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Turkey
From left to right: Can Publishing House logo, Indian-British writer Salman Rushdie Photos: Twitter; Graphic: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — A Turkish publishing house has officially apologized to Indian-British writer Salman Rushdie for censoring the word “Kurdistan” in one of his novels, following its translation from English to Turkish, the writer said on Monday.
Can Publishing House has apologized for replacing the word 'Kurdistan' with “areas populated by Kurds” as a reference to Northern Kurdistan in Rushdie’s The Enchantress of Florence novel, Rushdie said on Twitter.
“All existing copies are being withdrawn and a corrected edition will be printed,” he added.
The censor has been widely criticized on social media for a while now. It only caught Rushdie’s attention recently, after a number of Twitter users tagged him in the replies regarding the incident.
Can Oz, owner of the publishing house said all copies of the book will be collected and fixed “immediately” last month.
Founded by one of Turkey’s leading authors Erdal Oz in 1981, Can Publishing House maintains its position among the leading publishing houses in classical, modern, and contemporary literature. It has more than 2500 titles in its publication catalog, adding 150 books to the list yearly.
However, this is not the first time Can censors the word “Kurdistan.” In 2004, Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes was translated by the publishing house where they used the expression of “Middle East” when referring to Kurdistan. It was only noticed in 2019.
There is a long history of animosity and conflict over Kurdish issues and rights in Turkey. Following the military coup of 1980, the Kurdish language was officially prohibited in Turkey. Many people who spoke, published, or sang in Kurdish were arrested and imprisoned. The ban was later lifted.
The state has at times denied the very existence of Kurds. The word “Kurdistan” is banned from the parliament, most Kurdish private media is closed, and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) is under immense pressure with hundreds of its members in jail. An armed Kurdish group, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has waged a decades-long conflict with the state.
Can Publishing House has apologized for replacing the word 'Kurdistan' with “areas populated by Kurds” as a reference to Northern Kurdistan in Rushdie’s The Enchantress of Florence novel, Rushdie said on Twitter.
“All existing copies are being withdrawn and a corrected edition will be printed,” he added.
The censor has been widely criticized on social media for a while now. It only caught Rushdie’s attention recently, after a number of Twitter users tagged him in the replies regarding the incident.
Can Oz, owner of the publishing house said all copies of the book will be collected and fixed “immediately” last month.
Founded by one of Turkey’s leading authors Erdal Oz in 1981, Can Publishing House maintains its position among the leading publishing houses in classical, modern, and contemporary literature. It has more than 2500 titles in its publication catalog, adding 150 books to the list yearly.
However, this is not the first time Can censors the word “Kurdistan.” In 2004, Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho’s Eleven Minutes was translated by the publishing house where they used the expression of “Middle East” when referring to Kurdistan. It was only noticed in 2019.
There is a long history of animosity and conflict over Kurdish issues and rights in Turkey. Following the military coup of 1980, the Kurdish language was officially prohibited in Turkey. Many people who spoke, published, or sang in Kurdish were arrested and imprisoned. The ban was later lifted.
The state has at times denied the very existence of Kurds. The word “Kurdistan” is banned from the parliament, most Kurdish private media is closed, and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) is under immense pressure with hundreds of its members in jail. An armed Kurdish group, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has waged a decades-long conflict with the state.
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