Kurdish-language daycare in Van renamed once again
The Perperok Children's Daycare Center, which operates under the Van Metropolitan Municipality, has undergone three name changes since its establishment, all during periods when the municipality was run by state-appointed trustees.
Alongside the name changes, the center has seen shifts in its education model, physical location, and student demographics.
Perperok Children's Daycare Center was first opened during the tenure of Hatice Çoban and Bekir Kaya, co-mayors from the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP). The center originally operated under a trilingual education model, offering instruction in Turkish, Kurdish, and English.
Interventions at the daycare began in 2016, after the government launched a policy of appointing trustees to replace elected officials in pro-Kurdish municipalities, usually citing "terrorism" investigations and cases against them. Following the appointment of a trustee to the Van Metropolitan Municipality, the daycare’s multilingual program was terminated. The name “Perperok,” a Kurdish word meaning “butterfly” in Turkish, was also removed from the center's signage. No official explanation was given for the name change.
After the 2019 local elections, the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) regained control of the municipality and restored the daycare’s original name. However, the appointed trustee Mehmet Emin Bilmez and his administration later changed the name again, arguing that the word “Perperok” carried "obscene connotations." This interpretation sparked controversy, as the word is widely recognized in Kurdish to mean butterfly.
Third name change
The Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) reclaimed the municipality in the 2024 local elections. But in 2025, the government once again appointed a trustee to oversee the municipality.
Under the new administration, the daycare center was relocated and renamed for the third time. It is now called the “Daycare Center.”
The relocation also created transportation challenges for many families. One of the most controversial developments under trustee administrations has been the reported expulsion of certain children from the center.
According to allegations, some children were dismissed on vague grounds such as being "naughty" or "disturbing the environment." Families claim these decisions were politically motivated and linked to their own political identities.
‘It met European standards’
Serdar Balcı, who served as the daycare’s coordinator during the BDP administration, criticized the repeated name changes and provided background on the center's original mission.
“This daycare was planned by Bekir Kaya and Hatice Çoban. It was created in response to a community need,” Balcı said. “We opened it on May 15, 2015, on Kurdish Language Day. It had space for 82 children and began operating in three languages: Kurdish, Turkish, and English. Our goal was to educate children in their mother tongue and with an awareness of gender equality.”
Balcı noted that the center was the largest and first Kurdish-language daycare in Van and its surrounding border areas. It offered classes for children from infancy to age six, with 16 children per classroom.
“It had a garden and outdoor spaces where children could interact with nature. There were also play areas and a children's cinema,” he said. “Delegations from Canada, Korea, and Portugal visited. When they saw the daycare and our methods, they said, ‘This meets European standards.’”
However, Balcı said the appointment of a trustee in 2016 marked the beginning of sweeping changes. “The trustee’s first move was to target education, culture, and the arts,” he said. “They emptied out the curriculum and reduced the trilingual education to only Turkish. They changed the name Perperok, claiming it was ‘obscene.’ But no one questioned this label. The claim was used as a pretext to avoid admitting to racist motives. This was part of a broader assimilation process.” (HA/VK)
