Intellectuals, politicians: Ending marginalization requires constitutional, institutional protection

The decision by the Ministry of Education in the Syrian transitional government to include the Kurdish language in the school curriculum at a rate of three weekly classes in areas where Kurds constitute a significant proportion of the population remains the subject of widespread debate over the future of mother-tongue education, particularly in Kurdish areas where education in Kurdish has been adopted in recent years.

The decision comes following Decree No. 13 issued by the Syrian presidency, which established a number of rights related to Kurds in Syria, including recognition of Kurdish cultural and national identity, protection of cultural and linguistic diversity, and recognition of Kurdish as a national language, with its teaching permitted in schools.

While the inclusion of Kurdish in the official curriculum is viewed as a new step toward recognizing linguistic rights, the implementation of the decision has raised questions among cultural and political circles in Kurdish areas, particularly as the teaching of Kurdish is limited to three weekly classes after years in which Kurdish was used as the language of instruction across all educational stages in areas administered by the Autonomous Administration.

Intellectuals and politicians stress that the transition from an education system in which Kurdish was present across all subjects and educational stages to teaching it as a subject with a limited number of classes poses challenges for students who spent years studying in their mother tongue. It also opens a debate over the nature of the linguistic and cultural rights that should be guaranteed during the new phase in Syria.

In this context, Aziz Suleiman, a member of al-Jazira Intellectuals Union, believes that the sudden transition from education in Kurdish to teaching the language in three weekly classes could have direct consequences for students. Kurdish figures and institutions are calling for the scope of recognition of linguistic and cultural rights to be expanded within the constitutional and institutional framework of the Syrian state.

Three classes are not enough

Aziz Suleiman, a member of the Jazira Intellectuals Union, added: “The decision by the Syrian transitional Ministry of Education regarding the teaching of the Kurdish language in Kurdish areas, at only three class periods, does not meet the needs of Kurdish students and is not consistent with the educational reality that these areas have experienced over the past years.”

Suleiman noted that following the integration between the Syrian Democratic Forces and the Syrian transitional government, and following Decree No. 13, which officially provides for the teaching of the Kurdish language, the Syrian Ministry of Education decided to teach Kurdish only in Kurdish areas and at a rate of only three classes, which is far too few.

Aziz Suleiman explained: “After 14 years of education in the Kurdish mother tongue in Kurdish areas, this sudden shift from education in the mother tongue to three classes will create problems and obstacles for students. Fourteen years is not a short period in which to teach and learn in your Kurdish mother tongue and learn your culture and receive your education.”

Dealing with the Rights and Linguistic File Remains Symbolic

In this context, Roken Ahmed, a member of the Relations and Democratic Political Agreements Committee of the Kongra Star, said: “The commitments of the transitional government continue to remain within a symbolic and formal framework, without moving toward decisive constitutional and institutional steps.”

Roken Ahmed added: “The hesitation in dealing with the rights and linguistic file reflects an instrumental approach that seeks to address the crisis through administrative palliatives rather than reformulating the social contract of the state.”

Roken said that merely allocating a limited number of classes to the Kurdish language does not meet the national aspirations of the Kurdish people, who constitute the second-largest national component in Syria in terms of population.

The Kongra Star Relations Committee member continued: “A serious and responsible commitment requires comprehensive constitutional recognition of Kurdish as the country’s second official language, including within its institutions. This is a strategic step that cannot be postponed if decades of cultural marginalization are to be brought to an end, and if national diversity is to be transformed from a source of conflict into an element of strength and national cohesion that guarantees Syria’s future stability.”

Centralization and rejection of historical and cultural rights

Roken pointed out that the transitional government’s failure to honor its promises concerning the protection of the particularity of Kurdish areas is due to its continued attachment to the legacy of a rigid centralist mentality, in addition to its submission to pressures that reject recognition of the historical and cultural rights of the people of the region.

Roken said: “This has a direct and negative impact on the daily lives of the population and their collective identity, as particularity is dealt with superficially while essential issues are overlooked.”

Roken Ahmed explained that these issues include addressing the consequences of historical demographic engineering, the legacy of the Arab Belt project, and land dispossession.

Historical Names and Mother-Tongue Education

Roken Ahmed continued: “This is also evident in the retreat from using the original historical names of Kurdish cities and in the strict imposition of Arabized names, as is the case with insisting on the name ‘Ayn al-Arab’ instead of ‘Kobani,’ which has become a globally recognized identity for the region, as well as imposing an educational model that cuts off an entire generation that studied for more than 15 years in its mother tongue.”

ANHA