page_title: Women's Protection Units
section_title: Ideology
hierarchical_section_title: Women's Protection Units / Ideology
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Il murales Storia d'oggi, Storia Partigiana in Piazza Verdi a Bologna English: A graffiti art in Bologna, Italy
context_page_description: The Women's Protection Units or Women's Defense Units is an all-female militia involved in the Syrian civil war. The YPJ is part of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the armed forces of Rojava, and is closely affiliated with the male-led YPG. While the YPJ is mainly made up of Kurds, it also includes women from other ethnic groups in Northern Syria.
context_section_description: The YPJ is politically aligned to the PYD, which bases its libertarian socialist philosophy on the writings of Abdullah Öcalan, the leading ideologue in the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), who is imprisoned by Turkey. Central to YPJ ideology is the PYD feminist ideological concept of "Jineology".
  Dating back to the early 1990s, Öcalan had been advocating that a ‘basic responsibility’ of the Kurdish movement was to liberate women. He stated that gender equality and women's liberation is necessary for Kurdish liberation. The PKK established its first all-female units of guerrillas in 1995, stating that in order to “break down gender roles solidified by centuries, women had to be on their own.” The YPJ adheres to the same strand of feminist ideology. Having joined the YPJ, women must spend at least a month practicing military tactics and studying the political theories of Öcalan, including Jineology. In any communal decision, regarding the YPJ/YPG or otherwise, it is required that no less than 40% of women participate.
  The group has been praised by feminists for confronting traditional gender expectations and redefining the role of women in conflict in the region. They play a role in changing the Islamic thinking and societal traditions by taking arms. These women say they are changing their community and society by doing so. The YPJ has attracted international attention as an example of significant achievement for women in a region in which women are systematically disadvantaged.
  Another all-female force in northern Syria is the Bethnahrain Women's Protection Forces, which was formed as an Assyrian all-female brigade of the Syriac Military Council, seemingly inspired by the example of the YPG. The Al-Bab Military Council, Kurdish Front and Liwa Thuwar al-Raqqa have also established their own female units.
caption: A mural in support of the YPJ in Bologna, Italy
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