Turkey's Kurds: A Theoretical Analysis of the PKK and Abdullah Ocalan

by Ali Kemal Özcan

Overview

The Kurdish Worker's Party (PKK) is examined here in this text on Kurdish nationalism. Incorporating recent field-based research results and newly translated material on Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK's long-time leader; it explores the nature and the organizational working of the party, from its growth in the late 1970s to its recent shrinkage. A variety of issues are addressed including:

* the views and philosophy of Abdullah Ocalan
* the successes and failures of the PKK in bringing about the Kurdish opposition in Turkey
* the role of PKK's philosophy of recruitment, organizational diligence, use of arms and other contextual factors in Kurdish resistance
* factors involved in the development of the nationalism of the Kurds in Turkey.

The text also reappraises the Kurdish movement in Turkey and presents insights into the nature of Kurdish social structure, thinking, and the particularities of the Kurdish ethnic distinctness.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781134211296
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	10/12/2012
Series:	Routledge Advances in Middle East and Islamic Studies
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Ali Kemal Ozcan holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Kent. His thesis investigates the resent Kurdish resistance in Turkey. He is the author of Humanisation Movement (Berlin 1999): The Nature and Resource Field of the Kurdish Resistance in Turkey: A Dormant Resource (forthcoming 2005). Research interests include nationalism, democratisation and civil society.

Table of Contents

Introduction Part 1: Nationalism 1. Distilling the 'Mongrelized' Twin Concepts of Modernity 2. The Twilight of 'Communist Nationalism' 3. Kurds' Nationness and Nationalism in Modern Turkey Part 2: The Seeds of Turkey's Kurdish Question 4. The Last Push for the Last Refuge 5. The Vital Concerns of the Republican Turkish Political Elite: A 'National War' without Nationalism 6. The Sharp Contrast between the Two Policies Part 3: Enter the PKK 7. The Accumulative Period 8. The Emergence of the 'Apocular' Group Part 4: The Discourse and the Objectives of the PKK 9. The Theoretical Development of the Party and Its Programme from its Foundation to Ocalan's Arrest 10. Following Ocalan's Arrest: The 'Second Manifesto' Part 5: Sources and Motivations 11. Tribe and Treason: The 'Twin Heritage' of Kurdishness 12. The Nature and Resource Field of the Organization 13. Messianic Charisma: For Whom it Operates Part 6: The Rise and Fall of the PKK 14. The Organizational Ascent 15. The Organizational Vicious Circle and Its Shrinkage Part 7: Conclusion Epilogue Tables Appendices Bibliography

Editorial Reviews

'This book reappraises the Kurdish movement in Turkey and presents insights into the nature of Kurdish social structure.' - The MiddleEast

From the Publisher