It has been 43 years since Besê Anuş, the first woman to lose her life in the Kurdish Freedom struggle, became immortal. The courage of Besê Anuş has an important place in the Kurdish freedom struggle, continues to be a source of inspiration for Kurdish and Alevi women. The courage of Anuş, who conveyed her will to her friends and people by a fire with the words "If I am martyred, I believe there will be hundreds of women who will raise my weapon", during the torture sessions still gives courage to all women, especially the women of Bazarcix, where she was born.

 

SHE DID NOT SUBMIT TO TORTURE

 

Besê was born in 1960 in Mıstoli hamlet, Esmapur (Karaağaç) District, Bazarcix district of Mereş. Besê, who fit great rebellions into her short life, was born as the sixth child of a family of 5 children. Later, she settled in Bazarcix with her family and studied secondary school here. In 1977, she married Mehmet Gencer. The story that led Besê, who lived a life outside of a classical marriage, to a rebellion like the meaning of her name, began in these years.

 

In 1977, Besê, who married Mehmet Gencer, left school in her last year of secondary school. Rejecting marriages in society and living as two comrades, Besê and Mehmet continued their revolutionary activities. When the name PKK began to be heard on November 27, 1978, Besê was one of the first women to recognize the PKK. The developments that led her to this rebellion were the Mereş Massacre, which is considered the beginning of the process leading to the September 12 coup. Besê, who started to take more part in revolutionary activities after the massacre, was detained in the operation that started in Bazarcix after the establishment of the PKK was announced. She was tortured.

 

Besê, who concentrated more on her revolutionary work after her release, was detained during the military coup of September 12, 1980 and tortured until her entire body was bruised.

 

THOUSANDS BID FAREWELLED

 

After her release, Besê was detained again in a new detention frenzy. When she did not speak, she was released again, but this time she went to the countryside, which she wanted very much, and joined the PKK. Besê lost her life in a conflict in March 1981 in the area known as "Little Castle" on the Aksu Stream, which passes between the Musolar (Payamlıbağ) and Şoiyon (Şallıuşağı) neighborhoods of Bazarcix. Approximately 3 thousand people attended Besê's funeral.

 

Besê Anuş has been an inspiration to millions of women in the 43 years since she became immortal. Today, the Kurdish women's movement has spread the women's struggle led by Anuş to the world by integrating it with the “Jin, Jiyan Azadî” philosophy of PKK Leader Abdullah Ocalan.