From mbayram at igc.apc.org Fri Jul 1 02:33:39 1994 From: mbayram at igc.apc.org (mbayram at igc.apc.org) Date: Thu, 30 Jun 1994 18:33:39 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Newspaper under attack in Turkey. Message-ID: Ozgur Ulke is a progressive newspaper in Turkey which supports the Kurdish struggle for equal rights and against oppression. Because of its stand it became a target for continuous harassment and attacks by the government forces. To date more then a dozen reporters have been killed (some in the hands of the police) and several distributors burned alive and/or butchered. Almost every employee of the paper was arrested at least once and almost 3 out of 4 issues have been banned by the government. Below is a press release by the editor of the paper about the latest harassment by the government forces. Although it is relatively small in magnitude compared to previous ones, I believe it exemplifies the harassment. We urge every concerned person to show their support to newspaper's struggle against this oppression. Please send a fax/e-mail to the paper or its San Francisco bureau. Although it may look like an unimportant action, this kind of publicity has been effective against the Turkish Government in many cases. San Francisco Bureau of Ozgur Ulke Fax: (408) 247 0695 e-mail: mbayram at ipc.apc.org Ozgur Ulke Newspaper Fax: 011-90-212-518 85 54 ______________________________________________________________________ POLICE RAIDED OUR OFFICE IN VAN Our office for Van City has been raided by teams from Anti-Terror Department. The raid took place at about 14.15 yesterday. In addition to a search of about half an hour, the police also harassed and threatened with death Mehmet Dogan, who is a reader of our newspaper and was in the office when the raid occurred. The police who took photographs of our 8 personnel one by one, also seized 3 videocassettes, which contained a discussion between clan leaders aired on TRT1, the case about Ismail Besikci and a film of Tarik Akan, named "Suru". Also taken away by the police were some news and audio cassettes. We can not get any information about our distributor Ismail Agaya, who has been kidnapped by three persons after leaving his home on May 29. No result could be taken from the applications by Agaya's family and the lawyers of our newspaper. Mehmet Askin who has been detained by the Anti Terror policemen of Urfa Police Department on June 4 th and taken to JITEM (Gendarme Intelligence) in Mardin two days later is still kept in custody. Also going on are the detainment's and questioning of our distributors Zafer Tuzun, Deniz Bayram, Mensur Daslik and Mehmet Kurt at the Diyarbakir Gendarme Regiment Headquarters. Sincerely A. Baki Karadeniz Editor in chief From DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org Mon Jul 11 11:20:32 1994 From: DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org (DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org) Date: 11 Jul 1994 11:20:32 Subject: Kurds Attack German Police Message-ID: <5SdUzL5BNMB@oln-f06.oln.comlink.apc.org> ## Original in: /HRNET/EUROPE&MIDEAST ## author : trh at NETCOM.COM ## date : 05.07.94 --------------------------------------------------------------- [This article has been excerpted.] KURDS ATTACK GERMAN POLICE AFTER KILLING HAMBURG, Germany, July 3 (Reuter) - Militant Kurds attacked police stations across Germany in apparent retaliation for the killing of a 16-year-old Turkish Kurd by a policeman last week, German authorities said...Sunday. Separately, unknown attackers threw firebombs at a Turkish cultural centre in the northern German city of Hamburg early ...Sunday morning, injuring four people of whom one had to be kept in hospital, police said. They said that incident, together with the smashing of a Turkish mosque's windows in Hanover...Sunday, appeared to be connected to feuding between Turks and ethnic Kurds. At least seven Turkish citizens, many of them ethnic Kurds, were arrested on Saturday after attacks with firebombs and stones on police stations in at least seven towns including Hamburg, Hanover, Saarbruecken and Mainz. Around a dozen police cars were...damaged or gutted. Police in Hamburg said they believed the attacks were in retaliation for the death last week of Ayhan Eser, shot by a policeman as he struggled to resist being questioned. Most attacks took place at roughly the same time...Saturday afternoon. Eser had been detained as he put up posters for banned Kurdish separatists. Police say initial findings indicate the shot went off accidentally in the struggle. Militant Kurds in Germany have several times launched attacks against Turkish property to press their claim for an end to human rights abuses and independence for their homeland in southeast Turkey. They have...protested against what they see as Germany's support for Turkish repression. On Saturday some 500 Kurds in Hanover and 200 in Hamburg held largely peaceful marches against Eser's killing. From DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org Mon Jul 11 11:20:33 1994 From: DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org (DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org) Date: 11 Jul 1994 11:20:33 Subject: Kurds Occupy Embassy Message-ID: <5SdUzZUBNMB@oln-f06.oln.comlink.apc.org> ## Original in: /HRNET/EUROPE&MIDEAST ## author : trh at NETCOM.COM ## date : 05.07.94 --------------------------------------------------------------------- [This article has been excerpted.] KURDS OCCUPY GERMAN EMBASSY IN ATHENS BONN, July 4 (Reuter) - About 50 Kurdish protesters occupied Bonn's embassy in the Greek capital of Athens...Monday for three hours to protest the death of a Kurdish youth shot by German police last week. A Bonn Foreign Ministry spokesman said the protesters occupied an embassy waiting room, spraying slogans on the walls and unrolling banners of the militant Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), which is banned in Germany. No one was injured and the Kurds left peacefully. The spokesman said he did not know whether any protesters were arrested by Greek police outside the embassy. Militant Kurds attacked police stations across Germany at the weekend in apparent retaliation for the killing of a 16-year-old Ayhan Eser, a Turkish Kurd shot by a policeman. Eser had been detained as he put up posters for banned Kurdish separatists. Police say...findings indicate the shot went off accidentally in the struggle. Militant Kurds are fighting for an independent homeland in southeast Turkey and have protested against what they see as Germany's support for Turkish repression. From DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org Tue Jul 12 12:37:38 1994 From: DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org (DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org) Date: 12 Jul 1994 12:37:38 Subject: Kurdish youth murdered by German po Message-ID: <5ShZ5y.RNMB@oln-f06.oln.comlink.apc.org> ## Original in: /HRNET/EUROPE&MIDEAST ## author : OMEGA at VLBERLIN.comlink.de ## date : 07.07.94 ------------------------------------------------------------------- ## Message written on 06.07.94 ## writer : Infoladen Omega Berlin at 69:1/99.1 Kurdish youth murdered by German police Close to midnight on Thursday, June 30, a 15-year old Kurdish asylum-seeker was shot in the back and killed by a plainclothes police officer in the German city of Hannover. The youth, Halim Deren (Ayhan Eser), was out with five friends hanging ERNK (National Liberation Front of Kurdistan) posters. When a police car passed by, the youths split up. Once the car was out of sight, Halim and a friend continued postering. Then, two plainclothes officers surprised the boys and attempted to arrest them, but both were able to flee. Seconds later, a shot rang out, and Halim was dead with a bullet in his back. The police are calling this murder "an accident". Halim and his family had only arrived in Germany six weeks before, at the end of May, after fleeing from the Kurdish village of Parcuk in the province of Bingol. The village of Parcuk, like so many others in Kurdistan, had been de-populated and then destroyed by the Turkish army. On the Saturday following Halim's murder, spontaneous demonstrations were held in several German cities. In Hannover, more than 1000 people held a march to protest Halim's murder. Marchers carried photos of Halim, as well as flags and posters of the ERNK, an organization which was outlawed in Germany along with the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) and more than 30 other Kurdish organizations in November 1993. The marchers also demanded the resignation of German interior minister Kanther who was responsible for the banning of the PKK/ERNK. Later Saturday night, police vehicals and police stations in Hannover, Osnabrueck, Oldenburg, and Braunscheig were attacked with stones and molotov cocktails. In Berlin, a Turkish travel agency was fire bombed, and more that two dozen stores in different parts of the city had their windows smashed. On Monday, July 4, close to 1500 people held a demonstration in Berlin to protest Halim's murder. Police threatened to attack the demonstration at several points, because marchers were carrying ERNK posters (the same poster Halim was hanging when he was murdered). But the demonstrators continued to wave the ERNK posters and chant slogans in support of the outlawed PKK and were able to complete the demo route unhindered. After the demonstration had ended, however, riot police changed groups of people as they attempted to board subways trains. Several people were injured. In Kiel, Kurds drove a convoy of approximatley 20 cars through the city streets waving PKK flags and denouncing the police murder of Halim Deren. Police arrested 11 Kurds during this action. Other actions and demonstrations were held in Hamburg and several other cities as well. Also on July 4, approximately 50 ERNK supporters occupied the German embassy in Athens, Greece, to protest Halim's murder. After about two hours, the demonstrators left the embassy. There were no arrests. A nation-wide demonstration to protest the murder of Halim Deren and in support of the national liberation struggle in Kurdistan will be held in Hannover on Saturday, July 9. The ERNK has issued a statement calling on the German police to issue a full and uncondition apology for Halim's murder, otherwise the Kurdish resistance will be forced to respond with "similar means". ---------------------------------------------------------------- ** Infoladen OMEGA ** (Berlin), Sparrstr. 21, 13353 Berlin Tel.:030/453 70 23 FAX.:030/453 86 78 Offen: Mo.-Fr.: 16-20 Uhr. ********* unterdr|ckte Nachrichten und mehr ! ********** From DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org Tue Jul 12 12:37:40 1994 From: DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org (DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org) Date: 12 Jul 1994 12:37:40 Subject: Kurdish News Briefs Message-ID: <5ShZDNSgNMB@oln-f06.oln.comlink.apc.org> ## Original in: /HRNET/EUROPE&MIDEAST ## author : ats at etext.org ## date : 08.07.94 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kurdish News Briefs 50,000 Kurds Demonstrate In Germany On Saturday, June 25, more than 50,000 Kurds (some estimates put the number as high as 100,000) held a massive demonstration in the West German city of Frankfurt. The 9km march was one of the biggest demonstrations in that city's history. More than 3000 riot police, some wearing fire extinguishers on their backs, accompanied the demonstration, but no serious confrontations took place. The Kurds called for an end to German arms sales to Turkey, and they demanded that a peaceful and democratic political solution be reached to end the conflict in Turkish-occupied Kurdistan. The demonstrators also demanded that the PKK be given a key role in this process. Speakers at a massive rally at the end of the demonstration repeatedly called on the German government to lift its ban on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), and the 35 other Kurdish organizations which were banned in November 1993. Despite this ban, Saturday's procession was filled with flags of the ERNK (Kurdistan National Liberation Front), as well as t-shirts and banners proclaiming support for the PKK. Germany greatly increased its border security prior to Saturday's demonstration in Frankfurt. More than 2000 Kurds were turned away by German border police and not allowed to enter the country to attend the demonstration. To protest this, Kurds briefly blockaded highways at three border crossings, but then dispersed without incident. Kurdish Youth Murdered By German Police Close to midnight on Thursday, June 30, a 15-year old Kurdish asylum-seeker was shot in the back and killed by a plainclothes police officer in the German city of Hannover. The youth, Halim Deren (Ayhan Eser), was out with five friends hanging ERNK (National Liberation Front of Kurdistan) posters. When a police car passed by, the youths split up. Once the car was out of sight, Halim and a friend continued postering. Then, two plainclothes officers surprised the boys and attempted to arrest them, but both were able to flee. Seconds later, a shot rang out, and Halim was dead with a bullet in his back. The police are calling this murder "an accident". Halim and his family had only arrived in Germany six weeks before, at the end of May, after fleeing from the Kurdish village of Parcuk in the province of Bingol. The village of Parcuk, like so many others in Kurdistan, had been de-populated and then destroyed by the Turkish army. On the Saturday following Halim's murder, spontaneous demonstrations were held in several German cities. In Hannover, more than 1,000 people held a march to protest Halim's murder. Marchers carried photos of Halim, as well as flags and posters of the ERNK, an organization which was outlawed in Germany along with the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) and more than 30 other Kurdish organizations in November 1993. The marchers also demanded the resignation of German interior minister Kanther who was responsible for the banning of the PKK/ERNK. Later Saturday night, police vehicals and police stations in Hannover, Osnabrueck, Oldenburg, and Braunscheig were attacked with stones and molotov cocktails. In Berlin, a Turkish travel agency was fire bombed, and more that two dozen stores in different parts of the city had their windows smashed. On Monday, July 4, close to 1,500 people held a demonstration in Berlin to protest Halim's murder. Police threatened to attack the demonstration at several points, because marchers were carrying ERNK posters (the same poster Halim was hanging when he was murdered). But the demonstrators continued to wave the ERNK posters and chant slogans in support of the outlawed PKK and were able to complete the demo route unhindered. After the demonstration had ended, however, riot police changed groups of people as they attempted to board subways trains. Several people were injured. In Kiel, Kurds drove a convoy of approximatley 20 cars through the city streets waving PKK flags and denouncing the police murder of Halim Deren. Police arrested 11 Kurds during this action. Other actions and demonstrations were held in Hamburg and several other cities as well. Also on July 4, approximately 50 ERNK supporters occupied the German embassy in Athens, Greece, to protest Halim's murder. After about two hours, the demonstrators left the embassy. There were no arrests. A nation-wide demonstration to protest the murder of Halim Deren and in support of the national liberation struggle in Kurdistan will be held in Hannover on Saturday, July 9. The ERNK has issued a statement calling on the German police to issue a full and uncondition apology for Halim's murder, otherwise the Kurdish resistance will be forced to respond with "similar means". ***************************************************************** Arm The Spirit P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ont. M5W 1P7 Canada E-Mail: ats at etext.org ***************************************************************** From DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org Sat Jul 23 20:19:53 1994 From: DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org (DEBRA at OLN.comlink.apc.org) Date: 23 Jul 1994 20:19:53 Subject: Dutch Deport Kurd Message-ID: <5TPFy5TgNMB@oln-f06.oln.comlink.apc.org> ## Original in: /HRNET/EUROPE&MIDEAST ## author : trh at NETCOM.COM ## date : 19.07.94 -------------------------------------------------------------------- [This article has been excerpted.] DUTCH DEPORT KURDISH SEPARATIST THE HAGUE, July 18 (Reuter) - The Netherlands said...Monday it was deporting a senior member of the separatist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) but would not extradite him to Turkey. Ali Sapan, European spokesman for the PKK's political wing, the National Liberation Front of Kurdistan (ERNK), was arrested last Thursday in the eastern Netherlands, the justice ministry said. "The investigating magistrate has decided there are no grounds for keeping him so he will be expelled from the Netherlands," a ministry spokeswoman said. "He has to leave the country today but will not be sent back to Turkey." [...] Sapan is wanted in Turkey for crimes including anti-Turkish activities and kidnapping foreigners. Both the PKK and the ERNK are outlawed in Turkey, where more than 12,200 people have been killed in the decade since the PKK launched its violent campaign for a separate Kurdish state. They were both...banned in Germany last year after attacks against Turkish targets in Europe.