SOAS, University of London, 24 April 2015
Since last summer, largely owing to the events in Kobanê, developments in those parts of Kurdistan that fall within the official boundaries of the states of Iraq, Syria and Turkey have drawn increasing attention globally, bringing to a new climax a century of violence which started with WWI and the Armenian genocide. Kurdish autonomy has become a fact in Northern Iraq for more than two decades. It is unfolding in Eastern Syria since the beginning of the uprising in that country in 2011. What future awaits the Kurds and the states of Iraq, Syria and Turkey? How to assess the ‘democratic autonomy’ project of the Kurdish movement in Syria and Turkey? What are the prospects of the peace talks in Turkey? Is the Kurdish movement in Iran immune to these developments? This half-day conference will address these questions and others pertaining to the same issue.
Programme:
2:00-2:15 pm, Opening Remarks:
Dr. Hassan Hakimian (SOAS)
2:15-2:45 pm, Keynote Speech:
Prof. Hamit Bozarslan (EHESS)
2:45-4:15 pm, Panel 1: ‘Conflicts and the Prospects for the Kurds in Syria and Iraq’:
Prof. Nadje Al-Ali (SOAS)
Prof. Gilbert Achcar (SOAS)
Dr. Thomas Jeffrey Miley (Cambridge)
Ms. Houzan Mahmoud (Women’s Freedom for Iraq)
4:15-4:30 pm, Coffee Break
4:30-6:00 pm, Panel 2: ‘Peace Talks in Turkey and the Future of the Kurdish Question in Turkey and Iran’:
Prof. Abbas Vali (Boğaziçi University, Turkey)
Dr. Özlem Galip (Oxford)
Dr. Veli Yadirgi (SOAS)
Dr. Latif Tas (SOAS)
6:00-6:15 pm, Closing Remarks
Kurdish Studies Network 