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The 21 February Language Commission, established by the Kurdish Language Platform and the Kurdish Language and Culture Network, launched a petition on 22 February for the Turkish government to accept Kurdish as an official language for education.
Kurdish writers and researchers appealed for more signatures to support the petition, Mesopotamia Agency reports. The campaign, in which thousands of signatures have been collected so far, will continue until 15 May.
Author-publisher Qahir Bateyî, described Kurdish languge as “the key for national unity”. Emphasising that even if there are different ideological and sociological divisions, politicians should act together on the Kurdish language, Bateyî said, “Language is the key for a solution. The deadlock in politics comes from policies imposed on the Kurdish language.
If the language problem is solved, and Kurdish becomes official, it will be a very important step for the solution of the Kurdish question, according to the Kurdish author. “If Kurdish language continues to be denied, it means that the existence of the Kurdish people is also being denied,” he said.
Stating that Kurds have been struggling for their identity and language for years, Bateyî noted that Kurdish in Turkey is considered as an “unknown language” today, “This shows that the Kurdish people are still not even recognised. They continue to resist because of this. If Kurdish is accepted legally today, it will open a way for politics of the country,” he said.
For all these reasons, Bateyî, called on Kurdish political parties, individuals and non-governmental organisations to support the campaign saying: “The number of signatures for the campaign must be reached. We should not forget that we protect our culture, identity and history with every signature. In this context, I invite everyone to support the campaign.”
‘Not only Kurds, but other peoples should also support the campaign’
Researcher and writer İkram İşler said, ”It is a very rich language. Kurdish was spoken in Mesopotamia. In history, we see that there have been many attempts to assimilate Kurdish. Not only Kurds, but other peoples of the world should also support this campaign.”
Stating that politicians should also speak in Kurdish, İşler said, “With this campaign, the pressure on language must be broken. Otherwise, we will not be able to save Kurdish. We must protect our culture and our language. The Kurds should speak Kurdish.”
Kurdish language researcher İbrahim Sungur, underlined that the Kurds can create themselves with their language. ”The identity of the peoples is based on their native language. There is currently a de facto pressure over Kurdish language. There are a few important points for the vitalisation of language; economy and education. We must speak Kurdish in the market, at home, on the street and at work and in politics,” he said.
