Fourteenth International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences

Abstract

This study explores political representation and engagement of Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia regions, known to have dense Kurdish population and referred to as Eastern region, in the Turkish parliament between 1946 and 1980. Traditional local notables had most of the privileges to be represented given their connectedness with political parties. Traditional local notables integrated into right-wing parties considering political and economic aspects. At the same time they kept control over local political involvement channels. As a result political representation and presence were monopolized at central, local, and civil society levels. One part of Kurdish intellectuals was marginalized from the parliament after addressing issues in Eastern Anatolia and trying to develop solutions apart from the mainstream. Some of them took part in Kurdish oppositional left wing in 1960s and jounced power of settled notables in 1970s in local administrations or as independent members of the parliament.