Sur (Sûr) Municipality in Diyarbakır (Amed) has taken a significant step in line with its understanding of multilingual governance by establishing a Language Council. Aiming to ensure that all languages spoken in the city are equally present, accessible, and visible in public life, the municipality will carry out efforts to preserve and sustain mother tongues in all areas of life.
Sur Co-Mayor Fatma Gulan Önkol, who spoke to ANF, recalled that the struggle for mother tongue rights has a history spanning half a century. Önkol said: “The issue of the mother tongue has been one of the main pillars of a 50–60 year struggle. This struggle has grown around the demand for education in the mother tongue and freedom of expression. At the point we have reached today, efforts continue to ensure that the mother tongue gains legal status and becomes usable in the public sphere.”
We are against uniformity
Fatma Gulan Önkol pointed to the responsibility of local administrations in this regard, stating that it is vital for citizens to receive services in their mother tongue. She stated that municipalities are institutions with which people have direct contact and continued: “Making multilingual services legitimate in public institutions and municipalities today and ensuring that citizens can express themselves in their own mother tongue, is extremely valuable for us. Because when people speak in their own language, they feel more comfortable, safer, and better understood. However, when they are forced to use another language, communication weakens and can sometimes break down completely.”
Gulan Önkol also underlined that multilingual municipal governance is not a preference but a necessity, saying: “There is no uniformity in life. Everything is diverse; everything is plural. In a place where there is such a multicultural and multilingual structure, municipal governance must also reflect this reality. We are against uniformity. Therefore, defending multilingualism and multiculturalism is a fundamental approach for us.”
Assimilation policies weakened the language
Fatma Gulan Önkol referred to the impact of past policies on the mother tongue, stating that this process has left deep marks on collective memory. She said that the mother tongue had long been excluded from the public sphere and added:
“We were subjected to assimilation policies for many years. We forgot our own language; we even forgot how to dream in it. When people went to public institutions, they could not speak in their mother tongue. There was a reality in which people could not explain their problems in hospitals or express their demands in municipalities. This was not only a language issue, but also one that directly affected people’s right to life.”
Fatma Gulan Önkol also addressed the period of government-appointed trustees, stating that multilingual practices were eliminated during that time. Önkol said: “During the trustee periods, the presence of the mother tongue in the public sphere was significantly reduced. However, during the periods when we governed, even if not officially, there was in practice an understanding of multilingual service. Now we want to place this on a more institutional footing.”
Sur has a multicultural structure
Fatma Gulan Önkol drew attention to the historical and social fabric of Sur, stating that the district has a multicultural and multi-faith structure. She said that this diversity must also be reflected in municipal services and added: “Sur is not limited to Kurdish and Turkish. There is Zazaki, Syriac, Armenian, and Arabic. These lands have a multilingual and multicultural past. Therefore, we want to establish a service model that includes all these languages.”
Education workshops and Zarokistan projects
Fatma Gulan Önkol also addressed the practical steps of multilingual work, stating that they will first carry out encouraging initiatives in the learning and teaching of the mother tongue.
She said that literacy workshops in the mother tongue for women, children, and youth will be expanded, and emphasized that they will work to increase the number of mother tongue nurseries (Zarokistan), develop training programs covering both tradespeople and citizens, and transform the language of services from digital platforms to social spaces.
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