Exile network of Kurds expresses solidarity with Tamils on genocide remembrance
[TamilNet, Sunday, 22 May 2016, 23:50 GMT]
The Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) has expressed its solidarity with the Tamil people on the 7th anniversary of the massacres committed against the Tamils and all civilian victims and their families during the war in the island. “Even though the ethnically-motivated mass murder of the Tamils shows clear features of genocide, it is not recognized as such by international institutions. In fact, the massacre on the Tamil people was possible due to the tacit approval of global actors,” the Brussels-based umbrella group of exiled Kurds said in a statement dated 20 May 2016. Comparing the oppression of the Kurds and the Tamils, the KNK said the model behind the States of Turkey and Sri Lanka, based on the hegemony of one ethnic group over another, is doomed to fail. The KNK also drew parallels between the continued support extended to these States by the Western powers.
“The mentality of war, the denial of fundamental, democratic and national rights by both states is unfortunately still supported by the Western powers. It is obvious that the desire and the struggle for democracy, freedom and national rights cannot be quashed through these dirty wars that are still continuing against our peoples. They also show that the model of the nation-state, based on the hegemony of one ethnic group over another, is doomed to fail. Inclusive, democratic structures instead can bring about peace and freedom for all communities,” the KNK statement said express ing solidarity with the Tamil people and all the resisting peoples.
The Kurdistan National Congress is a coalition of organisations from across Europe, formed by exiled Kurdish politicians, lawyers, and activists.
Full text of the statement by the KNK follows:
Solidarity with the Tamil people
The Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) expresses its solidarity with the Tamil people on the 7th anniversary of the massacres committed against the Tamil people and all civilian victims and their families in the Sri Lankan Civil War.
The Sri Lankan Army has committed atrocious acts of violence against the Tamil population. Hundreds of thousands of people were disappeared and murdered by the military with the silent approval of the international community. Even though the ethnically-motivated mass murder of the Tamils shows clear features of genocide, it is not recognized as such by international institutions. In fact, the massacre on the Tamil people was possible due to the tacit approval of global actors.
The Sri Lankan case is an example of the international system’s arbitrary implementation of human rights and international law in politically motivated ways. A similar attitude can be seen in the current silence over the ongoing violent campaign in North Kurdistan, in which the Turkish state has openly killed hundreds of civilians in front of the eyes of the international community.
In both cases, it is clear that the oppressor states are trying to implement an annihilationist policy through military methods by not respecting any moral and ethical principles.
The mentality of war, the denial of fundamental, democratic and national rights by both states is unfortunately still supported by the Western powers. It is obvious that the desire and the struggle for democracy, freedom and national rights cannot be quashed through these dirty wars that are still continuing against our peoples. They also show that the model of the nation-state, based on the hegemony of one ethnic group over another, is doomed to fail. Inclusive, democratic structures instead can bring about peace and freedom for all communities.
We call on a thorough investigation into war crimes and hope that a peaceful, democratic and just solution can be found to the yet unsettled conflict in Sri Lanka. Again, we express our solidarity with the Tamil people and all the resisting peoples.
Kurdistan National Congress
20.05.2016
* * *
Meanwhile, Tamil Youth Diaspora Network, an opinion-platform of younger generation Tamil diaspora writers, academics and activists, urged Tamils world over to look at the history of Kurdish people and draw parallels with that of the Eezham Tamils in the past and at the present, especially to understand how the outside powers have been operating from the colonial times to modern times in upholding the already failed colonial constructs.
16 May 2016 marked 100-year-anniversary of the so-called Sykes-Picot agreement, which changed the map of the Middle East forever, paving way for permanent division of Kurdish homeland in the years to come. It was a secret document negotiated by British officer Mark Sykes and French diplomat François Georges-Picot.
Kurdistan lost its national unity for the first time in history due to the Qesri Shirin Agreement in 1639. It was divided into two parts. Towards the end of colonialism, the agreement entered between Sir Mark Sykes of England and Francois Georges-Picot of France on 16 May 1916, paved way for the discourse towards further division of the Kurdish homeland into four. These divisions were finally executed through the Lausanne Agreement in July 1923 and the Kurdish territories became parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
The political actors who played major roles in the 19th century´s political reshaping of the Middle East area are more or less the same actors who now have the desire to reshape the area and are playing the old game. The only actual change that has taken place is the fact the USA and Great Britain have changed places. “Then it was Great Britain, today it is the US”, the executive council of the KNK said in a statement issued on 06 May 2016.
“There is a lot that goes on and every player is fighting for their own specific interest which has to do with the reshaping of Syria. In this framework we are witnessing that those states, which have Kurdistan as a colony are using all of their military, political and diplomatic power, and that in a very hostile manner, against people of Kurdistan. They try hard to keep the current status-quo as it has been and to keep Kurdistan as suppressed and as colonized as before,” the statement observed.
“Baghdad is still, despite all positive efforts by the Kurds, not in favor of a federal Iraqi system and not seeing Kurds as equal to Arabs.
“Damascus shows much anger in seeing the people of Rojava making progress in building a workable pluralistic and democratic system.
“Ankara and Tehran have lost political tolerance since the very beginning of the liberating process and are doing everything they can to bring the progress to halt. They both have strong national interests to stop any Kurdish progress that might happen and rather have a dream for rebuilding own old empires. Their main aim though, by attacking Rojava and Bashur, is to stop Kurdish people in Turkey and in Iran to getting the same national and democratic rights and political status.
“The people of Kurdistan are not accepting such a dominance and hegemony as they have refused it before and will resist it in future too. They must get their national-, democratic- and human rights,” the KNK observed.
Chronology:
The Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) has expressed its solidarity with the Tamil people on the 7th anniversary of the massacres committed against the Tamils and all civilian victims and their families during the war in the island. “Even though the ethnically-motivated mass murder of the Tamils shows clear features of genocide, it is not recognized as such by international institutions. In fact, the massacre on the Tamil people was possible due to the tacit approval of global actors,” the Brussels-based umbrella group of exiled Kurds said in a statement dated 20 May 2016. Comparing the oppression of the Kurds and the Tamils, the KNK said the model behind the States of Turkey and Sri Lanka, based on the hegemony of one ethnic group over another, is doomed to fail. The KNK also drew parallels between the continued support extended to these States by the Western powers.
“The mentality of war, the denial of fundamental, democratic and national rights by both states is unfortunately still supported by the Western powers. It is obvious that the desire and the struggle for democracy, freedom and national rights cannot be quashed through these dirty wars that are still continuing against our peoples. They also show that the model of the nation-state, based on the hegemony of one ethnic group over another, is doomed to fail. Inclusive, democratic structures instead can bring about peace and freedom for all communities,” the KNK statement said express ing solidarity with the Tamil people and all the resisting peoples.
The Kurdistan National Congress is a coalition of organisations from across Europe, formed by exiled Kurdish politicians, lawyers, and activists.
Full text of the statement by the KNK follows:
Solidarity with the Tamil people
The Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) expresses its solidarity with the Tamil people on the 7th anniversary of the massacres committed against the Tamil people and all civilian victims and their families in the Sri Lankan Civil War.
The Sri Lankan Army has committed atrocious acts of violence against the Tamil population. Hundreds of thousands of people were disappeared and murdered by the military with the silent approval of the international community. Even though the ethnically-motivated mass murder of the Tamils shows clear features of genocide, it is not recognized as such by international institutions. In fact, the massacre on the Tamil people was possible due to the tacit approval of global actors.
The Sri Lankan case is an example of the international system’s arbitrary implementation of human rights and international law in politically motivated ways. A similar attitude can be seen in the current silence over the ongoing violent campaign in North Kurdistan, in which the Turkish state has openly killed hundreds of civilians in front of the eyes of the international community.
In both cases, it is clear that the oppressor states are trying to implement an annihilationist policy through military methods by not respecting any moral and ethical principles.
The mentality of war, the denial of fundamental, democratic and national rights by both states is unfortunately still supported by the Western powers. It is obvious that the desire and the struggle for democracy, freedom and national rights cannot be quashed through these dirty wars that are still continuing against our peoples. They also show that the model of the nation-state, based on the hegemony of one ethnic group over another, is doomed to fail. Inclusive, democratic structures instead can bring about peace and freedom for all communities.
We call on a thorough investigation into war crimes and hope that a peaceful, democratic and just solution can be found to the yet unsettled conflict in Sri Lanka. Again, we express our solidarity with the Tamil people and all the resisting peoples.
Kurdistan National Congress
20.05.2016
* * *
Meanwhile, Tamil Youth Diaspora Network, an opinion-platform of younger generation Tamil diaspora writers, academics and activists, urged Tamils world over to look at the history of Kurdish people and draw parallels with that of the Eezham Tamils in the past and at the present, especially to understand how the outside powers have been operating from the colonial times to modern times in upholding the already failed colonial constructs.
16 May 2016 marked 100-year-anniversary of the so-called Sykes-Picot agreement, which changed the map of the Middle East forever, paving way for permanent division of Kurdish homeland in the years to come. It was a secret document negotiated by British officer Mark Sykes and French diplomat François Georges-Picot.
Kurdistan lost its national unity for the first time in history due to the Qesri Shirin Agreement in 1639. It was divided into two parts. Towards the end of colonialism, the agreement entered between Sir Mark Sykes of England and Francois Georges-Picot of France on 16 May 1916, paved way for the discourse towards further division of the Kurdish homeland into four. These divisions were finally executed through the Lausanne Agreement in July 1923 and the Kurdish territories became parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
The political actors who played major roles in the 19th century´s political reshaping of the Middle East area are more or less the same actors who now have the desire to reshape the area and are playing the old game. The only actual change that has taken place is the fact the USA and Great Britain have changed places. “Then it was Great Britain, today it is the US”, the executive council of the KNK said in a statement issued on 06 May 2016.
“There is a lot that goes on and every player is fighting for their own specific interest which has to do with the reshaping of Syria. In this framework we are witnessing that those states, which have Kurdistan as a colony are using all of their military, political and diplomatic power, and that in a very hostile manner, against people of Kurdistan. They try hard to keep the current status-quo as it has been and to keep Kurdistan as suppressed and as colonized as before,” the statement observed.
“Baghdad is still, despite all positive efforts by the Kurds, not in favor of a federal Iraqi system and not seeing Kurds as equal to Arabs.
“Damascus shows much anger in seeing the people of Rojava making progress in building a workable pluralistic and democratic system.
“Ankara and Tehran have lost political tolerance since the very beginning of the liberating process and are doing everything they can to bring the progress to halt. They both have strong national interests to stop any Kurdish progress that might happen and rather have a dream for rebuilding own old empires. Their main aim though, by attacking Rojava and Bashur, is to stop Kurdish people in Turkey and in Iran to getting the same national and democratic rights and political status.
“The people of Kurdistan are not accepting such a dominance and hegemony as they have refused it before and will resist it in future too. They must get their national-, democratic- and human rights,” the KNK observed.
Chronology:
கருத்துகள் இல்லை:
கருத்துரையிடுக