The Kurdish Issue and the Syriacs

By Evgil Türker | President of the Federation of Syriac Associations in Turkey (Süryani Dernekler Federasyonu, SÜDEF) 

The 2013–2015 Peace Process in Turkey failed. Everyone knows what a grim situation the failure of the process has led to: arrests, clashes, deaths … For the last 10 years, not only the Kurds, but all of us have lived through a nightmare. Of course, the Kurds have suffered most.

On the occasion of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party’s (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistanê, PKK) disarmament ceremony, the People’s Equality and Democracy Party (Halkların Eşitlik ve Demokrasi Partisi, DEM Party) invited the Federation of Syriac Associations in Turkey (Süryani Dernekler Federasyonu, SÜDEF). I was invited as the Syriac representative. Syriac Member of Parliament in Turkey for the DEM Party George Aslan was, of course, also present. 

The Syriac people — one of the most indigenous peoples to the Middle East — are among those peoples that have lived alongside the Kurdish people in Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Iran. The presence of Syriac representatives at such a defining ceremony was therefore of great importance. After all, the Kurdish issue is also an issue that concerns Syriacs. 

To put it differently, as long as there is a Kurdish issue, and as long as there is conflict and war in our lands, the vulnerable position of the Syriac people makes them likely to suffer the full consequences. The past and present conflicts and wars have caused major migration flows from our native territories. That’s precisely why it was important for us, as Syriac people, to be there at the ceremony, to be present as witnesses to that historic moment. The disarmament ceremony received extensive media coverage.

I will touch on some of the benefits and drawbacks of all this for the Syriac people. 

When the 30 PKK members came down from the mountain to the historic site of the ceremony and delivered their speech, we witnessed a truly historic moment. They disabled their weapons, put them in a cauldron, and burned them. I hope — we all do — that this will lead to lasting peace and an end to the tears, the bloodshed, and the conflict in our lands. This is what we all want. 

Of course, the problem won’t be solved simply by the laying down of arms and burning them. There are numerous legal and judicial aspects to the peace process. Without these, the disarmament ceremony will remain meaningless, and there will be no benefit. The Kurdish issue is an issue that has been ongoing for half a century. If the associated legal and judicial process for this 50-year-old issue is not properly addressed by the Peace and Democratic Society Commission within the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, and if it is not executed in sincerity, it will yield little. The downside is that history will repeat itself. 

As Syriacs, we want the peace that all the peoples desire. It is crucial for us as a people that Turkey learns to better internalize democracy, that it takes remedial steps to solve existing social and political problems, and confronts its past massacres, genocides, and offenses.

Since 1915, Syriacs have been treated as third-class citizens — the reason for their emigration and the Wealth Tax (1942). Now they eagerly await peace. 

The rule of law, respect and recognition of national identities, democracy, and the freedom for everyone to be able to freely practice their religion and culture and speak their native language are crucial principles to the Syriac people. We believe these are important for the Kurds too. 

Because we share the same geography, we are naturally affected by the Kurdish issue. We see that this issue is now being addressed at a high level, and that the Turkish state itself is playing a role in solving it. The peace process is not something that only began with the call by Devlet Bahçeli, the chairman of the Nationalist Movement Party (Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi, MHP). No, this is a process to which the Turkish state itself has agreed. 

Since the Turkish state itself has taken on the issue and committed to solve it, and since it has sat down with Mr. Abdullah Öcalan to discuss and plan it, the state must also fulfill its requirements. And everyone will benefit. All of Turkey will benefit: legal rights, cultures, identities, peoples, the Kurds, the Syriacs … They will all be respected and benefit. Our state will develop, its economy will flourish, and it will become a model state in the Middle East. 

The state has been grappling with social, legal, and political issues for over a century. There comes a time when these issues can no longer be glossed over. How long can the Republic of Turkey continue to deny these problems, pretend they do not exist? That is why the words spoken must not remain mere words. 

Immediately following the disarmament ceremony, on July 12th, President Tayyip Erdoğan made a statement. He announced the establishment of a parliamentary commission. He put it under the banner Turkey Without Terrorism. Changes will be made, he added. He mentioned legal and judicial steps. 

Of course, he also resorted to pan-Islamic rhetoric by making statements supporting the Ummah. But this issue cannot be resolved through pan-Islamism. On the other hand, the rhetoric of “No more clenched fists, we will embrace each other” was also significant. 

Extreme nationalism and racism are serious problems in Turkey. It is the state that keeps adding fuel to fire. It has brought about this problematic situation. We, the Syriacs, are a people with a 7,000-year history in these lands. The same goes for the Armenians, Greeks, Kurds, and many other peoples. The peoples who form the fundamental components of this country, its territory, i.e. its original owners, are being denied. The Turkish state has caused and continued this problem, to this day. As if no other people, no other ethnic identity, no other religion exists in this country. I believe that the state has a solution to this problem, too. Because a century of denial has brought people to the current state we are in. 

In the context of all the above-mentioned issues, we, the Syriac people, their institutions and associations, are ready to take every responsibility, everywhere and on every platform, to achieve lasting peace.

This article was originally published in Turkish by Gazete Sabro. You can find the original here.

The views expressed in this op-ed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of SyriacPress.