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Assyrians & Kurds
Posted by Qasrani (Guest) - Tuesday, October 25 2005, 1:22:03 (CEST)
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The Christian Minorities in Kurdistan ...... By Behrooz Shojai
[12:48 , 11 Oct 2005]
The Globe
By Behrooz Shojai

The Kurdish delegation in the constitutional committee insisted on the rights of the minorities within the confine of Iraq in general and those living within the boundaries of Kurdistan regional government in particular. They even managed to convince the committee to designate minorities like Turcoman and Assyrians (including Caldeans and Syrians) as nations living within the political boundaries of Iraq Federal Democratic Republic. It was not only the Kurdish obligingness, but also their commitment to the democratic principals.

The opposite would be unthinkable, since the Kurds as a former oppressed minority in Iraq have been exposed to severe repression and denial since the foundation of the country. The Kurds as a nation, particularly in the northern part, may have their share in the holocaust of Christian minorities (Armenians and Syrians) in Kurdistan. But we should not forget that the holocaust was not sanctioned by the political will of the Kurds, it was due to Islamic fatwas from the sovereign (the Sultan in Istanbul) that these genocides took place.

The Kurdish national movement has always searched to find ways for reconciliation and recompense. The modern Kurdish national movement has even incorporated Christians within its high ranking functionaries, be it in North or in South. The misunderstanding and mischief between Kurds and Armenians are almost settled, but a sense of discontentment is still perceptible from the Assyrian/Syrian country fellow-men. One can conceive a kind of bitterness partially because Kurdish individuals participated in the genocide, but mainly because of the newly shaped Assyrian nationalism due to its historicist discourse. By referring to the history some Assyrian country fellow-men lodge a territorial claim on what we now consider as Kurdistan. True that southern parts of Kurdistan were heavily populated by Assyrians, particularly in the urban areas, whereas the Kurds mainly inhabited mountainous and rural areas.

The reality is that ethnic boundaries have seldom followed the political borders. Kurds lived here, even when the area was ruled by Assyrians. And in fact some Kurds were Assyrian rulers, because many Assyrian tribes have shifted language and religion to what we today call Kurds. The shift is proved linguistically, religiously and anthropologically. Kurds did not come from heaven to Assyria. The statement from some Assyrian nationalists that Kurds have occupied their land is thereby a misconception of historical facts. The fact is that this land belongs to Assyrians as much as it belongs to Kurds.

There are no doubts that in a democratic society all citizens must enjoy equal rights, be it cultural, linguistic or religious. The distinction of the Assyrians ethnic origin presupposes also a share of the sovereign. The devolution of sovereign does not necessarily mean autonomy based on territoriality. When the notion of citizenship and nationhood is diverse within the constitution, then the Assyrian country fellow-men are automatically a part of the sovereign in accordance with the constitution.

This is what there Kurds have tried to achieve in negotiations in Baghdad, since the Assyrian national cause is indeed our cause and this is the essence of the democratic notion of the Kurdish nationhood in Southern Kurdistan concerning minorities.

The Assyrian country fellow-men, who claim national rights and liberties based on territoriality should bear in mind that the Assyrian nation actually does not possess any territorial continuity, which is the foundation of a sovereign state or even autonomous region. The Diaspora has always had an immense impact on the definition of the nationalisms; the imagined land of Assyria, which is constructed by the Assyrian Diaspora, is part of history – and nobody denies it - not the reality of the Assyrians living in Kurdistan. In defining the “other” for the Assyrian nation, Kurds are less suitable antagonists, since the Kurdish nationalism as its political discourse has always advocated the legitimate national rights of Assyrians.

Many Assyrians are returning to Kurdistan from a turbulent Iraq, where churches are burnt, and the Christian properties are targeted. In the peaceful and tolerant Kurdistan several churches have been built, old ones have been restored and the competent Assyrian employers are participating in the rebuilding of the country.

The Assyrians are inseparable part of Kurdistan; they constitute an important part of the historical legacy in Kurdistan and constituent part of the Kurdistani diverse society. Hence their participation in the process of democratization in Kurdistan is of immense importance for the both groups, Kurds and Assyrians respectively. A fully-fledged democratic society requires participation from all groups of the society. Without participation there will be less legitimacy.



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