Understanding Kurdish ethno-nationalism in Turkey: socio-economy,religion, and politics

Abstract

In his recent article in Ethnic and Racial Studies, entitled ‘Curbing Kurdish ethno-nationalism in Turkey’, (Sarigil 2010 Sarigil, Zeki. 2010. Curbing Kurdish ethno-nationalism in Turkey: an empirical assessment of pro-Islamic and socio-economic approaches. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 33(3): 533–53. [Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) tests two rival hypotheses regarding Kurdish ethno-nationalism in Turkey and, using data from the World Values Survey (WVS), finds that socio-economic status (levels of income and education) better explains the individual roots of Kurdish ethno-nationalism in Turkey than does religiousness. In this paper, I offer both a methodological critique of Sarigil's research and a replication of his model with a more appropriate sample. I first argue that Sarigil's research design lacks internal validity because it studies Kurdish nationalism within a sample that predominantly consists of Turks, which invalidates his findings. I then replicate and expand Sarigil's model within a specific sample of Kurdish-speaking people in Turkey. The results show dramatic changes. Religiosity and political satisfaction seem to be better predictors of support for Kurdish ethno-nationalism in Turkey than do socio-economic factors.     

The ethnic question in an environment of insecurity: the Kurds in Turkey

This article examines the effect that a poor structural context, what we term an "environment of insecurity", has on the Kurdish ethnic nationalist mobilization in Turkey. The empirical evidence for this analysis is based on data from the 1993 Turkish Demographic and Health Survey [TDHS]. The data provide, to the best of our knowledge, the first reliable and representative figures on the situation of Kurds in Turkey. Our key claim is that the Kurdish population in Turkey is relatively much worse off than the Turkish population in the country. This claim is strongly supported by the data. Many other factors also account for the ethnic nationalist mobilization, but we argue that the Turkish Kurds' environment of insecurity, materially and non-materially, stands out as a key package of both causal and intermediate variables behind the ethnic revival.     

Turkey as a crossroad for Greater Flamingos Phoenicopterus roseus: evidence from population trends and ring-resightings (Aves: Phoenicopteridae)

The Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus is a waterbird commonly found in saline and brackish lagoons throughout the Mediterranean Region. We have gathered existing data on Greater Flamingos in Turkey and carried out field surveys to present the most up to date information on wintering (1999–2014) and breeding (1969– 2014). The wintering population of flamingos shows an increasing trend with 54,947±20,794 individuals mainly concentrated in the Gediz, Büyük Menderes and Çukurova deltas, respectively. Breeding attempts were recorded in at least seven wetlands in Turkey in the past, yet after 1999 most of the colonies were abandoned due to basin scale intensive water management practices in Central Anatolia. Currently, only Tuz Lake and Gediz Delta are used as regular breeding sites, while breeding has been recorded sporadically in Ac?göl and Ak?ehir Lakes. The breeding colony of Tuz Lake is of prime importance at the Mediterranean scale, with the number of young chicks in 2011, 2012 and 2013 accounting for the highest number of fledglings in the Mediterranean Region and West Africa (18,418, 20,274 and 20,292 respectively). Finally, building upon the previous findings about Turkey and the western Mediterranean metapopulation links, recent resightings of Turkish flamingos (despite the limited numbers) confirm post-fledging and natal dispersal reaching the western Mediterranean Basin and West Africa. Flamingos from Turkey were also found to disperse to Israel and to a region outside the known flyways of the western Mediterranean and West African flamingos (i.e. to Israel and UAE). Thus, Turkey, due to its geographic position, appears to be a crossroad between the western and eastern Mediterranean Region and southwest Asia.     

Beyond the playing field: Experiences of sport,social capital,and integration among Somalis in Australia

This paper explores the role of recreational sport as a means and marker of social integration by analysing the lived experiences of Somali people from refugee backgrounds with sport. Drawing on a three-year multi-sided ethnography, the paper examines the extent to and ways in which participation in sport contributes to Somali Australians' bonding, bridging, and linking social capital. It is shown how social bonds and bridges developed in the sports context assist in the (re)building of community networks that have been eroded by war and displacement. Sport's contribution to social capital should however be neither overstated nor over-generalized. Bridging social capital in sport is relatively weak and few bridges are established between Somalis and the host community. Negative social encounters such as discrimination and aggression can highlight and reinforce group boundaries. Access to and use of linking social capital is also unequally distributed across gender, age, ethnic, and socio-economic lines.     

The Clinical Breast Care Project: an important resource in investigating environmental and genetic contributions to breast cancer in African American women

Age at diagnosis, pathological characteristics, and tumor behavior differ between African American (AAW) and Caucasian women (CW) with breast cancer, with AAW having more aggressive tumors and higher mortality rates. Although both societal and molecular contributions to these disparities have been suggested, the African American population has traditionally been under-represented in research and clinical protocols, limiting the power of epidemiologic and molecular studies to provide better understanding of disease pathogenesis in this minority population. The Clinical Breast Care Project (CBCP) has developed a large tissue and blood repository from patients undergoing treatment for breast cancer, with previous history of breast cancer, counseled in the Risk Reduction Clinic, screened by routine mammography, or undergoing elective reductive mammoplasty. Recruitment of AAW into the CBCP was successful; 25% of the 2,454 female patients were African American, including 35% disease-free, 3% high-risk, 40% benign, 8% preinvasive and 14% with invasive breast disease. More than 500 data fields regarding lifestyle choices, socioeconomic status, health history and geography were collected from all participants, and all consenting individuals provided blood specimens for genomic and proteomic studies. Tissues were collected from all patients undergoing surgical procedures using protocols that preserve the macromolecules for downstream research applications. In addition, patients were followed after diagnosis, with >85% of patients providing ongoing and updated demographic and clinical information. Thus, recruitment efforts in the CBCP have resulted in collection of well-annotated information and research-quality specimens from a large number of AAW. This unique resource will allow for the identification of biological and environmental factors associated with the identification of genetic and non-genetic factors associated with the occurrence, detection, prognosis, or survival of breast cancer in AAW. The opinion and assertions contained herein are the private views of the authors and are not to be construed as official or as representing the views of the Department of the Army or the Department of Defense.     

Smoking as a weight-control strategy among adolescent girls and young women: a reconsideration

Many studies have reported that adolescent girls and young women smoke to control their weight. The majority of these studies are cross-sectional and report on correlational data from quantitative surveys. This article presents data from ethnographic interviews with 60 smokers, interviewed in high school and in follow-up interviews at age 21. Contrary to previous research, this study found little evidence for the sustained use of smoking as a weight-control strategy. In high school, smokers were no more likely than nonsmokers to be trying to lose weight. In the follow-up study, 85 percent of informants replied that they had never smoked as a way to control their weight. One-half of informants at age 21 believed that smoking as a weight-control strategy would be ineffective, while the other one-half had no idea whether it would work or not. Researchers need to exert caution in propagating the idea that smoking is commonly used as a conscious and sustained weight-control strategy among adolescent females and young women.     

Population genetic structure and phylogeography of the oak gall wasp Andricus chodjaii (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) in Turkey as inferred from mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences

Sequence data of mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and nuclear ITS2 region were used to assess genetic diversity, intraspecific phylogeography and population genetic structure of the oak gall wasp Andricus chodjaii from Turkey. We examined 293 individuals from 21 localities which generated 57 cyt b haplotypes and 8 ITS2 alleles. The average genetic diversity was 0.575 for cyt b and 0.202 ITS2, and the average nucleotide diversity 0.015 for cyt b gene and 0.001 for the ITS2 region. Phylogenetic analyses of cyt b haplotypes produced mostly similar topologies with geographically significant groupings. The ITS2 data provided less resolution without robust and apparent geographic structure. Population demographic analysis indicated that some eastern populations expanded, however, some others underwent either expansion or decline resulting in genetically structured populations. Molecular clock applied to the mtDNA data indicated that ingroup haplotypes diversified from the outgroup haplotypes around Early Pliocene. Further diversification events throughout Pleistocene resulted in major clade formations. It appears that geographic formations and glacial and interglacial cycles of Pleistocene were crucial for shaping the phylogeographic structure of A. chodjaii in Turkey.     

Phytogeographical distribution of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Vipio</Emphasis> Latreille, 1804 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Braconinae) in Turkey,with a key to the species in Turkey and adjacent regions

The distribution of Vipio Latreille, 1804 species (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Braconinae) within eight phytogeographical provinces in Turkey is presented on the basis of field studies during 1980–2004. A total of twelve species were found, and the majority of species were associated with the Subeuxin, Euxin, Xeroeuxin and Mediterranean provinces. Vipio humerator (Costa, 1885), V. longicauda (Boheman, 1853) and V. tentator (Rossi, 1790) were the most common species in Turkey, and V. mlokossewiczi Kokoujev, 1898 is a new record for the Turkish fauna. An identification key is provided for 18 species of Vipio from Turkey and adjacent regions with relevant figures of the wings and metasoma.     

Contact,trust and social capital in Northern Ireland: a qualitative study of three mixed communities

In a recent paper, Robert Putnam (2007) challenges the contact hypothesis by arguing that ethnic diversity causes people to ‘hunker down’ and essentially withdraw themselves from society. Drawing on qualitative data collected from three mixed communities in Northern Ireland, this paper explores the extent and quality of contact experienced by Protestants and Catholics in their everyday lives. Themes emerging from our data are generally consistent with the contact hypothesis. There is also some support for Putnam's theory that mixed environments can induce ‘hunkering down’ and that inter-group trust may be compromised. However, our data challenge Putnam's argument that these responses are a consequence of ‘anomie’ or ‘social malaise’. Rather, we find that withdrawal from social activity in the neighbourhoods we observed was a calculated response at times of threat, often aimed at protecting existent positive inter-ethnic relations.     

Wearing the veil: hijab,Islam and job qualifications as determinants of social attitudes towards immigrant women in Norway

Immigrant women are a particularly vulnerable part of the immigrant population. In this paper we analyse negative attitudes towards immigrant women in Norway. We focus on immigrant women’s formal job qualifications, their religious background and wearing of hijab – the headscarf sometimes used by Muslim women. Using survey-embedded experiments we are able to analyse the net effects on attitudes of job qualifications, Islamic religious background and the hijab. The results show that native population frequently has more negative views of Muslim women who wear a hijab. The negative effects of a hijab do not seem to be strongly reduced if a woman wearing it has higher education. With a single exception, the results also show that Muslim background in itself (i.e. without the hijab) does not have any strong effect on attitudes of the native population towards immigrant women.     

Risk, medicine and women: a case study on prenatal genetic counselling in Brazil

Genetic counselling is an important aspect of prenatal care in many developed countries. This tendency has also begun to emerge in Brazil, although few medical centres offer this service. Genetic counselling provides prenatal risk control through a process of individual decision-making based on medical information, in a context where diagnostic and therapeutic possibilities overlap. Detection of severe foetal anomalies can lead to a decision involving possible termination of pregnancy. This paper focuses on medical and legal consequences of the detection of severe foetal anomalies, mainly anencephaly and Down syndrome, and in light of the fact that abortion is illegal in Brazil. The discussion is based on the literature and empirical research at a high-complexity public hospital in Rio de Janeiro.     

Pseudohypericin and hyperforin in Hypericum perforatum from Northern Turkey: variation among populations, plant parts and phenological stages

Hypericum perforatum is a perennial medicinal plant known as "St. John's wort" in Western Europe and has been used in the treatment of several diseases for centuries. In the present study, morphologic, phenologic and population variability in pseudohypericin and hyperforin concentrations among H. perforatum populations from Northern Turkey was investigated for the first time. The aerial parts of H. perforatum plants representing a total of 30 individuals were collected at full flowering from 10 sites of Northern Turkey to search the regional variation in the secondary metabolits concentrations. For morphologic and phenologic sampling, plants from one site were gathered in five phenological stages vegetative,floral budding, full flowering, fresh fruiting and mature fruiting. The plant materials were air-dried at room temperature and subsequently assayed for chemical concentrations by high performance liquid chromatography. Secondary metabolite concentrations ranged from traces to 2.94mg/g dry weight (DW) for pseudohypedcin and traces -6.29mg/g DW for hyperforin. The differences in the secondary metabolite concentrations among populations of H. perforatum were found to be significant. The populations varied greatly in hyperforin concentrations, whereas they produced a similar amount of pseudohypericin. Concentrations of both secondary metabolites in all tissues increased with advancing of plant development and higher accumulation levels were reached at flowering. Among different tissues, full opened flowers were found to be superior to stems, leaves and the other reproductive parts with regard to pseudohypericin and hyperforin accumulations. The present findings might be useful to optimize the processing methodology of wild-harvested plant material and obtain Increased concentrations of these secondary metabolites.     

Breast cancer in young women in southern Tunisia: Anatomical study and clinical prognostic factors: About a series of 83 patients

Purpose

To define epidemiological, clinical, therapeutic and prognostic factors influencing survival of breast cancer in young women younger than 35 in southern Tunisia.

Material and methods

This is a retrospective study of 83 patients younger than 35 years and treated within tumors mammary committee of Sfax.

Results

The mean age was 31.7 years. T2 stage, high grade with positive node tumors were frequent. Breast surgery was performed for 73 patients. Chemotherapy was neo-adjuvant, adjuvant and palliative for respectively 10, 62 and 13 patients. Radiotherapy was delivered for 65 patients with curative intent and for 8 metastatic patients. Endocrine therapy was adjuvant in 38 patients and palliative in 6 cases. The overall survival (OS) at 5 years was 66.8%. Pejorative prognostic factors in uni-variate analysis were clinical T stage (T3, T4), and the number of involved lymph nodes.

Conclusion

Despite adequate treatment, the prognosis of breast cancer in young women remains worse. Early diagnosis is necessary to promote outcome.     

Marriage promotion and missing men: African American women in a demographic double bind

Since 1996, state legislators, members of the U.S. Congress, and more recently President George W. Bush, have called for the protection of monogamous, heterosexual marriage and the promotion of marriage among poor women. The thrust of this policy making is directed at African American families, among which female headship doubled between 1965 and 1990. This doubling is temporally associated with enacting the legislation directed toward the War on Drugs, which resulted in a tripling of the African American prison population. In Syracuse, New York, the swelling African American population behind bars has resulted in a skewed sex ratio, in which women significantly outnumber men. The authors use national, state, and local epidemiological, environmental, and ethnographic data to argue that the proliferation of marriage-promotion policies is heterosexist and blames African American women for demographic realities over which they have little control.     

Folate concentrations and folic acid supplementation among women in their first trimester of pregnancy in a rural area with a high prevalence of neural tube defects in Shanxi, China

BACKGROUND: Although an information campaign concerning periconceptional folic acid supplementation was launched in 1998 in Shanxi Province, China, the prevalence of neural tube defects in rural areas was reported as high as 140 per 10,000 births in 2002. The blood folate concentrations and the practice of folic acid supplementation among pregnant women in rural areas of the province are described. METHODS: A total of 483 pregnant women (mean gestation, 8.1 weeks) in a rural area of Shanxi were interviewed. Nonfasting blood samples and information on folic acid supplementation were collected. Folate concentrations in plasma and erythrocytes were determined by a microbiological assay. RESULTS: The mean concentrations of plasma and erythrocyte folate for pregnant women was 10.4 nmol/liter and 375.8 nmol/liter, respectively. Deficiencies of plasma and erythrocyte folate were observed in 20.9% and 47.6% of women, respectively. Seasonal variations were noted in the prevalence of folate deficiency, with significantly lower plasma folate concentrations in spring and summer and lower erythrocyte folate concentrations in seasons other than summer. Among pregnant women, <10% reported having taken or currently taking folic acid, and virtually no women (0.6%) took folic acid as recommended. CONCLUSIONS: Women in rural areas had low plasma and erythrocyte folate levels, and folate deficiency was highly prevalent in the area. Few women followed the recommendations regarding folic acid supplementation, and the information campaign in Shanxi was unsuccessful. These findings suggest the urgent need for combined strategies in rural areas to fortify grain with folic acid and promote folic acid supplements for childbearing-age women.     

Association between walking ability and trunk and lower-limb muscle atrophy in institutionalized elderly women: a longitudinal pilot study

Background

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between walking ability and muscle atrophy in the trunk and lower limbs.

Methods

Subjects in this longitudinal study were 21 elderly women who resided in nursing homes. The thicknesses of the following trunk and lower-limb muscles were measured using B-mode ultrasound: rectus abdominis, external oblique, internal oblique, transversus abdominis, erector spinae, lumbar multifidus, psoas major, gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, gluteus minimus, rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, vastus intermedius, biceps femoris, gastrocnemius, soleus, and tibialis anterior. Maximum walking speed was used to represent walking ability. Maximum walking speed and muscle thickness were assessed before and after a 12-month period.

Results

Of the 17 measured muscles of the trunk and lower limbs, age-related muscle atrophy in elderly women was greatest in the erector spinae, rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, vastus intermedius, and tibialis anterior muscles. Correlation coefficient analyses showed that only the rate of thinning of the vastus lateralis was significantly associated with the rate of decline in maximum walking speed (r = 0.518, p < 0.05).

Conclusions

This longitudinal study suggests that reduced walking ability may be associated with muscle atrophy in the trunk and lower limbs, especially in the vastus lateralis muscle, among frail elderly women.     

The genus Rhaponticoides Vaill. (Asteraceae) in Turkey: a new species and first key

Turkish representatives of the genus Rhaponticoides Vaill. are examined. A key and distribution map of Rhaponticoides species occurring in Turkey are provided for the first time. R. hierroi Ö. Eren sp. nov., from Bakacak pass in the Western Taurus range, SW Anatolia, allied to R. mykalea (Hub.-Mor.) M. V. Agab. &; Greuter is described as a species new to science and illustrated. Its habitat conditions and conservation status are considered. Pollen micrographs of R. hierroi and R. mykalea are presented using scanning electron microscopy.     

农户生计资本与沙漠化逆转趋势的关系——以宁夏盐池县为例

探索禁牧政策背景下农户生计资本与生计结果关系,对提升农户生计和沙漠化逆转的可持续水平具有重要意义。以农牧交错带上典型的沙漠化逆转区宁夏盐池县为例,基于SLA可持续生计框架和实地调研数据,定量评估了农户生计资本与沙漠化逆转趋势,运用灰色关联法和二元Logistic模型探讨了两者间的关系和影响。结果表明:(1)盐池县农户的生计资本存量仅处于维持基本生活需求阶段,金融资本和社会资本储量较低,存在明显的属性差异,各乡镇间差异较小;(2)农户对沙漠化逆转的响应主要表现在生态政策、适应行为、环保意识、环保行为和环境感知5个方面,存在显著的属性差异和空间差异,63.76%的受访户倾向于沙漠化逆转可持续;(3)农户生计资本与沙漠化逆转趋势之间存在较强的关联关系,人力资本和金融资本对沙漠化逆转可持续起负向作用,而物质资本、自然资本和社会资本则呈正向影响;(4)金融资本、社会资本和人力资本是影响沙漠化逆转可持续的关键因素,是今后该县农户生计资本更新与发展、可持续生计能力形成的关键点和突破点。