Sharing my expertise and opinions on Turkey’s relations with the Kurds in Turkey and Syria, February 2016.
Having opinions is very normal for a journalist. Publishing them is too. Crucial is of course that you are opinionated about a subject you know well. It sounds funny to add that, but we do live in an era in which opinions are often barked around by people who have no clue whatsoever what they are talking about, and are even respected for it. I happen to find that one of the evils of our times. So I stick to my expertise, which is the Kurds.
Over the years, I have published op-eds in Dutch papers NRC Handelsblad and Volkskrant, and since a few years I contribute as an op-ed writer to The Huffington Post. I have contributed regularly to the independent Turkish website Diken (this search on my name also leads to articles about me, but refers to loads of columns as well), and all those columns have been published in English on my previous website KurdishMatters. You can find them in the archive. Currently, since September 2018, I am writing a regular column for the independent Dutch website Frontaal Naakt. In those columns, I use my long time experience in Turkey and Kurdistan to reflect on social and political developments in the Netherlands.
Also in my lectures, I share and explain my opinions. For more information, click here.
To give you an idea about my views, let me refer you to five op-eds and columns that have got a lot of reactions.
* A permanent ceasefire now? I’d be disappointed In Turkish: PKK kalıcı ateşkes ilan ederse hayal kırıklığı yaratır.
* Turkey’s election was soaked in suppression and blood.
* Turkije moet PKK en Öcalan eerlijker bezien. Sorry, not in English or Turkish.
* Why does my writing scare you and the government you work for, Akif?.
In Turkish: Akif Beki’ye yanıtımdır: Ben bağımsız bir gazeteciyim sense kudretli bir adamın sözcüsü.
* Only a truly new Turkey can shed light on the Ankara massacre.
If you find my opinions provocative, fine. I consider it a compliment. Thought provoking journalism is cool.