A Witness To Habitat II

[kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu]

From: akin at kurdish.org (AKIN)

The following is a commentary written by Lucy Sharratt, a Political Science
major currently attending Carleton University.

This past June, 1996 I traveled to Istanbul to participate in the United
Nations Conference on Human Settlements, Habitat II. I participated as a
member of Youth For Habitat II Canada, along with 30 other Canadian youths.
We journeyed across the world to effect change in the international
negotiations on environmental and social justice issues. I was unaware of
the human rights abuses in Turkey until I met an official * of the
Mesopotamian Cultural Center (MCC). From this individual, and other people
at the center, I learned about the Kurdish struggle. I know that I left
Istanbul with more information about the real political situation in Turkey
than most other Habitat II participants.

The Conference site of Habitat II was heavily guarded by the police. Inside
the Non Governmental Organizations (NGO) Forum, the secret police were
everywhere. I understood what this police presence really meant when the
official of the MCC was forced to flee in genuine fear for life. This MCC
official was recognized by a secret policeman, and left accompanied by
members of the Foreign Press, whose presence assured temporary safety. That
same day I met this individual at the Mesopotamian Cultural Center. My
friend Shaen and I followed the directions we were given and were surprised
to find ourselves in a bright cafe with music, paintings, and many people
talking. We sat in the official's office and were told about the MCC, why
it existed, and the horrors that the Turkish authorities had put this
individual (along with family members) through. There is a war in Turkey,
being waged by the Turkish government against the Kurdish population. The
Turkish government is attempting to annihilate Kurdish identity, and the
courage of the Kurdish people. The Turkish state is brutish, violent, and
desperate. However, Kurdish culture is so strong and vibrant that the
government has resorted to killing thousands and burning their villages.
Kurds are also being arrested imprisoned without due process, and once
detained many undergo torture.

Violence and fear are the reality for most Kurds, as is the severe poverty
of dispossession. Denial and ignorance are daily part of life in Turkey for
those without information on, or contact with, the Kurds. During Habitat
II, Istanbul was caught in a delicate balance of restrained police and the
possibility of intensified state brutality. Their balance was tipped to the
latter when police violently broke two demonstrations during the two weeks
of the Conference. The NGO Forum was shocked when a silent sit-in by
families of Kurds who had disappeared was torn apart by police, and when
another labor protest was also crushed. I do not know what it is like to
live in constant fear, to struggle every second for my life, my culture and
my people, and, with that knowledge and experience, to continue to struggle
for justice and peace. But I do know that this strength and courage is
possible, and that peace and justice are also possible. I have learned this
from my friends at the Mesopotamian Cultural Center.

(* Names of officials at the Mesopotamian Cultural Center have been
withheld to ensure their safety.)

August1,1996


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