Bill introduced for legal use of Kurdish characters

Diyarbakır deputy Gülten Kışanak’s bill proposes a change to the current law numbered 1353 on the Turkish alphabet and intends to provide parents the freedom to give their children Kurdish names. Kışanak called a press conference in Parliament where she said the right to use different languages and names was recognized by international law and is part of human rights. "Language, name and surname are tools for one’s recognition in family and society. No authority can take away this right," Kışanak said.

Kışanak recalled that present it is mandatory to use Turkish letters in the names of governmental institutions, private corporations and foundations and added that although TRT6, the state broadcaster’s Kurdish language channel, has cleared the path for the use of Kurdish names by people, the ban continues elsewhere based on the law on the Turkish alphabet.

"Because in the third article of law number 1353 it is said that ’land registrations, title deeds, identification cards, marriage certificates and discharge certificates shall make use of Turkish letters, the law 1353 contradicts recent changes in other laws," Kışanak said. Kışanak’s bill proposes two changes to the present law. First is an addition to the third article to allow the use of local languages and dialects on identification papers and other legal documents. This is meant for parents who want to give their children Kurdish names. The second change is to prevent the law from intervening in the usage of local languages and dialects.

Kışanak said they were not looking to add new letters to the Turkish alphabet. "The Turkish alphabet needs to be preserved. We have proposed this law to eliminate the obstacles in the path of the usage of languages other than Turkish."