, working together within the Free Women’s Units (YJA Star) leadership. We also received training together during the Zeynep Kınacı Training Period. The last time we saw each other was in 2019. After that, we were assigned to different areas of work and never had the chance to meet again. We were serving within the YJA Star. For a period, she worked within the Medya Defense Areas Command, and later within the YJA Star Headquarters Command. She was also involved in both the Şehîd Bêrîtan Training and Apollon Training programs. It was during that period that she was martyred together with Comrade Sema in an airstrike.
I did not have the opportunity to personally know Comrade Sema. On this occasion, I commemorate Comrade Sema with respect and bow before her memory.”
Comrade Berfîn’s martyrdom is a very heavy price for us
Engîzek said: “As I said, Comrade Berfîn was martyred while on duty, while continuing her educational work. Without a doubt, Comrade Berfîn’s martyrdom affected me very deeply. For the Women’s Freedom Movement, for our Freedom Movement, and for our people, her martyrdom was a very heavy price. She is not a comrade whose place can easily be filled. In every phase of our struggle and in every place, we will take Comrade Berfîn’s stance as our example. As a pioneering woman, she left her mark on the Women’s Freedom Movement and will live on forever within our Kurdistan Freedom Movement. She was always a symbol of comradeship, labor, sacrifice, and humility. This is how we will always remember her, and she will always have a place in our hearts.
On the basis of our commitment to the martyrs, embodied in Comrade Berfîn, we will fulfill the duties and responsibilities that fall upon us. We will continue the struggle until the physical freedom of Abdullah Öcalan is secured, and until the free Kurdistan and the free people for whom she was martyred are brought into being. We will always keep Comrade Berfîn alive in our hearts, in our minds, and in our struggle, and we will certainly carry her goals to success.”