KurdistanObserver.com

The Importance Of Independent TV For Eastern Kurdistan

By: Kameel Ahmady
Aug 19, 2005
Kameel14@hotmail.com

Since the 1990s, Kurdish society has experienced massive social developments, which were previously impossible due to the cultural isolation and political oppression. To facilitate the process of social development, Roj TV (former Med-TV) developed formats for discussion programs with live guests and active participation of the viewer mainly through phone-calls. Other Kurdish TV’s Kurd-sat and Kurdistan-TV followed the same route. The 3 Kurdish TV's and number of radio are not independent and almost all of them established and run by Kurdistan political parties from Iraq and turkey’s Kurdistan and most radio stations are locally produced except for Voice of Mesopotamia, broadcasted from Europe through short wave, satellite and internet.

Meanwhile information and news about Kurdistan is distributed all over Europe, Iranian Kurds has been left out form this process, although being 2nd largest kurdish publishing after turkey but still dose not Owen TV, a TV which will be able to produce and developing new program concepts aiming to strengthen the development of social values and democracy among the people of Kurdistan as whole and Kurds of east Kurdistan.

This issues is further politicised in the case of the Kurdish population in Iran, a group who, marginalised from the mainstream media in the country and historically denied as a people, strive for a voice in international communications and an opportunity to represent what is happening in their native Kurdistan. Kurds in exile are keen consumers of television as a means of keeping up-to-date on the political situation in other parts of Kurdistan and in Iranian Kurdistan especially.
One of the outlets for this at present is Roj TV. The satellite station was established in 1995 to provide Kurds of turkey across the Diaspora with a forum for disseminating news about political developments in the region, and perhaps as importantly to provide a formalised expression of Kurdish identity and language in the global media.
Roj TV has a large potential audience of Kurds spread across Kurdistan and throughout the Diaspora in Europe, and in terms of Kongra-Gel’s stance, holds a critical position against the (recently) Iranian government. Kurdistan TV was established in 1998 by the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Iraq, and the following year in response the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan established Kurd sat TV.
Persian networks all offer only coverage which promotes only their political agendas. , lacks transparency in its broadcasting coverage of Kurds Iran or example of Kurd sat TV and Kurdistan TV do not want risk their political and economical interest with Iranian government by broadcasting issues regarding Kurds in Iran and cover or run news or programme on Iran’s mis-treatment of its kurdish population and lack of human right, because of border interest with Iran in west and south Iraq which controls by PUK and KDP of Iraqi Kurdistan.

It is evident that in recent years we have seen a substantial efflorescence of indigenous media aimed directly at the special interest and perspectives of the large and politically engaged Kurdish population internationally. In spite of this, the issues, interests and perspectives of Kurds in Iran are relatively under-represented even within this spectrum, and Iran’s 10 million Kurds remain the most significant population without a voice of their own.

An independent TV-channel brings a sense of togetherness and act as a public sphere for the divided Kurdish community. Kurdish TV from eastern Kurds will brings Kurds to together; it can be used as a platform for unification with out the censorship government or a political party or a group. Such TV will help strengthen democracy, respect for minorities and cultural identity Kurdish media provides new perspectives, challenging the opinions of other global media institutions. Kurdish journalists can start reporting about Kurdish society and Kurdistan, covering the impact of global and regional politics which surly will be supported by millions of loyal viewers in east Kurdistan (Iran).