WATCH: British officials join London Kurdish community to celebrate Newroz

Members of the Kurdish community in London held receptions for the Kurdish New Year, known as Newroz, with many British parliament members and other officials joining them to celebrate the occasion.
kurdistan24.net

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Members of the Kurdish community in London held receptions for the Kurdish New Year, known as Newroz, with many British parliament members and other officials joining them to celebrate the occasion. 

Among the attendees were Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, Shadow Secretary of State for International Development Dan Carden, Lord Wallace of Saltaire, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) High Representative to the UK Karwan Jamal Tahir, and many other lawmakers, assembly members, trade union officials, and prominent members of the London Kurdish community.

The events were organized by the Centre for Kurdish Progress in partnership with the Association of Kurdish Employers in Europe and the Kurdish People’s assembly in Britain and were held on Wednesday and Friday at the Attlee Suite conference rooms in the Houses of Parliament and at City Hall.

During the receptions, the award for “Most Successful Kurds in Britain” was granted to several Kurdish citizens in the country for their various accomplishments.

“I want to say thank you to the Kurdish community all over Britain for the contribution you make to our lives and to our society,” Jeremy Corbyn said on Wednesday during the reception in the House of the Parliament.

“The Kurdish people were shortchanged during the conference of Versailles at the end of the first world war when all those maps have had new lines drawn upon them by the powers, the Kurdish people were briefly offered their hope for their opportunity their place and their own country it was taken away shortly afterwards in the 1920s and ever since then, there's been this thirst for the recognition of the rights of Kurdish people,” he added.

Newroz marks the coming of Spring and the start of a new year. Every year, the Kurds celebrate Newroz from March 21 until March 23.

For the Kurdish people, Newroz is an event which symbolizes the revolution and struggle of Kurds throughout history. It is one of the most popular festivals for them and the celebration of the event tends to grow every year. 

Editing by John J. Catherine