MESOP MIDEAST WATCH REPORT: Dialogue forum in Sulaymaniyah on the role of Kurds in “Lausanne centenary”

MESOP NEWS  21.6.23 A dialogue forum was held in the city of Sulaymaniyah in Başûr (Southern Kurdistan), under the slogan “On the centenary of the Treaty of Lausanne… the Kurds seek a solution to the conflict in the Middle East.”

17 June 2023 | Hawar News

At the initiative of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) representative office in the Southern Kurdistan region, a dialogue forum was held today under the slogan “On the centenary of the Treaty of Lausanne… the Kurds seek a solution to the conflict in the Middle East,” at the base of the National Museum in the city of Sulaymaniyah.

A number of politicians, intellectuals and other personalities from the Southern Kurdistan region participated in the forum.

According to Roj news agency, the forum’s work began with a lecture within the framework of the first axis, by Dr. Shoresh Hassan, entitled “The legal aspects of the Kurdish issue under the Lausanne Agreement.”

The axis confirmed that the lack of a strategy and unity among the Kurds led to the emergence of the Lausanne Agreement.

For its part, the co-chairmanship of the Kurdistan National Congress indicated in a message to the forum: “The goal of the Kurdistan National Congress is to build national unity among the Kurdish parties, to be an umbrella for the Kurdish people and their gains, while patriotism and the Kurdish nation are a red line, and instead of cooperating with the enemy, we must build our unity.”

For her part, the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Balisa Jabbar, said: “It is important to ask whether the Treaty of Lausanne has ended, or is it still continuing? As there is no article in the agreement indicating the end of the treaty, and if the treaty is not completed, what should we do?”

And she added, “The Turkish situation is different now, it is not the same as in the era of Ataturk, and the Lausanne Agreement for Turkey was a loss; Because it has reduced its borders, as we see that Turkey is working to occupy more lands through its attacks on Western Kurdistan, in addition to introducing other articles in the agreement to expand its borders in the region, as it seeks to occupy Mosul and many lands in the Kurdistan region.

The leader of the Patriotic Union, Balisa Jabbar, confirmed that the Lausanne agreement came as a result of the lack of a strategy and national unity among the Kurds.

In his turn, the representative of the Democratic Union, Jawidan Kamal, said: “When we talk about Kurdistan, we must talk about the four parts, as the system of government in Southern Kurdistan is federal, and in Western Kurdistan there is the experience of AANES,” stressing that “AANES can be the best solution to conflicts.” and conflicts in the Middle East.

The representative of the Democratic Union concluded his speech by saying: “The Kurdish people in the four parts of Kurdistan are waging a struggle for their rights.”

As for the second axis of the forum, the politician, Gardo Mohammad, delivered a lecture entitled “National Strategy and Governance” and said: “When we read the provisions of the Lausanne Agreement, we do not see anything in it for the Kurds; Therefore, on the centenary of Lausanne, we must not miss opportunities,” referring to the passage of 32 years since the Kurdish administration in the Kurdistan region, and “we did not reach a good strategy for the Kurdish people.”

He added, “Although there are many opportunities, we did not take advantage of these opportunities, despite the many sacrifices made by the Kurdish people,” continuing his speech: “Although there are many opportunities in the Kurdistan region, we did not build the will of strong, so we have to build a national strategy to preserve the gains of the Kurdish people.”

The governor of Sulaymaniyah, Haval Abu Bakr, delivered a speech at the forum, in which he said: “It is important that such a meeting be held close to the date of the Lausanne Agreement, as history has made us like this, but we have been spared from the policy of dissolution because we are an ancient nation.”

He continued, “We are stronger than ever before. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, the Kurds were not the only nation for these hostile policies. The Kurds today have the task of balancing the region.”

Abu Bakr added, “After a hundred years of the Lausanne Agreement, today we have a federal system in Southern Kurdistan and AANES in Rojava. In Eastern Kurdistan, the revolution of “women, life, freedom” continues, and in Southern Kurdistan, the Kurds have formed strength and unity.”

The governor of Sulaymaniyah explained that “after a hundred years, the Kurds entered into other and changing wars, as the enemy cannot end the Kurds by force of arms, and the Kurdish people seek to obtain their rights and have become an equation in the region to solve crises.”

At the end of his speech, Haval Abu Bakr, the governor of Sulaymaniyah, called on the Kurdish people and parts of Kurdistan “to build national unity and unify the Kurdish strategy, and to accept and develop their experiences in other parts of Kurdistan.”

Originally published: https://hawarnews.com/en/haber/dialogue-forum-in-sulaymaniyah-on-the-role-of-kurds-in-lausanne-centenary-h36751.html