Erdogan’s Dersim Apology Highly Welcomed by the Kurdistan Region

Koshan Ali Khidhir*

Photo: Today's Zaman

Last week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has offered an apology for the killings of 13.806 in the southeastern town of Dersim, Tunceli, between 1936 and 1939. The apology came after quarrel or a war of words between Erdogan and the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), according to Today’s Zaman.

The apology has been viewed in diverse perspectives. This article is affected by perspective of officials in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, which I have seen in their official statements.

Most of the officials in the Kurdistan Region have seen this apology as rewriting Kurdish history and restructuring Kurdish issue in Turkey within a new framework, so they highly welcomed this initiative. It is not only about the historical incident. It is the political ones, at this time, that some of the points will be elaborated in this article.

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK party) and Turkish Prime Minister have been working on a variety of initiatives that sustain its power in the country. As well as, he cuts off roots of conservatives and fascism. That will secure the future of the party and implementation of its visions.

Turkish Premier and his party are working on resolving Kurdish issue in the country, but they are doing it step by step. The apology will not be the final step, and it was not the first one, but it is one of the most radical and rooted one. Meanwhile, premier apologizes for a historical incident, which means they are restructuring not just the future, but also their history. While he apologizes on behalf of other and former governments, it means he sees himself responsible for the country not just for the current government. That is the radical points about this apology.

AK Party tries to avoid excluding different ethnics to have their rights within the Turkish state system. Kurds have been deprived from their substantial rights; therefore, the party could gain enormous support, if they protect the rights of Kurds. AK party has good relations with political parties in Kurdistan Region, especially with Kurdistan Islamic Union, and the two ruling parties Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and Kurdistan Democratic Party. That will be helpful for the party to have an indirect impact on Kurdish actors in Northern Iraq, and then they affect Kurds in Turkey.

The Kurdistan Region has economic ties and trade, which reaches up to 6$ billion dollars yearly. It is increasing continuously. Turkish Airline has formally opened by the Premier this year. There are Turkish companies, banks, private schools and even universities. This has expanded cultural, economic, and social interaction between Turkey-Kurdistan Region. In the last year, thousands of youths in the region have been travelled to Turkey to spend their holiday. That means Turkey-Kurdistan Region has friendly relations. Regarding future progress towards Kurdish issue in the country, I have to say that Turkey need to take this cooperation ties into considerations.

There is another significant point regarding the apology by Turkish premier, which he apologized in a right time. Turkey does not have any elections in coming weeks or months. It shows the party has not done it for the sake of votes. On the other hand, there are revolutions outside Turkey, even in its neighbor countries, it means that Erdogan reaffirms his support for Kurdish issue, while there is instability in the region, and suppressed ethnics are struggling for their rights. He has done it to claim indirectly that he is going to implement his promises and to change the atmosphere for the rights of different ethnics in Turkey. In addition, it uncovers the Erdogan’s methodology to resolve Kurdish issue, in peaceful means, instead of militarizing the issue. This apology has questions the position of military in Turkish politics again.

For ordinary people in Northern Iraq and in Turkey, Turkish official apology for this incident suggests that the ruling party wants to alter government’s standpoint toward Kurdish issue. This would be seen as a starting point for rewriting the new constitution in Turkey, which secures equal rights for different ethnics in Turkey.

It is expected for premier and AK party to have more initiatives towards the Kurdish Issue in Turkey, especially constituting their fundamental rights within the constitution. If events going on in this way, it will not be just expectations, it will also become reality.

*Koshan Ali Khidhir is a Journalist, Blogger, and Senior Undergraduate Student in Political Science and International Relations at the University of Kurdistan-Hawler. 

This article has been published on



Middle East Online: 

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49356



Mideast Youth:

http://www.mideastyouth.com/2011/12/04/erdogan’s-dersim-apology-highly-welcomed-by-the-kurdistan-region/

Van Catastrophe Reaffirms Turkey-Northern Iraq Relations

Koshan Ali Khidhir

Photo: Today's Zaman

“We are so sorry for what is happening in Van” “Donate a Penny, Safe the life of one person,” these quotations are the words of Kurds from Northern Iraq to show their sympathy to their neighbor city, Van, endangered because of series earthquakes.

In the last few weeks, while I have been travelling from one city, district and village to the other ones in Northern Iraq, when I have been watching and reading Kurdish newspapers, magazines, websites and televisions, the main focus is about Van. There are lots of tents in different districts and cities that call for a donation for Van and supporting its displaced people.

This would be a starting point for another way of looking relations between Turkey and Northern Iraq. The essential dimensions about this relation could be summarized in some points? It is rooted in the society, between different members in Turkey and Northern Iraq. It refutes all perspectives and methods that show relations as critical and problematic.

This would be sufficient evidence to the restricted conflict between a group of so called a supporter of Kurdish issue (PKK) and Turkish state. These events uncovered that the conflict is not rooted in the society and has not been structured within Kurds in Northern Iraq. It was and it is just a political struggle of this group to achieve external and internal goals. While Kurds in Northern Iraq supported Van, they evidently declared their support a method for resolving Kurdish question in Turkey, which is resolving this issue through peaceful means.

I have talked with many scholars in this region, they, mostly interested in resolving Kurdish issue in Turkey through a peaceful process. The Kurdish street in the region also has suffered from conflicts between PKK and Turkish state over borders; therefore, they would rather the political resolution for Kurdish issue than military operations.

Kurds in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Northern Iraq, are mostly benefited from their peaceful and stable region to experience their governance. Therefore, any conflict will endanger their prosperity and the future of this region. Thus, leaders of the region are concerning about improving their relations with Turkish government in different areas of politics, culture and business.

Kurdish leaders, Jalal Talabani, Iraqi President, Massoud Barzani, President of the Region, Barham Salih, current prime minister of the region Nechirvan Barzani, former prime minister of the region’s government, and other high ranked officials are continuously held meetings with Kurdish political parties to convince them on resolution for Kurdish issue in peaceful means. They have also worked to mediate between Kurdish parties, mostly their effective leaders, and Turkish elites. A few days ago Talabani and Salih met some MPs from pro-Kurdish Democratic and Peace Party (BDP), that would be a recent example for their efforts. According to the Kurdish news agencies, the meeting is mostly concerned about resolving Kurdish issue in Turkey through dialogue and peaceful means.

Van has uncovered the roots of the issues. While some Kurdish leaders, who are sincerely striving for Kurdish issue were in meeting with Talabani, but others were involved with hijacking. Real Kurds are those who have donated their money and clothes to other civilians in Turkey, but others are those who thinking about having more attacks and bloodshed. These groups are restricted their goals. Therefore, they will not gain future hearts and political achievements. These are just playing with time and struggling to survive.

I hope, as a Kurd in Northern Iraq, to have a peaceful process of resolving Kurdish issue in Turkey, which has started from AK Party’s reforms and initiatives. Catastrophe like Van would become new page for humanitarian cooperation, if we view these events in a different way.

The author is a Journalist, Blogger, and Undergraduate Student in Political Science and International Relations at University of Kurdistan-Hawler.

This article has been published on

Middle East On line: 

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49107

Mideast Youth:

http://www.mideastyouth.com/2011/11/17/van-catastrophe-reaffirms-turkey-northern-iraq-relations/

Kurdistan Tribune:

http://kurdistantribune.com/2011/van-catastrophe-reaffirms-turkeynorthern-iraq-relations/

Kurd Net

http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2011/11/state5583.htm

The Street that divides two centuries!

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By: Koshan A. Khidhir

This picture and video story report, is taken from Arbil province. These pictures are showing different sides from Arbil city, but they have some similarities. The similarity here is that these streets are dividing two centuries, and two eras. One of them is industrialization era, and the second one is the era of traditionalism.

“There are many people in Arbil that they have high buildings, but we have just this small house, we are happy. It does not matter how is that, “How we are” is more important” Hiwa, a poor young in these houses

These young said that “every day we are coming to here to sell and by credit cards for mobile, on this ground, to be simple is great”.            

This man who sells lights in front of this high building says “Your question is good, there is no doubt Wallahi there is inequality in Arbil. I cannot buy a small shop, but others have these high buildings”.

Here is a video of a student, He talks about inequality in Kurdistan, especially in Arbil. Then he says, he cannot even talk like reach people’s sons, because they have unequal opportunity for learning.