Suchergebnisse

Considers the question of whether the Kurds will come into their own as a cohesive ethnic group in the mold of many others in recent years in Europe. Forces working against ethnic unity for the Kurds include geography, cultural & political fragmentation, & linguistic differences. Further, Kurds represent a small minority in all of the countries in which they reside; their situation in Iraq, Iran, & Turkey is briefly reviewed. The movement toward independence of the Kurds in Iraq is shown to have encouraged all Kurdish people to seek permanence to their affairs. However, achievement of this end is bound up with the fate of the authoritarian regimes in Iran & Iraq, which provides the essential uncertainty to their situation. It is concluded that changes will come for the Kurds, but slowly, as political circumstances in their countries of residence slowly become amenable to democratic movements. D. M. Smith

The nature of relations between the Turkish state & Turkey's Kurdish population is examined. Several factors that have problematized Turkish-Kurdish relations in the past are identified including the Kurdish population's tendency to identify with Islam rather than the Turkish state & differences of opinion concerning the governance of the Kurds. Several internal & external costs of the Turkish state's failure to improve relations with the domestic Kurdish population are noted, eg, the EU's refusal of membership to Turkey & the complication of foreign relations with Middle Eastern nations. The question of whether the state can successfully negotiate with Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the insurgent Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan group, to improve Turkish-Kurdish relations is considered. Possible scenarios for future Turkish-Kurdish relations are offered, eg, the state's passage of unilateral measures as a means of resolving Kurdish insurgency. After suggesting that the Turkish state is wasting its best opportunity in decades to better Turkish-Kurdish relations, multiple recommendations for including Turkey's Western allies in such negotiations are offered. J. W. Parker

Analyzes the Turkish state's failure to successfully accommodate its Kurdish population. Attention is called to the violent nature of the conflict; limitations that have been placed on Kurds' civil/political liberties; & the "emergency rule" that has become a way of life in southeast Turkey. Three institutional characteristics that have both generated & prolonged the conflict are: a highly centralized unitary state; prevalence of an assimilationist nationalist ideology; & "the long shadow the Turkish military has cast over civilian politicians." It is argued that any hope for successful accommodation of the Turkish-Kurdish cleavage depends on implementing reforms that change the shape of state & regime institutions. Emphasis is placed on the need for Turkish officials to shorten the military's political shadow; stop relying on repression as the only response to Kurdish claims; grant Kurds political/cultural rights; rethink the nature of Turkish nationalism; & devolve some decision-making power to the local level. These reforms would not trigger a secessionist movement because most Kurds do not want it. 2 Tables, 35 References. J. Lindroth

A discussion of border control in the European Union (EU), where the free movement of persons within the EU is mandated, focuses on the efforts of member states to develop common policies to control "unwanted" migration. Consideration is also given to the impact of the increase in large-scale & sophisticated human smuggling operations. Although there are no accurate estimates of the number of illegal migrants who have been smuggled into the EU, the largest flows have probably been Kurds & Kosovo Albanians fleeing conflicts in their countries. Measures taken by the EU to limit illegal entry are discussed, along with the increasing use of counterfeit documents by illegal migrants, & the role of smugglers in the production of fraudulent documents. It is contended that the high degree of cooperation among EU member states is an indication of the transformation of member state sovereignty in the context of policy formation at the European level; however, it remains to be seen whether EU cooperation will enable member states to control their borders more effectively. J. Lindroth

Die Anzahl der von Migration erfaßten Menschen nimmt jedes Jahr zu. Wird das Problem, wie es jetzt schon häufig passiert, ignoriert, kann es sein, daß es Jahre, Jahrzehnte dauert, das Problem der weltweiten Migration dahingehend zu lösen, daß Flüchtlinge dauerhaft angesiedelt und integriert werden. Alle Migranten sind von dem Ziel geleitet, in einem anderen Land Zuflucht und soziale Integration zu erreichen. Ausgehend von der These, daß die heutige Migration das Ergebnis einer über Jahrzehnte andauernden, verfehlten Entwicklungspolitik, nämlich einer von den Industrienationen ausgehenden Modernisierungspolitik ist, die Fortschritt mit Modernisierung gleichsetzt, geht es in diesem Beitrag darum, den Umgang mit den Folgen der Destabilisierung zu diskutieren. Es soll anhand dreier Fallstudien aus dem Iran veranschaulicht werden, wie ein alternatives Modell, entwickelt von der Swiss Academy of Development (SAD) dazu beitragen kann, daß bereits frühzeitig eine Integration im Gastland möglich wird und somit die Folgen der weit verbreiteten Desozialisation von Flüchtlingen verhindert werden können. Die hier dargelegten Erfahrungen der Autoren heben die Bedeutung der internationalen Zusammenarbeit und des Lastenausgleichs für eine humanitäre Bewältigung der Flüchtlingsproblematik hervor. (ICH)