Numbering more than 30 million, Kurds are the largest stateless diaspora in the world and thought to be among the most politically active in the nations they live in.
Kurdish migrants began arriving in Australia during the second half of the 1960s, mainly from Turkey.
Due to their political ties in Turkey, for the migrants who settled in Australia, saying you were Kurdish elicited connotations of political involvement.
However, over the decades, the community focused primarily on social advocacy through community groups.
That was until 2019 when Labor’s Enver Erdogan became the first Kurdish Australian to be elected into any Australian parliament.
Mr Erdogan’s family migrated to Australia during the 1970s, after fleeing the persecution of the Kurdish population at the hands of the Turkish government.
Source: Facebook
His upbringing and community involvement had a profound influence in shaping him both personally and professionally.
After graduating from university in the fields of law and commerce, he began his career as a personal injury lawyer.
“I wanted to be part of a movement that delivered change,” he told SBS Kurdish.
“I get to help people one case at a time, and see people in need of assistance, to get them through difficult times.”
In practising law and growing up in a migrant community, he knew that entering politics was his natural next move.
“I always had an interest in entering parliament and getting involved in politics, because I think it’s a platform [where] you have an ability to make a change and raise issues you think are important,” he said.
He was elected into the Victorian Legislative Council in August 2019 as a member for the Southern Metropolitan Region.
In his maiden speech, Mr Erdogan paid tribute to his “diverse electorate” as he said he was proud to be the first MP of Kurdish descent.
It's a position he doesn’t take lightly.
“Although we face discrimination in our homeland, in Australia we have the opportunity to achieve our goals. I hope it can inspire future generations.”
Whilst his remit is within Victoria, he recognises his platform within the Australian system to advocate at a federal level, saying, “issues that the Kurdish communities are concerned about are also about international human rights, [for that] I can advocate”.
He says he’ll advocate not only for his own community but for all residents of the Southern Metropolitan Region and greater Victoria, to “advocate for issues which are in the gambit of the State Government in addressing the needs of multicultural communities”.
“I'm always committed to treating everyone equally and trying to advocate for change which benefits everyone in our society.”
Juxtaposing the life that he’s living with the life his family escaped, the young Kurdish-Australian MP is determined to “make sure there’s a level so everyone gets an equal opportunity in life”.
