Nihilism and Technologies of Othering: The Kurds in Iran, Iraq and Turkey Jalal Dehzani A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Political Science Carleton University Ottawa, Canada January 2008 © Jalal Dehzani Library and Bibliotheque et 1*1 Archives Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-40519-2 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-40519-2 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives and Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par Plntemet, prefer, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans loan, distribute and sell theses le monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, worldwide, for commercial or non­ sur support microforme, papier, electronique commercial purposes, in microform, et/ou autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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Canada i Abstract This thesis theorizes the original concept of technologies of othering, and explores the forms such technologies have taken in the century-long oppression of the Kurds, who constitute the largest stateless nation in the Middle East. The research question asked was: by what methods were the Kurds, promised their own state after the First World War, divided, encapsulated within, and oppressed by four new nation-states created by, and in the interests of, Western imperial powers? Unlike other studies of the Kurds, I use Kurdish as well as Middle Eastern and Western texts to show how theories of nationalism, realism and Realpolitik, and the 'rules' of the modern international state- system; and three ideologies- ethno-nationalism, Baathism and Islamic fundamentalism- constituted the political technologies of othering used against the Kurds, directly and indirectly, in three of the states—Turkey, Iran and Iraq. Drawing on Nietzsche, Heidegger, Ellul and Foucault, I demonstrate that technique and nihilism are linked to the discourses and practices of 'othering' as used in the Middle East and internationally. I employ philosophic methods derived from Western critiques of modernity, and classical Islamic political thought and practice, to interpret the political and historic data regarding instances when the Kurds were 'othered', ranging from marginalization and persecution to attempted genocide. Actions of imperialism, and Middle Eastern reactions to them, I argue, produced many nihilistic ideologies that fed the technologies of othering used. The thesis also explores Kurdish texts showing their self-understandings as a people, and how they organized against state coercion whenever the opportunity arose. Nonetheless, so far the Kurds haven't defeated the awesome power of these technologies, nor overcome the tremendous forces of reactive nihilism. I show why the multiple ii practices and discourses which constitute technologies of othering still deny the Kurds' control over their own destiny—a dilemma still to be solved. I conclude that, from the Kurdish perspective, technologies of othering deployed by Western theorists and statesmen and by Middle Eastern politicians and scholars are products of distorted forms of Western modernity, and reactions to them. Only when the Kurds are supported in their efforts to achieve the purported benefits of modernity—self-determination, security, and democratic rights—will the impasse be resolved in the countries which oppress them, and in the international community. Table of Contents Introduction Chapter One: Theoretical Grounds of Political Technologies of Othering 12-53 • Technologies of Othering 13 • European Modernity and Colonialism 20 • Western Nihilism 25 • Collective Identity and Classical Islam 32 • Crisis of Identity after Colonialism 43 • Conclusion 51 Chapter Two: Theoretical Considerations Regarding Imperialism and Realism 54-92 • Imperialism and Kurdistan 55 • International Relations Theory and the Kurdish issue 63 • Early Realism 63 • Neorealism 77 • Kissinger, Realism and Kurdistan 82 • Conclusion 88 Chapter Three: Nationalism 93-142 • Nationalism prior to Modernity 94 • Nationalism and Modernity 98 • Nationalism as a Form of Politics 101 • Othered Nationalisms 106 • An Overview Of Kurdish Nationalism 112 • The Early Kurdish Writings on Identity 113 • Kurds Theorizing Kurdish Identity 118 • Western Scholars and the Kurds 123 • Middle Eastern Scholars and the Kurds 133 • Western Politicians / Advisors and the Kurds 138 • Conclusion 140 Chapter Four: The Dismantling of the Ottoman Empire, Creation of Iraq and the First Large-Scale Kurdish Uprising 143-177 • The Kurds and the Ottomans 144 • The Creation of Iraq and the Treaty of Sevres 154 • Sheikh Said's Revolt 161 • Conclusion 173 Chapter Five: Modernization of Iran and the Kurdish Republic of Mahabad (1946) 178-209 • Iran and modernity 179 • The Second World War and the Prelude to the Kurdish Republic of Mahabad 184 • Declaration of the Republic of Mahabad 190 • The Fall of the Kurdish Republic of Mahabad 198 • The Social and Political Causes of the Republic of Mahabad 201 •The Aftermath 204 • Conclusion 206 Chapter Six: The Barzani Movement in Iraqi Kurdistan (1958-75) 210-250 • The Creation of Iraq and Centralization of Power 211 • Baathist Ideology 217 • The Coming to Power of Baath Party In Iraq 221 • The Barzanis and the Formative Iraqi Kurdish Nationalism 224 • Barzani and the Politics of Kurdish National Resistance 229 • Conclusion 247 Chapter Seven: The Kurds and the Islamic Republic of Iran 251-289 • The Ideological Foundations of the Islamic Revolution 252 • The Lay Intellectual Component of the Islamic Revolution 254 • Bazargan 256 • Jalal Al-e Ahmad 260 • Dr. Ali Shariati and Revolutionary Shiism 267 • The Islamic Revolution of 1979 275 • The Kurds and the Islamic Republic 276 • The Kurds and the Iran-Iraq War 284 • Conclusion 287 Chapter Eight: The Gulf Wars (1990-2003) and the Kurdish Destiny 290-313 •The First Gulf War 291 • The Kurdistan Regional Government 298 • The Second Gulf War (March 2003) 304 • Conclusion 311 Conclusion: 314-323 Bibliography: 324-337 Figure 1: Distribution of Kurds across Turkey, Iran and Iraq DISTRIBUTION OF KURDS across Turkey, Iran and Iraq David McDowall, A Modern History of the Kurds (New York: LB. Tauris, 1997): xiv. 1 Introduction In this thesis, I theorize the concept of political technologies of othering and its relation to nihilism in Kurdistan, showing how such technologies enabled the political persecution of the Kurds in the last century. The Kurds provide an important case, especially regarding the study of stateless nations and their nationalisms. The Kurds are the largest stateless nation in the Middle East and have survived many attempts to destroy their national existence. It is important to understand why and how they resist the three states which encapsulate and dominate them; against which the Kurds refuse to give up their national claims. This case lets me contextualize my theory regarding technologies of othering in politics, and show how the status of stateless nations is denied in the international system. I use political philosophy and international relations theory in my approach to the case. I rely on Nietzsche's critique of (Western) modernity, nihilism and modern subjectivity; and Heidegger's critique of technology to develop my theoretical framework. To theorize my case study, I develop a philosophic critique of three dominant ideologies employed to 'other' the Kurds: state-sponsored ethno-nationalism, Baathism and Islamic fundamentalism. I also use the same philosophic method in my critique of the realist school of international relations and theories of nationalism. The Kurds are an Indo-European nation living predominantly in the border areas between Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria. Their population is estimated at between 27-36 million with 20 per cent in Turkey, 15-20 per cent in Iraq and 7 per cent in Iran and in Syria almost 8 per cent.1 "Roughly 55% of the world's Kurds live in Turkey, about 20% 2 each in Iran and Iraq, and a bit over 5% in Syria."2 The Kurds have taken every opportunity to rise up against the states that encapsulate and dominate them. From the beginning of the twentieth century, there wasn't a decade without a Kurdish uprising. While other scholars study Kurdish political movements within a social science framework and from a privileged position of a subject, in this thesis I reverse the relation by looking at the Kurdish case from the inside, exploring how the Kurds see their situation. I rely on European philosophic self-critiques to craft a critique of modern power politics. I do so in order to demonstrate the problems of Western modernity from a Western point of view. I also rely on the classical sources of Islamic thought such as Farabi and contemporary scholars such as Nasr and Shayegan in examining issues of identity, power and politics within Islamic tradition.