By: Kameel Ahmady-London
Oct 25, 2005

This week was another significant success in representing the Kurds and their home land ;Kurdistan; in international prospective. While name and fame of Kurdistan almost is daily familiar face in international spectrum and global media, Kurdistan and Kurds in Diaspora also have taken much positive and constructive representation of the Kurds in international academic level and conferences in Europe and North America.

Toronto largest city in Canada was home to biggest ever international conference about migration and their life outside of their home land. The conference was designed to explore how the specific experience of migrants, as border-crossing subjects who negotiate daily between multiple territories, cultures, or languages, can serve to inform policy-makers facing the challenges of diversity in 21st century cities. Kurdistan and its "border" was addressed both as a limit (a marker of difference between national, ethnic, cultural or religious identities) and as a contact zone, a space where differences meet and potentially mix.

Toronto Metropolis conference

I along with a collogue Ms Sarah Keeler also from University of Kent who worked directly with community organizations to develop research projects and policy recommendations presented a paper to the conference to focuses on the production of identity among Kurdish migrants and refugees. 'Borders', both cultural and political, become quite a significant symbolic and practical feature in Kurds' narratives of identity and migration, because their homeland is divided between four middle-eastern countries. We talked about impact on the way they are received within the policy structure and settlement system in the UK, as they are often treated (in terms of services) as 'Iraqi Kurds', 'Iranian Kurds', etc, or simply as Persians or Turks; this undermines the struggle for unity which is a big part of their political project in exile. While she was dealing and discussing the government policy I give in side picture of the community and the affect of the government policy by local authorities on Kurdish community and roll of community centers.


The aim was to compare and analyze situations where policies targeting immigrant communities need to be re-evaluated in order to address the increasing complexity of contemporary societies where the cases of Black Francophones in Canada, and Kurds were set example. Call for the definition of policies that bridge national, language and ethnic boundaries, and number of workshop to analyze how ethnic minorities are actively involved in the re-definition of local identities, traditions, and historical narratives.

While I was observing the Trent life and dealing with migration through my limited contact with local Canadians also from plenary talks and case studies I found great difference between issues of migration in Canada. The country which migration is the base of its creations and it’s per found rest of Europe. I noticed that the society much more tolerant and peaceful, That difference become more apparent when I deiced to visit the rest Nigrra fall which is placed in united states of America by crossing border in to USA what took me almost 5 hours grilling questioning by USA border control asking me as Kurd who resided in UK when and why I traveled to Iranian Kurdistan giving security as their top agenda to worry about.The conference which was well attended by number of high official such Canada’s Minster of immigration and Toronto’s mayor who when I asked about Canada’s kurdish community shockingly very well informed about kurdish issues, politics and his knowledge of Newroz. Also attended at the conference were famous writers such as John Ralston Saul Novelist, and Lord Bhikhu Parekh.

My last contributions towards keeping Kurdish issues alive at the conference came at the end and most greatly attended closing plenary talk by Ralston Saul , and Lord Bhikhu Parekh where I put Question to them: of how can we in cloud group of people such as Kurds from 4 parts of Kurdistan in process of multiculturalism and prevent them constricting ethnic nationalism on their arrival, the group of people who’s identity on personal level had been denied from them?

Kurdish identity workshop

They replied saying the constructive way of dealing with such phenomenon is for the receiving countries not to be afraid of recognizing their Kurdish identity and provide healthy environment for that to be flourished and the same time try to include them in to the discourse of multiculturalism. Giving such solution to my question I wondered that how much some of the receiving countries have failed in this regard and how much we as Diaspora kurdish community need to do by starting to open up more dialogue with government and local authorities in order for our language, identity and culture to be recognized the same time put more enfaces on our self to benefit from multiculturalism, politically and socially.

http://www.toronto.ca/metropolis/english/index.htm