Hunger strike in Harringay following police raid on Kurdish Community Centre
A wave of protests has followed the closure of a decades-old centre providing essential services for Harringay’s Kurdish and Turkish residents
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The police takeover of a decades-old Kurdish Community Centre and the arrests of seven Kurdish community members on suspicion of terrorism have prompted a wave of protests across north London.
A crowd of Kurdish and Turkish protesters and other residents walked down Green Lanes in Harringay yesterday, demanding the centre’s re-opening and the release of those arrested during Wednesday’s police raid. By the evening, some protesters were camping outside the centre and had announced a hunger strike.
“The Metropolitan police carried out unprecedented and brutal raids on the Kurdish Community Centre,” said İshak Milani, co-chair of the Kurdish People’s Assembly, a cultural organisation housed in the community centre. “Doors were forcibly kicked down and several people were arrested. Several people, including children, were injured by the police.
“This raid serves as a painful reminder of the systematic oppression faced by Kurdish people for generations.”
The community centre, which was established in 1992, was raided by the police at 3am on Wednesday.
Abdulkadir Buğdayci and Egup Ozer were among a number of unhoused Kurdish refugees from Turkey sleeping at the centre.
“Police broke into the community centre by breaking all the doors. They attacked all of us with sticks,” said Buğdayci, speaking outside the community centre. “They called us terrorists — they said that we support terrorism.”
Buğdayci said he and six other refugees who had been sleeping at the centre that night were handcuffed and marched outside. “Most of us were only half dressed, without jumpers, without shoes, some even without socks. They left us outside in the rain and cold for five hours,” he said.
Ozer said he and another refugee were badly beaten by the police. “We request justice from the Metropolitan police because the police were very brutal and what happened [was] unjust,” he said.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Met said seven Kurdish people, five men and two women, were arrested on Wednesday over suspected terrorist activity linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), an organisation that has been banned in the UK since 2001 and is designated a terror organisation here and in the EU and US.
However, EU courts have previously ruled that the organisation received the terrorist designation without due process, and in 2018 the General Court in Luxembourg recommended that the ruling be annulled.
Family and friends of those arrested on Wednesday deny they were involved in terrorist activity. They also allege that the police used excessive force during the arrests, including against children. A Met spokesperson said he was unable to comment further on the details of the case.
Helen Flanagan, acting commander of the Met’s counter-terrorism command, said the community centre would remain closed to the public while the police carry out “search activity”, with the force saying in a statement that this could last up to two weeks.
“Many in our community fled Turkey to escape brutal suppression of our language, culture and political identity,” said Milani. “Here in the UK we sought safety, freedom and opportunity to rebuild our lives. Yet we now find ourselves targeted once again.”
The community centre is “more than a building”, he added. “It is a vital hub that provides cultural exchange, essential services and support for thousands of vulnerable people. Its closure has disrupted countless lives and reinforced a harmful narrative that unfairly criminalises our community.”
The centre is described on its Facebook page as “a haven in a heartless world” and provides a range of services, including English, Kurdish and IT classes, folk dancing and childcare. Its annual Newroz celebrations in March are a staple in the area’s cultural calendar.
Haringey council released a statement on Thursday, echoing community concerns about the closure of the centre. “The closure of the centre is having a major impact, not just on the Kurdish community, who are an integral part of our diverse borough, but the wider Haringey community.”
The statement continued: “The community had strong feelings about the centre being closed and urged the police to get this re-opened as quickly as possible.”
Sara, a local Kurdish woman attending the protest, declined to share her surname and said she was alarmed by the police takeover of the cultural centre. “I was born and brought up in London,” she said. “The cultural centre has been a crucial connection to my heritage, who I am and my culture. I made many childhood memories here. It never occurred to me I would see anything like this in this country. I am terrified.”
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