ISTANBUL – Emphasizing "there can be no peace in the Middle East without the Kurds," Assoc. Prof. Serhun Al stated, "What matters is to take this issue out of the climate of conflict, negotiate it in a peaceful and democratic environment, and ensure that all the peoples living in the region benefit from a win-win strategy."

 

The Peace and Democratic Society Process, which began following the call made by Kurdish People's Leader Abdullah Öcalan on 27 February 2025 for the resolution of the Kurdish issue through democratic and peaceful means, continues to hold its place on the agenda. Within this scope, discussions continue on how the republic can be democratized, on the resolution of the Kurdish issue, and on the construction of equal citizenship and a participatory order. 

 

On this basis, the "Conference on the Democratic Transformation of the Republic in the Second Century" is being held in Istanbul, attended by numerous intellectuals, artists, academics and politicians. Assoc. Prof. Serhun Al, who gave a presentation at the conference titled "From Assimilation to Integration," shared his assessments with Mezopotamya Agency (MA).

 

Stating that the Kurds are an important balancing factor in the Middle East and play a leading role in regional peace, Al emphasized that there is also a mutual interaction between the Kurds and Turkey, and that the future of both sides serves as a guarantee for the other. Stating that Turkey is passing through an important threshold, Al said that in the current process all segments of society need peace.

 

'KURDISH IDENTITY HAS BEEN FURTHER STRENGTHENED'

 

Stating that, contrary to what was intended, the assimilation policies pursued over the last century have further strengthened Kurdish identity, Al said: "The process we are going through can be read as a step in this direction. Looking back over the last century, assimilation policies, rather than dissolving identities, actually strengthened Kurdish identity and other identities much further. They politicized them much more, and we have arrived at this point today as a natural result of the Kurdish movement's objection to the republic's somewhat singular nation-building. There is a very serious authoritarian wave in the world right now. Populist nationalists are shaping states from Europe to the Middle East. In that respect, I think a very important opportunity has been seized. There is already a state of war in the region. The Iran war, what is happening in Palestine, what is happening in Lebanon, the conflicts in Iraq... In that respect, I think Kurdish peace is a very important opportunity for Turkey. Of course, it would be wrong to read this today only as a democratization process, because what is progressing for now is more a process aimed at disarmament, at the silencing of weapons. But at the next stage, in the republic's 2nd century, if this peace is indeed concluded, it will of course need to be crowned with democracy."

 

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN INTEGRATION AND ASSIMILATION

 

Addressing the definitions of assimilation and integration, Al said: "Assimilation is the assimilation of a minority identity into the majority identity. In integration, the exact opposite is the case. Integration means the recognition, before the law, of minority identities or non-dominant identities. From this perspective, certain solution proposals regarding Kurdish, the Kurdish language, can be developed in the Constitution. The normalization of Kurdish, of Kurdishness, in the public sphere may be necessary. What is meant by integration is addressing the Kurds, Turks and other peoples — and Turkey now also has a significant Arab population, as well as Alevis — as a whole, with an understanding of unity within plurality. What is needed is not to confine things to a singular identity, but to move to a format of unity within plurality. Of course, this also needs to be constitutionally guaranteed. Both constitutional guarantees are needed, and the implementation of this constitution, which requires conscious and democratic administrators to implement it."

 

Stating that the simplest definition of integration is "recognition," Al underlined that integration is an important factor within the scope of the Peace and Democratic Society Process. Al said: "There is currently a state of rearmament in the world. The US-China rivalry, the Iran war, Israel sounding the drums of war in the region... In that respect, the process we are going through is a very important opportunity for Turkey, and also a very important opportunity for the Kurds. Of course, when I say an important opportunity for the Kurds, let's not think only of the Kurds in Turkey — the Kurds in Turkey, the Kurds in Syria, all of them. Today, as you know, throughout the course of the Iran war, US President Trump tried to establish communication with the Kurds. In other words, the Kurds are a very important actor in the region. In this respect, this is an opportunity both for Ankara and for the Kurds."

 

THE KURDS IN THE BUILDING OF DEMOCRACY

 

Stating that the realization of peace and democracy in the republic's 2nd century would provide momentum for the welfare, equality and freedom of society, Al said: "The first pillar of this is that the Kurds have always been seen as a security element throughout the republican era. From this perspective, a process of conflict was entered into. This needs to be overcome. Normalizing Kurdishness means taking Kurdishness out of that security paradigm. By equality, I mean sharing sovereignty. What is meant by sharing sovereignty is this: Turkey is also a Kurdish state. It is not possible to see Turkey only as a Turkish state. It is the state of both Kurds and Turks. Turkish and Kurdish society are intertwined in many respects. In that sense, today's process is a very important opportunity. It is clear that the state also reads it this way, and the Kurds also read it this way."

 

THE POSITION OF THE KURDS IN THE US-IRAN WAR

 

Touching on the current wars in the Middle East and the latest situation, Al continued: "The war in Iran has once again changed the geopolitical balances. Of course, the Kurds are in the middle of these geopolitical balances. In that respect, Ankara's concerns may have increased. If a new formation similar to Rojava emerges in Iran, where would Turkey stand in relation to this? But it is clear that the Kurdish Movement has acted responsibly on this point, and the Kurds in Iran did not respond positively to Trump's call. But this should not be linked only to Turkey; it also has to do with the Iranian regime. In that respect, looking at the current geopolitical balances of the process, we cannot say that the war in Iran has put the process on hold, but we can say that it has led to a reconsideration of certain calculations. The Kurds are of course the guarantee of the Middle East. That is to say, there can be no peace in the Middle East without the Kurds. Today, what the Palestinian issue is, so is the Kurdish issue. What matters is to take this issue out of the climate of conflict, to discuss and negotiate it in a peaceful and democratic environment, and from there to ensure that all the peoples living in the region benefit, with a win-win strategy for all peoples. Of course, the welfare of the Kurds is also to the benefit of the Turks. In one sense the Kurds are Turkey's guarantee, and in another sense Turkey is the Kurds' guarantee. There is a mutual interaction here. Turkey is important for the Kurds, and the Kurds are important for Turkey."

 

MA / Adnan Bilen - Melik Varol