Turkish parliament pushes to ban the word “Kurdistan” in assembly

Erdogan backed government cracks down on everything Kurdish

The Turkish Parliament is attempting to pass an internal rule according to which any MP using the term “Kurdistan” in the country’s national assembly should be be fined. The draft proposal has been approved by the ruling pro-Erdogan AKP party and its nationalist coalition partner MHP. The proposed changes would also ban MPs who abstain from taking the oath of parliamentary privileges. If the amendments are approved, Leyla Zana, a deputy elected under the pro-Kurdish HDP party could lose her seat, as she had started her oath by using the Kurdish words “Biji Asti” (Hail peace). Prior to 2002 the Turkish government had set strict limitations regarding the use of the Kurdish language, banning it in the media and education.