Turkey-Kurdish Conflict 101
There are several conflicts across the world that are a cause of major concern especially in times when such conflicts intensify and violence and destruction are at their greatest levels. Unfortunately for the victims caught in the middle, media does not provide any justice because – possibly due to various reasons – it refrains from reporting what is actually happening on the ground. This has been the reality for Kurds in Turkey that have fell victimized to the ongoing battle between rebels and the Turkish military. Today, once again, these victims as well as the Kurdish civilians across the border in Iraq are being overlooked as a seemingly everlasting conflict continues to escalate.
A little history…
Turning eyes to Turkey, one will be disturbed to say the least at the various issues at hand with regards to Turkey’s long history of human rights abuses and oppressive policies. The Kurds in Turkey have been the primary victims of these policies who have suffered everything from harsh assimilation campaigns, displacements and various forms of ethnic cleansing. During the 1990s alone, nearly 4000 Kurdish villages in Turkey were completely destroyed leaving the people homeless and forced to move to large cities where they rarely were able to adapt to the new life. Results of these internal displacements can be seen with a simple visit to the impoverished Kurdish southeast where unemployment rates reach unbelievable highs of 60 – 70%. In addition to economical as well as other problems (cited by human rights organizations) such as torture, unexplained disappearances, black operations in which innocents are killed and even the banning of the Kurdish language in Turkey and lack of cultural rights, the Kurds have also been limited a political voice. Many Kurdish politicians have been imprisoned sometimes for decades for simply speaking out for Kurdish rights. Resulting factor in all this: Many have turned to an arms struggle, which has haunted the country for over two decades.
Today, the conflict continues as Turkey makes it’s way across the Turkish-Iraqi border into Iraqi Kurdistan. Despite Iraqi condemnations against these crossings, Turkish officials say they are justified in their invasion because the rebels have bases there and that they are targeting rebels and not Iraqis.
The flaw in their justification?
First and foremost, although the Turkish military claims to have inflicted damage on rebel camps, no claims could be confirmed. Instead, footage and reports of the area are showing that the only damage being done is to the civilian villages in the region. (See a video reporting on the region at Real News.) Contrary to the Turkish claims, the Iraqi Kurdish leadership has said it believes Turkey’s expansion of the war into northern Iraq is not against the PKK Kurdish rebels, but instead against all Kurds as demonstrated by the attacks on the villages, and in particular, the Iraqi Kurds’ own political gains and autonomy in the region. They justify these claims by pointing out that the majority of Kurdish rebels operate within Turkey’s own borders. This was even confirmed by Turkey’s own Prime Minister last year. Unfortunately, he contradicted his own statements later when he was pressured by the Turkish military to approve an invasion of Iraq.
Regardless of these accusations on both sides, one thing that everyone seems to agree on (even the United States, European Union and the United Nations) except Turkey is that there is no military solution to this old conflict. The conflict has been ongoing for decades and the losers are on both sides. A combination of tough mountainous terrain and the continued Turkish State repression causing more disgruntled Kurds to support the PKK makes the conflict an everlasting one. The result is essentially a military stalemate and a lot of casualties.
Another Iraqi War…
The solution to the problem begins with dialogue and ends with increased rights for the Kurdish minority in Turkey; a concept rejected by the Turkish government over and over again. Turkish officials should be willing to communicate with Kurdish officials in the federal region of Iraqi Kurdistan instead rejecting peace talks. Instead, while officials in Iraq and even in the European Union have pointed to rebel ceasefires as a good opportunity to begin a lay down of arms and the beginning of a political solution to the Kurdish question in Turkey, the Turkish military continues it’s operations with the logistical support of the U.S. government.
The result here is another Iraqi war that is not going to end any time soon.
Join the Conversation
I really like this article and how Goran gave a brief history and justification on the Kurdish situation in the Turkey. I am curious to know how the Turkish Youth that are a part of MidEast Youth or those who participate in this forum feel about what was said in this article.
And it’s LONG since tiime for the Kurds in Turkey and Iraq to follow the lead of KOSOVO.
Vive la Kurdistan libre!
Goran,
Thank you for the article. I wanted to ask what government did about the destroyed villages?
Were other villages build instead? Was the land confiscated? What is now standing in the place of those 4000 villages you mentioned?
I hope happiness and prosperity for our Kurdish brethen in Turkey, Iraq, Iran and elsewhere.
In a better Middle East we will have less of what you talked about dear. Jalal Talebani being a president in our Middle East has so much in store, our Kurds in Marivan danced in the streets and cheered election of a Kurdish man as a president and he is a wonderful person.
Elinor,
Thanks for your comments. To answer your question: The government did not take any steps to reimburse the victims of the burned villages despite calls by the Human Rights Watch and other organizations. The villagers were not compensated for their losses, (see just one Human Rights Watch for more information). In addition, although some were rebuilt by the people themselves (without government assistance), most of the areas where the villages were destroyed were blocked off by the Turkish military and government so that the villagers would not be able to return. If you visit many of those areas, you may see empty/abandoned lands with rubble where villages once stood.
Many of the internally displaced peoples – as result of all this government oppression – have been forced to move to large cities in Turkey where they live in horrible conditions and poverty.
Goran,
I was reading the human rights Watch, the recommendations include the return of villagers and a rehab program. Without government compensation it is impossible to revuild the villages, and as you said most people have moved out.
Goran, many people in our region, and out of it of course, have resisted the upheavals of life and society, politics and ecconomy, diseases and wars just by keeping up the high spirits and after a period of time things would change for them. As I know the Kurdish nation is a very spirited nation who deserves all the good things a nation deserves. I keep hoping for a better future for our Kurdish neighbors. I will not be surprised if soon I hear they found a solution to the problems and danced in the beautiful fashion they do
Das khosh bi 
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if the turkish government doesnt fear the kurds enough to stop them from destroying thier villages then why wont they execute thier leader?
I’m not quite sure if I understand your question here. I am assuming you are referring to the Kurdish rebel leader, Abdullah Ocalan, and not those leaders who have not been captured. Following his capture, Turkey was widely criticized for conducting an unfair trial and the European Court of Human Rights condemned Turkey for violating his rights. Although he was nonetheless sentenced to the death penalty, EU officials set various requirements as preconditions for Turkey’s bid to join the European Union, such as the abolition of the death penalty and the need for serious reforms to Turkey’s penal code. Apparently, the abolition of death penalty was one of the very few areas of EU requirement that Turkey complied with.
There are a variety of other lengthy arguments such as the psychological aspect in their war against the Kurdish region that I will not get into as to why his life imprisonment has become more useful to the Turkish State than execution.
Thank you Goran
I would love to see the Kurdish part of Turkey and talk to people there. Maybe one day i will have that opportunity 
It would seem to be an ideal solution if, under the auspices of the UN, or… The Kurdish portion of that part of the Ottoman Empire now ‘doing business as’ Turkey, and the same in Iraq could by plebiscite unite into their own land as in Kosovo…
its our duty to write about the opressed peoples, just like kurds the Balochs are also divided into 3 parts, the ocupied balochistan in pakistan, and the oter part of balochistan is in iran and afghnistan. we demand right of self determination for balochistan and also for every colonial state just like kurdistan , palestine, kashmir , iraq and afghnistan
We have a party here in Turkey.. DTP.. I think.. Those DTP parlamentars are organising the riots with throwing stones and so on.. What kind of friendly dialog you want, guys?
You think?? Well, the party – DTP – that you “think” exists represents a huge population in the southeast of the country – Turkey – that you are implying you live in. So if you only “think”, you should go do a little learning and research outside the normal realms of propaganda that has apparently been spoonfed to you by the Turkish State. The party you “think” organised riots has been seeking a peaceful democratic resolution to the Kurdish question in Turkey and has been thrown nearly every obstacle in their path by the Turkish State. Despite winning a number of key cities in the recent local elections in Turkey, the Turkish government still refuses to recognise their legitimacy and started arresting their members (about 300 of them) in an attempt to silence the party. How do you want Kurds to engage in Turkey’s politics and engage in “friendly dialogue” if you are throwing the Kurds who ask for peace in prison every time?
Open your eyes, open your mind. Learn a little and stop simply “thinking” everything the Turkish State and their propaganda-filled network of media and so-called education is the truth.
Goran,
Don’t you think that this article might be a little one-sided? All those accusations to Turkey and there’s not even slightly wrong about what “some” Kurds do/did? Who’s responsible for all those terrorist attacks and bombings all over Turkey for past 20-30 years? Do you think that’s a fair and democratic way to raise your voice?
And what specific rights are you talking about? The last time i checked, there’s not a slight difference between a Turk or a Kurd in front of the law isn’t that so?
Last but not the least, what exactly are you talking about “Turkey’s long history of human right abuses” and so on and so forth? (When/If you answer this, please give some references and/or proved facts instead of bald accusations.)
to KW;
“throwing the Kurds who ask for peace in prison” Oh boy if that wasn’t the most understated sentence ever.
Here is a little research for you:
2008/11/14 Songül Abdil (Dtp “Official”): Ataturk was a war criminal! (Calling a nations forefather criminal is a peace call everyone don’t you see)
2009/08/09 Hatip Dicle (One of the founders of DTP): The Kurdish society’s leader is Abdullah Ocalan and we’re making our moves according to his directions. (Abdullah Ocalan:Leader of Pkk -Internationally accepted terrorist group- and responsible for nearly 20000 deaths.)
2004/07/28 Osman Baydemir(Mayor of Diyarbakır-Member of SHP) paid visit to a terrorist’s house after the terrorist killed a guard and killed by soldiers.
2006/04/22 Ahmet Turk(President of DTP with an ironic last name):We share the same base with PKK. The children of people who voted for me are in the mountains fighting.
-These are just simple facts that anyone can check out on the internet-
ps; My mind are my eyes are wide open. If you think that Dtp is calling for peace, you should be the one that’s having trouble with his eyes and mind.
*Sigh* Perhaps next time, I should write an article called Human Rights and Democracy 101. It seems some people have a thing or two to learn about freedom of speech and the difference between speech and violence.
Well, Mehmet, obviously you are unable to see the links embedded in the article that point to specific cases in which human rights violations were committed by the Turkish State such as those documented by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, Amnesty International, etc. Since your comments indicate that you are obviously not properly educated on Turkey’s internal issues, I suggest doing some research using such sources as Amnesty and the Human Rights Watch where human rights abuses have been documented for decades now. Another good resource for you, if you are interested and not simply in denial, is to review the cases filed with the European Court of Human Rights; in the last 10 years alone since it became a candidate for EU membership, Turkey has had the most decisions delivered against it (approx. more than 1600) by the court of all 47 member states. Abuses, including those links I’ve embedded, have targeted Kurds in Turkey (and I’m talking about the civilians who have taken no part in the “attacks” and “bombings” that you speak of).. so to say that they are equal in front of Turkish law is a ridiculously ignorant statement, especially when also considering that the law does not even officially recognize the Kurdish identity and people. Anyways, I need not go into specifics of the various cases since all the information is available online and for public viewing. If you decide to enlighten yourself, happy researching.
you are just unbelievable goran
Why? He is just stating the facts. I don’t see anything unbelievable in them – he provided articles, specific instances, and is able to refute any claims that attempt to prove otherwise.
No, that is not so. When was the last time you checked? You may wish to update your memory.
Just brilliant! If you don’t like a comment just erase it, ha? Obviously that’s easier.
Let me re-write my opinions then if you’re not afraid of the truth.
I’ll come to my education next, but first; let’s see what your beloved organizations say or do;
Displacement Monitoring Centre: Around a million people became displaced from towns and villages in south-eastern Turkey during the 1980s and 1990s as a result of the insurgent actions of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the counter-insurgency policies of the Turkish government. (You don’t have to be a genius to figure out that they’re saying this issue was caused by both sides.)
The government has made important progress in the past four years towards improving the overall national policy, and identifying and facilitating return to places of origin for Turkey’s displaced. (http://www.internal-displacement.org/8025708F004CE90B/(httpCountries)/C1E13DEC3D6630EB802570A7004CB2F8?OpenDocument)
Amnesty International : I couldn’t find anything towards the Kurdish people in their official website, but i found this from wikipedia—->Criticism of Amnesty International (AI) includes claims of selection bias, ideological/foreign policy bias against either non-Western countries, or Western-supported countries.Governments who have criticised AI include those of Israel, the Democratic Republic of the Congo,[2] the People’s Republic of China,[3] Vietnam,[4] Russia[5] and the United States,[6] who have attacked Amnesty International for what they assert is one-sided reporting or a failure to treat threats to security as a mitigating factor. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Amnesty_International)
If we look at your response, it contains no source or reference like your article. Turkish constitution does not have recognize any ethnicity it already says every citizen is equal in front of the law. And it’s absurd to believe that they’re not because I’ve never seen any court that gives any or extra punishment because the criminal was Kurdish.
I would love to see an answer to my previous questions before you erase my comment again.
Everyone in this site is in favor of one primary thing and that is human rights in all its forms. We’re not interested in petty nationalism or the justification of denying an entire nation their right to exist.
Um, who erased your comments?
Is anyone in this site objective? I would really want to see some people that I can debate in the sense of logic.
Esra’a can you update my memory please? Kurds and Turks are EQUALS in front of the law. That’s a fact. I’ve got a lot of Kurdish friends and they have no complains about their lives. The only problem is that there’s a military conflict in eastern Turkey and there’s an identity issue between Kurds and Turks.
Can anyone please refer to some academic article or a resource? These are just simple accusations without any proof. I really would like to discuss this subject objectively..
look, he is asking everyone to source their claims and to provide him with links (and maybe hold his hand too), and then he makes a claim like the following:
I’ve got a lot of Kurdish friends and they have no complains about their lives
What a joke. Guess what, I’ve got a lot of Kurdish friends who were and whose families were the victims of Turkish State repression and they never did anything violence in their lives. they are innocent and persecuted because they happen to be Kurdish.
She gave you a link and it has articles cited from the most credible sources in the world. There are 1600 EU cases. Is it not enough? You want us to show you pictures of dead bodies too? Maybe all the children who were killed by Turkish police in the last couple of years? or maybe you don’t care because you’ve been trained not to. Stop echoing the propaganda of the denial machine of the Turkish government.
by the way Turkey burned 4000 Kurdish villages. This is documented fact. These were burned by Turkish state military men, not PKK. So stop wasting everyone’s time mehmet. Even certain people in Turkish government are finally admiting there is a Kurdish issue that needs to be solved through reform. It is people like you who deny it and prevent from happening
That’s very mature and relevant man thanks.
Why do you think their villages were burnt down? Why do you think there wasn’t a conflict before 80′s ? I’ll tell you why , because of PKK. Some people formed an organization called PKK. And they began to make terrorist attacks. (For more information –> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdistan_Workers%27_Party)
Then the government began to counter those actions. There’s no denial in here. Just like all the governments in the world , Turkish state did some horrible things no one denies it. But you people are just trying to make this look like it was all Turkish state’s evilness and their fault.
Who’s in denial in here? And after all those claims , nobody answered any of my questions and couldn’t support their claims with any proof. Don’t believe these arguments people. Make your own research through newspapers’ archives and academic articles.
And those people who want to know the truth about PKK just look search for pkk in google images and see some of those horrible things that those guys did.
I’m not in denial of anything in here, and I’m not in governments’ favor. I’m just trying to show that some people are trying to make things look like that they’re not.
hey guys do u think that you will have some parts of turkey one day?? dont be funny. kurdistan is a just dream a children dream almost all kurdish people are terorist in turkey. plss be objective!!
Hello, everyone. My name is Ivanka and I come from Bulgaria. I came across your discussion in my search for information on the Kurdish conflict. As a person totally objective and outside of your conflicts, I have to say I am very sorry to see such petty comments here, some of them even ironic. And that when human life and so much suffering is involved. I wish all of you open your eyes and hearts and work for a better future and peace in your countries.
I want to thank you, Goran, for your article which is in my opinion objective and very well written. I hope that very soon there will be something positive to add to it regarding the fate of the Kurdish people. I pray for the peaceful solution of this conflict; may no more bloodshed ever be a part of it.
I have one question for you, Goran – if ever such a day came when there is autonomy for (or even a state called) Kurdistan, would you go back there to live in it and work for its better future?