Historically speaking, why do kurds demand independence when they enjoy being part of the Turkish world so much?Picrel is in the kurdish majority region of Iraq.
>>16547746Turkish nationalism from Kemal onwards changed the relationship between the Turks and Kurds forever. While Kemal didn't really have any serious and direct issues with the Kurds, the policies he enshrined, and his followers who took to them fanatically logically concluded that in a secular state based on Turkish culture and language, that ethnic minorities are to either be Turkified, or expelled, thereby creating tensions which previously hadn't existed when their relationship was mainly one of religious brotherhood. Your picture is also in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan during an official visit by Erdogan. Iraqi Kurdistan is currently ruled by the KDP, a faction historically supported by Turkey, Iran, and the US, with the former two doing it out of a deal to not support Kurds on their sides of the border, as the KDP's main rival, the PUK supports the PKK in Turkey and PJAK in Iran. It's also worth noting that Turkey currently occupies swathes of Iraqi Kurdistan. The KDP are also headed by members of the Barzani tribe, who fled to Turkey following Ba'athist Iraq's targeting of them, and became Turkish allies against Iraq thereafter. Iraqi Kurdistan is a dog on a leash, which the Turks and Iranians use to ward off what they see as the separatist wolves.
>>16547803Was the relationship between Turks and Kurds always neutral? One thing I read a lot is that the urbanites of Ottoman society, whether they be Greeks, Arabs, or Turks, regarded Kurds similar to how Europeans regarded gypsies, although they saw them as a utilitarian positive for the islamic world. Is this sentiment true?Kurds portray any element they don't agree with, such as the Barzanis or the PPK, as unrepresentative of their nation. But for thousands of years they allow these self centered tribal entities lord over them. Why do they allow them to have so much power for so long, if they supposedly don't represent their people? Iraq KRG seems to be a pretty firmly pro Turkish entity and its citizens support it wholey. So how come their diaspora spreads so much confusing info about their people being enemies of Turks?
