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Turkey
will receive good news and bad news when a new
government is formed in Iraq. The good news is that
Jalal Talabani, a long-time friend of Turkey who
understands its importance in the Middle East, will
be the president. But the bad news is that as a Kurd
he cannot do much about Turkish-Iraqi-Kurdish
relations.
The recent statements from Ankara regarding the city
of Kirkuk and their fear of Kurds oppressing Turkmen
there have sent a strong message to Iraqi Kurdistan
that Turkey's "Kurdophobia" has not subsided,
despite repeated Kurdish reassurances that Kurds
have no intention to "Kurdisize" the city of Kirkuk.
For the Iraqi Kurd leadership, Kirkuk has a Kurdish
character. This means it is part of a geographical
region called Kurdistan, but does not mean it is
exclusively Kurdish. The demographic makeup of the
region of Kurdistan includes Kurds, Turkmen, Arabs
and Assyrians - and so does Kirkuk.
The city of Kirkuk symbolizes for many Iraqis the
old Iraq that was rife with destruction, expulsion,
discrimination and racism. Looking to its future,
Kirkuk has the potential of being the symbol of the
new Iraq. The people of Kirkuk took the first step
in this direction. On Jan. 9, they went out of their
homes, despite the ambient security threats, and
voted. But the process of turning Kirkuk into a
success story does not stop there. It is only the
start, and Turkey can play an important role.
Turkey should appease the Kurdish and Iraqi
leadership by assuring them it will not interfere in
Iraq's internal affairs. It should further declare
its support for any efforts to democratize and
create an infrastructure that would be conducive to
lasting peace and stability in Iraq, especially in
the areas near its border. Rather than making a fuss
over the situation solely of the Turkmen of Iraq,
Ankara should encourage the newly elected Iraqi
Kurdistan Regional Assembly to write a regional
constitution that enshrines the principles of human
rights, equality and civil liberties for all those
who live in the Kurdistan region.
A constitution in the Kurdish region will be a lot
easier to adopt and will guarantee everyone's rights
there. By doing this, Turkey will send a message to
the leaders and the people of the new Iraq that
Turkey is a partner that wants to see a strong,
stable, free and democratic Iraq - not one that is
threatened by civil war.
The naming of a Kurdish president for Iraq or the
presence of a large number of Kurdish deputies in
the Iraqi Parliament should not create a dilemma for
Turkey. It should signal the start of a new policy
on Iraq and on the Kurds. This can only be done by
setting "Kurdophobia" aside and seeing the Kurds as
a key ally in the new Iraq.
The Kurds and other Iraqis realize that, unlike most
of the neighboring countries, Turkey has played no
role in encouraging the terrorist violence in Iraq.
Turkey should capitalize on this and build upon it.
It is the model for an Islamic state that is
democratic. It has managed to prove that Islam and
democracy are not mutually exclusive. The challenge
for Turkey is to prove that Turkey and the word
Kurdish are not mutually exclusive either.
By the same token, tolerating the word Kurdish or
setting "Kurdophobia" aside in Turkey will pave the
way for solving Turkey's problems with the former
Kurdish Workers Party, or PKK, which cannot be
solved across the border in Iraq. The PKK issue
needs to be taken back into Turkey. In this regard,
Iraqi Kurds seem to have enough on their plate. The
last thing they want is to create new enemies. They
do not see the PKK issue as one they can solve,
especially violently. All they can do is prevent the
group from using Iraqi Kurdish territory for
launching attacks against Turkey.
The United States cannot do much to change the
sides' minds or hearts regarding one another. It
will eventually leave Iraq. Change has to come from
within. The Kurds and Turks are stuck with each
other, and need to work out a relationship either
with or without Iraq.
Despite pressure from Kurdish public opinion, the
elected Kurdish leadership has said over and over
again it does not intend to break away and form an
independent Kurdish state. It will send its
heavyweights to Baghdad and be part of shaping the
new Iraq. But this is conditional; if the violence
does not stop in the center and south, no one in
their right mind would want to be part of Iraq. If
the Kurds are not helped to be a real part of the
new order, they will be forced to look at other
options.
Under these circumstances, Turkey could receive a
visit from the Kurds asking the following: Iraq is
not working; we don't want to be part of it, nor do
we want to have a war with you. And we can't drop
our Kurdish identity. What shall we do? Turkey will
have to offer an answer.
Hiwa Osman is an editor and trainer at the Institute
for War and Peace Reporting, and is based in Iraq.
This commentary first appeared in
bitterlemons-international.org, an online
newsletter.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb
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