URU, Alm.del - 2010-11 (1. samling) - Bilag 88: Invitation til DIIS-seminar den 21. februar 2011: Defining the Question: Different Aspects of the Kurdish Question in Turkey

Defining the Question: Different Aspects of the Kurdish Question in TurkeyMonday, 21 February 2011, 14.00-16.00Danish Institute for International StudiesMain AuditoriumStrandgade 71, ground floor, 1401 Copenhagen KBackgroundLiterature outside of Turkey has studied the Kurdish Question only with relevance to internationalconflict, whereas until recently Turkish academia has devoted itself to proving there were neitherKurds nor a lingering Kurdish Question in Turkey. Additionally, there are numerous studies whichportray the Kurdish movements as a linear process, the aim of which has been to obtainindependence from the Turkish Republic. These studies generally do not give any weight to theparticular activities of different Kurdish groups or intra-group tensions in Turkey. Whetheracademic or not, they suppose that Kurds’ awareness of their distinct identity and the Kurdishambition to control their own destiny have been there since the advent of nationalism in theOttoman Empire from whence that Kurdish Question in Turkey supposedly stems.What is the Kurdish Question? Rather than giving an answer to this question, this seminarcompares different discourses that have been put forward by various actors in Turkey and arguesthat there is no single answer since its evolution and transformation during the Young TurkRevolution in 1908. Using available primary sources in Kurdish, Turkish and English, this seminarpresents how different actors in Turkey – such as various Kurdish groups, Islamist groups/actors,Turkish nationalists and the Turkish state, as well as Anglo-Saxon academia – have perceived andpresented the Kurdish Question.SpeakersAhmed Alis,Guest Researcher, DIISDietrich Jung,Professor, University of Southern Denmark (SDU)Lars Erslev Andersen,Senior Researcher, DIISProgrammeMore details about the seminar are available on ourwebsite.Practical InformationThe seminar will be held inEnglish.Participation isfree of charge,butregistration is required.Please use ouronline registration formno later thanFriday, 18 February 2011 at 12.00 noon.Please await confirmation by e-mail from DIIS for participation.

Sincerely,Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)The Conference SectionStrandgade 56DK-1401 Copenhagen KDenmarkPh. (+45) 32 69 87 51Fax (+45) 32 69 87 00E-mail:[email protected]Web:www.diis.dkFeel free to forward this invitation to others with a potential interest in the seminar.For other public DIIS meetings, please visit our website onwww.diis.dk.If you did not receive this invitation directly from DIIS and wish to receive invitations to futureevents at DIIS, please use the following link:www.diis.dk/sw7899.aspIf you no longer wish to receive invitations directly from DIIS, please send an e-mail about this to[email protected](and please remember to state your name and organisation).Please note that DIIS is not responsible for invitations forwarded to you by others.