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The American case against Turkish invasion
11.10.2007
By Martin Zehr
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October
11, 2007
Recent activity by the Turkish military and
government presents a real danger of invasion by
Turkey against the Kurdish Autonomous region. Next
week the Turkish Parliament will be voting to
approve military action against the Kurdish
Autonomous Region. While the US State Department has
opposed such actions, as have the EU and Russia, it
clearly remains a likely scenario in the near future
that Turkish troops will invade southern Kurdistan
in its never-ending military campaign against the
Kurdish resistance movement. Americans who support
the rights of the Kurdish nation confront a mixed
proposition. While I adamantly oppose the US
occupation of Iraq, I cannot simply stand by and
accept Turkish military intervention as a solution
to the oppression of Kurds as a viable option in
resolving the longstanding conflict. For too long,
Turkish troops have displaced hundreds of Kurdish
villages and killed tens of thousands of Kurds in
Turkey. It is important now to present a strong and
singular warning to Turkey of the consequences of
such an attack on the Kurdish Autonomous Region
within Iraq.
The US Senate recently approved a resolution that
recognized the concept of federalism within the
Iraqi state. It is not binding on Iraq, or on the
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). It does propose
that the national aspirations of the Kurdish people
be recognized internationally in the political
reconfiguration in regards to the rights of both
sects and the Kurdish nation in post-occupation
scenario. The KRG has proposed a national dialogue
within Iraq on this issue. Too often there is a
presumption that the three have common but distinct
goals in the removal of US troops. The fact is that
the Kurdish position focuses on preserving the
autonomy of the Kurdistan Regional Government within
the context of a weaker central Iraqi government or,
failing that, to establish its own state. There is
no desire to subordinate the KRG’s ability to
protect Kurdish people to others whose failure to
defend the Kurdish people in the recent past stands
as a historical legacy. Neither is it acceptable for
the US to stand blind to the mass murders of Kurds
as it did after the Persian Gulf War.
There is no obscuring the issue given the recent
activity of the Turkish military. Its record in
regards to displacements of Kurdish villages and
mass murders stands despite its denials. The
historic actions of the Ottoman Empire against
Armenians stand as a clear warning that the Turkish
government’s actions do not match their words. A
Congressional Committee today approved a resolution
condemning this genocide of Armenians by the Ottoman
Empire. Clearly, the Turkish government of Prime
Minister Erdogan is seeking not only to continue to
deny the genocide against the Armenians but is
seeking to widen its conflict against the Kurds
today.
Americans need to support the Kirkuk referendum as a
non-violent and democratic means of determining the
status of Kirkuk within Iraq. If it is decided to be
integrated as part of the Kurdish Autonomous Region,
this would empower those within the borders of Iraq
to decide their own destiny. The Turkish opposition
to the right to hold this referendum is an
unwarranted interference in the affairs of another
country. Turkmen within Kirkuk are by no means
excluded from this process, but they are by no means
represented by the Turkish government. If the
Turkish goal is to annex the Kurdish Autonomous
Region into Turkey, clearly a military invasion will
attempt to make this a fait accompli. This will not
demonstrate the will of the Kurdish people who have
voted overwhelmingly in support of their national
sovereignty. At issue is the very right for the
Kurdish nation to establish their own government to
represent their people. American people need to be
taught the recent history of relations within Iraq
and the roles of Iran, Iraq and Turkey and why it is
so critical that Kurds have the ability to determine
their future for themselves. This is not an advocacy
for US occupation of Turkey, or for military action
against Iran. There is no hidden alliance here
between the Kurdish nation and Israel to increase
Israeli control. It is solely an effort to defend
the legitimate demands of the Kurdish people and
their right to construct their own future. American
military aid to Turkey has made possible their
ability to become such a powerful force in the
region. This aid should be suspended until Turkey
ceases its provocations. Turkish occupation is not
an alternative to US occupation. As it stands, the
US military has not played any significant role in
the Kurdish Autonomous Region. Peace and tranquility
has been established by the current consensus of
Kurdish peoples to self-government within the Iraqi
state.
The rights of the peoples of southern Kurdistan have
been constitutionally defined. The Kirkuk referendum
has been mandated in the Constitution in Article
140. While this is by no means the final resolution
of the issue, the Kurdistan Regional Government has
worked as a distinct entity, recognized by all other
parties within Iraq. It has distinct interests that
distinguish it from those in the Sunni and Shi’a
sects. Americans sometimes confuse the sectarian
positions from the Kurdish national right to
self-determination. As a politically recognized
entity within Iraq, the Kurdish Autonomous Region is
distinguished from the status of the sects and the
parties that represent them. It is possible to
promote the Kurdish rights without presuming the
right of US occupation. There is a need to
demonstrate international commitments to the defense
of the Kurdish nation.
American people can readily accept the distinctions.
We have no right to impose on the Kurdish people,
given the actions of Saddam Hussein, the requirement
to support any subjugation of the Kurdish nation.
The solution lies within the expressed desires of
the Kurdish people. Americans need to understand
what this means. It means that Turkey has NO right
to interfere in the rights to self-government of the
Kurdish peoples within Iraq.American people can
readily accept the distinctions. We have no right to
impose on the Kurdish people, given the actions of
Saddam Hussein, the requirement to subordinate their
effort to self-determination to the interests of
those who have subjected them in the recent past to
mass murders. The solution lies within the expressed
desires of the Kurdish people. Americans need to
understand what this means. It means that Turkey has
NO right to interfere in the rights to
self-government of the Kurdish peoples within Iraq.
Educational work is necessary to expose the true
character of the Turkish war against Kurds that has
been going on for 30 years. The role of the PKK in
this struggle remains a matter that needs to be
included without fear of being critical of
particular tactics that it has used in its history.
The fundamental issue is the discrimination and
national oppression of Kurdish people by the Turkish
government and the reign of terror on rural Kurds by
the Turkish military. To suggest that recent
military moves by the Turkish military are based on
attacks on the Turkish military by the PKK needs to
be exposed in the context of Turkey’s unending
dedication to crush ANY form of Kurdish
self-government in the region and prevent the
construction of a stable economy.
Martin Zehr is an American political writer in
the San Francisco area whose article on the Kirkuk
Referendum has been printed by the Kurdish Regional
Government
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