ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A group of Kurdish journalists and activists in Sweden have launched a media center funded by the Swedish government with the primary aim of combatting extremist ideology among Kurds living in Europe. The Awareness and Media Center, or Var Media, will be an important project for European Kurds as it dedicates most of the programs "to training the new Kurdish generations in Europe to avoid extremism,” said Sahand Kamal, founder of the center. Extremism has recently spread in Europe in the wake of the growing influence of radical groups, most notably ISIS. Living in Sweden for 11 years, Kamal said he and his colleagues established the center as the first broad Kurdish-Swedish media agency with the aim to combat the ideology of “ISIS and other radical Islamic foundations.” The establishment of Var Media, which consists of a digital portal, print newspaper and radio, comes as many Kurdish media outlets in Sweden are closing, including Amez TV, Hawpshti Radio, Kurdish Voice, Zayala Radio and the Kurdish department of Swedish International Radio. “We are not an alternative for Zayala TV or the Kurdish department of Swedish International Radio. But, of course, the disappearance of these agencies emboldened us to found this center,” Riyaz Taha, head of printing and writing at Var Media, told Rudaw. Taha, who is also a co-founder of Var, noted that their strategy is to prevent the center from failing, such as “many other Kurdish cultural centers faced and we do not want to repeat the same mistakes they made." “Kurds are an essential social and national group in Sweden,” he added. “They are very active and have their own voice with many other particularities, therefore the essence of our media work will be focusing on European Kurds in general, those living in Sweden, in particular.” Sweden is home to more than 150,000 Kurds. And they think having a media center like Var is important. Huda Hemid, a Kurdish woman living in Sweden, believes “Kurds in this country need a media of their own particularly after Zayala and other radio stations disappeared.” According to information obtained by Rudaw, nearly $543,000 has been earmarked by the Swedish government to spend on the first phase of the agency’s operation. “All expenses of this center will be covered by the Swedish government,” Kamal said. He pointed out that they do not have contact with any group from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). "Until now, there is no coordination or contact with any KRG foundation. But, considering professional media and civic society foundation principles, we will have coordination with them.”
