The government must lead on Kurdish issue
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 14, 2009 00:00
As the nation continues and deepens its multi-faceted debate and discussion on the "Kurdish issue," we share a few points to keep in mind.
First, the state of discussion is healthy, mature and moving in the right direction. Many isolated steps and actions add up to quite a list: State television broadcasts in Kurdish, reconsideration of village names changed years ago, symbolic remarks by the chief of General Staff emphasizing the "people of Turkey" and of course the hints of "good things" by President Abdullah Gül. Even the singing in Kurdish by Turkey’s pop diva Adja Pekkan and the release of films like the recent "Güneşi Gördüm," or "I saw the sun," which explores hitherto taboo issues, add to the mood of change.
Outside the spotlight, it is apparent that frozen positions are thawing. Military acquiescence to government moves to improve relations with the Kurdish administration in northern Iraq is an example. The messages from the nominal leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, voicing respect for Turkey’s "unitary state," can be sincere or tactical. But in either case, there are profound changes.
The second point is one we explored yesterday in the Daily News, and which is being discussed across the media. This is the irony that while there is a broad consensus that an "opportunity" exists, the various actors are reluctant to issue a concrete proposal for what should happen next. We share the impatience, but we also emphasize that the lack of a concrete "proposal" on the table is not an indication of failure. What is called the "Kurdish issue" is many things. The leading issue, of course, is the security issue and the ongoing threat of PKK terror.
But there are subsidiary issues too, including education, economic development, migration, the role of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, and even relations between the state and traditional institutions. The issues of cultural identity are often over-simplified, because there are cross-cutting issues of Kurdish dialects and religious affiliations that lurk beneath the surface. In short, the "issue" is of extreme complexity.
We mention this only because, as an English language newspaper, part of our responsibility is to the international community following developments. Europeans and Americans, for example, often perceive this issue through analogies to their own experience of ethnic conflict. And exercises in analogy can mislead. If the development of consensus requires more time and patience, all parties of good will should be forthcoming.
But all that said, the only party that can truly lead is the government of the Justice and Development Party, AKP. Responsibility can be shifted nowhere else. We hope leadership will come sooner rather than later. When it does, it must come from the government.
Outside the spotlight, it is apparent that frozen positions are thawing. Military acquiescence to government moves to improve relations with the Kurdish administration in northern Iraq is an example. The messages from the nominal leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, voicing respect for Turkey’s "unitary state," can be sincere or tactical. But in either case, there are profound changes.
The second point is one we explored yesterday in the Daily News, and which is being discussed across the media. This is the irony that while there is a broad consensus that an "opportunity" exists, the various actors are reluctant to issue a concrete proposal for what should happen next. We share the impatience, but we also emphasize that the lack of a concrete "proposal" on the table is not an indication of failure. What is called the "Kurdish issue" is many things. The leading issue, of course, is the security issue and the ongoing threat of PKK terror.
But there are subsidiary issues too, including education, economic development, migration, the role of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, and even relations between the state and traditional institutions. The issues of cultural identity are often over-simplified, because there are cross-cutting issues of Kurdish dialects and religious affiliations that lurk beneath the surface. In short, the "issue" is of extreme complexity.
We mention this only because, as an English language newspaper, part of our responsibility is to the international community following developments. Europeans and Americans, for example, often perceive this issue through analogies to their own experience of ethnic conflict. And exercises in analogy can mislead. If the development of consensus requires more time and patience, all parties of good will should be forthcoming.
But all that said, the only party that can truly lead is the government of the Justice and Development Party, AKP. Responsibility can be shifted nowhere else. We hope leadership will come sooner rather than later. When it does, it must come from the government.