Founding declaration
Founding Statement
YES e.V. (registered association)
Yezidi-European Society
More than 140.000 Yezides live in Europe, more than 120.000 of them in Germany alone. The Yezides are a religious community that has existed for thousands of years, tolerance and openness are characteristic of them. This special quality is the best precondition for a successful integration of Yezides into local social life. These values inherent in the Yezide faith must be accentuated in order to achieve a successful integration of people from immigrant families. They must also be mobilized to participate actively in society and to take responsibility.
The Yezidi-European Society (YES e.V.) was founded in September 2007 by a dozen intellectuals and sees the integration of Yezides as their central goal. That is why YES e.V. always seeks to pursue is work in coordination and cooperation with local state-run and private institutions. New ways to realize these goals are also sought by bundling corresponding efforts of Yezide intellectuals, associations, and other social institutions.
Besides integration through civic involvement YES e.V. also seeks to be a point of contact for local communities, federal states and the federal government. One of the most important goals is the improvement of the living conditions of Yezide women and girls, as well as equal rights. Thus YES e.V. will also educate about the democratic constitutional structure based on the principle of liberty, and about health issues.
YES e.V. will function as a central council of Yezides and shed a light on the Yezide religion. For this, several commissions are planned: press and public relations, youth and education, a women’s representative, integration work, research and documentation of Yezide writings. Only such a broad spectrum of social commitment enables us to discover, analyse and solve problems hand in hand with those concerned.
Through its work, YES e.V. wants to support the communication and cooperation between religious communities throughout Europe and help to get rid of prejudices against Yezide citizens, as well as to make the Yezide faith accessible to local people in all its cultural contents and aspects, in way worthy of the sacral character of this faith.
In order to realize these plans, YES e.V. is grateful for every motivating donation and for any kind of support by all people and institutions that demand and advance civic commitment.
Bielefeld, 5 September 2007 Dr. med. cand. Izzettin Akay 1. Chairman YES e.V.
Email: yesyeziden@googlemail.com