Journalist Nûjiyan Erhan reached Shengal during the August 3, 2014 genocide and became the voice of the Yazidi people, especially Yazidi women, through her camera and pen. She laid the foundation and organization of the Free Press in Shengal.
When Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP)-affiliated Roj mercenaries attempted to attack Shengal on March 3, 2017, the local population and Yazidi women organized a march to protest and prevent their entry. However, the Roj mercenaries responded to the protest with gunfire, directly targeting journalists and Yazidi women.
Journalist Nûjiyan Erhan, who was covering the protest, was also targeted in the attack and was seriously injured. After days of struggling for her life, she lost her life on March 22 in a hospital in Rojava. Her body was laid to rest at the Martyr Dilgeş and Martyr Berxwedan Cemetery on Mount Shengal.
Today, members of the Shengal Free Press and Yazidi women visited her grave, laid flowers, and delivered a statement.
The statement of the Yazidi Women’s Press was read by Hêvîdar Şengalî, who said: “We commemorate our comrade Nûjiyan Erhan, a revolutionary journalist of the Free Press. In her person, we honor the martyrs of the Xanesor resistance, the martyrs of the Free Press, and the martyrs of the 74th genocide. In the spirit of Nûjiyan, we promise to continue the struggle for truth on the path of the free press until the end.
We mark the 9th anniversary of the martyrdom of our comrade Nûjiyan. With her revolutionary character, dedication and work, comrade Nûjiyan earned a special place both in our hearts and in our society. During the genocide, she came to Shengal from the free mountains. With her pen and camera, she brought the reality of the genocide to the world. She walked the path of the struggle for truth to become the voice of the pain, wounds and resistance of women, children and our mothers.
Today, hundreds of children in Ezidxan bear the name Nûjiyan. As the women’s press, we continue the struggle for truth along the line of Free Journalism built on the truth of Nûjiyan. On the basis of her legacy, we organized ourselves and established our own structure as the press of Yazidi women. Comrade Nûjiyan was the light of truth. She was the daughter of Mount Shengal and the journalist of the sacred lands of Ezidxan.
Our journalist and comrade Nûjiyan was targeted and martyred in 2017 while following the truth of the resistance during the war of betrayal. Nine years ago, during the Xanesor resistance, journalist Nûjiyan was killed in an attack by Roj Peshmerga forces affiliated with the KDP. We will never forget those who targeted and killed comrade Nûjiyan, and we will never allow them to be forgotten.
Today, once again, our society faces great dangers. As the Shengal Free Press, we must uphold our work like journalist Nûjiyan, expose the plans targeting our society, and become the voice of our own people.
Once again, we commemorate our comrade and journalist of the Free Press with respect and honor, and we renew our promise to the martyrs of the path of truth. With this belief and determination, we say: In the spirit of Nûjiyan, we will continue the struggle for truth and freedom until the end. With Nûjiyan’s pen and camera, the truth of Yazidi women will meet a free life.”