The Turkish news

[thearabchildren]

Is showing the results of the past few days violence in the Southeast. Some Canadian friends were just down there and they sent me this:

"In mardın now. Had some decent food. Dıdnt get a chance to see much of Dıryarkabır as the cıty was a lıttle unsettled. We arrıved to fıghter jets cırclıng and smoke bıllowıng up from the cıty. We followed a van through sıde streets to get around blocked roads and barrıcades. Then we went on to Batman passıng through Basılı whıch had helıcopters cırclıng and a newly rock covered road. Batman was no better and we drove around the cıty makıng our way to Hasankeyf. Saw the news on a TV at the petrol statıon we camped at and ıt seems we made ıt to 3 of the 4 or 5 cıtıes the news was reportıng on.

Beyond that we have really enjoyed thıs area. Possıbly the most of anywhere weve been so we are planıng to venture further east ınto northern Iraq."

How much longer do the stupid Kemalists think they can make the Kurdish people wait for justice? How much longer do the Kemalists think they can blame the Kurds for their own oppression and poverty?

[Barış]

I've also heard about the violence, unfortunately...

Anyway, it's Mardin not Mardın. The way your friend spelled Diyarbakır (Amed) makes me wonder if he/she drank too much Yeni Rakı or something...

Also it's Southern Kurdistan and not 'Northern Iraq'.

Good question, by the way.

[thearabchildren]

The friends in question may well have been drunk, but the spelling reflected lazy typing by a non-Turkish speaker on a Turkish keyboard. Isn't the Kurdish spelling Mêrdîn? Wikipædia says in Ararbic it's ماردين, but local Arabs say it closer to مردين.

[Kulka]

northen iraq is when ypu pass all southern Kurdistan and go more south, behind the southern border of Kurdistan is northen iraq.

[thearabchildren]

Fair enough, would you prefer Iraqi Kurdistan? I don't call it (nor does the friend in question, I assure you) Northern Iraq out of any lack of respect for Kurdish self-determination. If the Kurds of Iraq unilaterally and democratically declare a Kurdish state, I will be the first one to acknowledge it, I assure you.

[Kulka]

Fair enough, would you prefer Iraqi Kurdistan? I don't call it (nor does the friend in question, I assure you) Northern Iraq out of any lack of respect for Kurdish self-determination. If the Kurds of Iraq unilaterally and democratically declare a Kurdish state, I will be the first one to acknowledge it, I assure you.

iraqi Kurdistan??? - we are not the property of iraq to call us like that. Kurdistan is Kurdistan and we recognize its parts as Bakuri Kurdistan (North), bashuri Kurdistan (South), Rojhalati Kurdistan (east), Rojawai Kurdistan (West). You can at least call South Kurdistan - Kurdish Autonomy. but we all prefer Southern Kurdistan

[thearabchildren]

Kurdistan is most certainly Kurdistan and most certainly is not the property of Iraq or any other state which has been created recently (after centuries of a cultural/regional/linguistic entity recognised by all the empires around it, including those controlling parts of it, called Kurdistan). It will always be Kurdistan so long as most people who live there are Kurds. The state is a different question. The KRG is a government entity which legally recognises itself as part of the Iraqi state. Many, many Kurds both within and without this entity may rightly be upset by this state of affairs, but legally speaking, the part of Kurdistan in question is legally recognised by pretty much everyone as Iraq. Iraqi Kurdistan may well be the southern part of Kurdistan, but it is, for now, legally part of Iraq.

I am a strong supporter of the Kurdish nation's right to view itself as Kurdish first before it is "Turkish" or "Iraqi", but that doesn't change the fact of Iraqi Kurdistan's being legally a part of Iraq.

[Kulka]

once upon a time poland was a part of russia, germany and austria, but it doesnt change the fact that it was poland and it was a country. and nobody called it "russian poland'. occupation and artificial borders are nothing more as a piece of sh***. legally speaking. what kind of supporter you are if you consider Kurdistan as iraq (or part of iraq, whatever).
KURDISTAN - not "iraqi kurdistan", basha?

[thearabchildren]

Well, it actually did change that fact. People did use such terms, and they continue to. It is really not me you should be arguing with. I am not in favour of the way Iraq has been run at any point from when the British created it to today. If the solution is to free Iraqi Kurdistan to start a Kurdish state, I will support that wholeheartedly if that's what the Kurdish people want. It's a bit strange that you're yelling at me as though I am the obstacle to Kurdish freedom, when I am constantly attacked in Turkey as being too pro-Kurdish, and the KRG government still refuses to recognise your demands. Fight them, not me, and I will support you, and never them, because you are the Kurdish people and they are the lying government that oppresses you, and I am always for the people against the government. Yelling at me for referring to the current legal situation (unjust though it may be) is not going to get the Iraqi flag lowered any sooner.

[thearabchildren]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_India

There it is. "British India". A colony under foreign occupation, but that was the legal situation, and so that was the term that was used, even by Indian freedom fighters who wanted nothing more than for the British army to go back where it came from.

[Kulka]

WOW! Wikipedia - should i prey for what people writting there? Should it be my holy book?
sorry to dissapoint you but i am not "yelling" at you - as you funny call it, nor i argue with you, i just try to tell you that our country is called KURDISTAN. its so simple. i think 5 years old kid will understand that very easy.
and be sure that it DOES lower iraqi flag and any other enemy flag.
by the way - we already fighting with KRG.
and honestly its useless to waste the time trying to tell you how its called the country which you claim to be so "pro". bye.

[thearabchildren]

I don't think wikipedia is a "holy book" but I'm afraid that's far from an isolated case: http://www.google.com.tr/search?q=%22br ... =firefox-a

Over two million hits. Guess only supporters of the British crown use it, huh?

I support your fight against the KRG, and I already know and will continue to recognise that where you live, no matter what state or how many states control it for whatever period of time, is Kurdistan. And that's all there is to say.

[Barış]

The friends in question may well have been drunk, but the spelling reflected lazy typing by a non-Turkish speaker on a Turkish keyboard. Isn't the Kurdish spelling Mêrdîn? Wikipædia says in Ararbic it's ماردين, but local Arabs say it closer to مردين.

Yea I agree, and yea in Kurdî it's Mêrdîn. I know very little Arabic, so if I were to post in Arabic it would be more funny than your friend's typing error of Diyarbakır (Amed).

[thearabchildren]

What are the Kurdish names of various cities in Turkish Kurdistan? I know only Qers and Amed really.

Also speaking of "the Turkish news", here's someone else who would never be allowed to speak in the mainstream Turkish media, unless he censored everything he said:

http://books.google.com.tr/books?id=qwB ... 22&f=false

[thearabchildren]

iraqi Kurdistan??? - we are not the property of iraq to call us like that. Kurdistan is Kurdistan and we recognize its parts as Bakuri Kurdistan (North), bashuri Kurdistan (South), Rojhalati Kurdistan (east), Rojawai Kurdistan (West). You can at least call South Kurdistan - Kurdish Autonomy. but we all prefer Southern Kurdistan

Hey, I just noticed that alan131210's avatar (memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=12727) is this:



What a traitor! He must really hate Kurds!