TRAUMATIC TALES: YAZIDI WOMEN AND THE ISIS

In the heart of the mountain valley of Lalish, of the Shekhan district in Iraq, lies the holy temple of the Yezidis. Stemming from the amalgamation of religions such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Zoratisnism, this sect finds itself caught up in the cross fires of faith and violence. This marginalised community is deemed as devil worshipping infidels due to their practice of idol worship of the peacock angel. However, ISIS does not simply stop at condemnation. A constant fear looms over their lives, as ISIS makes consistent attacks to tear families apart. Their agenda includes abducting women and children and trading them into sex slavery. While men are brutally executed, young boys are converted to Islam and made to fight as young soldiers of the ISIS.

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Traded like cattle in the streets of Baghdad, 7000 women and children have been kidnapped and 3000 of them still remain unaccounted for. A systematic tyranny occurs in the name of Islam by the so-called soldiers of the religion. Seen as infidels or ‘kafirs’, the minority religious groups are forced to convert to Islam, in order to save their lives. The mistreatment of Yazidi women and children is a part of such a structured conversion scheme. The act of raping a woman is seen as a mechanism of escalating fear in the hearts of their relatives at the same time exercising control over their minds. Institutionalized rape is also seen as a method of recruiting young men in the name of Jihad. Islam, a religion which considers sex outside marriage as a taboo, the quick availability of women serves as a lucrative incentive.

But what serves as an inducement for some, proves to be a punishment for others. Even though the victims are being accepted back into the community, this reunion is not whole hearted. Children born out of rape and their mothers are repeatedly stigmatized by the Yazidi community. The Yazidis are a conservative group where the major decision-making power lies with the religious heads. Hence children born out of rape who are not completely Yazidi are considered to be a taboo. Women who undergo pregnancy upon return are repeatedly abused and shunned in public as well as private spheres of the community.

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Such cold- shouldered behavior leaves women with only two choices - abortion or adoption agencies. However, the women who chose to undergo the procedure, do not have the privilege to raise the child. The best option in such a case, is to give up the child for adoption, only to never see them again. In most cases, no follow ups are carried out, and mothers are left with no contact with their children for the rest of their lives.

The loss of a child is not the only trauma that they have to go through. A persistent exposure to violence at the hands of their captors leaves these women psychologically scarred for life. Many of the recently rescued women, face a hard time returning to their daily lives. Cases of PTSD (Post traumatic stress disorder) are extremely high among the population, as many of them even refuse to leave their refugee camps and go back to their devastated homelands. However, the aid for their physical and mental well-being seems to be insufficient. Despite the Iraqi government working towards restoring the ruined cities, the assistance provided to victims are mainly centric towards redevelopment, and in most cases doesn’t address mental health issues faced by the victims of war. Rarely a ray of hope appears for these women, when international NGOs choose to intervene in the matter.

The government too lacks to take the necessary action against the criminals. Some of the militants who have been under trial were accused of war crimes and genocide but never for rape and other inhumane crimes that they might have committed. Given the extent of the mass exodus that occurred, procuring evidence against a particular criminal seems tedious, hence many of them are easily let down.

But the question is, is there hope for these survivors? With several political actors in play, the crisis faced by these women is being manipulated to serve the selfish purposes of leaders. The traditionalist outlook on part of the Yazidi community, only hinders the situation. However, many Yazidi women have broken barriers and defied traditions by taking up initiatives themselves. Among them are Nijla Hussin and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad who have become the voice of these women at various regional, international forums and have contributed tremendously to this cause. However, the fight for justice must go on. Issues such as acceptance of children born out of rape and the mental health of the victims still need to be addressed. A global initiative and more active assistance from the government is what these women are looking for.

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By Kritika Karmakar
B.A. in International Relations at the Jindal School of International Affairs

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