Collective Memory in Post-Genocide Societies: Rethinking Enduring Trauma and Resilience in Halabja

Collective Memory in Post-Genocide Societies: Rethinking Enduring Trauma and Resilience in Halabja

Hawraman Fariq Karim and Bahar Baser examine how survivors of the 16 March 1988 chemical attack on Halabja, part of the Anfal genocide against the Kurds, and their descendants form collective memory and “postmemory”. Rather than relying on official accounts, they take a bottom-up approach that centres the voices of the people of Halabja themselves.

The study draws on 22 interviews conducted in Kurdish in Halabja in 2013 and 2014, split between people with direct memories of the attack and members of the post-genocide generation, combined with archival material and a visit to the memorial. The authors find that residents experience the attack as an enduring trauma that shapes their shared identity, passed on through family gatherings, schools, cafés and informal commemorations. Persistent grief, unanswered questions, ongoing health effects and unmet demands for compensation and justice run through the testimonies.

Residents direct their criticism not only at the Baathist regime but also at the Kurdistan Region’s own leadership, which many feel has used the tragedy for political ends. The article is open access.

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