ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A number of Kurds from Turkey’s Kurdish province of Dersim have returned to their villages to replant a valuable variety of wheat that their ancestors abandoned decades ago due to conflict between Ankara and Kurdish insurgents. The move comes amid ongoing peace talks between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The types of wheat native to the area are believed to be delicious and of high nutritional value. Artist Metin Kahraman, who has been working for 10 years to prevent the loss of Dersim's ancestral wheat seeds and encouraging citizens to farm, met with a number of colleagues in a village in central Dersim to discuss reviving the wheat. “Due to the long years of conflict in the Dersim region, agriculture couldn't be practiced here. Consequently, no chemicals have entered these lands for 30-40 years. From this perspective, we continue our work to see if Dersim can eventually be declared a completely natural farming area,” he told Rudaw. Birgul Gunduz and many others accompanied him. “I had four dunams of land where I planted [the wheat]. I obtained very good wheat from here. I want everyone to plant this wheat. I got the seeds from Metin Kahraman, may God bless him. He pioneered this work for us in this region. We had a good harvest,” Gunduz said. Pervin Yılmaz, another investor, called on Kurds to encourage others from the area to return and plant the wheat.
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