You may already know about the campaign started by Kurdish university students in Northern Kurdistan and Turkey for their rights to study in their native language. It's important that we as Kurdish students show our support towards our friends. Therefore it's more the necessary for you to sign this petition by mailing your name and surname, institution and university/college to this email address: campaign@ukww.org

Write "Campaign" as the subject of your mail. All names will be sent to Kurdish and Turkish media to show that students abroad support this action as well. 

This is an attempt which has no affiliation with a political party what so ever. 

Please feel free to forward this mail to other Kurdish students that your know. We thank you for your participation!

Petition
During the past several weeks the Kurdish university students all around Northern Kurdistan and Turkey have undertaken a campaign for legalizing Kurdish as a language of instruction. Similar actions has been taken before, but this is the first time it's being held formally through signing of a petition to the Turkish government. 

Kurdish is forbidden as a language of instruction according to paragraph 42 in the constitution that says "Turkish citizens are not allowed to be tutored in any other language except Turkish as their mother tongue". The use of the Kurdish language is forbidden within other areas such as within political parties and organizational activities. 

The whole body of the state authority, among others the minister of defense and the minister of education, are actively trying to rouse public opinion in favor of breaking down this campaign, since they claim this is a threat against the unity of the country. In addition the police and military are recommended to act actively against this campaign. Students and other sympathizers have been arrested during these last couple of days as a consequence of these recommendations. 

Turkey has over and over again been criticized internationally because of its violations against human rights towards the Kurdish population, a good example would be the sharp criticism the country has had by European countries when attempting to join the European Union. Prohibition to use once own native tongue is violating one of our most basic human rights. The fact that Turkey wants an on going prohibition is a shame for the entire country, and a sign indicating a need for a closer look at the Turkish constitution and there so called democracy. 

We, whom has singed this petition, support the Kurdish students in their struggle for their rights to be able to educate themselves in their mother tongue, Kurdish. Moreover we demand that the Turkish government to put an end to the harassment that these students and sympathizers are being put through and that the authorities carry out these demands which are the basic foundations outlined in UDHR (Universal Declaration of Human Rights) for human rights.