Atatürk and Kurds
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On 8 December 1925, the Turkish Ministry of Education issued an order banning the use of ethnic terms such as Kurd, Circassian, Laz, Kurdistan and Lazistan. Atatürk explained this new policy in the manual of civics which he dedicated to his adopted daughter Afet Inan in 1930:
Within the political and social unity of today's Turkish nation, there are citizens and co-nationals who have been incited to think of themselves as Kurds, Circassians, Laz or Bosnians. But these erroneous terms have brought nothing but sorrow to individual members of the nation, with the exception of a few brainless reactionaries, who became enemy's instruments.[1]
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[edit] Nationalism
- See also: Dersim Rebellion
Several other large scale Kurdish revolts occurred in Ararat and Dersim in 1930 and 1937[2][3]. Turkish Air Force used aerial bombardments effectively against Kurdish uprisings. Sabiha Gökçen, Turkey's first female pilot and the adopted daughter of Atatürk, took part in the bombing raids against the Dersim Kurds[4].
Large-scale armed conflict between the Turkish armed forces and the PKK occurred throughout the 1980s and 1990s, leaving over 35,000 dead. Recent moves by the Turkish government have provided Kurds with limited rights and freedoms, particularly in regards to the Kurdish language, education, and media. Kurdish politicians and activists still face political persecution[5].
[edit] Secularism
- See also: Ottoman Caliphate and Sheikh Said Rebellion
In 1925, an uprising for an independent Kurdistan, led by Seyh Sait (Shaikh Said Piran), was put down quickly, and Sait and 36 of his followers were executed soon thereafter. Shaikh Said Piran was a religious leader who claimed that "The new regime is against the religion (Caliphate) and its organizations (religious schools)".
[edit] Cultural issues
Kurds criticize Atatürk for disregarding their cultural distinctions in pursuing a Turkish national identity[citation needed]. Atatürk believed the unity and stability of a country lay in a unitary political identity, relegating cultural and ethnic distinctions to the private sphere.
[edit] References
- ^ Andrew Mango, Atatürk and the Kurds, Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.35, No.4, 1999, pp.1-25
- ^ Olson, R., The Kurdish Rebellions of Sheikh Said (1925), Mt. Ararat (1930), and Dersim (1937-8): Their Impact on the Development of the Turkish Air Force and on Kurdish and Turkish Nationalism, Die Welt des Islam, New Ser., Vol.40, Issue 1, March 2000
- ^ Olson, Robert W., The Emergence of Kurdish Nationalism and the Sheikh Said Rebellion, 1880-1925, 1989
- ^ Olson, R., The Kurdish Rebellions of Sheikh Said (1925), Mt. Ararat (1930), and Dersim (1937-8): Their Impact on the Development of the Turkish Air Force and on Kurdish and Turkish Nationalism, Die Welt des Islam, New Ser., Vol.40, Issue 1, March 2000, pp.89-90
- ^ [1]
