KURD: THE FORBIDDEN WORD IN TURKEY
By Manal Lotfi
Asharq Alawsat (The Middle East), UK
Dec 16 2007
Diyarbakir, Asharq Al-Awsat – Many of the Turks dislike the city of
Diyarbakir; the ‘political capital’ of the Kurds worldwide. Located
southwest of Turkey, it is considered the second-largest city in the
Anatolia region after Gaziantep.
When the name Diyarbakir is mentioned in Ankara, Istanbul or Izmir,
comments made by the Turkish people include "city of thieves", "city
of violence and death", "city of poverty… there’s nothing there"
and "city of dust and terrorists".
A carpet vendor in Istanbul’s bazaar, in response to a question by a
customer whether the carpets made in Diyarbakir were cheaper, said
"Who would go to Diyarbakir to buy carpets? Diyarbakir has nothing
but thieves."
But the truth is that Diyarbakir is not as many have described it; it
is a beautiful city that suffers from poverty and neglect. However,
the residents of Diyarbakir describe this poverty and neglect as
intentional on Ankara’s behalf and that it aims to break the moral
spirit of the Kurds and preoccupy them with the obstacles of earning
a living, rather than politics.
However if this is the intention then it has most certainly failed
since the Kurds in Diyarbakir only discuss politics and the Kurdish
issues and those relating to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), their
problems with the authority in Ankara and what must be done about it.
The residents of Diyarbakir are significantly more politically
inclined; it may prove to be difficult to discuss political activities
with Turkish students whereas the Kurdish students at Diyarbakir are
extremely politically active.
Due to the recent security and political developments and the social
problems in Diyarbakir, including unemployment, it is quite normal
to witness dozens of Kurds sitting in cafes all over the city playing
dominoes or chess. And when they tire of playing they discuss politics,
then they resume their game. No signs of rest or happiness appear on
their faces; rather, the signs of fatigue and exhaustion are visible.
"Life in Diyarbakir is hectic. All the Kurdish youth who obtain a good
education and find work in Istanbul or Izmir or Ankara leave the city
and do not return except during Kurdish holidays, such as Nowruz [New
Year celebrated on 21 March]. In cities like these, they forget about
the problems related to identity and become preoccupied with making
a living. Some of them do not even admit that they are Kurdish Turks,
except when their Turkish accent gives them away," according to Omar,
a 23-year-old Kurd.
Despite the fact that the Kurds in Diyarbakir try to lead a normal
life to the best of their abilities; the heart of the city is seething
with political, economic and cultural conflict and concern for the
Kurdish identity in Turkey. Abdul Raziq Sagakin who works in the Sur
municipality [one of Diyarbakir’s metropolitan municipalities] told
Asharq Al-Awsat, "Turkey is gradually retreating with regards to the
few cultural reforms that it granted the Kurds with its aim to join
the European Union (EU). Today, all that remains is a few hours of
broadcast in Kurdish on Turkish television. The Kurds do not believe
that this is sufficient and it does not represent recognition of the
Kurdish identity. These are only temporary solutions."
Diyarbakir is part of Turkish Kurdistan which constitutes approximately
one-third of Turkey. It is also considered part of the mountainous
region of Kurdistan, which is home to the majority of Kurds
worldwide. The mountains of Kurdistan range between northern Iraq,
northwest Iran, northeast Syria and southeast Turkey; however,
Iraqi Kurdistan also ranges between southwest Armenia, Lebanon and
Azerbaijan.
The recent clashes between the PKK guerrillas and the Turkish forces
is not a new development; there is a general sentiment among the
Kurds that there has been an international alliance against them as a
"people" since World War I when the major powers agreed to divide the
Kurdistan region and the Kurds between Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey
after the Treaty of Lausanne in 1922.
Conflicts between the Turks and Kurds did not emerge until during
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s regime after he made the Turkish language and
culture the only official ones and closed down Kurdish schools and
banned the use of the language in government institutions, official
bureaus and schools, and even in books, magazines and newspapers. He
also banned the formation of political parties.
Since the Turkish republic was in its early stages, and thus was
relatively still gaining strength, the Kurds, along with other
minorities, including Arabs, Circassians and Armenians staged a
rebellion [Sheikh Said rebellion] under Sheikh Said Piran (1865-1925)
in an attempt to gain their freedom and cultural rights, however it was
quickly quelled and Piran and his aides were executed on 30 May 1925.
Following this rebellion, the Turkish authorities tightened its
control over the Kurds and according to Western sources throughout
the past nine decades over one million Kurds have been killed. Today,
the number of Kurds in Turkey is unknown and there are no accurate
figures available; however, estimates indicate that they form between
30-40 percent of the Turkish population that numbers approximately
75 million. According to this estimate, the Kurds would number
approximately 20 million inhabitants.
Nowadays the word "Kurd" is still forbidden in Turkey; an example
is the broadcast of Kurdish news on the official Turkish television
channel in which the phrase "local residents" is used rather than
the "Kurds of Diyarbakir". According to Jalal Akin of the Kurdish
Cultural Center the word Kurdish is not allowed to be used to the
extent that the center in Diyarbakir is known as the "Cultural Centre"
and the Kurdish Arts Centre in Diyarbakir is known as the "Arts Centre"
and the same applies to the "Music Centre".
Akin told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Kurdish Cultural Centre was
established in 2002 with the intention of educating the new Kurdish
generation in Kurdish culture and art. "Today Kurdish youth just
want quick fame. The doorway to that is through singing in Turkish,
not Kurdish. What we are trying to do is to teach Kurdish youth about
traditional Kurdish art and heritage and to hold on to that rather
than follow the trend of singing in the Turkish language. The truth
is that all the prominent singers in Turkey today are Kurds who sing
in the Turkish language."
He added, "No one supports the center financially, all the teachers
work voluntarily and do not receive any pay. We need help from Kurds
who are capable of supporting us. Even the smallest cultural centre is
in need of financial support. We wanted to set up a studio to record
Kurdish songs, but that too requires money."
Akin pointed out that there was a small studio in the city where
Kurdish songs are recorded and illegally distributed but that they
cannot be distributed through the official Turkish distribution
companies. During our exchange, a young Kurdish man walked in with
a lute and began to play a sad song, singing the words, "I am my
mother’s only child," to which Akin said, "Kurdish songs contain a
lot of grief."
Serdar Sengwl, foreign affairs adviser at the Diyarbakir mayor’s
office told Asharq Al-Awsat that he was forced to complete his PhD
studies outside of Turkey because the university refused to discuss
his dissertation, which included the word "Kurd". He explained that,
"In 2001, I decided to resume my PhD studies in anthropology. I applied
to Hacettepe University, which is a liberal university that adopts an
open approach to study. I passed the written examination and all that
remained was an oral examination and an interview with the department
professors. During the interview they asked me what my proposal was
and I told them that I wanted to examine Kurdish schools in Turkey,
stressing that it was important and that a study of modernization
in Kurdistan would be impossible without considering the impact of
schools. They asked me if I would use the words ‘Kurd’ or ‘Kurdistan’
in my thesis, ‘of course,’ I replied.
They looked at me briefly and said, ‘It would be best if you did not
use these words.’
‘But why?’ I asked, ‘This is an anthropology department, do you want
to eliminate Kurdish ethnicity?’
‘Of course not,’ they said, ‘however, we believe that the words
‘Kurd and Kurdistan’ are banned from use in academic studies and if
you use them the department will be shut down and we will all be sent
to jail.’"
"This is one example," Sengwl said, "Another is the case of the
Turkish sociologist Ismail Besikci who used the word ‘Kurd’ in his
thesis 30 years ago and was jailed for 20 years."
Sengwl moreover revealed that Kurdish letters were also forbidden
from official use, such as the letter ‘w’, which does not exist in
the Turkish alphabet and that whoever uses it is tried before courts.
The people of Diyarbakir feel indignant at the way the Turkish
government portrays the Kurdish situation to this day, the most recent
of which was Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statement
that the Kurds do not know what they want.
In response to that, Sengwl said, "Erdogan does not know what he is
saying… We want our identity and our cultural rights; the first of
which is the right to speak our mother tongue. We have been saying
this for a century. Why is it difficult for them to understand? Why
are identities at war? I am Kurdish, I was born into another language
that is not Turkish, so why must I eliminate my Kurdish identity to
become Turkish? Why can’t I keep my Kurdish identity and still be a
Turkish citizen simultaneously?"
Diyarbakir is a Kurdish ‘ghetto’, over 95 percent of its inhabitants
are Kurds and the rest are Arabs, while Turks are a rare minority.
Due to political and economic problems there have been increasing
rates of migration over the past few years, especially amongst the
younger generations.
Binyamin, a Kurd in his early twenties living in Diyarbakir, told
Asharq Al-Awsat that he wanted to study medicine so he applied for a
scholarship granted by the Kurdistan government in Iraq, because he
knew that they give grants to Turkish Kurds to resume their studies
in universities in northern Iraq.
"I love Diyarbakir but I hope to study abroad. Here we suffer human
rights violations. There are Kurdish children in Turkish prisons. We
have suffered massacres and forced displacement. Four thousand Kurdish
villages were vacated of their residents in 1980 following Kenan
Evren’s military coup. Mehdi Zana who was the mayor of Diyarbakir at
the time was arrested and imprisoned for 15 years  of course,
there was no other choice… elements of the PKK fled to the mountains
after the coup and began to carry out armed operations against the
army. What do you expect the people to do?"
Diyarbakir is a city that lacks color, it is a desert land and the
climate is hot and dry. Most of its streets are unpaved, and unlike
Turkish cities Diyarbakir is not clean; the streets are filled with
heaps of garbage and muddy water. When you raise these concerns with
the mayor of Diyarbakir, Osman Baydemir or any other official in
the city, the response you always get is that the Turkish government
grants a "politicized budget" to Diyarbakir and that the officials
cannot fulfill their roles or establish new projects or even improve
the infrastructure of the city.
Anyone visiting Diyarbakir is always asked, "Which Diyarbakir did
you visit?" In reality the city is divided into two cities; the
old city with its historical tall walls, the second-highest wall in
the world after the Great Wall of China, and the so-called modern
city. Despite the fact that the old city is unpaved and despite the
difficult economic situation and the unemployment rates, the worn out
buildings are still characterized by unique architecture. The narrow
alleys are crammed with buildings and passing pedestrians.
As for the ‘modern’ city; it is mainly a number of long paved roads
and tall brightly colored buildings, painted red and yellow for
example. In the heart of this part of the city is a huge building
belonging to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which
is an Islamist-inclined party that the Kurdish residents accuse of
attempting to reinforce the Islamic movement in Diyarbakir as a means
of countering the Kurdish national force.
Some may assume that Diyarbakir has a higher percentage of veiled
women than the rest of Turkey and mistake it for a growing Islamic
influence, however the reality is that the traditional Kurdish garb
for women is modest and it includes a head cover. However, Diyarbakir
remains to be in contact with the outside world, there are McDonalds
and Burger King franchises in the city.
The modern part of the city is inhabited by government officials and
middle class Kurds. The city suffers as a result of its weak economy
and many of the Kurdish politicians accuse the government of Ankara
of deliberately neglecting Diyarbakir economically. There are small
textile factories and small-scale foodstuff manufacturing factories;
however they cannot absorb the workforce, which results in high levels
of poverty and unemployment in comparison to Turkish cities.
The average monthly salary ranges between US $100-500, which is
less than half the average monthly salary around Turkish cities. The
rampant poverty in Diyarbakir has generated a number of alarming social
phenomena, such as children begging and dropping out of school or
running away to the extent that the Turkish government in cooperation
with the Diyarbakir municipality has launched a project entitled
"Let’s Go to School Girls" to urge poor families in Diyarbakir to
send their daughters to school instead of sending them to factories
or letting them beg in the streets.
The Kurds of Diyarbakir agree that the crime levels are high and that
there are cases of theft; however, according to Abdul Raziq Sagakin
who works in the Sur municipality, "After 4000 Kurdish villages were
displaced following Kenan Evren’s military coup, many Kurds headed
to Diyarbakir in a random manner to take up residence there. The
problem is that their lives in the villages were much better; they
were farming and raising cattle on land that they owned. After that
coercive displacement many, as a repercussion of unemployment, were
forced to steal."
A Kurdish citizen who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity said,
"I fled from Turkey to Syria at the beginning of the ’90s because of
security reasons and I returned three years ago. Now I want to leave
again due to economic conditions and the harassment. If I didn’t have
a family I would have fled by now. I do not even use my real name so
as to avoid security pursuing me. There are children in Diyarbakir
today who only speak Turkish while their parents only speak Kurdish.
I do not want to be in this situation with my children."
But this is not only what causes discontent among the Kurdish
community; stereotypes of Kurds on television and in cinema also raise
objections, "A Kurdish person is either portrayed as one who causes
hardships or who is a simpleton. It is not overtly stated that he
is Kurdish; he appears as a rural character who speaks Turkish with
an accent. This means he is Kurdish and this is the distorted image
that we suffer from," said Sagakin.
As a result of these stereotypes Sagakin added, "The Kurds themselves
are influenced by these stereotypes and they try to speak Turkish
without an accent. The Kurdish accent sets you apart socially and
culturally and makes it difficult to secure a job and live among
Turks. Many Turks who look for work in Ankara, Istanbul or Izmir
conceal the fact that they are Kurdish."
But Gogercin Gul who is a Turkish girl who has never visited Diyarbakir
disagrees, "many of the top-level bureaucratic posts are occupied by
Kurds, no one asks them about their origins."
However, Abdullah Demir Paasche, the head of the municipality of Sur
in Diyarbakir argues that Ankara’s claim that it had permitted Kurdish
language classes is unfounded. "These classes that they refer to are
extra classes that you get charged for. Those are two conditions that
would make anyone try to avoid them. Kurdish people teach the language
to their children at home so why would they send their children to
classes they would have to pay for? This is Ankara’s excuse to tell
the world, we set up Kurdish language classes and no one attended,"
he said.
It is difficult for Kurdish newspapers and magazines to survive
whenever a new publication is founded; it faces the possibility of
being closed down. ‘Welat’ (Nation) newspaper was closed down so it
began republishing under the name ‘Welat Ma’ (Our Nation) and after
it was banned again it was reissued under the name ‘Azadiya Welat’
(Freedom of the Nation).
A journalist from ‘Azadiya Welat’ told Asharq Al-Awsat that,
"The problem with the unbearable constraints on our freedom of
expression is that many journalists have fled abroad. There are too
many hardships to confront. We have a distribution of 10,000 copies,
which we deliver by hand because the [distribution] companies refuse
to distribute Kurdish newspapers."
On the walls of the newspaper office are pictures of youth and
children, which the journalists said were "martyrs" who were killed
by Turkish security men.
Back in Diyarbakir there is only one Kurdish magazine called ‘al
Harf’, its Editor-in-Chief, Omar Azad told Asharq Al-Awsat, "We
began publishing in 2004 and our objective is to protect the Kurdish
language. We focus on Kurdish culture, art, poetry and prose. We
publish small books from time to time. Since we fund ourselves,
we publish a book and when it sells, we publish another. We do not
receive any financial gain from this; the truth is that we pay for
it ourselves."
The lack of television channels means that many Kurds tune into
Kurdish satellite channels that are broadcast from Belgium, which
some Turkish Kurds partially finance.
So what do the Kurdish people want?
"We want recognition of our identity in return for integration. We
cannot fully integrate into the Turkish republic and stop all the
PKK activities if the Kurdish cultural rights are not recognized first.
Our demands are simple and not difficult to fulfill: We want the
Kurdish language to be recognized as a second official language, and
that it be used in schools. However, some in the hard-line secular
and nationalist circles absolutely oppose that and believe that it
would lead to the secession of the Kurds and the fragmentation of
the unity of the state."
Abdul Raziq Sagakin said, "For a long time I have felt that our issue
has not been fairly [tackled] because the Turkish media has frequently
portrayed us as terrorists. We often forget how just and humane our
demands are because support for us abroad is limited."
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From: Baghdasarian