The word serhildan describes several Kurdish protests and uprisings since the 1990s that used the slogan "Êdî Bese" ("Enough") against Turkey. Local shops are often closed on the day of demonstrations as a form of protest.
Protests are held every year on 15 February, the date of Abdullah Öcalan's capture, and during Newroz on 21 March, the Kurdish New Year.
The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has thus far refused to acknowledge the demands of the protests, calling them a conspiracy by an alleged Ergenekon–PKK axis.
Etymology The word serhildan consists of the Kurdish Kurmanji words ser that means head and hildan that means raise. So the meaning is "rising" or "rebellion". In Zazaki the word for "rebellion" is Serewedaritiş.
Serhildan is sometimes translated as meaning the "Kurdish intifada".
History
After the large Kurdish rebellions in the early to mid 20th century - the Koçkiri rebellion, the Sheikh Said rebellion, the Ararat rebellion and the Dersim rebellion - the first of a series of violent actions by the populace against police officers and state institutions in modern times occurred in 1990 in the Southeast Anatolian town of Nusaybin near the border with Syria. The rebellion in Nusaybin marked the beginning of what is sometimes called the serhildan. During the following days the riots expanded to nearby Mardin and to the neighbouring provinces of Batman, Diyarbakır, Siirt, Şanlıurfa and Şırnak. Later they also took in other Eastern Anatolian provinces such as Bingöl, Bitlis, Hakkâri, Muş and Van, as well as cities such as Ankara, Istanbul, İzmir and Mersin.
Since the major riots in 1990 rebellions sometimes occur sporadically, especially after the killing of PKK fighters, around 21 March (Newroz) or on 27 November (the date of the establishment of the PKK). Riots began again at the end of November 2009 and continued without interruption until mid-December. Rioters were protesting that the prison cell of Abdullah Öcalan on İmralı island was too small. Following the closure of the Kurdish party DTP on 11 December 2009 the situation worsened and cost three people their lives. A 23-year-old Kurdish student was killed by a police officer in Diyarbakır. The other two were killed by a shopkeeper in Bulanık after his shop was pelted with Molotov cocktails by the rebels. About 50 people were injured in the riots and over 100 people were arrested.
Timeline
1990–1999 14 March 1990, about 5,000 protesters gathered at the funeral of a PKK fighter in Nuseybin. Protesters were fired upon by Turkish troops, over 700 were arrested. 15 March 1990, about 15,000 protesters in Cizre clashed with police. 5 protesters were killed, 80 injured and 155 arrested. A total of 200 were arrested that day. 21 March 1990, widespread protests in all South-Eastern cities in connection with Newroz. 2 June 1990, during a march by 2000 Iraqi Kurdish refugees, clashes with security forces resulted in the injury of a policeman and five protesters 2 March 1991, over 1000 rioters fought the Turkish military with stones and sticks in Diyarbakir. One soldier and two protesters were injured, another soldier and two protesters were killed. 7 March 1991, nearly 2,000 Kurdish villagers marching in Dargecit were fired on by police. Rioting erupted in which many were injured and 100 were arrested. 9 March 1991, over 1,000 protesters including members of the HEP protested against the killing of a woman by police during a riot. 15 March 1991, police fired at over 1,000 protesters, injuring many and arresting over 200. 20 March 1991, Turkey allowed Nowruz to be celebrated openly for the first time. Despite this, riots erupted in many villages in which police fired at protesters. 10 July 1991, police clashed with over 25,000 protesters who were shouting pro-PKK slogans at the funeral of assassinated HEP chairman Vedat Aydın. 12 were killed and 122 wounded. 27 November 1991, more than 1,500 shops were closed in Bismil and Idil to mark the PKK's 13th anniversary. 10 December 1991, 5,000 students in Diyarbakir boycotted classes in protest of the killing of a fellow student by Turkish security forces. 21 February 1992, some 70 rioters clashed with Turkish police in Mardin, one protester was killed and two were injured. 21 March 1992, in an event later known as "bloody newroz" tens of thousands of Kurds took to the streets all over Turkey to celebrate Nowruz and clashed with the military. Reports indicated that President Suleyman Demirel ordered the military not to attack civilians, however the army refused to obey these orders and attacked the protests. In several towns including Şırnak and Kulp, the demonstrators were bombed by airraids. In Sirnak, were between 500 and 1,500 PKK fighters entered the town to fight the police, the security forces went on a rampage for 22 hours in which most of the town was destroyed. At least 102 civilians were killed by the security forces, at least 26 of which were in Sirnak, 29 in Cizre, 14 in Nusaybin, one in İzmir and two in Adana. At least one soldier and one policeman were killed by rioters. Also numerous journalists were killed as the military set fire to them. Over 200 people were injured and over 2,000 were arrested. 6 April 1992, 60 protesters were arrested in Mersin because the government classified the protests as illegal. 15–16 August 1992, thousands of shops were closed and protests erupted all over the South-East to mark the 8th anniversary of the PKK's armed campaign. At least 5 protesters were killed and 130 arrested. 21 March 1993, in accordance with a PKK-government cease-fire, Nowruz celebrations were not attacked by the military. Several minor protests were however broken up. 14 August 1993, police forces opened fire at a Kurdish protest in Digor, killing 10 and wounding 51 protesters. 3 August 1994, Kurds protested the trial of 6 Democracy Party politicians, for treason. 19 May 1995, over 1,000 Kurds demonstrate against the killing of a Kurd by Turkish government linked death squads. 15 February 1999, massive riots broke out in all major cities of the country as Kurds protested Abdullah Öcalan's arrest. Over 1,000 protesters were arrested during clashes with security forces. 21 March 1999, large unrest broke out on Nowruz and police put the South-East under a virtual state of siege. Eyewitnesses reported police and military active in every city. In Istanbul, over 1,000 people were arrested as protesters exchanged gunfire with security forces several times. In Başkale, a suicide bomber killed himself and injured 3 people during the protests and in Mardin a bomb damaged a pipeline. There were sporadic clashes in other cities. In Diyarbakır alone, over 4,000 people were detained.
2000–2010 21 February 2000, in Diyarbakır, 1,500 people rallied to protest the detention of three Kurdish mayors by the Turkish state. 25 November 2000, Turkish police prevented hundreds of Kurds from going to Ankara for a protest. 3 February 2001, 60 demonstrators are arrested in Siirt for protesting against the mysterious disappearance of People's Democracy Perty (HADEP), party workers on 25 January. 5 February 2001, 16 activists are detained during protests in Batman, against the disappearance of HADEP members on 15 January. 6 February 2001, during a sixth day of protests, police break up crowds in Diyarbakir. 15 February 2001, police arrested over 100 people in demonstrations marking the second anniversary of Abdullah Ocalan's capture. 21 March 2001, over 100 people are arrested during Nowruz celebrations in Istanbul. 28 July 2001, during a festival in Tunceli, police tried to prevent a HADEP politician from addressing the crowd. The crowd responded by pelting police with stones, resulting in the injury of eight policemen and one member of the crowd. 31 August 2001, thousands gathered in Diyarbakir to travel to Ankara to celebrate World Peace Day on 1 September. Turkish authorities however tried to prevent them from entering busses and clashes erupted in which 19 people were injured. 25 January 2002, a demonstration was staged in Siirt marking the 1-year anniversary of the disappearance of 2 HADEP politicians. Police tried to break up the crowd and during clashes four policemen and four demonstrators were injured, 70 people were arrested. 21 March 2002, in Diyarbakir thousands of police clash with Kurds as authorities banned public Nowruz celebrations that year. 2 protesters were crushed to death during a police crackdown in Mersin. 27 March 2002, over 1,000 people including HADEP members marched to send a symbolical fax to parliament in Kurdish, calling on the parliament to legalize the use of the Kurdish language. Over 100, including several senior HADEP politicians were arrested during the march. 22 June 2005, Turkish police opened automatic gun-fire on 250 stone-throwing Kurdish protesters who tried to reclaim the bodies of two killed PKK-rebels. One protester was killed and seven people, including two journalists were injured. 20 November 2005, 12 Kurdish demonstrators are detained after hurling Molotov cocktails and stones at police in Istanbul. 21 November 2005, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan came to the Kurdish Southeast of Turkey to urge protesters to calm down, after weeks of rioting. He promised the protesters that his government would investigate charges that the Turkish Deep state and not Kurdish guerillas, were responsible for a recent, fatal, bombing. In the two weeks of rioting, a total of four protesters were killed. 22 November 2005, during protests, a gunman opened fire at a primary school, killing a teacher and injuring four people. 15 February 2006, protesters allegedly armed with stones and firebombs defended themselves against police all over the southeast to mark the 7th anniversary of Abdullah Öcalan's capture. 21 March 2006, over 100,000 Kurds came out in the streets celebrating Nowruz. During these celebrations they allegedly said pro-PKK slogans and called for the release of Abdullah Öcalan. 28 March 2006, thousands of protesters demonstrated at the funeral of 14 Kurdish soldiers that had been killed by the Turkish military on 25 March. The protesters allegedly hurled firebombs at police and police vehicle while smashing the windows of police stations to defend themselves. Over 40 people were injured, including two policemen who were allegedly stabbed by protesters and two were killed during the riots. 29 March 2006, during a second day of riots police used water cannons and pepper spray against protesters. An official said that three people had been killed and 250 had been injured, that day. 30 March 2006, over 20 people were injured in a third day of rioting, during which rioters hurled firebombs at the police and police opened fire on the crowds. 31 March 2006, a bomb explosion during riots in Istanbul left 1 dead and 13 injured. A total of 500 were injured during these 48 hours. 1 April 2006, fresh clashes erupted between protesters and security forces, which left one protester dead and over ten people injured. A total of 268 protesters had been arrested by 1 April. 2 April 2006, during the sixth day of violence, a protester was killed in the southeast as police opened fire to disperse crowds. In Istanbul a group of men poured gasoline into a bus and set it on fire as they pushed the vehicle into pedestrians, killing three people. The total death toll from 28 March to 2 April rose to 15. 21 March 2007, violence broke out during Nowruz celebrations. Over 100,000 people attended the celebrations in Diyarbakir and over 50,000 in Istanbul, where students unveiled a large portrait of Abdullah Öcalan, while the crowds chanted "Real democracy or nothing." In Mersin, over 1,000 Kurdish youths clashed with the police, while in İzmir a protester hit a bus with a molotov cocktail, setting the vehicle ablaze. Two buses were pelted with stones and sticks in Istanbul, injuring several passengers. At least 22 protesters were detained.