Founding of the Kurdish Institute of Lausanne

Founding

With an academic and scientific consciousness, writer and jurist Necat Zanyar issued a written call on 19.04.2024 for the founding of the Kurdish Institute of Lausanne.

After lengthy meetings and the formation of the executive committee, the institute drafted its statutes on 17.11.2024. The official registration process was completed on 30 January 2025.

On 4 May 2025, the founding of the Kurdish Institute of Lausanne was publicly announced with a major reception in Lausanne.

The institute's executive committee is composed of five people representing the four parts of Kurdistan. It is a scientific, secular and independent body, above all parties and ideologies.

Name and Centre

Lausanne is one of the major centres of the Kurdish diaspora. The Kurds are the nation most affected by the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne. For Kurds, the name Lausanne is tied to questions of sovereignty and national law. Because of this symbolic weight, the city was chosen as the name and seat of the institute.

Logo

From the ruins of Ekbatana, capital of the Medes, the lion appears as the symbol of the Median Empire. Likewise, from antiquity to the present day, the sun has been sacred to the Kurds.

Two lions are also the emblem of the city of Lausanne. The two lions of Median civilisation join the two lions of Lausanne and protect the Kurdish sun.