Kurdish peace efforts a tribute to Ya?ar Kemal

Ya?ar Kemal, a landmark name of Turkish literature, passed away on the afternoon of Feb. 28, ending weeks-long suffering in hospital due to multiple organ failure.

Born in 1923, the same year that the Turkish Republic was founded, Ya?ar Kemal was the first internationally-known name in literature from Turkey, at a time when the business of public relations was not yet known or popular. All of his novels have been translated into multiple languages, and many films have been produced based on his novels and stories. A laureate of numerous awards, the Turkish people proudly say that Yasar Kemal won the ?Nobel of our hearts.?

Reading ??nce Memed,? (?Memed the Slim? or ?Memed, my Hawk,? as it was translated), is a must for schoolchildren who show interest in literature. It was actually his first novel published in 1955, and tells the story of Memed, a sympathetic outlaw who rebels against an oppressive establishment-backed landlord in rural southern Turkey.
This man who achieved the zenith of the Turkish language was of Kurdish origin.
Throughout his life, Kemal was an outspoken activist for a better democracy in Turkey. His left-leaning stance to raise the issue of the rights of Kurds, among others, made him into a target of the establishment in Turkey for decades. He himself was a kind of ??nce Memed? in the world of literature and culture.
In his final hours, Kemal was in a deep coma when a statement penned by Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers? Party (PKK), called on the PKK to hold a congress for a ?reinforced cease-fire? aiming for disarmament if certain conditions are met. The statement was issued in a joint press conference with the Kurdish problem-focused Peoples? Democratic Party (HDP) and...