ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on alternative dispute resolution as practised by the Kurdish Peace Committee (KPC) in the UK. It discusses why and how, despite significant changes in many other parts of their lives, many Kurds still choose to rely on their customary practices via an unofficial legal system in combination with, or instead of, official legal processes, while living in a large western city like London. The concept of Diaspora has been mainly used for Jews living outside of Palestine, and subsequently to describe many displaced communities. The chapter considers responses to the re-development of the Kurd's customary laws and fora for dispute settlement from other relevant actors, including feminists and the British police. It focuses on London-based gurbet Kurds who have emigrated from Turkey. The research has aimed to understand and, if possible, to explain the work of the unofficial Kurdish dispute resolution system in operation in the UK.
