Peace raised hopes of families but not much changed for kids

The number of the youth going to the mountains to join the PKK has not decreased, despite the peace process, says Professor Nükhet Sirman from the Women for Peace initiative. 'Families who are making calls to get their children back have seen hope for change, but the current realities have not changed on the ground for the youth,' says Sirman, a professor of anthropology Barçın Yinanç barcin.yinanc@hurriyet.com.tr Families whose children have joined the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) have seen a window of opportunity for change due to the peace process and this is why they are now raising their voices to get their kids back, according to Nükhet Sirman, a professor of anthropology at Boğaziçi University. The hope for change, however, is still lacking with the younger generations who opt to go to the mountains, as current circumstances have not changed for them, says Sirman, a member of Women for Peace, an initiative aiming to involve women in the peace process.

What is your take of the recent development about the ‘youth in the mountain?’ The state says they have been kidnapped, which is denied by the PKK. Yet, it is the first time we see mothers staging protests to get their children back.

I was doing field work in Mersin in 2010 in Kurdish neighborhoods. During the semester break, 134 kids from Mersin went to the mountains. I was sitting in a house one day visiting a family and suddenly there was a commotion; they said ‘we can’t find Fırat.’ Immediately, people thought he had joined the PKK. Two days later, he turned out to be in Istanbul. He failed an exam and out of fear of his father, he ran away.

What this shows is families are always...