Treatment of Minorities in Turkey Essay - 1685 Words

Treatment of Minorities in Turkey Problems with format Turkey, a relatively new nation, is not new to internal conflict and the oppression of minorities. Wedged between Europe and the Middle East, the area occupied by Turkey has long served as a crossroads between these areas, and, as a result, Turkeys majority Islamic Arab populace is smattered with significant pockets of minorities. These religious and ethnic minorities have been the source of much controversy in Turkey, but now change appears to be on the horizon. As Turkey seeks the approval of the European Union, it has begun to implement impressive humanitarian reforms that should drastically improve the plight of the minorities that call the nation home. Undoing a Bitter†¦show more content†¦Most of the reforms are directed towards Turkey?s Kurdish minority. Oppression of Turkish Kurds Approximately 12 million Kurds live in Turkey, but the country has repeatedly denied their existence. Instead, the government has referred to them as mountain Turks that speak a primitive local dialect instead of referring to their language as Kurdish.[iii] So complete was their denial of the Kurds that the Turkish government even changed the green in traffic lights to blue because the green color was associated with the Kurdish tricolor.[iv] Kurds were forbidden to speak or teach their language to others, and they could not name their children traditional Kurdish names.[v] Any display of Kurdish identity, be it speaking or publishing in Kurdish, or advocating the right to do so, landed thousands of Kurds in prison.[vi] This complete suppression of Kurdish culture began with the creation of Turkey after World War I. In the Treaty of Sevres of 1920, the Kurds were promised their own state.[vii]? Turkey subsequently renegotiated the Treaty, though, and the Kurdish state never became a reality.? As a result, the Kurds have continuously sought autonomy from Turkey, and the Turkish government, fearful of the consequences of creating a separate Kurdish state, has long resisted their pleas.? Increasing government suppression ignited a 15-year struggle between the Kurds and the government thatShow MoreRelatedWomens Rights And Democracy In Turkey : The History Of Turkey1208 Words   |  5 PagesThe history of Turkey stretches back about 40,000 years. Although, Turkey was never colonized by another nation state, it was once occupied by the one of the largest and long-lasting empires in history, the Ottoman Empire. Following World War I and the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1922, Turkey achieved its independence on October 29, 1923. 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