Derya Ren 

 

RIHA — The rosary that Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan gave to Seher Sarıçiçek, a rebellious Turkmen woman from Xelfetî, 53 years ago, holds sentimental value and has become part of "a novel with no end."

 

Memory and memories carry hope into the future. They are life, sacrifice, and truth. Carrying a memory gives voice to life and builds the future. It is an embroidery and an epic; it is being part of an "unfinished novel." Seher Sarıçiçek, the rebellious Turkmen woman from Xelfetî, carries the most precious memory. She is the mother of Hüseyin Sarıçiçek, childhood friend of Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, and mother-in-law of Hasan Bindal.

 

She was born in Xelfetî, a predominantly Kurdish and Turkmen district. Due to her indomitable character and the suffering she endured, as well as the heroes she witnessed, she is now, at the age of 93, everyone's Seher Ana.

 

I first heard Seher Mom’s name in 2021 while traveling to Amara. As soon as I heard her name and story, I told my traveling companion, "This is a story that needs to be told." We met that same year. Although Seher Ana greeted us with tearful eyes, the light of hope in her eyes stayed with me forever.

 

I want to tell her story, honor the heroes she saw, and preserve the memory she carries, inspired by the hope I saw in her eyes.

 

The Intersection of Seher Mom and the Kurdish People's Leader 

 

Seher Mom, the mother of Hüseyin Sarıçiçek (also known as Orhan-Cibînli Hüseyin), who was known in PKK history as the "Mobile Guerrilla" and lost his life in Geliyê Jîrkî on March 18, 1988, was born in the village of Cibîn in the Xelfetî district of Riha, an area predominantly inhabited by Kurds and Turkmens. Cibîn is a neighboring village of Amara, where Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan was born. It was previously predominantly inhabited by Armenians, and traces of them remain to this day. The proximity of the villages and the location of the school in Cibîn led to the paths of Seher Mom and Abdullah Öcalan crossing.

 

Witnessing Comradeship

 

Abdullah Öcalan and Hasan Bindal meet Hüseyin Sarıçiçek in the village of Cibîn, where they go to attend elementary school. Following this encounter, they begin to visit Hüseyin Sarıçiçek's home frequently; through this, Seher Mom has the opportunity to get to know both Abdullah Öcalan and Hasan Bindal closely. After school, Seher Ana would make them food and tea at the house where the three friends would gather, witnessing the deep friendship that developed between them, unaware that it would evolve into a deep comradeship in the years to come.

 

A memory of Abdullah Öcalan 

 

In the years that followed, although Seher Mom did not see Abdullah Öcalan, she received news of him from her son Hüseyin and later from Hasan Bindal, who married her daughter Meryem, and sent him her regards.

 

Abdullah Öcalan was arrested in April 1972 for protesting the murder of Mahir Çayan and his friends and distributing leaflets, and spent seven months in Mamak Military Prison. After his release from prison, he returned to Amara and visited Seher Mom, who was staying in Cibîn. During this visit, the Kurdish People's Leader gave her a rosary made from olive pits as a gift. Seher Ana, who kept the gift with her for 53 years, shared that many people asked for the rosary, but she said, “My son Evdila (Abdullah Öcalan) gave it to me, I won't give it to anyone.”

 

A Priceless Memory

 

During our visit to her home, we learned that Seher Mom had Alzheimer's and was having trouble remembering things. Yet as soon as we showed her a photo of Abdullah Öcalan, she said, "Apo is my son. He and Hüseyin were comrades." She stared at the photo for a long time and sighed. She touched the photo to her fading lips over and over again and smelled it. With every glance at the photo, the light of hope burning in her eyes sharpens. She looked at the photo and sighed. With each sigh, she smiles hopefully as if her experiences are unfolding before her eyes, one by one. The light in her eyes shines even brighter.

 

'I won't give the prayer beads to anyone'

 

I ask her about the rosary as she looks at the photo. She says she doesn't remember where she put them. Despite not being able to walk, she leans on her cane and starts rummaging through the drawers in her room. She says, "I won't give the rosary to anyone."

 

The power of precious memories

 

When we ask Seher Mom's granddaughter where the rosary are, she hesitates to talk in front of her. She gestures for us not to ask. Even though Seher Ana keeps asking us about the topic we're discussing, she hasn't forgotten the memories she shared with Abdullah Öcalan, her son Hüseyin Sarıçiçek, and Hasan Bindal...

 

As we leave Seher Mom, I look at the sharpness in her eyes again and again... As soon as we leave her house, I ask about the rosary again. She says that because Seher Mom is sick, her daughter Meryem took the rosary and brought it to Germany. But she asks us not to tell Seher Mom that the rosary was taken to Germany. I realize the magnitude and significance of this memory, which she has kept hidden for 53 years and sees as a part of herself. Sometimes memories become the breath of life and part of the journey, becoming one with time itself.

 

As I leave, thinking about the grandeur of the memory that Seher Ana never tires of protecting and keeping alive, I say, “Here are the heroes of the unfinished novel, writing a new history.”