A new Turkmen policy

BY FIKRET BILA
MILLIYET- Turkey’s Special Envoy to Iraq Osman Koruturk told me about the basic elements of Ankara’s new policy for the Turkmen. With the new policy, the following messages will be given to the Turkmen: 1. Take the Turks in Bulgaria as a model. 2. Stand on your own two feet. 3. Make your mark in Iraq.
How does Turkey see the Turkmen in the process after the Iraqi elections? What will Ankara’s new policy be? We can say that Turkey has formed a new line in its policy which could also be a state policy.
More activism: What does ‘stand on your own two feet’ mean? Koruturk answered the question as follows: ‘What we mean is this: During the former regimes in Iraq up to Saddam Hussein, the Turkmen were always under pressure. They couldn’t organize politically or develop democratic mechanisms. They were forced to deny their identity, but they never lost their national identity and culture. In this new period and the democratization process, the Turkmen should get organized, make their mark in Iraq with their democratic mechanisms, and boost their political acumen and activities.’
As in Bulgaria: ‘Iraqi’s Turkmen are well educated and they can form a wider and more comprehensive democratic organization than the Iraqi Turkmen Front,’ Koruturk continued. ‘The Turkmen are the third-largest ethnic group in Iraq. Thus like the Turks in Bulgaria, they could use this advantage in their policies. The Turks of Bulgaria have an important role in the nation’s administration.’
This shouldn’t be misunderstood: Emphasizing that this approach shouldn’t be misunderstood, Ambassador Koruturk said: ‘This shouldn’t be understood as Turkey withdrawing its support. Ankara’s support will remain. This approach is also the will of the Iraqi Turkmen. As a matter of fact various Turkmen groups have formed a “Democracy and Unity Platform” and decided on a broader organization. We believe that it is possible for them to have an impact in Iraqi politics. As the third-largest ethnic group, this is their right. Turkey’s experience, knowledge and technological support will of course continue in this process.’
All organizations are in agreement: Emphasizing that the Turkmen are the third-largest ethnic group in Iraq, Koruturk said that in former censuses the population was counted only as Arabs and Kurds and that the Turkmen were forced to misidentify themselves. Koruturk said that the Turkmen who didn’t forsake their identity despite these conditions should now make their mark. This is the framework of Ankara’s Turkmen policy. Koruturk also emphasized that other state organizations are also in full agreement about this policy.
What is the secret of Bulgarian Turks?: The Rights and Freedom Party (HOH) of Turks in Bulgaria has made itself part of Bulgaria’s national identity. The communist administration in the country identified the Turks as ‘Muslim Bulgarians,’ and in the ‘80s the Todor Jivkof administration forced Turks to change their names. The Bulgarian government set up concentration camps as the Turks resisted. After the collapse of the Jivkof administration in 1989, HOH leader Ahmet Dogan became a hero. The basic philosophy of HOH is to see itself as a Bulgarian political party. This movement identified itself in the Bulgarian national identity. The official language of the party is Bulgarian. The Bulgarian Turks have never tended towards an armed struggle even in the face of assimilationist policies.