PKK, Ocalan and the Iraqi Kurds
Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2005 6:06 pmGiven the fact that Apo is one of the most devise figures in Kurdish politics I have decided to write a short piece about him and his relationship with the PKK and the Iraqi Kurds.
The PKK is one of the most interesting political organisations in the world not just in the Middle East. It grew out of the radical meliu that developed in Turkey in the late 1970s. During this time Turkey was racked by class conflict and economic instability. Granted that Turkey was a NATO state and was an important strategic partner for the US, it was not supported by the US in the same way that Iran was at that time.
In the universities of Western Turkey many young Kurds became infected with Stalinism or Maoism. Some even went the other way and joint the grey wolfs. However, the impact of the KDP in Iraq and the figure of Mullah Mustafa as well as the economic backwardness and cultural difference of Kurdistan of Turkey lead many, like Ocalan, to reject tradition Turkish Leftism which was highly Kemalist in nature. In fact the fact that the USSR had supported Kemal against the Greeks and Armenians was a source of pride for the Turkish left. Thus, groups like the PKK began to form in Western Turkey. Meanwhile, in Kurdistan radical groups and Kurdish nationalism was also growing. However, this movement was dominated by the urban professionals, yet radicalism continued to grow and in 1979 Mehdi Zana an open Kurdish nationalist won the mayoral election in Diyarbekir.
However, the 1980 coup changed every thing. Many of the larger and more open Kurdish movements were crushed as well as many leftist parties. However, the PKK managed to survive and after 1982 were left to face a weakned Kurdish movement in Turkey which the wiped out. For example the PSK and Rizgari were branded as traitors and reformists. Many of their activists were killed. Then the PKK turned on some of the larger tribal groups AND not just pro Govt tribes but also Nationalist tribe that had links with other nationalist parties. Still by demonstrating their hitting power and propagating amongst the Kurdish under class the PKK and Ocalan managed become the leaders of the Kurdish movement in Turkey. Orginally the claimed that they wanted a United independent Kurdistan. However, to make the Syrian Ba’ath party happy they dropped the clauses to do with Syria. Ocalan even said that the Syrian Kurds were refugees from Turkish Kurdistan.
Ocalan also claimed that the Kurdish movement was a Class struggle rather than a national struggle… After the collapse of the USSR the PKK was put into an ideological malaise which was increasingly filled by Apo’s cult of personality. In the 1990s the PKK fourght the Turkish Army bravely but by 1994 it was obvious that they were loosing. At this point the PKK attempted to take Bahdinan region in Iraq. It was claimed that the KDP and PUK had been attacking the PKK with the help of Turkey… this had happened in 1992 but Turkish brutality in Zakho and Barzan lead the Kurdish-Turkish alliance to break down… The PKK attack came during the civil war between the Iraqi Kurdish parties and in fact much of Arbil and Suleymania were supporting the PKK. Only Dohuk, which had suffered form PKK attacks on civilians remained anti PKK. The PKK did this because rather then trying to pursue good relations with the Iraqi Kurds believed that they could seize power in the south… and did not care that they might give the Turkish Army the excuse they needed to occupy South Kurdistan.
After Apos trial most Iraqi Kurds felt that the PKK had lost its way….
Now if the PKK is claim that it wants a ‘democratic republic’ I don’t see why it need to keep its armed wing. Or at least why should its armed wing be in South Kurdistan. By being there they are risking the safety of the KRG… all to satisfy Apos ego…
Now… I want to make a point about the difference between the Iraqi Kurdish Parties and the PKK….. The PKK is an oppositional party. This means it does not have the responsibity for ruling a population. However, the Iraqi Kurdish parties HAVE TO provide for their people. This means that they don’t have the diplomatic room to say we want to liberate Turkish Kurdistan or we want to break Iraq up. If they did this it could end very badly for them. Rather they have to follow a policy by which they entrench Kurdistan while not pissing off all the hostile neighbours. The PKK on the other hand is just in an ideological malaise at the moment. They don’t know what they stand for. This is because Apo has defeated them on a discursive level. Ocalan could have softened the Kurdish line without defeating the movement on a discursive level by claiming that Mustafa Kemal was a great man.
The PKK is one of the most interesting political organisations in the world not just in the Middle East. It grew out of the radical meliu that developed in Turkey in the late 1970s. During this time Turkey was racked by class conflict and economic instability. Granted that Turkey was a NATO state and was an important strategic partner for the US, it was not supported by the US in the same way that Iran was at that time.
In the universities of Western Turkey many young Kurds became infected with Stalinism or Maoism. Some even went the other way and joint the grey wolfs. However, the impact of the KDP in Iraq and the figure of Mullah Mustafa as well as the economic backwardness and cultural difference of Kurdistan of Turkey lead many, like Ocalan, to reject tradition Turkish Leftism which was highly Kemalist in nature. In fact the fact that the USSR had supported Kemal against the Greeks and Armenians was a source of pride for the Turkish left. Thus, groups like the PKK began to form in Western Turkey. Meanwhile, in Kurdistan radical groups and Kurdish nationalism was also growing. However, this movement was dominated by the urban professionals, yet radicalism continued to grow and in 1979 Mehdi Zana an open Kurdish nationalist won the mayoral election in Diyarbekir.
However, the 1980 coup changed every thing. Many of the larger and more open Kurdish movements were crushed as well as many leftist parties. However, the PKK managed to survive and after 1982 were left to face a weakned Kurdish movement in Turkey which the wiped out. For example the PSK and Rizgari were branded as traitors and reformists. Many of their activists were killed. Then the PKK turned on some of the larger tribal groups AND not just pro Govt tribes but also Nationalist tribe that had links with other nationalist parties. Still by demonstrating their hitting power and propagating amongst the Kurdish under class the PKK and Ocalan managed become the leaders of the Kurdish movement in Turkey. Orginally the claimed that they wanted a United independent Kurdistan. However, to make the Syrian Ba’ath party happy they dropped the clauses to do with Syria. Ocalan even said that the Syrian Kurds were refugees from Turkish Kurdistan.
Ocalan also claimed that the Kurdish movement was a Class struggle rather than a national struggle… After the collapse of the USSR the PKK was put into an ideological malaise which was increasingly filled by Apo’s cult of personality. In the 1990s the PKK fourght the Turkish Army bravely but by 1994 it was obvious that they were loosing. At this point the PKK attempted to take Bahdinan region in Iraq. It was claimed that the KDP and PUK had been attacking the PKK with the help of Turkey… this had happened in 1992 but Turkish brutality in Zakho and Barzan lead the Kurdish-Turkish alliance to break down… The PKK attack came during the civil war between the Iraqi Kurdish parties and in fact much of Arbil and Suleymania were supporting the PKK. Only Dohuk, which had suffered form PKK attacks on civilians remained anti PKK. The PKK did this because rather then trying to pursue good relations with the Iraqi Kurds believed that they could seize power in the south… and did not care that they might give the Turkish Army the excuse they needed to occupy South Kurdistan.
After Apos trial most Iraqi Kurds felt that the PKK had lost its way….
Now if the PKK is claim that it wants a ‘democratic republic’ I don’t see why it need to keep its armed wing. Or at least why should its armed wing be in South Kurdistan. By being there they are risking the safety of the KRG… all to satisfy Apos ego…
Now… I want to make a point about the difference between the Iraqi Kurdish Parties and the PKK….. The PKK is an oppositional party. This means it does not have the responsibity for ruling a population. However, the Iraqi Kurdish parties HAVE TO provide for their people. This means that they don’t have the diplomatic room to say we want to liberate Turkish Kurdistan or we want to break Iraq up. If they did this it could end very badly for them. Rather they have to follow a policy by which they entrench Kurdistan while not pissing off all the hostile neighbours. The PKK on the other hand is just in an ideological malaise at the moment. They don’t know what they stand for. This is because Apo has defeated them on a discursive level. Ocalan could have softened the Kurdish line without defeating the movement on a discursive level by claiming that Mustafa Kemal was a great man.
