Over the course of over two years, I slowed down my research and everything for this course because I believed it was a hassle. However, when my third year internship started, and now that I have finished my course in Entrepreneurship and continue with my thesis, I came back to this course and realized the importance of it all. My internship has led me to question whether “home” means anything to me, whether I really have a “home,” and how my time travel and ultimately work will impact this idea. Not because anyone made me think and question this, but because it became an internal struggle that needed an answer. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Before my stay in Indonesia and West Africa, I simply traveled for months and was unsure of my future in tourism elsewhere. Frankly, about 8 months ago the idea of ​​emigrating to northern Iraq, specifically to the Kurdistan region of Iraq, became established. At this point that idea has developed to the point that both my girlfriend and I are very serious about emigration. in Kurdistan and we have come to the point of researching everything there is in our “new entrepreneurial life” and our new “home”. Together we wish to develop both our business ideas into one global business with three domains; my tour operator, his stained glass studio and our guesthouse. In early 2018 we announced our plans to family and friends and they were greeted with excitement and concern. With all this in mind, I decided that the (fight for) Kurdish independence would be a great topic for this essay. Mainly due to its relevance to the TCC course; business ventures, ideological contexts, political contexts, historical connections and more. Secondly, since the situation (potentially) affects everything that my girlfriend and I have also worked and dreamed about. Who are these Kurds and what is their struggle? The Kurds are the fourth largest ethnic group in the Middle East and number between 20 and 25 million. About 15 million live in the regions of Türkiye, Iraq, Iran and Syria, an area they call Kurdistan, but they do not have a state, a "home" of their own. It is especially strange that, among all the world's ethnic groups, the Kurds are still fighting for independence. This eternal conflict has important geographical as well as religious and cultural implications. The history of the Kurdish nation, the causes of these conflicts and an analysis of the situation will be discussed in this document and will contain the following points relevant to the TCC course: ideological contexts, political contexts, historical connections and changing worldviews. Furthermore, in this article, there will be a focus on the Iraqi part of Kurdistan and the most recent claims for independence. This is due to personal importance, as explained in the motivation before the introduction. Fight for the independence of Iraqi Kurdistan History of Kurdistan and the Kurds The contiguous Kurdish regions of Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria are located in the north-central area of ​​the Middle East. Over the millennia, numerous ethnic groups have emigrated, settled or natively inhabited the area. From the beginning of recorded history to the present day, all of these ethnic groups have fought politically and violently, both offensively and defensively, for a secure homeland. As one of the crossroads of the Middle East, Kurdistan has been home to both ethnic battlefields and peaceful ethnic coexistence. Therefore, over the last hundred years, the desire for an independent Kurdish state has created conflicts mainly with the Turkish and Iraqi populations inareas where most Kurds live. Formal attempts to establish such a state were repressed by the largest and most powerful countries in the region after both world wars. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed after World War I and the Kurds were promised their own independent nation with the Treaty of Sèvres. In 1923, however, the treaty was broken allowing Turkey to retain its status, thus preventing the Kurdish people from having a nation to call their own. When the Treaty of Sèvres was rejected by the new Turkish Republic, a new treaty, the Treaty of Lausanne, was negotiated and signed. However, the Treaty of Lausanne overrode its predecessor, giving control of the entire Anatolian peninsula to the new Turkish Republic, including the homeland of Kurdistan. No referendum on Kurdish independence or autonomy was foreseen in the new treaty. Kurdistan's hopes for an autonomous region and an independent state have been dashed. Although much time passed between the end of World War I and the Gulf War in 1990, the Kurds came little closer to independence as they fought unsuccessful guerrilla campaigns to gain autonomy. All campaigns were repressed by force and the Kurdish people suffered ever greater repression each time. Kurdish independence would only have been achievable if, as with the caucus countries and the Middle East, it had been supported by a leading global player. The first sign of this occurred soon after the Gulf War in 1990-1991, when the Americans established a safe zone in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the Iraqi Kurds gained their first costly autonomy, as they suffered great hardship. However, this leads to an alliance of political parties, the Iraqi Kurdistan Front, which held parliamentary and presidential elections, thus establishing the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), a new autonomous government of Kurdistan in Iraq. The KRG is a secular government modeled along the lines of the modern independent nation-state in federation with the rest of Iraq. They have their own parliament, their own army (the “Peshmerga”), their own borders and their own foreign policy. The second indication of this support came in 2003, when the Americans invaded Iraq and the Peshmerga (the military forces of Iraqi Kurdistan) joined the fight to overthrow Saddam Hussein. After the removal of Saddam Hussein, Iraqis approved a new constitution in a national referendum. The new constitution recognized the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Kurdistan Parliament. This government was then unified under Prime Minister Barzani, thus slowly but surely turning the dream of an independent state for the Kurds into reality. Causes of the conflict The causes of this great conflict have great geographical relevance. The geographical areas relating to these specific conflicts represent a historical claim to the territory by the Kurds: cultural, economic and political geography. These four geographical areas can better explain the reasons for these Kurdish conflicts. First of all, the Kurds have a valid historical right to the territory. They have lived in the area for over 2000 years. For this reason they want the creation of a Kurdish homeland. Iraqis and Turks, despite having lived in the area for a long period of time, cannot make historical claims to that same area. The conflict arises, however, because the area lies within the borders of Iraq and Turkey. Even if the Kurds' argument is valid, the Turks and Iraqis chose to ignore it and tried to wipe out the Kurds. Second, and probably most importantly, this conflict involves cultural geography. Kurds are ethnically and culturally different from both Turks and Iraqis. They talka different language, and although all three groups are Muslim, they practice different forms. The Kurds used this cultural difference as a reason to establish a homeland. However, Turks and Iraqis see the ethnic contrast in a very different sense. The Turkish government considered any religious or ethnic identity other than its own a threat to the state. Furthermore, Saddam Hussein believed that the Kurds were “in the way” in Iraq and perceived them as a threat to the “glory of the Arabs”. For this reason he carried out mass genocide of the Kurds in his country. The third factor in these conflicts is economic geography. The areas of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria where the Kurds live are called Kurdistan, a strategically important area for both Turkey and Iraq because it contains important oil and water resources who cannot afford to lose economic activity in the region, due to the trade embargo against Iraq that has been in place since 1991 and for a long time. A final cause of the conflict is the political geography on which the Turks and Iraqis do not they want to lose control of Kurdistan and have resorted to various measures, such as the attacks previously described. The Kurds, on the other hand, have had political problems of their own. There has been a clear divergence of opinion between the two main Kurdish political parties. the Kurdistan Democratic Party (. KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). The parties disagree on how to resolve the conflicts in which their people are involved. Even though the internal conflict among the Kurds has almost been resolved, it will be difficult for them to face the Turks and Iraqis due to recent developments. Recent Developments The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the latest existential threat, now controls a large swath of territory straddling the borders of Iraq and Syria. ISIS is attacking Kurdish cities in both Syria and Iraq. The Peshmerga are defending and attempting to retake cities that were previously under Kurdish control. The Peshmerga, which also includes women, have proven to be an effective fighting force, but have few resources against what appears to be a well-funded and growing ISIS army. America supports Iraqi Kurdish autonomy and provides continued direct military support to train and equip the Peshmerga, as well as providing airstrikes to destroy ISIS. Kurdistan is a landlocked country that depends on its neighbors for access to markets for both supplies and exports of oil – Kurdistan's main economic resource. Given the history of the region and the geographical importance of Kurdistan as one of the crossroads of the Middle East, the risk of continued conflict is extremely high. If Kurdistan hopes to survive as an independent nation-state, it must demonstrate that it is strong enough to defend itself from the inevitable existential threats that will arise and establish peaceful relations with its neighbors despite a history of conflict, mistrust and grievances. An independence referendum in 2017 The current impasse is the result of mistakes by both the KRG and Baghdad. But the Kurdish cause in Iraq is, at its essence, a matter of security and long-term survival for a minority ethnic group that has been subjected to violent repression for generations. Despite much talk of change in Iraq since 2003, the government in Baghdad – no matter who is in power – has repeatedly demonstrated that it intends to weaken and dominate the Kurds. Baghdad's severe mistreatment of Sunni Arabs shows how brutal it can be. The language is very different from Turkish or Arabic, as it uses an extended Latin alphabet compared to Abjad Arabic. They also have their own cuisine with dishes like Yapraxi galamew, whichis rice stuffed with grape leaves, Kfta which is spiced meat covered in a thin layer of mashed rice with pudding, shifta, which is a form of meatball, and Mastaw, which is a yogurt-based drink. Favor: it is their natural right. The right to determine one's destiny is a natural right. The Kurds have the right to decide whether they want to live with the Arabs in Iraq or have their own country in their own land. It is a natural right of every nation, regardless of the country or politician who appreciates and supports it or hates and opposes it. Favor: Kurdistan has a history of supporting the United States Gary Bauer says: “Even with outdated equipment and limited help, the Syrian Kurds have redefined the battlefield. They also put forward the idea of ​​creating an autonomous region in northern Syria. This is an idea that Americans should support because the national interests, governmental goals and democratic principles of the Kurds are pro-America and pro-West.” Why not support them if their cause is right in the eyes of Americans? Cons: Countries have ethnic diversity Kurdistan should not be independent because countries like the United States of America are known as “The Melting Pot” and are perfectly fine with the amount of diversity evident within the country. Yes, there is racism and difference between every ethnicity; however, everyone is working well together. If a Kurdish country were to be born, this would only be the beginning of bigger problems. Also, they will have too much control since they are in the middle of the Middle East. If a war were to break out with the Kurds in the Middle East between any of the Arab countries, there would be blockades and this would destroy and make the wars worse than they already are. The Kurdish country represents a threat, not an advantage for the Middle East. Cons: Will upset a major NATO member. Turkey is a member of NATO and the Kurds in Türkiye want to break away from it. This won't work because NATO would side with Turkey due to the nature of the alliance, so if there was a civil war in Turkey, the US might even end up fighting the Kurds if they pose a threat to Turkey. The breakup of Türkiye will not help anyone except Russia, which wants to weaken NATO. If we do not help Turkey in the war against the Kurds, we obviously cannot uphold the treaties we signed when we created NATO, and not only would the world lose faith in us, but the NATO alliance would collapse. Cons: Yet another conflict, more problems Kurdistan should not gain independence because a regional war could break out in the Middle East region. Kurdistan includes the territories of four countries: Türkiye, Iran, Iraq and Syria. With an independent Kurdish state, the chaos in Iraq and Syria will be even worse, more people will die, and as a result, the United States will be dragged into the conflict. The governments of Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria will not be happy with Kurdish independence, and will certainly not hesitate to send their armed forces to ensure that a Kurdish state does not exist. Even if Kurdistan gained independence and repelled attacks from surrounding countries, it would be in a bad position, geographically speaking. Kurdistan, if made independent, will be landlocked, as all four countries that oppose Kurdish independence surround the region. These countries will ensure that no supplies, food or cargo enters or leaves the Kurdish state, thus leaving the people of Kurdistan in a terrible position. Sure, they might have oil, which they could profit from and then buy supplies with that money, but no one would want to buy that oil since that would mean antagonizing Turkey and sparking further conflict.