Terrorizing terrorism

By Ardalan Hardi

April 9, 2006

The use of the word terrorism by Turkey and its allies on all the unrest that Ankara faces in northern Kurdistan has led to a point where it has lost its meaning. It is one of the greatest impediments to the progress of democracy in Turkey. Instead of accepting the responsibility for the lack of realistic solutions to the Kurdish Question, the Turkish state blames it on others: the Kurds.

The unwillingness of EU to come to terms with the issue and often side with Turkey confirms this moral malaise. Nothing will move forward so long as this nonsense persists. Ankara's inability to handle the Kurdish issue through diplomatic and democratic dialogue just prolongs the problem.

In Iraq, a country that borders Turkey and shares the Kurds as subjects with Ankara, we see all the signs of terrorism. We see atrocities like: beheadings, suicide bombers and dragging of mutilated bodies behind cars by the remnants of from Saddam's era thugs who continue to "entertain" us with their mayhem, courtesy of most television stations. And yet, this activity is called insurgency and not terrorism. The U.S. is willing to have a dialogue with these repentant killers to find a peaceful solution to the stalemate.

There, we also have the Muqtada al-Sadr who continues to terrorize civilians with: bombings drive-by shootings, kidnappings, assassinations, the storming of Sunni mosques and the kidnapping of innocent worshipers and this is called sectarian violence.

When hundreds of thousands of unarmed Kurds protest the brutal living conditions and the human right abuses by Ankara, they are described as terrorists by the so-called "civilized" world, which unfortunately includes the Unites States of America. What a shame! What a travesty! What logic!

The word terrorism has lost its meaning when it is used by Ankara and its so-called allies. This way of looking at terrorism may benefit the so-called "national interests" of Turkey and its supporters, but it has also generated a deep distrust in the U.S. foreign policy and its aims in the Middle East.

In the globilezed world that we live, no country, you would think, would get away with the amount of abuse that is ongoing in Turkey. The Turkish state's definition of terrorism brings shame to the foreign policy of the United States.
If all of the unjust policies that are forced upon people who pursue change through a peaceful process are ignored, then you will have the incentive to create monstrous terrorists like Osama bin Laden.

The protesters in northern Kurdistan are everyday citizens, including women and children that are fed up with Ankara's disregard for humanrights, lies and barbarous approach to handling the Kurdish socio-economic issues.

Abuse of the nature that exists in Turkey breeds hatred, and enmity. If there is no hope in sight for a peaceful solution, we will see more of the same, I am afraid.