Bachtyar Ali Muhammed, also spelled as Bakhtiyar Ali or Bakhtyar Ali, (Kurdish: Bextyar Elî -بەختیار عەلی) Ali was born in the city of Slemani (also spelt as Sulaimani or Sulaymaniy), in Iraqi Kurdistan (also referred to as southern Kurdistan) in 1960. He is a Kurdish novelist and intellectual. He is also a prolific literary critic, essayist and poet. Ali started out as a poet and essayist, but has established himself as an influential novelist from the mid-1990s. He has published six novels, several poetry collections as well as essay books. He has been living in Germany since the mid-1990s (Frankfurt, Cologne and most recently Bonn). In his academic essays, he has dealt with various subjects, such as the 1988 Saddam-era Anfal genocide campaign, the relationship between the power and intellectuals and other philosophical issues. He often employs western philosophical concepts to interpret an issue in Kurdish society, but often modifies or adapts them to his context.
Based on interviews with the writer, he wrote his first prominent piece of writing in 1983, a long poem called Nishtiman "The Homeland" (Kurdish; نیشتمان). His first article, entitled "In the margin of silence; la parawezi bedangi da" in Pashkoy Iraq newspaper in 1989. But he only truly came to prominence and started to publish and hold seminars after the 1991 uprising against the Iraqi government, as the Kurds started to establish a de facto semi-autonomous region in parts of Iraqi Kurdistan and enjoy a degree of freedom of speech. He could not have published most of his work before 1991 because of strict political censorship under Saddam. Along with several other writers of his generation - most notably Mariwan Wirya Qani, Rebin Hardi and Sherzad Hasan - they started a new intellectual movement in Kurdistan, mainly through holding seminars. The same group in 1991 started publishing a philosophical journal - Azadi "Freedom" [Kurdish:ئازادی] -, of which only five issues were published, and then Rahand "Dimension" [Kurdish:رەهەند]. (www.rahand.com). In 1992, he published his first book, a poetry collection entitled Gunah w Karnaval "Sin and the Carnival" [Kurdish:گوناه و کەڕنەڤال]. It contained several long poems, some which were written in the late 1980s. Prominent Kurdish poet Sherko Bekas immediately hailed him as a new powerful voice. His first novel, Margi Taqanay Dwam "The death of the second only child" [Kurdish:مەرگی تاقانەی دووەم], was published in 1997, the first draft of which was written in the late 1980s.
بختیار علی : من معتقدم اگر انسان خود را به دست شعر بسپارد،شعر او را به دیگر جاها میبرد.باز بر این باورم که فقط شعر میتواند،لایه های عمیق نهانی روح انسان را در نوردد.آنانی که شعری زیبا به تأملشان وانمیدارد،نقصی بزرگ بر وجود آنها مستولی است.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ شما چنان کردید تا نخستین بار دوزخاز بهشت زیباتر آید دریایی از خاکستر برایمان نهادید و گفتید:این است روشنایی. در جامهایمان شن ریختید و گفتید:این است نوش. ابلیس را آراستید و گفتید:این است خدا. کینه را به خوردمان دادید و گفتید:این است آزادی.
شما چنان کردید تا نخستینبار غربت از خانه زیباتر آید ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ میهن از آنِ تو،شرف از آنِ تو،نوش از آنِ تو… من نیز برای خودم. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ من که میسوزم،دیگر چراا از جهنم بهراسم؟ آن که سراسر زخم باشد،خود را از شمشیر نمیدزدد. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ای سرزمینِ ناکسان. که من با ترانه میمیرم،به خنجر كُشتنم چرا؟ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ به فریاد کسی دل میسپارم که با دستانش چونان آهنگر میخ بر سینهاش میکوبد،چونان نجاری که میخ بر روحش میکوبد،زانوانش را قیچی میکند،با چاقو بر جمجهاش میزند.
نقل از متن: "... شما چنان کردید تا نخستین بار غربت از خانه زیباتر آید
این ارمغان شماست؛ ملتی به باد ملتمس، تا دریا را نزدیکشان سازد. ملتی که رستاخیز را به مزد میگیرد، محشر را آذین میبندد، تابوت میشمارد، بین شامگاهان، کفن تقسیم میکند، به افیون هر جنگی خشنودست و به حشیش هر کینهای راضی.
شما چنان کردید تا نخستین بار ابلیس از خدا زیباتر آید..."