ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The umbrella-group of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has wings in Syria, said it would not recognize the outcome of an international conference in Geneva this month over the Syrian conflict.
The Kurdistan Democratic Communities’ Union, or KCK, said in a statement that “the Kurds will not recognize any assembly ostracizing them and failing to reflect their rights.”
The KCK called on conference organizers to review their insistence on Kurdish groups attending only as part of the larger opposition.
“The Kurds want to take part in the Geneva II conference as an independent and democratic opposition force,” the group said.
The January 22 Geneva conference is supposed to be the first meeting between the Syrian opposition and the regime of President Bashar Assad, ever since a popular uprising nearly three years ago.
The divided Syrian opposition has yet to confirm attendance. One of the issues is over Kurdish participation.
The KCK statement noted that Syria is made up of different ethnic communities, such as the Kurds, and declared that the country “can no longer be ruled by a central state authority.”
The Democratic Union Party (PYD), which is loyal to the PKK, declared self-rule in Syria’s Kurdish regions in December. But it has received no international recognition.
“At a time when all sides are being invited to the conference, the Kurds’ demand for participation has been overlooked by the countries organizing the conference,” it said.
Washington reportedly wants the Kurds to be part of the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) at the conference, instead of participating independently. The United States and Turkey both want the Kurds represented by the Kurdish National Council (KNC), which includes most Kurdish opposition groups, but not the PYD.
“We call on the political powers which organize and invite opposing sides and related countries to the conference to think twice about their decision, ensure the participation of the Kurds and take steps that will strengthen and render legitimate the Geneva II conference,” the KCK said.
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