Turkey’s Kurds: A Theoretical Analysis of the PKK and Abdullah Ocalan (Routledge Advances in Middle East and Islamic Studies, Band 7)

A text on Kurdish nationalism that examines The Kurdish Worker's Party (PKK). Incorporating research on Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK's long-time leader, it explores the organizational working of the party. It also presents insights into the nature of Kurdish social structure, thinking, and the particularities of the Kurdish ethnic distinctness.

Table of Contents; Preface 8; Introduction; I. Methodological Framework 12; a. Scope of the Study 12; b. The Literature on the Kurds 15; c. Fieldwork and Theoretical Setting 19; II. A General Picture 25; a. The - Rome March" 27; b. Individual and Mass Reactions 30; c. The Abduction of A-calan 34; d. The Wave of Mass Demonstrations of the Early Nineties 36; e. - Official" Figures 38; f. Summary 39; Chapter 1. NATIONALISM 44; I. Distilling the - Mongrelized" Twin Concepts of Modernity 47; a. Nation 49; The Most Discussed Definitions of the Nation 50; What I Shall Mean By - Nation" 59; b. Nationalism: Regurgitated or Demystified? 64; Departures and Arrivals of National Politics 65; Types" of Nationalisms 71; Two Faces of - Modern Janus" 76; The Only - Face" of Nationalism 86; II. The Twilight of - Communist Nationalism" 89; a. The Banal and Naive - Realpolitik" towards - National Question" 90; The Right of Nations to Self-determination 92; Revolutionary Romanticism versus the Fact of Social 96; b. What to Blame for the - Historical Failure" 100; Conclusions 109; III. Kurds' Nationness and Nationalism in Modern Turkey 110; Chapter 2. THE SEEDS OF TURKEY'S KURDISH QUESTION 117; I. The Last Push for the Last Refuge 118; a. An Aesthetic Expression: The National War of Independence 119; b. Kemal's Initial Proposal 122; c. Revolution or Reforms and Revisions? 124; d. The Central Aim of the Efforts 128; II. The Vital Concerns of the Republican Turkish Political Elite: A - National War" Without Nationalism 130; a. The Ottoman Committee of Union and Progress (CUP) 132; b. The Steps Subsequent to the CUP's Experience 138; III. The Sharp Contrast between the Two Policies 143; a. The Nature of the Battle 143; b. The Seeds of the Question are Planted 146; Chapter 3. ENTER THE PKK 151; I. The Accumulative Period 151; a. The Silent Decades 152; b. The Emergence of the Turkish Left through the Democratic - Gaps" of the Coup154; c. The Radical Tradition of Youth Movements 157; II. The Emergence of the - Apocular" Group 159; a. The Army Marches in Again 159; b. The Impact of Particular Events on A-calan's Leadership 160; c. Preliminary Steps towards the Group 164; d. The Declaration of the Group and the - Return to the Source" 167; e. The Meeting in Fis: The Founding Congress of the PKK 171; Chapter 4. THE DISCOURSE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PKK 175; I. The Theoretical Development of the Party and its Programme from its Foundation to A-calan's Arrest 175; a. Ideological and Programmatic Framework 176; b. Implementation Followed by Evolution 182; c. The Evolution of the Years of Armed Propaganda 183; d. The Years of Building the Guerrilla War 187; e. The Years of Massification and the Collapse of Existing Socialism 200; II. Following A-calan's Arrest: The - Second Manifesto" 214; a. The Legal Defences at Imralli Prison 214; b. The Programme of - Re-foundation" 229; Concluding Remarks 233; Chapter 5. SOURCES OF MOTIVATIONS 237; I. Tribe and Treason: the - Twin Heritage" of Kurdishness 237; a. The Constancy of Tribal Existence 238; Arrested Tribality 239; b. Tribe and Kurdish Tribe 250; c. The Appreciation of Treason among the Kurds 256; II. The Nature and Resource Field of the Organization 260; a. A Dormant Resource 261; b. The Basic Organizational Structure 264; c. Party Membership 266; d. Organizational Procedure and the Search for Democratization 269; e. Party Education 278; III. Messianic Charisma: For Whom It Operates 301; a. The Problem of the Concepts 302; b. The Reification and Ramifications of the Power of Charisma: How It Operates 306; c. The Routinization of the - Apo" Charisma 312; Conclusions 315; Chapter 6. THE RISE AND FALL OF THE PKK 325; I. The Organizational Ascent 326; a. Clarifying the Cardinal Point 326; b. The Rising Decade: From the 1980 Coup D'etat to the 1990 Mass Eruptions 330; c. The Apex Years: Settlement of the Impasse 340; d. Hints of the Fall 344; II. The Organizational Vicious Circle and its Shrinkage 348; a. Repetitive Cycle: Consolidation of the Impasse 349; b. The Source of Repetition 355; c. The Wrongs of Repetition 365; d. The Deconstruction of Collective Action 369; e. A-calan's Charisma: The - Party Leadership" 372; f. The Nationalism of the PKK: A Nationalismless Nationalism 380; Concluding Remarks 387; Chapter 7. CONCLUSION 394; a. Summary of Conclusions 394; The Social Base and Class Politics 395; Institutionalization of the - Bureaucratic Staff" 398; Endeavours towards the Re-acquisition of Great Human Naturalness 399; Coexisting Mutation and Insistent Consistency 401; b. General Conclusion 403; Epilogue 409; Tables 427; Appendix 1 Questionnaire 433; Appendix 2 The Basic Constitutional Schema of the PKK 437 Appendix 3 List of Self-immolations 438; Bibliography 441