From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Mon Nov 10 08:57:30 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 10 Nov 1997 08:57:30 Subject: Turkey/DHKP-C: The history of our Party - Part 5 References: Message-ID: OUR BODIES TURNED INTO WEAPONS Our movement, while taking care of its wounds, kept taking steps against fascism based on revolutionary violence. After the ANAP-government took power, our movement wage a propaganda battle against the government, showing its fascist face. Besides applying classic propaganda, 10 city offices of the ANAP in Istanbul were destroyed by bombs in this battle. In the Turkey of those days, in which it was quiet, such actions - actions which drew all the government's violence on them - were quite sensational. However, stability was lacking and the actions were not increased or accelerated, They weren't on the daily agenda and therefore they remained temporary impressions. The psychological superiority of the junta continued. The resistance inside the prisons ensured their speciality of being opposition centres. Besides the battle for the prisoners' honour and identity, we had to connect the potential of resistance and the prisoners' strength with the political struggle which influences the people's masses, giving them morale support and countering the pacification tactics of the junta. After September 12, many groups put the "tactical retreat" on their agenda. Influenced by the junta's psychology, they began to drift, deviating to the right, and they went into exile. Since their appearance on the political stage, they had not really thought about fascism, the state, strategy, tactics or struggle. The coup of September 12, 1980, confused them and they lost their strength. Ignorant of their land and the revolution, they theorised about imperialism and had the bourgeois ideology forced on themselves which started to determine their direction in one way or the other. From this notion, opportunism thought it could not remain on its feet although the weakness of the junta was apparent to the public abroad and in the country despite its illusory strength. Opportunism exaggerated the strength of the junta as "invincible" and the struggle against it was seen as "in vain". A line of "anti-resistance" was pursued inside the prisons, a line of "passive acceptance", and it was tried to legitimise this line. This attitude of capitulation especially became apparent in the TKP (Turkish Communist Party) and Aydinlik which was at their side. Many other left groups drifted between the line of resistance and the capitulation line of the TKP. When we look at the attitude of Devrimci Yol in the Mamak prison - many of the prisoners in Mamak were supporters of Devrimci Yol, the cadres of their central organ and other leading cadres were imprisoned there -, Devrimci Yol is responsible for the fact that Mamak turned into a rehabilitation centre for the junta. The junta played cat and mouse with the prisoners in Mamak. The second rehabilitation centre for the junta was to be the prison of Diyarbakir where the majority of the prisoners were Kurdish nationalists. The junta drew its lessons from these centres and attacked the other prisons in the hope to achieve the same results. The prisoners in Mamak and Diyarbakir were unable to prevent the successes of the junta. The most important success was that the junta was able to show the people in Turkey and abroad that revolutionaries from Turkey and Kurdistan were surrendering and repenting. The people's masses were negatively influenced by this skilfully worked out propaganda. This went so far that Mamak and Diyarbakir become institutions of intimidation and pacification of the people's masses. The junta, from the first day after taking over power, intended to attack the prisons intensively to force the prisoners to capitulate before they were able to recover from the confusion. This plan was put into action. Fundamental to this image of capitulation, confusion and deprivation was an insufficient and non-revolutionary analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the junta and the period prior to September 12 as well, of the dead ends of overt fascism and of the power of a revolutionary movement, based on its own strength. The first attacks of the junta caused a panic. The junta was seen as almighty because of the fear for massacres which would be even worse than the ones which were already committed. In the name of preventing even bigger acts of capitulation, the own activities were step by step adapted to capitulation. The demands of the junta were accepted one by one. Every act of acceptance led to a new attack and after every attack followed acceptance of yet again another demand. In a short time, the junta succeeded in subjecting the prisoners in Mamak and Diyarbakir with this tactic. This submission was used against the people with a successful propaganda. The most urgent task of the revolutionaries was to prevent this propaganda, to show that the revolutionaries were not surrendering. It was inevitable that there were going to be martyrs to achieve this goal, to prevent this policy of submission, to influence the left and the people accordingly. Our determined and radical line of resistance was successfully applied until the elections of 1983, despite attempts by the entire left to retreat, despite the crushing of all kinds of resistance. The line of resistance inside the prisons, together with the refusal to confess in court, influenced almost all, from the left to the petite-bourgeois intellectuals. Opportunism had not internalised the revolutionary consciousness and the reality in our country. They even opposed the struggle for defending the most basic rights, stating that the junta was very strong in it first years and that they would not compromise. But when the junta put elections on the agenda in 1983, they believed in a return to democracy and they were misled by the dream that the junta would soften its pressure and the terror against the prisoners, that it would stop altogether in the end. Consequently, they argued - together with the demagogues - that it was useless to take a stand inside the prisons, that it was the task of those outside to take a political stand. They stated that the prisons were no centres of struggle. Where there was no ideological stability, deviation to the right or to the left was inevitable. While opportunism was fantasising, the junta presented the obliged prison uniforms as if it had read the mind of the opportunists. These went through even more confusion. While expecting democracy, an even worse attack occurred. While the junta completed its transition program, away from overt fascism, it did not let go of its program of rehabilitating the prisoners. Would those who didn't understand that fascism is Turkey was trying to behind a democracy game, would they be able to recognise the reality of fascism after painful experiences? The fantasies of the opportunists were not just characteristic for the prisons. It even went so far that some movements, like the Kurtulus who escaped the country even before the coup of September 12, yelling "the junta is coming", returned to the country to organise again, believing there would be a return to democracy after the elections of 1983. The situation they found had been unexpected. Their dreams had been very big. All the left organisations were either imprisoned, or they had ceased to exist. Nothing was moving in the country. They had developed big tactics, they had retreated, their strength had not been destroyed, so they believed. They were going to storm the country with their forces, they were going to attract the entire revolutionary potential. Thinking of all kinds of hindrances, they did not neglect their ideological attacks against our movement. It's sad, but when these people, who had never been entrenched in the soil of the country, who were estranged from the people, who were unable to free themselves from abstract and complex thoughts, from the lability of petite-bourgeois intellectuals, who cultivated discouragement and disbelieve, who even imported some right-wing ideas from Europe, when these people returned they had only a couple of months to live. Kurtulus, happily yelling "All the others collapsed, we are the only ones who came out unharmed", even before they returned to the country, some months later - after hitting their heads against the prison walls and regaining consciousness (did they really?) - stated: "All of us have been hit, we received our share as well." Will they ever learn? The years of defeat were the environment in which all kinds of ideological perversity, degeneration, immorality, split from the people, self-denial and philosophical idealism grew. This reality was the result of the attacks and the submission policy of the bourgeoisie. To maintain the existence of our organisation, not losing the soil under our feet, to be able to lead our people, we had to fight all kinds of opportunistic tendencies which attacked our ideological clarity, threatening our stability, supporting the oligarchy and feeding the morale of defeat. We had to act against all the tendencies who took over the ideology of opportunism voluntarily, who wanted to destroy us, leading us step by step into decay, trying to make us dependent on the system, institutionalising the status quo. We couldn't allow influence by the bourgeoisie in different forms and disguises, from the inside and outside, an influence in a right-wing, a left-wing, revisionist and compromising manner. We had to draw a clear line. With such an attitude, peculiarities didn't count much and we couldn't allow much room for doubt. The existence of our organisation depended on our ability to overcome this process ideologically stable. Whether or not we had a future, depended on this question. Our line of resistance and our ways of struggle under the conditions of imprisonment were the means to fight against our internal and external enemies at the same time, rendering them ineffective. This notion and this perspective developed self-confidence of our cadres and sympathisers and it enabled us to continue the resistance for years, based on our own strength and despite all the differing views. We were able to achieve positive results. Opportunism, in tow of democracy against the obligation of prison uniforms, couldn't cope with the resistance which required long-term sacrifices. Opportunism got stuck in a certain position and it was tired and exhausted. While they cultivated this attitude, dreaming of a new democracy, it showed its weakness against the new wave of attacks, again stating that the junta was all-powerful. At first they thought the junta would drop its demand after a short general resistance. The enemy and the left had to go through a test of determination. The most determined would win. The way of thinking and the psychology of opportunism didn't allow them to emerge victorious. At the end, more than one thousand prisoners participated in the general resistance of 1983 which turned into a war of will power between the enemy and the left. At the moment the resistance reached it summit, when the prisoners were supported by the revolutionary and democratic forces in the country and the world, when this democracy game of the junta was exposed, when the junta was in a difficult position, forced to compromise, at that moment opportunism began to doubt even more and they broke off the resistance, thus enabling the junta an easy victory. The news agencies of the world reported: "The junta succeeded in breaking the resistance by inciting the prisoners against each other". The enemy was able to step up its program of rehabilitation. Opportunism had erred once again when it assumed breaking off the resistance would lead to a compromise with the enemy. The enemy then destroyed the hopes of opportunism - which weren't much anyway - by increasing the attacks as soon as the resistance was ended. The fools were unable to learn from experience. Opportunism no longer had the strength to organise a new resistance. It went through a major moral destruction. Words like "We will resist, we will not accept the prison uniforms" were just words which they didn't believe themselves. Opportunism, forced by us to resist, began to legitimise their retreat. The tactic of retreat had always been present in prison, but until that time it did not have a real chance. Now the prisoners, who pursued the same ideology which was discovered by the left abroad with the coup of September 12, could test their theory after a delay of three or four years. They made quite an effort to convince themselves and their sympathisers. In the name of a tactical retreat, many historical examples like Brest-Litovsk and the NEP were linked with the conditions in prison and used as an argument to convince. In fact it was quite clear what they were discussing and wanted. In stead of saying "We don't have the strength to resist anymore, we have to accept the prison uniforms", they felt the need for a theoretical disguise, even though this reached the level of absurdity. With the retreat of opportunism, it became obvious that the sacrifices of those who resisted in the prisons of Istanbul would be bigger than when a general resistance had been achieved. We had to be prepared to give these sacrifices. We couldn't give the enemy the present of a subjecting human type which they wanted to create to present to the people after forcing the prisoners in all prisons to wear prison uniforms. We wanted to prevent an attitude which would increase the disappointment among the people's masses, caused by Mamak and Diyarbakir, giving the junta new propaganda material. We had to sent the people the message "We didn't surrender despite all the attacks of the enemy" with our loudest voice and under objective conditions. It was obvious that the retreat by opportunism from the position of resistance against the prison uniforms would lead to a massive decline of the participation. We had to compensate this loss. If need be totally on our own, depending on our own strength, we had to erect a barricade against the wave of attacks of the oligarchy, we had to prevent submission, even if there were going to be martyrs. The oligarchy made good use of the emotional situation of opportunism after they broke off the general hungerstrike of 1983. The intention of the opportunists to wear the prison uniforms increased the hopes of fascism and they started to demonstrate their determination. But despite these demonstrations of strength, despite the elections of 1983 and despite other democracy manoeuvres, fascism went through a deep economical and political crisis in the country and they were confronted with isolation abroad. We were able to stop the wave of subjugation by looking at the dead ends of the junta and establishing a determined resistance which was not afraid of sacrifices. In different ways we were able to play a positive role inside and outside of the prisons, giving the spirit of resistance a new dynamic. The abolition of the prison uniforms and other means of submission would mean the failure of the fascist policy of the junta against the prisoners. We would enter a phase in which the pressure of fascism to subjugate the prisoners would decrease and in which a part of their rights would be recognised. Achieving these targets would depend on our determination to resist and our revolutionary policy. Our cadres and sympathisers were prepared to accept this historical task. They had gone through this process from the beginning, they had seen the difference between our policy and that of opportunism and they stood up against the policy of deviating to the right. These were the circumstances in which the hungerstrike till death came on the agenda. When no other left group except the TIKB accepted a new general resistance or a hungerstrike till death, the hungerstrike till death was started with the TIKB. In the context of an organised resistance on all levels of the masses and the cadres, the hungerstrike till death volunteers entered the phase of their death fast on April 13, 1983. The oligarchy, still determined, launched their attack on the first day of the hungerstrike till death. This resistance, which would last 75 days, was almost daily under physical, psychological and ideological attack. During the resistance, which would demand martyrs as well, and while the oligarchy continued its attacks against the resisting prisoners, the opportunists discussed the prison uniforms, made use of the better conditions (as a result of the resistance) and joined the oligarchy in their attack with gossip and speculations, as if nothing was happening. They could not wait for the resistance to end in defeat. Although we gave leading comrades like ABDULLAH MERAL and HAYDAR BASBAG, our cadre HASAN TELCI and M. FATIH ?KT?LM?S, one of the leaders of the TIKB, as a sacrifice, the abolition of the prison uniform could not be achieved directly. But the resistance, making the issue of the prison uniforms known to the world public opinion, claiming four martyrs, became a barricade against the oppression policy of the junta against the prisoners. It sent a message to the people's masses that the revolutionaries would never surrender - even if it would cost them their lives - and it prevented the junta from misleading the consciousness of the masses. And history was to write about the resistance of the prisoners from Devrimci Sol: "They died, but they never surrendered." The importance of this resistance inside and outside the prisons could not be grasped entirely by the masses under the conditions of those days. But in time they would understand it more clearly and grasp the different aspects. In the mean time, this resistance was a process in which almost everybody in our ranks, from the masses, the cadres and the leadership, would be tested once again and our ideological stability was tried. Maybe this resistance did not achieve a lot considering concrete rights. But that had not been the essential goal, it was about the political gain. And in that field it was a victory. The crown of this victory was the continuance of the resistance in which we developed new ways of resistance, building on the political gain. We would not accept the prison uniforms, we would not follow any order, and we would continue the resistance. By wearing the prison uniforms by the opportunists, for the first time in the history of the prisons since September 12, 1980, a clear division became visible. The opportunistic view was caringly packed in demagogic arguments like Brest-Litovsk, the NEP and the individualistic aspects of human beings. In that phase, opportunism stated: "The junta does not want to force us to wear the prison uniforms". This went into the history of the prisons as a negative example. While we now think of it with a sad smile, they presented wearing the prison uniforms as a victory. Opportunism thought it would get a rest by accepting to wear the prison uniforms, it would be freed from the junta's pressure. However, the junta - being handed this big concession - continued the pressure to gain even more. Opportunism plunged into confusion again. Because of our refusal to wear prison uniforms, they denied us and the prisoners of the TKIB all the rights, even the right to witness our own trials. But we did not wear the "blue coffins" and brought freedom within imprisonment to life. Within the prisons, we were separated from all the others. Our refusal to accept the prison uniforms caused the attacks not to be aimed against those who wore them. Attacks against them could have led to loosing the successes gained from the opportunists. For this reason the junta tried, while charming opportunism, to maintain their position considering the prison uniforms with a policy of "divide and rule". It was very difficult for the junta to explain the situation of the prisoners - who for two years already weren't allowed to witness their own trials because they refused the prison uniforms - to world public opinion. At that time, the organisation of our relatives developed and they became the voice which carried the resistance of the prisoners to the outside. The junta, obliged to maintain its democracy game, could no longer continue their attacks. We had to continue our resistance. At November 15, 1985, the junta began to give in to our resistance. Forcing all our rights from the junta, we completely abolished the prison uniforms in January 1986, thus causing a major defeat for the junta on the prisons' front. The historical mission of our resistance had become reality. Now the independents, as well as the opportunists, could take off their blue coffins. We gave four martyrs in writing this chapter of history. Our ideological stability and our organisatorial determination have many sides. They should not be limited to the prisons' front, they should be seen as a process, full of political lessons which, very important even today, lessons we still base ourselves on. Abroad, the traitor Pasa had severed almost all relations with our country, taking care of his own personal life. In our country itself there had been more arrests and Sabo was now on her own and this was not enough. There was a strong need for new activists. Our resistance of the hungerstrike till death had caused a strong sympathy among our cadres, sympathisers and the revolutionary potential in general. However, our organisation was to weak to gather this sympathy. Our rural guerrilla unit of the Black Sea, not giving evidence of its fighting existence on September 12, had given its commander Necdet Pismisler and many other comrades as martyrs during battles with the enemy in 1981. Also in 1981, the rural guerrilla unit in Sivas-Tokat was taken prisoner. The rural guerrilla unit in Dersim succeeded to survive till the end of 1984, conducting a few actions on a lower level because they had chosen self-preservation as its highest principle, not starting any serious action even though they were the most experienced unit, operating in an area where the revolutionary potential was concentrated. When they were arrested as well, at the end of 1984, our guerrilla activity ended there as well. Retreat was a necessity. Fortunately, M.A. was released in that time. After September 12, he had taken over some tasks in the Central Committee. After discussing our duties and problems outside the prison, he was sent away with a high morale. We thought the organisation would soon go ahead because we now had another leader on the outside we trusted, besides Sabo. However, M.A. used this trust for his own personal problems and, although a couple of months went by, he did not take over any duties. He decided where meetings should take place, but seldom showed up himself, and he risked the lives of our best people. He postponed his duties with excuses like health and family problems. Months later he came up with the excuse to see "nightmares". M.A. was now on the road to treason. After he was busy with his nightmares for a while, he stated to be afraid and his life as a revolutionary was ended. In all these years, this was a line which was pursued by people who do not want to lead a revolutionary life. These people have to proof to the police, their environment and all others that they are not engaged in revolutionary activities anymore. Therefore this road leads to loss of character and honour. The police controls them and watches them to know what they are doing. When the police discovers they do not want to be revolutionaries anymore, they are contacted and forced, pressurised, to at least spy for them. This is how the police contacted M.A. He humiliated himself so much, he had drinks and dinner with those who had tortured him. Even though he did not become a spy, he promised them never to be a revolutionary anymore. The years of defeat were difficult years, and years of betrayal. Despite this betrayal, we continued our road. As a prisoner, is it easier in a certain way to resist the pressure and torture by the enemy. Because it is evident who the enemy is. But the pain, caused by the traitors who went against their own values, was much bigger. On the other hand this treason worked like a whip, strengthening our will to be free, intensifying our efforts to get out. The prisons have always had two faces. At one side, they are like schools. At the other, they are grinding people like a millstone, especially when the organisations lost strength on the outside and the enemy is psychologically superior. As long as the lives of the people are not in danger and people are not overburdened, a collective life and collective resistance by the people can be maintained on the line of resistance. But when there is no split between revolution and contra-revolution, when there is no separation from the system, returning to the system will not be difficult. People who went through torture and imprisonment and get on the other side of the walls will be confronted there with this torture, this pressure and the difficulties of imprisonment by the oligarchy again in order to break their revolutionary identity. Being a revolutionary means being prepared for such things. When the struggle intensifies, the contra-revolution will increase its violence. Death is a real possibility in this struggle. Immediately people are forced to choose between the system and the revolution. An undetermined, waving personality - who has not freed himself really from the system - is confronted with the expectations of his comrades and the people on the one hand, and the threats of the oligarchy with torture, terror and death on the other. Those who do not believe in the superiority of the revolution, those who are light-weight, will give in to the pressure and the violence of the enemy, and they will re-integrate in the system. They will abandon their people and comrades and betray them. This kind of personality is petite-bourgeois, weak and not prepared to sacrifice, living on the expectation of a soon to come revolution. They are the most radical ones in times of victory, they crouch for the enemy in the phases of defeat, always at the edge of treason. They carry the potential of betrayal into the revolution... Our comrade Niyazi was released in October 1985. Since 1970, he had gone through almost all levels of development of our movement, willing to sacrifice. Niyazi still had memories of the struggle which were unknown to the enemy and many other, knowledge which had not been revealed till then. Under all circumstances, he had justified the trust we had in him, after September 12, he took over political responsibility in the Central Committee and we could entrust him many things without hesitation. Comrade Niyazi was no M.A. Neither in the past, nor in prison, had M.A. disassociated himself from the system. But comrade Niyazi was different. He spent his childhood in poverty, and as a small child he had to earn his own living, growing up in the poorest neighbourhoods of the people. Except for his intellectual personality, he never had any bonds with the system, disassociating himself from it in an early stage. He was one of the leaders of our movement. We had no doubts that his freedom was of great importance to our movement. We were full of confidence, our morale was high. We felt as if not only Niyazi, but all of us, hundreds of prisoners were being released. He would carry our ideals and feelings, our fighting spirit, our anger and fury to the outside. This was the atmosphere when we sent Niyazi to the outside. Huge problems were awaiting him. The tasks he was confronted with were enormous. He had to re-develop the organisation, deal with the treason abroad, find a new form for the movement, build up a central structure and increase the struggle. It was impossible to increase the struggle, to determine the agenda, with the existing organisation, the existing network of relations and the remaining resources. Overt fascism, despite it continuance, was in a phase of renovation. Therefore it was fruitless to insist on spreading the resistance by means of the existing strength and structure. We would only loose even more strength. To gain strength and prepare for a phase of expansion, we had to end the discussions about a tactical retreat which started at the end of 1984. Niyazi soon escaped from police surveillance and he began to fulfil his tasks. Now Niyazi and Sabo were leading our movement. The situation of the movement was evaluated in detail and discussed with the most responsible cadres. A tactical retreat was decided. This tactical retreat was not meant to be a phase of complete passivity. Without losing strength, there were to be propaganda activities and actions from time to time. But this phase was primarily meant to gain form, gather strength, stabilise ourselves, and speeding up the phase of becoming a party. It was announced that the traitor P.G., with whom all contacts were broken off, who had transformed our organisation abroad into a mess for his own benefits, would be held accountable. All his efforts to split our movement abroad were exposed and he was isolated himself. He and his wife, controlled by the French police, began to deal with the Mafia when he understood he could not abuse the revolutionary movement and the masses for his own family and acquaintances. The cadres and sympathisers of our movement felt a great anger against this traitor who abandoned us when we were under enemy fire. We would never forgive him. Even though we were not well established, we intervened abroad and initiated steps to clean up the situation. Contacts, limited and distorted in possibilities, were slowly restored and expanded. The ANAP-government had to implement some democratic reforms, albeit in a restricted form. The silence of the masses, enforced by pressure and terror, began to break among some segments of the people. Several classes and segments, relatives of the prisoners, youngsters, students, the workers, even some bourgeois parties began - albeit in a reformist way - to raise their voices and they demanded their rights. We had to be the voice which expressed the demands of the people, silenced by the junta through pressure and bans. We had to take the struggle of the masses in our hands, together with the struggle of our movement. Without creating a base for a mass potential, a broad and stable cadre organisation is impossible. We had to lead the masses in their attempt to stand up again with their economic and democratic demands, without falling in the trap of legality. We had to take courageous decisions in the ideology, policy and organisation of the masses. We had to implement them, we had to strengthen our underground organisation more and more each day, without getting exposed. While analysing all the possibilities, we had to become active soon in a radical way. We were neither an organisation which viewed fascism as invincible, nor were we day dreaming of elections and democracy. After well evaluating the strength of the masses and those of the powers that be, we were able to take some successful steps and in a short while we expanded our leadership of the mass movement, we expanded the cadre education and in doing so we were able to leave the phase of tactical retreat behind ourselves. Besides this, we pursued high aims like setting up military training facilities to obtain a more professional urban and rural guerrilla, and setting up a rear front for the urban and rural guerrilla. In order to give direction to the mass movement, to prevent defeats and build a barricade against the world-wide storm of opportunism, to develop our ideological unity, it was a absolutely necessary task to publish a legal and periodic press organ to reach the masses. Furthermore, we needed all kinds of democratic organisations to gather the masses and to become their mouth-piece. The relatives of the prisoners had mobilised a part of the masses' strength. We had to gather this strength within the democratic organisations to increase its effect. To gather the relatives in one democratic platform for the first time in the history of Turkey, we addressed all political movements and even some individuals. There was no reaction to our appeal from the entire opportunistic and reformist left In stead they cunningly got together themselves to create a democratic organisation of the same kind. Although this creation occurred in a hostile fashion, it is useful nevertheless. So two different organisations appeared on the same field. The tradition was not ended. Almost all the opportunistic and reformist had come together. Even those who had denounced each other as "Maoist Grey Wolves", "lackeys of the Russians", "Goschists" and "contra-revolutionary traitors". Without a single word of self-criticism, to came together, "ripened". Even the TIKB, which participated in the hungerstrike till death together with us, in which the prisoners and their families showed an example of solidarity, seemingly did not see its future at our side because they did not forget to take their place at the side of the opportunists and reformists. -- Devrimci Halk Kurtulus Cephesi (Revolutionary Peoples Liberation Front) DHKC Informationbureau Amsterdam http://www.ozgurluk.org/dhkc List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Sat Nov 1 08:43:44 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 01 Nov 1997 08:43:44 Subject: Eritrea - Hope For Africa's Future Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Eritrea - Hope For Africa's Future The struggle of the Eritrean people against the annexation of Eritrea by Ethiopia more than 30 years ago developed into a liberation movement which defeated the strongest army in Africa, an army which was first supplied by U.S. imperialism and later by the Soviet Union. In May 1991, the Mengistu regime in Ethiopia gave up after 30 years of war. That opened the way for Eritrea, annexed by Ethiopia, to develop into an independent, democratic state. The 14-year Mengistu regime was characterized by brutal terror against any political opposition. The political chief of the 330,000-man army, the strongest in Africa, fled abroad to Zimbabwe in 1991. Although during his rule more than 60% of the nation's budget had been spent on the military, the army was unable to achieve any notable victories over the various liberation movements. The liberation struggle was a war against a far stronger enemy. The Eritreans not only defeated Africa's most powerful army, they also began to build a new and more just society in their own country. A Short History Of Eritrea Eritrea, in its precolonial form, was neither an independent state nor part of the Ethiopian empire. Eritrea, the way it is on today's maps, was created at the end of the 19th century as a territorial-administrative unit by Italian colonialists. Its name, given by the Italians, is taken from the Greek description of the Red Sea. In past centuries, the peoples of the Eritrea region were subjected to the political power struggles of rival foreign powers. In the 16th century, the Ottoman Turks occupied the coastal regions of Eritrea. At the same time, the Ethiopians tried to push into the area to gain access to the Red Sea. In 1869, Italians bought the coastal region of Assab. This purchase laid the foundations for the later colony of Eritrea. In the following years, the Italians pushed onward into Massawa and from there they tried to take over the central highlands. Here they met resistance from Ethiopian troops. In 1896, Ethiopia was forced to recognize all areas north of the Mareb River as the colony of Eritrea. From 1890-1941, Eritrea was an Italian colony, and from 1941-52 it was a British colony. This was in contrast to Ethiopia, which was only an Italian colony for a short time (1935-1941). The decades of colonial-capitalist domination by Italy and later Britain meant that a different social, economic, and political development took place in Eritrea than in Ethiopia. For example, in 1940, one-fifth of Eritrea's population lived in cities. Eritrea, a land with a mild climate, was to be a settlement for unemployed southern Italians. Thus the number of Italian settlers jumped from 5,000 in 1930 to more than 50,000 in 1935. Eritrea not only served as a settlement area for Italian colonists, it also provided raw materials and a launching point for the seizure of Ethiopia. The British required the labor forces and industrial potential of Eritrea to supply the Allied forces during World War II. At the end of the war, many factories were closed and moved to other countries. The resulting mass unemployment forced many Eritreans to go to neighboring countries in search of work. The future of Eritrea after World War II lay in the hands of four victorious powers (USA, USSR, Great Britain, France). When they couldn't come to agreement as to Eritrea's future, the matter was handed over to the UN General Assembly. In December 1952, the UN decided on a federation of Eritrea and Ethiopia, against the wishes of the majority of Eritreans who wanted an independent state. In November 1962, Ethiopia declared an end to the federation and illegally annexed Eritrea as its 14th province. All capital, industries, and plantations were left in Italian hands. Later, capitalist investment was sought from Israel, America, and Japan, from which the pro-Ethiopian feudal classes, who collaborated with the Ethiopian colonialists, profited. There were no international protests against Ethiopia's illegal annexation of Eritrea. Until 1974, Emperor Haile Selassie I ruled Ethiopia, and with British and later American aid he built up the largest army in Africa. The emperor system was overthrown in a putsch, in which Mengistu Haile Mariam played a major role. Mengistu became chairman of the 'Derg' (military council) in February 1977, and later he became general secretary of the ruling party, head of the politburo, and President. Resistance to Ethiopia's colonial rule over Eritrea increased after the annexation. In 1958, the nationalist clandestine organization Eritrean Liberation Movement (ELM) was formed in the Sudan. In 1960, the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) was founded in Cairo, and this group launched its armed struggle against Ethiopia on September 1, 1961. The "Thirty Year War" (1961-1991) The annexation of Eritrea was a clear violation of international law. But this act also sowed the seeds of the Eritrean liberation movement. Ever since the annexation by Ethiopia, Eritrea waged a struggle for national independence. For three decades, the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) fought for Eritrea's independence - the longest civil war (1961-1991) in Africa's history. One of the characteristics of the Eritrean liberation struggle was organizational splits and political disunity. This was partially due to the ethnic and social heterogeneity of the country (Muslims and Christians, urban dwellers and nomads). Therefore, rival organizations were established and often clashed with one another. In particular, there was armed clashes between the ELF and the EPLF, which had split off in the 1970s. The ELF was mainly comprised of Muslim nomads. In the 1980s, the EPLF emerged as the dominant political and military force in Eritrea. In contrast to the ELF, the EPLF had a social-revolutionary profile. The EPLF saw itself not only as a national liberation movement, but also as a movement for social change. From 1972-74 and from 1980-81, there was heavy fighting between the ELF and the EPLF. In 1981, the ELF was finally defeated and driven to the Sudan. From 1974 onwards, the clandestine guerrilla struggle transformed into open people's warfare, reaching a highpoint in 1977 with the liberation of several cities. But in 1978, with the aid of the Soviet Union, Ethiopia launched a counter-offensive against the liberated cities. In the face of modern weaponry, the EPLF responded with a tactical retreat and prolonged people's war. During Ethiopia's counter-offensive, however, the EPLF was able to confiscate heavy weapons (tanks, artillery). These allowed the EPLF to score great victories in its 1987/88 offensive. In February 1990, after many heavy battles, the EPLF took over the strategic port city of Massawa on the Red Sea. When the Mengistu regime in Ethiopia collapsed in the Spring of 1991, the Ethiopian occupation army in Eritrea gave up and left the capital city of Asmara without a fight. It was the civilian population of Eritrea which suffered the most during the decades of war, especially from the air bombardments by the Ethiopian air force. Many Eritreans grew up knowing only war. Hundreds of thousands fled to the Sudan. The "Thirty Years War" in Eritrea had hundreds of thousands of victims. But the cause of Eritrean liberation enjoyed almost no international support, although no one disputed the fact that Emperor Haile Selassie had illegally annexed the region in 1962. But the strategic importance of Ethiopia was too great to risk a conflict with the Addis Abeba government over the issue of Eritrea. And the Organization for African Unity (OAU) and the UN were worried that allowing the creation of an independent state would unleash questions about borders all across the African continent, leading to bloody conflicts. Israel supported Ethiopia to prevent the creation of an independent Eritrea, and both the USA (1953-1977) and the Soviet Union (after 1977) supplied Ethiopia with modern weaponry to suppress the Eritreans by force. Both super powers were concerned about the territorial integrity of Ethiopia and its access to the Red Sea. Control of Eritrea meant control over the entrance to the Suez Canal as well as the Indian Ocean. And near the region as well were the oil fields of Arabia. Only a few Arab and Islamic states gave limited support to the Eritreans, mostly to the ELF, to support the creation of an Islamic state in Eritrea. An entire generation of Eritreans grew up during the war, which became their "normal daily life". There was little protection for civilians from the air bombardments. The war brought fear and suffering to the people: repression, abuse of human rights, murder, mass executions, torture, prison, robbery, forced relocation, flight, death... The Principle Of "Self-Reliance" The EPLF, right from the very beginning, was not simply interested in national independence from Ethiopia, but also in a social revolution which would lay the political, social, and economic foundations for a sovereign Eritrea. In liberated territories during the war, schools were set up and parts of the destroyed infrastructure were rebuilt. According to one EPLF slogan: "With one hand we fight, and with the other we work." In contrast to many other liberation movements during the Cold War, the EPLF had to rely on its own resources. Therefore, it concentrated on work which met the needs of the people in the territories it liberated. The EPLF was not only militarily efficient, its was also competent to carry out social development. Even during the liberation struggle, the EPLF introduced great democratization and instilled a sense of "self- reliance", a trust in your own strength, in the people. In small workshops (often underground to escape air attacks), local raw materials were transformed into a variety of goods, in line with this principle of self-reliance. These helped meet the daily needs of both the fighters and the population, as everything from textiles to medical supplies were produced. In addition to their own hospitals, Eritreans also relied on hundreds of "barefoot doctors". The education system introduced by the EPLF, in addition to political instruction, gave formal instruction in the languages of Tigrinya, Arabic, and English. A broad literacy campaign was carried out. The EPLF also worked for the emancipation of women. Independence The political and military destabilization of the Mengistu regime at the end of the 1980s was partly due to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the East Bloc. The Soviet Union cut back and then eliminated military aid to Ethiopia. Economic misery, high defense expenditures, a population exhausted by war, and a demoralized army all combined to bring down the Mengistu regime. After Mengistu fled to Zimbabwe in 1991, a united front comprised of the TPLF (Tigrian People's Liberation Front) and the EPDM (Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement) - the EPRDF (Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front) - seized power in Ethiopia. Eritrea, no longer under the Addis Abeba government since 1991, gained independence following a referendum in 1993. An overwhelming majority of the population (99.8%) voted for independence. On May 24, 1993, Eritrea was proclaimed a sovereign state, the 52nd in Africa and the 192nd in the world. There was then a close and cordial relationship with the new transitional government in Ethiopia. In the meantime, a new Constitution was drafted to guarantee democracy and freedom of the press, equality between men and women, and an end to ethnic and religious discrimination. The government saw its role as creating a democratically legitimate and socially just political, social, and economic order, and to pursue foreign relations which would allow Eritrea to avoid future hostilities. In terms of economic policy, a "mixed economy" was to be practiced, a combination of free market forces and a planned economy. The EPLF in 1987 abandoned Marxism-Leninism in its political program and has since adopted a mixture of planned and market systems. The EPLF has solid support among the population. The bloody civil war brought the Eritrean people together; there is hardly a family in Eritrea which did not lose a member during the conflict. The political territory of Eritrea, as in Ethiopia, is made up of many national groupings. Some ethnic groups living in Eritrea extend beyond the nation's borders. There are nine ethnic groups among Eritrea's ca. 3.5 million people. The largest group are the Tigrinya (ca. 50% of the population; many are farmers) who live in the highlands, followed by the Tigre (mostly nomadic), the Afar, the Bilen, the Hadareb, the Kunama, the Nara, the Rashida, and the Saho. In the cities, there are many Indians, Arabs, and Italians. As for religion, about half are Muslim and the other half Christian (95% Coptic- Orthodox, 5% Catholic or Protestant), while about 1% practice traditional African religions. Despite the great variety of groups in the country, the period following the 1961 annexation created a sense of national belonging as the struggle for Eritrean independence developed. During its 1994 Congress, the EPLF transformed itself into the Popular Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ). Step by step, the party and the government will become separate. President Issayas Afeworki was elected with 99 out of 104 votes during the May 21, 1993 National Assembly. Afeworki is also Chair of the State Council, President of the National Assembly, and Commander in Chief of the armed forces. The one-chamber parliament, the National Assembly, consists of 150 representatives (75 freely elected, 75 from the central council of the PFDJ, the latter including at least 10 women). Independent Eritrea's first elections are planned for 1997. Eritrea is divided into 10 provinces. Each is headed by a Governor appointed by the President, and all Governors are members of the State Council. "The Liberation Of Women Is The Foundation Of Our Revolution" The emancipation of Eritrean women was greatly increased by their participation in the liberation struggle. From the very beginning, the EPLF assigned a central role to the question of women. Now in Eritrea, women can attend normal schools. The acceptance of women by men in the society has grown. Women enjoy the benefits of training and education (whereas before they were expected to stay at home). Women in rural areas have benefitted from literacy campaigns and the building of schools. 40% of the EPLA (Eritrean People's Liberation Army) were women fighters. Neither the achievements of the EPLF nor the building up of the country nor the military successes of the liberation struggle would have been possible without the active participation of women. In free Eritrea, women occupy all possible functions and positions, from Central Committee members to military commanders, from heads of villages to mechanics. In the EPLA, women were found at all levels of the leadership. Women occupy 11% of the positions in the Central Committee. The liberation of women has also changed the lives of men in Eritrean society. The NUEW (National Union of Eritrean Women) demands that women have free choice of their life partners, access to birth control, and better child care. Women play active roles in all sectors of society. Within the EPLF, a process of emancipation took place which prepared women to take on all functions in the society. This process may take longer within the general population, and it won't be easy. But the consciousness which has been created up until today is a great step forward for women. Eritrea's Future There are good signs that Eritrea could be a "model for Africa". The liberation movement, through its decades of struggle, produced "good cadres", for example in the health sector, who under better conditions could make even more use of their skills. Around 600,000 Eritreans received higher education in Europe, North America, and the Middle East. Such qualified experience will be of great benefit when it comes to rebuilding the country. The primary goal of the government is to make use of existing industrial traditions, the already existing production sectors, and to expand the already rooted crafts trades. The major difficulty in the reconstruction will be food production and the rehabilitation of the agricultural sector. But there are hopeful signs. Food prices have already come down, and the roads, heavily damaged during the war, can now be traveled safely once again. Education and medical care are free in Eritrea. In order to facilitate land reform, at the present time only the state may own land tracts. There are several social and economic problems which remained to be solved. Hundreds of thousands of refugees need to be brought back home and reintegrated into the society. Tens of thousands of war veterans and former guerrilla fighters need to find new types of employment. When the Eritreans fought for independence, there were about 2.5 million people in the country. Another 500,000 had fled to fundamentalist Sudan. Hundreds of thousands more were in other African countries and on other continents. At the present time, the Sudan is causing problems for Eritrea. The fundamentalist state is trying to win influence over the Eritrean refugees. Islamic Jihad fighters are recruited from the refugee camps and small armed units are trained for terrorist attacks inside Eritrea. In response, Eritrea has broken off diplomatic ties with the Sudan. Conclusion Many former guerrilla fighters have since become farmers in the new Eritrea. They no longer carry weapons. All men and women are required to give two years of national service, repairing roads and building schools and hospitals. There is no resistance to this plan by the government. "Many of us feel guilty for not having fought in the liberation struggle," say many Eritreans who live abroad. Born in 1991, Eritrea is a new hope for Africa, as is the new Ethiopia. Both deserve our full support. (Translated by Arm The Spirit from 'Kurdistan Report' Nr. 9/10 - 1996) ----------------------------------------------------------------- Arm The Spirit is an autonomist/anti-imperialist information collective based in Toronto, Canada. Our focus includes a wide variety of material, including political prisoners, national liberation struggles, armed communist resistance, anti-fascism, the fight against patriarchy, and more. We regularly publish our writings, research, and translation materials on our listserv called ATS-L. For more information, contact: Arm The Spirit P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P7 Canada E-mail: ats at etext.org WWW: http://burn.ucsd.edu/~ats/ ATS-L Archives: http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/ats-l MRTA Solidarity Page: http://burn.ucsd.edu/~ats/mrta.htm ATS Archive: http://www.etext.org/Politics/Arm.The.Spirit ----------------------------------------------------------------- ++++ stop the execution of Mumia Abu-Jamal ++++ ++++ if you agree copy these lines to your sig ++++ ++++ see http://www.xs4all.nl/~tank/spg-l/sigaction.htm ++++ From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sat Nov 1 15:37:55 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 01 Nov 1997 15:37:55 Subject: Turkish Jailings Raise Human-Rights Questions Abroad Message-ID: http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/world/ ----- _________________________________________________________________ TURKISH JAILINGS RAISE HUMAN-RIGHTS QUESTIONS ABROAD _________________________________________________________________ The New York Times October 30, 1997 By STEPHEN KINZER ISTANBUL, Turkey -- A recent series of government actions has led to a new round of charges, including some from European governments, that human rights are not being respected in Turkey. On Oct. 19, the blind lawyer who is one of Turkey's most outspoken social critics, Esber Yagmurdereli, was taken into custody as he finished taping an interview at an Istanbul television station. Yagmurdereli, who has already spent 14 years in prison on political charges, was ordered by a Turkish court to serve another 23 years after he asserted that the Kurdish minority is being oppressed in Turkey. On Oct. 21, seven members of the Human Rights Association, including its president, Akin Birdal, were sentenced to jail terms ranging from one to two years for making statements deemed sympathetic to Kurdish insurgents. They were convicted of "inciting hatred and division by emphasizing differences of class, race and regional origin." The next day a court in Manisa revoked its order that police officers accused of torturing 14 young people appear to face their accusers. The episodes raised questions about Turkey's human rights practices, which have been debated for years both here and abroad. A spokesman for the British government said in London that the actions taken against Yagmurdereli and Birdal "sit ill with Turkey's commitment to uphold freedom of expression." In Paris, a government spokesman said French officials had "learned with great distress" of Yagmurdereli's arrest, and urged the Turkish authorities "to respond to the expectations of Turkish and European public opinion and to put an end to judicial practices that tarnish Turkey." A spokesman for the German government called Yagmurdereli's arrest "absolutely incomprehensible." He described it as "an attempt to gag human rights activists" and said it "not only undermines the foundations of democracy but also does major damage to the international standing of Turkey." Responding to criticism, Foreign Minister Ismail Cem said Turkey "must accelerate our improvement in some areas." But he added: "Turkey's deficiencies have been exaggerated by some circles in the European Union for political reasons." Senior government officials seemed especially embarrassed by the reaction to Yagmurdereli's detention. A court had ruled that after he made a statement deemed illegal, his renewed criticism meant that he should serve the rest of his earlier sentence and additional time. Prison officials gave Yagmurdereli, 52, a comfortable room rather than a cell and quickly offered him a medical examination, apparently with the aim of finding some minor ailment that they could use as an excuse to free him on medical grounds. He declined the exam, saying he was in good health and needed no special treatment. "We are seeking a special amnesty formula so that Yagmurdereli is not kept in prison until laws against crimes of thought can be repealed," said the minister of justice, Oltan Sungurlu. "We are doing whatever we can to activate a special pardoning procedure for Yagmurdereli." In interviews before he was taken into custody, however, Yagmurdereli repeatedly said he would refuse any offer of amnesty. After his arrest, his son Ugur asserted, "My father will not accept a release from prison unless the necessary legislation lifting restrictions on freedom of thought is passed." Copyright 1997 The New York Times Company List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Mon Nov 3 07:10:48 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 03 Nov 1997 07:10:48 Subject: Turks Protest State-Mafia Tie Message-ID: (22:20) Turks Protest State-Mafia Tie SUSURLUK, Turkey (AP) - Some 20,000 people gathered in this northwestern town to protest that lack of progress in corruption investigations. Susurluk was the site of a car accident a year ago that helped unveil ties between politicians and mobsters. The bodies of a fugitive terrorist, a police chief and a beauty queen were pulled out of the same car after the Nov. 3, 1996 crash. Only Sedat Bucak, a deputy of a party then in the government, survived the accident. The fugitive was Abdullah Catli, a right-wing terrorist and the man who allegedly provided a gun and false passport to Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turk who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981. The crash helped reveal that government officials allegedly aided wanted hitmen and gangs in return for their underground services. The protesters, mostly intellectuals, artists, and members of left-leaning groups, said probes so far have only scratched the surface and that senior officials had yet to be brought to account for their involvement in the scandal. "The gangs are still in Parliament," they shouted. A handful of police officers are being prosecuted for alleged links to mobsters. Former interior minister Mehmet Agar, who had close ties to the dead police chief, and Bucak are protected from prosecution by parliamentary immunity, which can be lifted with a majority vote in Parliament. The new centrist coalition government installed in July had promised to set in motion the prosecution of senior officials, but has failed to do so. TDN 03-11-97 Rally on first anniversary of Susurluk scandal * Elkatmis, who had chaired the now defunct parliamentary Susurluk Commission, said: 'I definitely do not believe that it will be possible to solve the Susurluk incident. What is being done today is politically motivated, and is aimed at diverting attention from the target' _________________________________________________________________ Turkish Daily News Susurluk - A rally was staged in Susurluk-Balikesir on the eve of the first anniversary of a mysterious road accident there on Nov. 3, 1996 triggering the "state gang" claims, reported Anatolia News Agency. Thousands of people from Bursa, Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and Eskisehir, including representatives of political parties, labor unions, associations and chambers filled the local town square amid strict security measures to express their demand that the issues raised by the Susurluk scandal be brought to daylight. The square proved too small for the crowd which spilled into the nearby streets and, when these too were filled, onto the Bursa-Izmir highway. The cars entering the town stopped for a while near the gas station where the crash had taken place before proceeding to the center of the town. Meanwhile, a similar protest march was begun in Istanbul to urge the government to take more effective action against "the gang." The marchers, who call themselves "people's assemblies," intend to walk all the way from Kadikoy on Istanbul's Asian side to Ankara, to draw attention to the Susurluk phenomenon. It all began when a Mercedes, belonging to True Path Party (DYP) Sanliurfa Deputy -- and leader of the southeastern Bucak clan whose members of Kurdish origin were contributing significantly to the Village Guards force created against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) -- collided with a truck. Bucak survived the crash while the three other occupants of the car died, namely, Abdullah Catli, a former Ulkucu, that is, member of an ultranationalist organization, who was as a narcotics smuggler and a political massacre suspect, a long sought fugitive from law, Gonca Us, a young girl said to be Catli's girlfriend and Huseyin Kocadag, director of Istanbul's police academy. Police found assassination guns and false identity papers in the car allegedly issued by the country's former police chief, Mehmet Agar, who was serving as interior minister when the Susurluk incident occurred. The papers identified Catli as a police official named "Mehmet Ozbay" entitled to carry all kinds of weapons. Agar denied these claims. The consequences Following the incident, President Suleyman Demirel brought together, at the presidential palace, the leaders of the political parties represented in Parliament to discuss this issue. At that time Welfare Party (RP) leader Necmettin Erbakan was prime minister and DYP leader Tansu Ciller was his deputy. During the meeting, the president relayed to the party leaders secret information and tips which had reached his hands. The Prime Ministry's board of inspectors has conducted an inquiry and filed complaints with the relevant prosecutors against 35 persons. A number of police officials, including Istanbul's police chief Kemal Yazicioglu and a number of special team members implicated in Susurluk -- three of whom had been assigned to Sedat Bucak as personal guards upon his request -- were suspended from duty. Today, Yazicioglu is the newly-appointed governor of the Black Sea province of Ordu. Amid allegations that he was one of the masterminds of the "gang," DYP deputy Mehmet Agar resigned as interior minister. An investigation was conducted. The indictment presented by the Istanbul State Security Court prosecutor on March 13, 1997 referred to the special relationship between Sedat Bucak, Abdullah Catli, certain members of the Special Operations Department of the police force including their chief Ibrahim Sahin, and a former National Intelligence Organization (MIT) official and police adviser Korkut Eken. The indictment referred not only, to the Susurluk incident but also to the "courier girl" incident in which some of the Special Team members were implicated, as well as to two assassination cases in which the victim was casino king Omer Lutfu Topal and in the other the "MIT informer" Tarik Umit. The prosecutor stressed that these persons had not come together accidentally. They had come together and formed a gang to engage in illegal activities. He asked for prison sentences ranging from five to nine years. After some time, the court ordered the release of all of the defendants, including the special team members, pending the end of the trial on grounds that there was no conclusive evidence against them. Some of them -- such as Ayhan Carkin, Oguz Yorulmaz and Ercan Ersoy -- could not be actually released because they are being tried in another case too. The release of the special team members Ibrahim Sahin, Ziya Bandirmalioglu and Ayhan Akca was celebrated noisily with a group of fellow policemen and right wing youths shouting to Ibrahim Sahin, "Turkey is proud of you." Three of the special team members in question are still being tried as murder suspects in the casino king Omer Lutfu Topal's assassination case. Defendants in the Topal case include Topal's former business partner Sami Hostan who is still at large. Another former business partner of Topal, Ali Fevzi Bir, has been arrested. The case involves Catli too, since his fingerprints have reportedly been discovered on the packaging band on the drum of the gun that killed Topal. Catli's widow, Meral Catli, has maintained that her husband had done nothing illegal, that he had been fulfilling secret tasks assigned to him by the state in the past few decades. The prosecutors involved have formally asked Parliament to suspend the legislative immunity of Sedat Bucak and Mehmet Agar, but this is yet to happen. The "One Minute of Darkness for Enlightenment," a clean hands campaign, proved highly popular, with people turning off their lights for one moment at 9 p.m. every night for a period of 45 days. Meanwhile, Hasan Gokce, the driver of the truck which collided with the Mercedes, has been released from prison but is left without a job and his family is living in poverty. His three-year prison sentence has been converted to a fine. After the three-party coalition led by Mesut Yilmaz came to power, the new prime minister ordered the Prime Ministry's board of inspectors, led by Kutlu Savas, the so-called "super inspector" to conduct a new investigation into Susurluk. This investigation has not been completed yet but the prime minister has promised that its findings would shake the nation. 'I don't believe it will be solved' Welfare Party (RP) deputy Mehmet Elkatmis, who had chaired the now defunct parliamentary Susurluk Commission, said, "I definitely do not believe that it will be possible to solve the Susurluk incident. What is being done today is politically-motivated, and is aimed at diverting attention from the target." He complained that though Susurluk is being described as one of the most important issues in the country, the National Security Council (MGK) had failed to discuss it. He said, "On behalf of the commission I wrote an official letter to the MGK. I am still to receive a reply." Elkatmis said, "In Turkey there are gangs, mafia and counterguerrilla groups. But a secret hand is preventing these from being brought into daylight. Look, for example, at Abdullah Catli, the main actor of the Susurluk incident. Between 1992 and his death he had reportedly gone on overseas trips 122 times. He had even gone to the United States. He had 12 different passports including a green one (issued only to high ranking state officials). Does the state not know that Catli went abroad 122 times? Of course it does. This is because the gang is within the state. I have new documents in my hands. Some of these needed to be filled with more details. I will complete this work in a few days and I will reveal the documents. This will cause tremors in Turkey." 'No legal arrangements made' Ridvan Budak, chairman of the Confederation of Progressive Labor Unions (DISK) said, "In the past year the members of the gangs have not been brought before justice. Furthermore, the legal arrangements aimed at preventing the 'gang-formation' process have not been made. Turkey has to question its recent past. People are asking some questions but the persons who really should speak, that is, the politicians and the bureaucrats who have served in high positions, have chosen to remain silent." 'Evidence not presented to courts' Yucel Sayman, chairman of the Istanbul Bar Association, said, "The governments that have served since the Susurluk incident have failed to tackle this issue in a serious manner. They have failed to bring to light substantial evidence and to present this to the courts." 'Immunity must be lifted' Lawyer Ergin Cinmen, the spokesman for the "Citizens' initiative for enlightenment" movement, said the government should display political resolve to bring Susurluk to light and Parliament should suspend the legislative immunity of the deputies implicated in the Susurluk scandal. HUMAN RIGHTS ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT AKIN BIRDAL Words aren't enough... the human rights struggle needs courage and determination * A human rights report prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs openly says that the General Staff is against the amendment of laws dealing with terrorism and limiting freedom of expression, thinking the time is not ripe yet... * Laws on political parties and elections are also barriers in front of human rights because they prevent the representation in Parliament ofthose sections of the society who desperately need freedoms and liberties... * Another paradox in Turkey is that those who have had primary responsibility -- but failed -- to realize the civic society project, are the ones who complain the most today * Because of our "peace rights" activities, a lawsuit has been opened against the association to close it... Turkey has failed to develop a common understanding in human rights and democracy. Each evaluates the issues according to their own understanding * Seven of the Human Rights Association offices were closed down during the Refahyol government period... Three of them, in Diyarbakir, Mardin and Urfa, are still closed and it is now very difficult to follow the human rights situation in the region * There are certain individuals who have certain gains from the tension and the ongoing situation in Turkey... they take certain political, economic roles ... and they benefit from the conflict ... they are very well organized and have a foot everywhere... in Parliament, in the judiciary, in the General Staff, in political circles, in the media... _________________________________________________________________ By Sirma Evcan / Turkish Daily News The human rights situation in Turkey isn't actually improving despite promises and certain efforts on the parts of governments. The issue still remains as a headache for Turkey in international platforms as well as for its European vocation. Human Rights Association President Akin Birdal gives an up-to-date picture of the human rights situation in Turkey in the following interview. He also assessed why there hasn't been any improvement on this subject. He said it is not enough to just speak about the need for human rights. The struggle for human rights needs courage and determination, he stated, calling for everyone who believes in democracy, peace and freedoms to take a common stance for human rights. Certain steps towards a better human rights situation in Turkey have been taken in the past few years, but there has always been a "one step forward, two steps backward" situation in this field. What is the latest situation, I mean, has there been any improvement with the new government? This government eased the social tension in the country.An important place is given to human rights in the government program which says the problems will be solved in a free, democratic and civilian fashion. A Human Rights Coordination Board was established, headed by the State Ministry responsible for human rights. Our association, the Human Rights Foundation, the Mazlumder (the Islamist human rights association), and representatives from the human rights commissions of the Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir Bar associations were invited to participate at one of its meetings. No doubt this is also a step forward. Then there have been arrangements on the subject of amnesty for the press which led to the release of 24 editors in chief. These are, at first glance, positive developments which also raise hope for the future. We should also mention that the new government was given a chance and our association too did not say that this government would also fail in improving the situation as long as there are no changes in the existing constitutional and legal systems. Earlier in 1991, the society also gave a chance to the coalition formed by Suleyman Demirel and Erdal Inonu because that government too promised improvement in democracy and human rights. No matter which government is in office, with the existing Constitutional and the legal system, democratization and the human rights situation cannot be improved to a universally accepted level -- to the norms and legal framework vis-a-vis human rights. Because the Constitution in effect holds the state sacred and everything is set up for the protection of the sacred state. Whereas contemporary societies hold the individual's rights and security above that of the state. So we start with such a contradiction. Human rights should be protected and advancedby the power of law. In Turkey, the laws aren't amended in accord with the international decrees and agreements that Turkey has signed. Today deputy Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit also says that without amendments in the Constitution there cannot be improvements in human rights. So why can't this Constitution be changed? This is the duty of the Parliament. Now the answer to why the Parliament has not been able to achieve this lies in the fact that the supremacy of the civilian will has not been established. All political parties when in opposition speak about the supremacy of human rights, but when they come to power they fail to implement what they have said in opposition. * Is it only when in power they are confronted with the reality, the impossibility? Yes. But on the other hand, if they are really sincere in their wish to improve certain things, they should be able to remove the legal obstacles to democracy. For example, on the subject of freedom of expression. * Do you see the will for this in this Parliament? No, and in fact you know that there is a human rights report prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and important issues are brought up in that report and suggestions are made for the future. This report also says the General Staff is for the time being against the lifting of the laws dealing with terrorism and freedom of expression. The Foreign Ministry report openly says this. The situation becomes clearer at this point. This is also connected to the formation of the Parliament. The laws on political parties, on elections, are barriers against representation in Parliament of those sections of the society who desperately need freedoms and liberties. Those elected to this Parliament has obligations towards groups or individuals or institutions which play a part in their election. And that is why they aren't so sensitive and determined about the rights and liberties of others. Unfortunately, the situation whereby the suppressed and laboring masses have no representation in Parliament is, I think, the major handicap in Turkey's path towards democratization. * Is it not a major contradiction that a foreign minister himself -- with his journalist hat -- complains against Turkey's human rights situation? You say the Foreign Ministry report on human rights indicates our General Staff doesn't think the time is ripe to lift undemocratic laws. And now everybody, even the Cabinet members, are saying it is wrong to jail Esber Yagmurdereli. What can your association do under these circumstances? There are important institutions in Turkey, first the media. I don't think that the media is really fully doing its job about the people's right to be informed, I don't think it fully accomplishes its role of learning and reporting the truth. Plus, the media is a monopoly now and tries to guide public opinion. Secondly, the trade unions, their confederations, professional chambers, associations, in short the civic societies, which have undertaken the role of guarding the interests and rights of the sections they are representing, aren't functioning fully in a way to realize their claim to be the conscience of the society, the voice of the society. I am holding them up as examples because the other institutions which have the primary responsibility of fulfilling these duties haven't done so. Doesn't the president have any role in the current state of affairs, in bringing Turkey to a point where it has become impossible to speak, although he had come to where he is now by preaching a "vocal Turkey" all the way? * You mean the president is also responsible? I am simply saying that it is another paradox in Turkey to see that those who have had primary responsibility -- but failed -- to realize the civic society project, are the ones who complain the most today. The National Security Council is a constitutional institution and they consider themselves responsible and authorized in the first degree. We already mentioned the Parliament, and another factor is the judiciary. The judiciary is unable to use the power of law. If the others aren't doing anything, then the judiciary should so that we achieve improvement in human rights situation to lift the difficulty Turkey has in international platforms. When courts free those who are involved in corruption, gangs, and illegal organizations, demands for democracy, peace and human rights are being punished. So we are walking on land mines. * What was your crime? I am now being tried for my statement at the World Peace Day meeting organized on Sept. 1 by the Ankara Democracy Platform. I was also tried for my statement on the same day a year ago, it is now at the Court of Appeals. When others' cases are postponed, mine as someone considered inclined to commit crimes -- because I will continue to defend for democracy, peace and human rights -- won't be suspended. * Have you promoted separatism? No, I am being tried for inciting enmity among people by promoting regional, racial and class discrimination. We have a universal concept of human rights and we are aware of the need to correlate the issue with democracy and peace. Human rights exist only with democracy and peace. These are the sine qua nons in the category of rights and freedoms. For example, the right of peace is among the solidarity rights in the human rights dictionary. Because of our "peace rights" activitiesa lawsuit has been opened against the association to close it. Turkey has unfortunately failed to develop a common understanding in human rights and democracy. Each evaluates the issues according to their own understanding. * Nowadays, both Tansu Ciller and Erbakan portray their parties' priorities as democracy and human rights. But, when they were in power, they were the ones to ban an international peace conference here. Such conferences on the democratic peaceful solution of the Kurdish problem have taken place in other countries. However, the conference wasn't allowed in the geography where majority of the problem lies. * I think your association's Diyarbakir branch was closed down during the Erbakan-Ciller period too, so how can you follow the human rights situation in that region? In fact, seven of our offices were closed down during the Refahyol government period. Three of them are still closed -- in Diyarbakir, Mardin and Urfa. Therefore, we cannot be well-informed about the developments in the region. Whatever we learn we learn from the press, from official news agencies, because the civic delegations aren't allowed to function there. Whereas Turkey signed the Vienna Declaration, the Moscow Document and the Paris Charter which all say that civic organizations like ours should be given the chance and in fact encouraged to do research on the spot. But we cannot do this.However, if an opportunity came about and with difficulty someinformation was obtained then we are subject to investigation when we issue the outcome . * Apart from your association, the Human Rights Foundation, which other associations are working for human rights in Turkey? Our association established the foundation, because the rehabilitation of torture victims was not legally possible. So the Human Rights Association took the decision and set up the Human Rights Foundation together with some medical doctors. There is also the Mazlumder. These are the institutions which deal directly with human rights, but there are certain other associations such as the Central Board of the Medical Doctors Union, the Contemporary Lawyers Association... and they also work for human rights and democratization. * Can all these associations come together with a common stance, I mean is there harmony and cooperation among all these associations? We have full consensus among ourselves because we do not try emphasize our differences but our similarities and common concerns for Turkey's well-being. For example, currently the Human Rights Association, the Contemporary Jurists Association, the Contemporary Journalists Association, the Human Rights Foundation, the Central Council of the Medical Doctors Union and the Mazlumder, all of us are working together for putting an end to State Security Courts and for a Just Trial Campaign. We are also working together on a joint project in the name of Esber Yagmurdereli who has become the symbol for freedom of expression, a project on legal amendments, signature campaigns for the release of Yagmurdereli. We are working to have human rights in Turkey, from the bottom to the top like in Europe, whereas in Turkey it has always been from the top, everything, every move on human rights has been done from the top. Therefore, it has always been easy to impose limitations on human rights from the top. * What should be done? We should be like Europe, and if we are going to take our place in that system, then the human rights standards and norms of that system should also be binding for us. * Should Turkey be in that system? Yes, that is what we want. Turkey shouldn't be outside that system but be really integrated to that system. Our democracy should not be one as understood by a certain individual or group but it should be for everybody to state their views on political, economic, social and cultural issues as defined in the Vienna Declaration with the agreement of the U.N. member countries as a whole. Of course, Turkey is a country which has priorities regarding its human rights situation. The Kurdish issue -- an opportunity to solve this problem in a democratic peaceful way has not been achieved whereas peaceful solutions are given a chance in other countries. Turkey should also give a chance to a peaceful solution. There have been certain periods when such an opportunity arose, but unfortunately we couldn't take advantage of them. * Who is responsible for that? Certain powers, civilian as well, are responsible for that and not only the government. There has been a new Southeast report by independent MP Bulent Tanla. This report in a way is saying what we have said in our reports. The facts are the same: about 30,000 people have been killed in the ongoing fighting, 3,156 villages evacuated, 3.5 million people forced to migrate to other places. These are all facts. But when the Human Rights Association says these things it becomes a cause for trial and punishment. The Human Rights Association is portrayed differently than what it actually is. * How? There was a debate recently on Flash TV among deputies and human rights representatives. In that debate, a parliamentarian from one of the government parties had brought along the justification of a Samsun Court verdict for Yagmurdereli in 1982 -- that he is a terrorist... instead of speaking about ways to ease the tension on the subject and open the way for human rights, free expression... * Prime Minister Yilmaz also said Yagmurdereli wasn't just an innocent jurist giving his innocent views on the country's problems... That is what I mean. Such an approach increases tension and doesn't help the government, nor does it help Turkey's progress. And then we (IHD) are seen to be defending terrorists. But we are an open organization -- for 11 years we have been recognized in national and international platforms. We are a member of the Human Rights Federation, we work with the EU. * Would you say that the solution to the problem lies in a strong united left in power in Turkey? Certainly. Unfortunately, in Turkey there are certain individuals who in a way obtain certain advantages from the tension and the ongoing situation. There are those who take certain roles on themselves politically, economically. So they benefit from the conflict and fight. * Who are they? We all know them. They are very well organized. They -- let's say this "secret structure" -- has a foot everywhere. In Parliament, in the judiciary, in the General Staff, in political circles, in the media, everywhere. There are even generals, security chiefs and police chiefs whose names are involved with gangs. There are politicians who are also mixed with these gangs and they have their men in the media -- even columnists. They have their men in the judiciary to set them free without any punishment. So, it is not enough just to speak about human rights in Turkey. Human rights needs work, struggle and this needs courage and determination. Today, peace, democracy, human rights are only words. But tell me which of the politicians show the courage and determination to do something about it? Bulent Tanla for example says at the end of his report that certain risks are required for real peace. Is there no one in Parliament to voice these ideas with courage and determination? * Certainly we know there are some, but the problem is perhaps that these parliamentarians aren't even given the chance to voice their views on such subjects by their party officials, party leaders. That is why I want to know your view about whether the solution is in a strong, united but truly democratic "left"? Absolutely. I believe that everyone who believes in democracy, peace and human rights, all the institutions, all the politicians, all opposition forces, trade unions, associations, intellectuals could join forces. They shouldn't think about certain differences and ideological nuances among the left, but come together and cooperate. There is even in one single party opposite views but forces should be joined in common ideas. Just look at the Freedom and Solidarity Party, it has no monolithic structure, a total of nine different traditions came together and completed its first convention with success. There are other parties on the left which are also defending labor, freedom, peace. And I believe this will be an inevitable result and our efforts here should be to speed up this process. Because today it is the Human Rights Association which they are trying to silence but tomorrow that power, whatever it is, will want to silence the whole society. Therefore, everyone who believes in democracy, peace and freedom should come together and take a common stance. * You are saying there is a way out and we shouldn't be pessimistic. I am always optimistic for the future, otherwise I wouldn't have been in this movement, in this struggle. The world is changing. * What is your association's priority? We can sum it as "rights of peoples", "rights of minorities." If we had closed our eyes to human rights violations against the minorities, we wouldn't have faced trials. But we have our general council decisions that we are on the side of the laboring masses, those whose rights have been violated. We don't have to think like a specific political party when we are defending their right to exist. We are also defending the rights of those who choose to wear a headscarf. We shall be against them if they, when in power, interfere in the attire of others. We have no double standards. * The Justice Ministry has disclosed there will be important constitutional amendments on human rights issues. What are they? We have learned that a constitutional change will be made so that State Security Courts will no longer have military judges. This will not change anything as long as the reasons remain to have State Security Courts, or as long as the right of a just legal defense cannot be used properly in these courts, and as long as all the laws limiting freedom of thought and expression remain, and as long as the detention periods when torture can be applied remain as they are. There is actually no difference in having a civilian or a military judge. _ABOUT BIRDAL _ Akin Birdal, president of the Human Rights Association, is by profession a landscape architect. He has been active in defense of freedom and human rights since his younger days and was sentenced to a year in prison in 1980. In 1983, together with a group of intellectuals led by Aziz Nesin, Birdal was active in the efforts which led to the foundation of the Human Rights Association in 1986. He served as secretary-general of the association for six years before his election as president five years ago. Birdal is also a member of the Freedom and Solidarity Party (ODP). He currently has 21 court cases filed against him. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Tue Nov 4 07:34:24 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 04 Nov 1997 07:34:24 Subject: Turkish Jailings Raise Human Rights Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Turkish Jailings Raise Human Rights Questions Abroad Turkish Jailings Raise Human Rights Questions Abroad The New York Times October 30, 1997 By Stephen Kinzer ISTANBUL, Turkey -- A recent series of government actions has led to a new round of charges, including some from European governments, that human rights are not being respected in Turkey. On Oct. 19, the blind lawyer who is one of Turkey's most outspoken social critics, Esber Yagmurdereli, was taken into custody as he finished taping an interview at an Istanbul television station. Yagmurdereli, who has already spent 14 years in prison on political charges, was ordered by a Turkish court to serve another 23 years after he asserted that the Kurdish minority is being oppressed in Turkey. On Oct. 21, seven members of the Human Rights Association, including its president, Akin Birdal, were sentenced to jail terms ranging from one to two years for making statements deemed sympathetic to Kurdish insurgents. They were convicted of "inciting hatred and division by emphasizing differences of class, race, and regional origin". The next day a court in Manisa revoked its order that police officers accused of torturing 14 young people appear to face their accusers. The episodes raised questions about Turkey's human rights practices, which have been debated for years both here and abroad. A spokesman for the British government said in London that the actions taken against Yagmurdereli and Birdal "sit ill with Turkey's commitment to uphold freedom of expression". In Paris, a government spokesman said French officials had "learned with great distress" of Yagmurdereli's arrest, and urged the Turkish authorities "to respond to the expectations of Turkish and European public opinion and to put an end to judicial practices that tarnish Turkey". A spokesman for the German government called Yagmurdereli's arrest "absolutely incomprehensible". He described it as "an attempt to gag human rights activists" and said it "not only undermines the foundations of democracy but also does major damage to the international standing of Turkey". Responding to criticism, Foreign Minister Ismail Cem said Turkey "must accelerate our improvement in some areas". But he added: "Turkey's deficiencies have been exaggerated by some circles in the European Union for political reasons." Senior government officials seemed especially embarrassed by the reaction to Yagmurdereli's detention. A court had ruled that after he made a statement deemed illegal, his renewed criticism meant that he should serve the rest of his earlier sentence and additional time. Prison officials gave Yagmurdereli, 52, a comfortable room rather than a cell and quickly offered him a medical examination, apparently with the aim of finding some minor ailment that they could use as an excuse to free him on medical grounds. He declined the exam, saying he was in good health and needed no special treatment. "We are seeking a special amnesty formula so that Yagmurdereli is not kept in prison until laws against crimes of thought can be repealed," said the minister of justice, Oltan Sungurlu. "We are doing whatever we can to activate a special pardoning procedure for Yagmurdereli." In interviews before he was taken into custody, however, Yagmurdereli repeatedly said he would refuse any offer of amnesty. After his arrest, his son Ugur asserted, "My father will not accept a release from prison unless the necessary legislation lifting restrictions on freedom of thought is passed." (Source: Press Agency Ozgurluk, http://www.ozgurluk.org) ---- For A Free And Independent Kurdistan! KURD-L Archives - http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/kurd-l From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Tue Nov 4 07:35:42 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 04 Nov 1997 07:35:42 Subject: Mainstream News On AKIN And Leyla Z Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Mainstream News On AKIN And Leyla Zana Mainstream News On AKIN And Leyla Zana WASHINGTON (AP) -- More than 150 members of Congress urged the Clinton administration Thursday to demand the "immediate and unconditional" release from jail of the first Kurdish woman elected to Turkey's parliament. "I am saddened that Leyla Zana was put in prison for doing exactly what I am doing today -- speaking out on human rights issues," said Rep. Elizabeth Furse, D-Ore., one of the sponsors of the motion. "And I am outraged that she is jailed by Turkey, a country that the United States supports with massive aid and military assistance." Zana, a campaigner for Kurdish rights, was sent to prison in 1994 for 15 years on a charge of spreading separatist propaganda. She has won several human rights awards and is often mentioned as a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize. Turkey is frequently accused of mistreating the country's 12 million Kurds through such tactics as forced evacuations and prohibiting them from using their own language in schools or broadcasting. House Members Seek Help For Kurds, Ask Clinton to Aid Jailed Politicians By Maria Burnham The Washington Times, October 31, 1997, Page A15 In an attempt to draw attention to Turkey's abuse of its Kurdish citizens, 153 House of Representatives Members sent an open letter to President Clinton yesterday demanding he seek release of jailed Kurdish parliamentarians. The letter mentions Leyla Zana, a Kurdish parliamentarian who was jailed for treason in Turkey for speaking about the treatment of Kurds before the U.S. Congress' Helsinki Commission. "There is not much those of us in Congress can do to help the plight of Leyla Zana, but we can send a strong message to those who can," said Rep. Elizabeth Furse, Oregon Democrat. Namik Tan, a spokesman for the Turkish Embassy, said he had no knowledge of the letter but spoke about the arrest of Mrs. Zana. Mrs. Zana was arrested and found guilty of separatism and promoting the destruction of Turkey's territorial integrity in a trial that was open to the public and heavily covered by the media, Mr. Tan said. Mr. Tan said that Mrs. Zana helped form the Democratic Labor Party, which he said had ties with the Kurdish Worker's Party, which is waging a guerrilla war against the Turkish government and has been classified as a violent terrorist organization by the U.S. government. Roughly 15 million to 20 million Kurds live in Turkey, mainly in its eastern and southern areas, and they have been locked in a bloody ethnic war with the government over demands for a separate state. In 1991, 18 Kurds were allowed to take seats in the Turkish Parliament. Of those, one has been executed, four have been imprisoned, and six have been exiled. "I continue to be appalled but have ceased to be amazed, at the lengths that the Turkish government, which is supposed to be a democracy, will go for the purposes of silencing its critics," said Rep. John Edward Porter, Illinios Republican. "We have come to expect this kind of behavior from China, Nigeria, Iraq, Cuba and other totalitarian regimes, and our government has often criticized them for it, but Turkey seems immune from U.S. criticism." Mr. Clinton will not criticize Turkey, Mr. Porter said, because it is viewed a friend and ally of the United States. He believes U.S. silence on the matter has allowed Turkey to carry the war into neighboring states--mainly Iraq. "I firmly believe that Turkey feels they can attack civilians in another country with napalm as they are doing right now because we have let them get away with it," Mr. Porter said. "We have emboldened them to carry their campaign of terror across borders into other nations." Five Kurds and Americans have been fasting for the release of Mrs. Zana. A vigil is also being held in front of the U.S. Capitol each day. "Our suffering is for the restoration of democratic choice in Turkey," said Kani Xulam, director of the American Kurdish Information Network. "We will continue to fast in front of this building with the hopes that as we lose strength, the champions of human rights will gain the upper hand." ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Tue Nov 4 12:23:45 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 04 Nov 1997 12:23:45 Subject: [] Mustafa Kemal Ataturk Message-ID: Dear Friends, It has come to the attention of AKIN that Time Magazine is taking = votes to determine who the top 100 most important people of this = century are. In all five categories (Warriors and Statesmen, = Entertainers and Artists, Builders and Titans, Scientists and = Healers, and Heroes and Adventurers), Mustafa Kemal Ataturk is the #1 = choice to date. We know that Ataturk is far from =B3the hero of the = century.=B2 When he unified Turkey, he also institutionalized the = racist attitude of the Turkish state that continues today to oppress = the Kurds and others. We urge you to e-mail Time-Warner at: = time-webmaster at pathfinder.com and voice your opinion about Ataturk. = Their webpage is located at: = www.pathfinder.com/@@FddzJwYA*C5RZZYN/time/ The following is the status of the survey as of November 3, 1997. = Thanks, AKIN. WARRIORS AND STATESMEN Total Percent mustafa kemal ataturk 590113 36.45 winston churchill 578570 35.73 ronald reagan 72673 4.49 ataturk 35516 2.19 franklin roosevelt 20067 1.24 adolf hitler 20003 1.24 dave whitmer 13940 0.86 mustafa kemal atat=FCrk 12772 0.79 ENTERTAINERS AND ARTISTS Total Percent mustafa kemal ataturk 143675 9.04 bob dylan 108628 6.83 ayn rand 101653 6.39 george best 93448 5.88 charles aznavour 70285 4.42 rolf harris 59980 3.77 w n p barbellion 50970 3.21 elvis presley 48007 3.02 BUILDERS AND TITANS Total Percent mustafa kemal ataturk 220570 13.83 henry ford 163443 10.25 bill gates 138142 8.66 matthew zog worthy 126666 7.94 frank lloyd wright 79058 4.96 richard rogers 64795 4.06 steve jobs 41796 2.62 jorn utzon 23735 1.49 SCIENTISTS AND HEALERS Total Percent mustafa kemal ataturk 200020 12.63 alan turing 165699 10.46 einstein 127915 8.08 vint cerf 87915 5.55 edward teller 69293 4.38 marie curie 65562 4.14 milton friedman 53965 3.41 dr. carolyn schanen 17286 1.09 HEROES AND ADVENTURERS Total Percent mustafa kemal ataturk 385245 24.29 nelson mandela 272804 17.20 yuri gagarin 104204 6.57 john galt 60169 3.79 martin luther king, jr. 48062 3.03 neil armstrong 44022 2.78 guy kawasaki 37422 2.36 richard branson 34564 2.18 Statistics updated daily ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public = service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Thu Nov 6 12:29:25 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 06 Nov 1997 12:29:25 Subject: Turkey's state-fascism: Military's think tank behind policy decisio Message-ID: 06-11-97 Military's think tank behind policy decisions _________________________________________________________________ By Metehan Demir / Turkish Daily News Ankara - A specially established "think tank" based in General Staff headquarters is behind all of the military domestic and foreign policies that are being pursued by the top generals of the Turkish Armed Forces, the Turkish Daily News has learned. >From military operations to clear the separatists from northern Iraq to relations with the United States, NATO, Greece and Cyprus, the think tank plays a key role in various critical issues. "We actually established this body in 1983, but under an order at the end of 1995 from the Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Cevik Bir, the authority and the sphere of the think tank were extended in order to make it more active, and it is now working at full capacity," said a senior official from the General Staff. The organization is made up of two main departments, the foreign bureau and the internal affairs bureau. The recent National Defense Policy Document that rocked Ankara was prepared by this think tank. Important internal issues such as those of terrorism and the Southeast, the fundamentalist threat and extremist activities from both the left and the right are being discussed every day by the expert officers belonging to National Security Department under support in theoretical matters from academicians. Later, the reports are being presented to top generals. Within the think tank's international affairs department, which handles foreign policy, are special desks, including those dealing with Iran, Iraq, Syria, Cyprus, Greece, Europe, the United States, Russia, and the Balkans. The think tank, under the command of Gen. Bir but administered by some junior generals, is also closely following all media reports and research. It is also in close contact with some departments within the office of the National Security Council (MGK) Secretary General, which determine the issues to be discussed during MGK meetings. The think tank sends its drafts to the MGK, forming the backbone of the MGK agenda and the military's policy decisions. Numerous officers who are experts on foreign policy and domestic issues are working in the think tank, while it has also been authorized to request information from academicians, businessman and diplomats. Some prominent businessmen have also given information to the organization concerning the pros and cons of the business angle of policies. Chief of General Staff Gen. Ismail Hakki Karadayi, Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Cevik Bir, land, naval and air force commanders and other top officers are periodically being briefed by reports prepared by the think tank. "The think tank, which is also working in cooperation with the West Working Group (BCG) that closely monitors fundamentalist activities, is playing a key role in almost all policy decisions of the Turkish military, whose considerable role has been seen in the past in Turkey," the senior general added. The National Security Policy Document, which was approved by the full consensus of the National Security Council (MGK) last week and which consists of two booklets and 10 attached papers, is radically changing about one-third of the country's security policies: it says that political Islam has gained equal importance with separatism as the primary threat, while the organizations called the Ulkucu (ultranationalist) mafia are now being seen as a threat. The document also states that the possibility of a clash erupting between Turkey and Greece must not be ignored. In such a case, Syria also may get involved. The document also stresses that no change should be made in Turkey's Western orientation, and that Turkey must pursue its full European Union membership target, while ties with the Turkic republics should be bolstered. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sat Nov 8 09:12:04 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 08 Nov 1997 09:12:04 Subject: Germany: Rights Group Urge Bonn to Take Action over Kurd Message-ID: (18:55) Rights Group Urge Bonn to Take Action over Kurd BONN, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Politicians and human rights activists urged Bonn on Fr iday to intervene in the case of a Kurdish asylum seeker who was jailed in Turkey this week only months after being deported by German authorities. Amnesty International, German refugees lobby group Pro Asyl, and a parliamentarian for the Greens said Ahmet Karakus, 40, had been deported to Turkey in August after his application for political asylum was rejected. But as German border guards handed him over to Turkish authorities they also gave them a bag of personal documents linking him with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) banne d both in Germany and Turkey, they said. "This suitcase was handed over directly to Turkish security officials. The contents of the suitcase were used as the basis for the deported refugee's conviction," Green's parliamentarian Amke Dietert-Scheuer said in a statement. The documents included receipts for donations paid to the PKK and photographs of Karakus taking part in Kurdish demonstrations in Germany, the groups said. "We call on the German government to work towards his immediate release and make his return to Germany possible," she said. Karakus was jailed this week for three years nine months. Amnesty also condemned the way he was deported, calling for a public inquiry in to the incident and Pro Asyl called on Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel to intervene on h is behalf. "Pro Asyl fears that since torture is widespread in Turkish prisons, Mr Karakus could also face violations of his rights and humiliating treatment," the group said in a statem ent. A spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry in Bonn told Reuters that the authoriti es were looking into the case. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sat Nov 8 09:12:58 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 08 Nov 1997 09:12:58 Subject: Kurdish Woman Tells Court of Rape by Turkish Gendarme Message-ID: (04:20) Kurdish Woman Tells Court of Rape by Turkish Gendarme MARDIN, Turkey, Nov 6 (Reuters) - A Kurdish woman told a court in southeastern Turkey on Thursday she had been raped repeatedly while in custody on suspicion of links with separatist te rrorists. "They took us to the police station and put me and my sister-in-law into a room . We were blindfolded. The night they took us, one person raped me three times," Sukran Aydin told the cou rt in the southeastern city of Mardin. Aydin said she, her father and sister-in-law had been arrested by soldiers and village guard militiamen who came to their village and accused them of working for the outlawed Kurdista n Workers Party (PKK). "The told me not say anything to anyone. They said they would kill me if I said anything," she said, addressing the court in Kurdish on the opening day of the trial of one of her a lleged assailants, Musa Citil. Her father, Seydo Aydin, wept in the courtroom during her testimony. Earlier this year, the European Court of Human Rights ordered the Turkish gover nment to pay Aydin 25,000 pounds sterling ($41,900) in damages, ruling the girl had been beaten an d raped while in custody in 1993. The court, based in Strasbourg, assumed jurisdiction after deciding Aydin had n o recourse to justice in Turkey, in contravention of the European Convention on Human Rights. The rig hts court also demanded the prosecution of a second gendarme, Ali Kocan. So far only Citil is facing Tu rkish justice for the incident, which took place when Aydin was 16 years old. "They blindfolded us. They put us inside a coal-bunker. They continually tortur ed us. And the first night I heard the screams of my daughter and daughter-in-law," Seydo Aydin told the Mardin court. Citil, at the time a gendarmerie captain in the nearby town of Derik, did not a ttend the court proceedings and did not enter a plea. Under Turkish law defendants are not requ ired to make a plea. According to court papers, he has been transferred to a training unit in Ankara , where he remains on active service. After the hearing, which was adjourned until December, the Aydins' lawyer told reporters the Turkish government had yet to pay the damages as ordered by the European rights court. "The case (in Turkey) opened by the state is just show. When the European Court of Human Rights case came to an end, the Justice Minister Oltan Sungurlu made a statement saying 'We'll pay the damages'. We have doubts about that," said lawyer Osman Baydemir. Turkey has often been criticised for its poor human rights record and is accuse d of conducting a "dirty war" in its struggle with PKK terrorists fighting for independence in the mainly Kur dish southeast. More than 27,000 people have been killed in the conflict since the PKK started its campai gn of violence in 1984. Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz, on a visit to Austria, said on Wednesday that Turk ey was doing its best to improve its rights record and added that some of the criticism was unfair. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Wed Nov 12 00:26:52 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 12 Nov 1997 00:26:52 Subject: Day 22 - Fast For Peace In Kurdista Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Day 22 - Fast For Peace In Kurdistan And The Freedom Of Leyla Zana The Fast For Peace In Kurdistan And The Freedom Of Leyla Zana Day 22 Three fasters, including human rights activist Kathryn Cameron Porter, have been fasting on the Capitol steps since October 20 to call for peace in Kurdistan and the release of Kurdish parliamentarian and human rights activist Leyla Zana. Leyla Zana, the first Kurdish woman elected to the Turkish Parliament, has been in a Turkish prison since March 1994. Her crime: "separatist speech", an accusation based on her advocacy for Kurdish human rights, including a 1993 appearance before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. She was awarded the European Parliament's 1995 Sakharov Peace Prize and was a finalist for the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize. Over 150 Members of Congress have already written to President Clinton urging him to seek her immediate release from a Turkish prison. Each weekday at 5:30pm (weekends at 2:00pm) the fasters and their supporters march to Lafayette Park across from the White House. Contact Kathryn Cameron Porter at (202) 637-3277 or Kani Xulam at (202) 270-9008. Send us an e-mail message to akin at kurdish.org. Please visit the fasters on the main steps of the east side of the U.S. Capitol Building. HEALTH UPDATE: Faster Dara Rizgari was instructed by his doctor to end his fast on Saturday night after losing more than 16 pounds and experiencing acute health problems. His biography is as follows. Biography Of A Human Rights Activist: Dara Rizgari Who I am: I was born in 1957. I grew up in Horasan, Iran. I am married. My American wife lives in Germany. What I have done: I am a teacher by training. I taught the Persian language and mathematics at junior high schools in Iran. During the Iran-Iraq war, I avoided the draft and finally left Iran for Germany in 1987. In Germany, I worked as a truck driver. Early in 1997, I came to the United States. What I like: I like reading books. My favorite authors include Thomas Mann, Berthold Brecht, and Ernest Hemingway. I love eating natural foods. Of the American Presidents, I like President Lincoln because he ended slavery. My favorite movie is Spartacus. What I want: I love to live free and I want my people to be free. ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Wed Nov 12 04:18:52 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 12 Nov 1997 04:18:52 Subject: Day 23 - Fast For The Freedom Of Le Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Day 23 - Fast For The Freedom Of Leyla Zana The Fast For Peace In Kurdistan And The Freedom Of Leyla Zana Day 23 Three fasters - including human rights activist Kathryn Cameron Porter, Kani Xulam, and Ferda Beyrikan - have been fasting on the Capitol steps since October 20 to call for peace in Kurdistan and the release of Kurdish parliamentarian and human rights activist Leyla Zana. Leyla Zana, the first Kurdish woman elected to the Turkish Parliament, has been in a Turkish prison since March, 1994. Her crime: "separatist speech", an accusation based on her advocacy for Kurdish human rights, including a 1993 appearance before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. She was awarded the European Parliament's 1995 Sakharov Peace Prize and was a finalist for the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize. Over 150 Members of Congress have already written to President Clinton urging him to seek her immediate release from a Turkish prison. Each weekday at 5:30pm (weekends at 2:00pm) the fasters and their supporters march to Lafayette Park across from the White House. Contact Kathryn Cameron Porter at (202) 637-3277 or Kani Xulam at (202) 270-9008. Send us an e-mail message to akin at kurdish.org. Please visit the fasters on the main steps of the east side of the U.S. Capitol Building. Biography Of A Human Rights Activist: Ferda Beyrikan Who I am: I am a Kurd from Turkish-controlled Kurdistan. I was born in 1961. What I have done: I had a relatively peaceful childhood. I attended the Turkish schools when I was seven years old. I had a Kurdish activist uncle who instilled in me the love of Kurds and Kurdistan. In high school, I would tell my teachers and some of the Turkish students that I was a Kurd; on several occasions, I was beaten badly. The last time, three fascist students broke my nose; that day, I left school and have not gone back to another one since. In 1978, I began working as a construction worker. In 1980, the Turkish military took over the civilian authority in the country. Some of my friends were arrested. I was beaten several times. In 1986, I left Turkey for anywhere that would take me. After a few years in diaspora, I got a visa for the United States. I have been here ever since. What I like: I like talking politics. I like reading. My favorite book is by the Turkish writer Yasar Kemal, "My Hawk". I love movies. My favorite movie is Braveheart. What I want: I want the Kurds to be free. When we are free, our adversaries will be free, too. ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Wed Nov 12 04:18:54 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 12 Nov 1997 04:18:54 Subject: Day 23 - Fast For The Freedom Of Le References: Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Day 23 - Fast For The Freedom Of Leyla Zana The Fast For Peace In Kurdistan And The Freedom Of Leyla Zana Day 23 Three fasters - including human rights activist Kathryn Cameron Porter, Kani Xulam, and Ferda Beyrikan - have been fasting on the Capitol steps since October 20 to call for peace in Kurdistan and the release of Kurdish parliamentarian and human rights activist Leyla Zana. Leyla Zana, the first Kurdish woman elected to the Turkish Parliament, has been in a Turkish prison since March, 1994. Her crime: "separatist speech", an accusation based on her advocacy for Kurdish human rights, including a 1993 appearance before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. She was awarded the European Parliament's 1995 Sakharov Peace Prize and was a finalist for the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize. Over 150 Members of Congress have already written to President Clinton urging him to seek her immediate release from a Turkish prison. Each weekday at 5:30pm (weekends at 2:00pm) the fasters and their supporters march to Lafayette Park across from the White House. Contact Kathryn Cameron Porter at (202) 637-3277 or Kani Xulam at (202) 270-9008. Send us an e-mail message to akin at kurdish.org. Please visit the fasters on the main steps of the east side of the U.S. Capitol Building. Biography Of A Human Rights Activist: Ferda Beyrikan Who I am: I am a Kurd from Turkish-controlled Kurdistan. I was born in 1961. What I have done: I had a relatively peaceful childhood. I attended the Turkish schools when I was seven years old. I had a Kurdish activist uncle who instilled in me the love of Kurds and Kurdistan. In high school, I would tell my teachers and some of the Turkish students that I was a Kurd; on several occasions, I was beaten badly. The last time, three fascist students broke my nose; that day, I left school and have not gone back to another one since. In 1978, I began working as a construction worker. In 1980, the Turkish military took over the civilian authority in the country. Some of my friends were arrested. I was beaten several times. In 1986, I left Turkey for anywhere that would take me. After a few years in diaspora, I got a visa for the United States. I have been here ever since. What I like: I like talking politics. I like reading. My favorite book is by the Turkish writer Yasar Kemal, "My Hawk". I love movies. My favorite movie is Braveheart. What I want: I want the Kurds to be free. When we are free, our adversaries will be free, too. ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Thu Nov 13 06:48:43 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 13 Nov 1997 06:48:43 Subject: "Peace Train" Trial Set To Open In Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: "Peace Train" Trial Set To Open In Turkey "Peace Train" Trial Set To Open In Turkey (Interview with Stefan Maurer, one of the foreign defendants in the trial against the 'Musa Anter' Peace Train participants which is starting in Turkey; Interview by Florentine Anders, published in 'junge Welt', November 11, 1997) jw: This Tuesday [November 11], the trial will open in Istanbul against 20 demonstrators from the Peace Train which protested against the ongoing war against the Kurdish people this past September. All the foreigners charged at that time were sent out of the country. Three Turkish citizens who were arrested are now on trial. Why did the foreign arrestees willingly return to Turkey to face trial? We aren't so much concerned with the fact that the police stormed our hotel in Istanbul during our press conference, or that we as individuals were arrested, because those things happen all the time here [in Turkey]. We wanted to have the chance to point out once more why the Peace Train came here to begin with. That we want a dialogue to bring freedom for the Kurds and an end to the war. That is our main purpose. Of course, everyone who was arrested during the Peace Train wants to be set free and have the charges dropped. Many other people were arrested during the Peace Train and will be on trial later. jw: What charges are you facing, and what sort of sentence can you expect? I am charged together with 20 other people, including 3 Turkish peace activists and 17 foreign participants. 8 of the Germans who were charged have come to stand trial. The Turkish and the foreign demonstrators are not facing the same charges anymore. The actual organizers of the Peace Train from Europe are now only being charged with participating in an unlawful assembly; the press conference is no longer mentioned in the charges, so that Turkey doesn't look as though it has no freedom of the press. This is an attempt to de-politicize the trial against the foreign participants. But the trial against the Turkish participants is a political trial. They face jail terms of 1.5 to 3 years. We are trying to make our proceedings political again. jw: On Sunday [November 10], Turkish human rights activist Yagmurdereli was set free. Do you think this is a positive sign for your trial as well? No. Some trials receive international attention, others do not. It was necessary for the Turkish state to free Yagmurdereli in order to free itself of a burden. There was much international solidarity with him, and many people protested his imprisonment. The Turkish state wanted to be free of this pressure. But that doesn't mean there aren't many other people still in prison because they haven't received as much international attention. Both sides of this are evident in our trial. The Europeans will probably be acquitted, in order to avoid any problems. This is the first time that so many people from other countries have faced a Turkish court in a political trial. The Turkish defendants do not enjoy this protection from the international community. That's why we made sure we would be present with them. (Translated by Arm The Spirit) ---- For A Free And Independent Kurdistan! KURD-L Archives - http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/kurd-l From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Thu Nov 13 10:31:38 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 13 Nov 1997 10:31:38 Subject: The Situation In South Kurdistan Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit PKK General Secretary: "We Have Strengthened Our Position" On October 30, 1997, the Kurdistan Information Center (KIZ) in Cologne, Germany issued an overview of the present situation in South Kurdistan, with reference to the recent tensions in the region following Turkey's latest invasion: It is well known how the Turkish government is able to fund its war in Kurdistan. Even [independent] investigations have revealed how members of the Turkish government, various Members of Parliament, and high ranking state and military officials are involved in drug trafficking. This trade brings in 50 million dollars a year. Turkey's invasion of South Kurdistan (northern Iraq), a violation of international law which began on May 14, is still continuing. It's dimension is increasing as well. Other regional powers are on the verge of intervention. This would mean the outbreak of a regional war. More than 80,000 Turkish soldiers, backed by thousands of vehicles, are in operation from Zakho to Shaklawa. According to their own statements, this is to give protection to Barzani [KDP]. In reality, though, Turkey is carrying out random bombardments of the UN's "safe haven". It has become known that in the regions of Role, Zeni, Mawelian, Kospi Chawa, and northwest Erbil, which is controlled by the PUK, the Turkish air force has dropped napalm bombs, which are banned by international law. Despite international warnings and pressure, the Turkish government is seeking to establish itself in South Kurdistan and create a 20-km wide buffer zone. Following Turkey's invasion, the leader of the PKK [Kurdistan Workers Party], Abdullah Ocalan, stated on the Kurdish television sender MED-TV on October 27 that: "In comparison to last year, in particular since May of this year, we have strengthened our position. A large part of the population of South Kurdistan are coming over to our side in this war. South Kurdistan youths are forming a front. They have formed their own army, which is in a position to carry out a protracted struggle. They don't belong to the traditional forces in the region, rather they organized themselves with our support. The regions of Behdinan, Ciyaye Spi, Ciyaya Bexer, Haftanin, Zap, Xankurke, and Gare are now controlled by guerrilla units. [...] Despite [Turkey's planned buffer-zone], the present situation is very different. We have political and military control over two-thirds of the entire region, including strategic areas. [...] The KDP has been defeated. The KDP is now being protected by 80,000 Turkish troops. [...] It is possible that the Iraqi regime will no longer just sit back and watch all this happen. At the present time, the entire Arab world is concerned." Ocalan went on to point out that the PKK is not fighting a war against the KDP, rather against the Turkish military. Even newly established democratic forces are fighting against the Turkish invasion. Regional and other interested states are being called upon to finally devise a policy which will bring a solution to this problem. Turkey can no longer continue to carry out its Kurdish policies of the past. Now, more than ever, a political solution is needed. The Kurdish side has repeatedly expressed its willingness for a political solution. Abdullah Ocalan called on the Turkish military to re-think its policies. He called on them to take steps in a positive direction which would make life better for both the Turkish and Kurdish peoples. (KIZ Press Statement dated 30.10.97; published in 'Kurdistan-Rundbrief' #22/97; translated by Arm The Spirit) ----------------------------------------------------------------- Arm The Spirit is an autonomist/anti-imperialist information collective based in Toronto, Canada. Our focus includes a wide variety of material, including political prisoners, national liberation struggles, armed communist resistance, anti-fascism, the fight against patriarchy, and more. We regularly publish our writings, research, and translation materials on our listserv called ATS-L. For more information, contact: Arm The Spirit P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P7 Canada E-mail: ats at etext.org WWW: http://burn.ucsd.edu/~ats/ ATS-L Archives: http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/ats-l MRTA Solidarity Page: http://burn.ucsd.edu/~ats/mrta.htm ATS Archive: http://www.etext.org/Politics/Arm.The.Spirit ----------------------------------------------------------------- ++++ stop the execution of Mumia Abu-Jamal ++++ ++++ if you agree copy these lines to your sig ++++ ++++ see http://www.xs4all.nl/~tank/spg-l/sigaction.htm ++++ From gscreen at hotmail.com Thu Nov 13 05:43:05 1997 From: gscreen at hotmail.com (gscreen at hotmail.com) Date: 13 Nov 1997 05:43:05 Subject: Selma Tnarikulu: Indictment Update Message-ID: posted by: Green Screen News received from: Release Selma Tanrikulu >SELMA TANRIKULU UPDATE > >Reports of Torture a week before trial.... > >Selma Tanrikulu, HADEP candidate for Diyarbakir, faces charges of >'membership of an illegal group' - the PKK. Her trial is set for 19 >November 1997 in Diyarbakir State Security Court, Turkey. A system of >confessors and falsified statements are already noted in the indictment >against her. In the Turkish Court records she denies the charges and is >already claiming that she has been tortured - even the court has noted a >weak condition... > >Elected to the Turkish Parliament in 1995 but unable to take her seat, >Selma Tanrikulu's arrest is seen to be a reaction to the current case >proceeding through the European Court of Human Rights alleging her >husband's murder was by state backed death squads, and her involvement >in the arrangements of a "festival of peace" planned on the day of her >arrest. It is also seen as an attempt to close down the legitimate and >peaceful mechanism for Kurdish political representation in Turkey, the >People's Democracy Party - HADEP. > >With Selma Tanrikulu's trial a week away it is imperative in the >interest of peace and democracy in Turkey that you help in any way you >can... > >i) Please pass on the address of the Selma Tabrikulu web site via email >or newsgroups >ii) Print out the poster on teh web site and display at work, at >university etc. >iii) send your letter of protest to the Turkish authorities by fax or >email. >iv) put a link on your web page to the Selma Tanrikulu web site. > >PLEASE ACCESS THE WEB SITE at: >http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/lobby/1011/ > >PLEASE FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE - THE MORE >PEOPLE WHO KNOW ABOUT IT THE BETTER - PLEASE PASS IT ON... > >THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HELP AND SUPPORT... > > ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Fri Nov 14 08:50:56 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 14 Nov 1997 08:50:56 Subject: Article On The Fast For Peace In Ku Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Article On The Fast For Peace In Kurdistan Rep. Porter's Wife Fasting For Peace In Kurdistan By Jock Friedly and Robert Schlesinger Rep. John Porter's (D-Ill.) wife is among the participants of a three-week-long fast and vigil on the Capitol steps to protest Turkish oppression of the Kurds. The protest is being led by Kani Xulam, a personable Kurdish human rights activist who has long been condemned by the Turkish government for his alleged ties to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which the State Department considers a terrorist organization. Xulam and Kathryn Cameron Porter, who is president of the Human Rights Alliance, firmly reject the Turkish government's assertions about his PKK ties. The strikers, whose number was three as of Tuesday, were organized by Xulam's American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN). The fast began Oct. 20. Mrs. Porter has been eating one meal a day because she has diabetes. The group is protesting the Turkish imprisonment of Leyla Zana, a Kurdish woman elected to the Turkish Parliament on Oct. 20, 1991. She was invited by the U.S. Congress to testify on Turkish treatment of the Kurds. That testimony was used by Turkey to convict her of treason, for which she was sentenced to 15 years in a Turkish prison. "Leyla Zana is just the tip of the iceberg," said Xulam, taking shelter from the rain last week under the Capitol steps. "Our goal is really to see if a debate takes place addressing this issue," he added. Xulam is no stranger to controversy. He was convicted of passport fraud last year and nearly deported. But character witness testimony from Kathryn Porter and others convinced the judge that he should receive community service instead of jail time. Meanwhile, though, under pressure from Turkey, the State Department considered expelling Xulam. He avoided expulsion with the aid of the Porters and other members of Congress. "If he is deported, he will be killed," Rep. Porter said this weekend. "There is no way the Turkish government will allow him to live in Turkish society." The Turkish Embassy alleges that Xulam's group is a political wing of the PKK. A State Department spokesman said the United States has no evidence that AKIN is acting for the PKK. If such proof existed, he said, AKIN would be in violation of the law. Xulam hotly denies any association with the PKK. "I have gone on record for saying that I am a believer of nonviolence, that all my activities revolve around that philosophy, that I wish the war to come to an end. ... My activities here exposing the dirty laundry of the Turkish government should not be put in the same category" as PKK activities. However, Michael Gunter, a professor of political science at Tennessee Tech University, and author of "The Kurds and the Future of Turkey," disagrees. "Clearly [AKIN] is associated with the PKK," he said. "I have been told by PKK people" that Xulam is associated with the group. Xulam said that Gunter has visited the hunger strikers. "I told him, you need to be more careful with your facts," Xulam said Tuesday. "Yes, our office provides a lot of information about the Kurds, it has that mandate. ... Just because I provide the information, it doesn't mean I subscribe to the information, or I believe the information." Gunter also pointed to Turkish news reports of a 1996 phone interview PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan gave to Kurdish television in which he described Xulam as, "a PKK friend". Xulam said he had heard of Ocalan's comments. "My hunch is he knows what we're doing here, and some of that information is peaceful overtures to the Clinton administration. ... I don't mind conveying the message of peace from the leader of the PKK," he said, adding that he was "offended" that this could be interpreted as being a warrior. Henri Barkey, associate professor of international relations at Lehigh University, said such affiliations are impossible to prove, particularly given that Turkish news reports are "notoriously incorrect. They make up stuff." But he added, "There is an incentive for the Turkish government to label anybody who is against them as a PKK member. It's also in the interest of Kani Xulam to run away from the PKK label. The truth is probably in between." Rep. Porter agreed with Barkey in observing that, "The Turkish government calls anybody that believes in freedom and rights for the Kurdish people terrorists." Until he sees evidence that Xulam is linked with the PKK, Porter said he supports Xulam's efforts to educate legislators about the Kurdish problem. Mrs. Porter, who joins the fasters on the steps when weather permits, fasted for six days, but stopped because she is diabetic. "My basic thing is that I am eating one small meal a day and having tea for breakfast and then fasting the rest of the time," she said in a telephone interview earlier this week. Xulam was effusive in his praise of Mrs. Porter. "It's an act of solidarity we'll never forget as long as we live," he said. "Her name has become almost synonymous with the rights of the Kurds in the U.S. Congress." Speaking about Turkish treatment of the Kurds, Mrs. Porter said, "It's heinous. ... I've talked to women who were tortured in front of their husbands and fathers. I've talked to people who have been arrested because they smoked Kurdish cigarettes. ... We can have Turkey as a close ally, but we don't have to give blanket acceptance of their treatment of their own people." The most "egregious example," Mrs. Porter said, is Leyla Zana. "She is a female Kurdish member of Parliament who came to the United States [and] gave a statement about the actual treatment of Kurds. ... She languishes [in prison] for that." In the more than 23 days since their fast started, the protesters have subsisted entirely on vitamin pills and shots, and an electrolyte diet - especially Gatorade (grape and fruit punch flavors are favored). Originally, there were six fasters, but some have dropped off - literally. On Nov. 2, 14 days into the fast, one faster collapsed and had to be taken to the hospital in an ambulance. Since then, two more have dropped out for medical reasons. The group visits doctors once or twice a week for vitamin shots and physical exams. "Our point is not to harm ourselves. Our point is to make a statement," Xulam said. "I personally will go on for as long as I can." Those who are left arrive at the Capitol at 7 every morning, and stay until 5:30 in the evening. At that time, they proceed to Lafayette Park where they have a ceremony commemorating political prisoners who have been tortured to death by the Turks. "When we were able to walk, we would walk to Lafayette Park," said Xulam. "But now we are weak, so we drive there." ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sun Nov 16 07:14:04 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 16 Nov 1997 07:14:04 Subject: Turkish propaganda: Military gives priority to human rights in Sout Message-ID: Military gives priority to human rights in Southeast * They decided to further strengthen their ongoing large-scale human rights campaign in order to improve the image of the region in the international arena _________________________________________________________________ By Metehan Demir / Turkish Daily News Ankara - Military sources on Friday emphasized their determination to put an end to separatist terrorism in the Southeast, adding that they decided to further strengthen their ongoing large-scale human rights campaign in order to improve the image of the region in the international arena following the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party's (PKK) attempts to show that the military is violating human rights. "We actually started this campaign in 1994 and are continuing to attach importance to it by holding numerous seminars and education programs for our personnel, including leading generals, on human rights issues. We distributed human rights and public relations' brochures to all military units, in an effort to keep personnel informed on the subject," the senior military sources told the Turkish Daily News. Senior military sources also said that the Turkish military's sensitivity to human rights issues is being expressed at every opportunity in international circles and when Turkish military officials meet their foreign counterparts and diplomats in Europe. They added that foreign countries, including the European ones, should not be impressed by the propaganda campaigns of the separatists and other anti-Turkish organizations. They pointed out that the Turkish Armed Forces recently increased their efforts to give priority to human rights in the Southeast. They noted that, in addition to these efforts, several groups, made up of experts from Ankara, regularly fly to the Southeast to brief the personnel who are based in the region. According to the military, the issues that are emphasized by the experts at such briefings are as follows: - The identification and development of human rights issues - The importance of human rights in today's world and the basic rights that are being protected under human rights agreements - The human rights agreements Turkey has signed and the responsibilities under these agreements - The measures that the military personnel should take in order to prevent any violations of human rights during operations or during any house or body searches. - The legal measures to be taken against military personnel if they violate human rights in the region. The military sources also said that they have warned all military personnel that they should obey the rules governing human rights. The arrest of any person, as well as home and body searches, which are covered by current laws, will be subjected to detailed investigation if any adverse claim about the conduct of the military in the region is made to the authorities, the sources pointed out. They added that if any damage is caused to any innocent person's house, during operations, all necessary measures will be taken to meet the cost of the damages. All military personnel have been warned not to engage in any act of torture against any person in the region. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Wed Nov 19 02:04:00 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 19 Nov 1997 02:04:00 Subject: AP Article On The Fast For The Free Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: AP Article On The Fast For The Freedom Of Leyla Zana Headline: Hunger Strikers Wire Service: APn (AP US & World) Date: Fri, Nov 14, 1997 By JENNIFER LOVEN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) -- Kathryn Cameron Porter, a human rights activist and congressman's wife, has spent most of her days in recent weeks keeping a vigil outside the U.S. Capitol with Turkish Kurds staging a hunger strike. Porter began her own fast on Oct. 20 with five others. A diabetic, she became ill and was forced to break off her fast after six days. She is still eating just one small meal a day, and joins the two remaining hunger strikers for as much of their 10-hour-a-day vigil as she is able. "Sitting out here is nothing compared to what real people are experiencing," said Porter, 49, who served in the Reagan and Bush administrations. "I hope it touches people's hearts." The group is protesting Turkey's imprisonment of Leyla Zana, a Kurdish woman elected to Turkey's parliament who was convicted of treason after telling Congress of Kurds' plight. Turkey also has been criticized for mistreating its 12 million Kurds through forced evacuations and bans on their language. Three other hunger strikers became so sick they had to drop out. The two left subsist on vitamins and electrolyte-replenishing fluids. Kani Xulam, the American Kurdish Information Network's director and organizer of the fast, said the protest will move to Lafayette Park in front of the White House now that Congress has adjourned for the year. He called Porter's involvement "an act of solidarity I can never forget." Porter served as the Energy Department's special assistant for international affairs in the Reagan and Bush administrations before turning full time to human rights issues. She founded The Human Rights Alliance last year. Her husband, Rep. John Edward Porter, R-Ill., co-chairs the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. The couple has five grown children and one grandchild. Porter, a veteran of 10 terms in Congress, said he fully supports his wife's effort, but worries about the toll he sees it taking on her. "I can't tell you how proud I am of her," the congressman said. "I think hunger strikes are very effective ... but you have to live to fight another day." Namik Tan, a spokesman for the Turkish Embassy, said Xulam's group is a political front group for the Kurdistan Workers Party, a terrorist group known as PKK. Xulam and Porter denied the allegation. A State Department official said the United States is in "continuous dialogue" with Turkey about human rights and that Zana's imprisonment has been raised. A few members of Congress have delivered floor speeches on the subject. On Oct. 30, 153 congressmen sent a letter to President Clinton demanding he seek Zana's immediate, unconditional release. Bill Richardson, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, visited the protesters and promised he would meet with them. Porter said Kurds and other minorities in Turkey are "just being systematically done away with." "We could stop it if we wanted to," she said. ---- American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) 2623 Connecticut Avenue NW #1 Washington, DC 20008-1522 Tel: (202) 483-6444 Fax: (202) 483-6476 E-mail: akin at kurdish.org Home Page: http://www.kurdistan.org ---- The American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN) provides a public service to foster Kurdish-American understanding and friendship From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Fri Nov 21 14:29:13 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 21 Nov 1997 14:29:13 Subject: Turkey: Chief Editor of the Kurtulus weekly on trial! Message-ID: INFORMATION CENTRE FOR FREE PEOPLES Kalkarer Strasse 2, 50733 Cologne, Germany November 21, 1997 URGENT APPEAL: CHIEF EDITOR OF THE KURTULUS WEEKLY ON TRIAL Ladies and gentlemen, The chief editor of the magazine Kurtulus, Ayten Ozturk, was arrested on October 13, 1997, on order of the State Security Court in Ankara. The journalist was charged with "leading an organisation", according to article 168/1. Although her concrete "crime" was publishing a special edition of the weekly Kurtulus, press law 3713 is not applied. The State Security Court in Istanbul already opened a trial in the same case. There the court decided, applying the new press law, to postpone proceedings for 3 years. However, Ankara ignored this decision and demands a prison sentence of 22,5 years against Ayten Ozturk. The journalist is now held in custody. Considering the state repression against politically active persons and the unlawful convictions - repeatedly hitting the co-workers of the Kurtulus - we urge you to witness the trial against Ayten Ozturk. Date: December 10, 1997 Time: 9 a.m. Place: ANKARA, State Security Court We ask you to respond as quickly as possible in order to take better preparations for the trial delegation. In case you have further questions, we gladly answer them by telephone or fax machine. You can reach us around the clock at Tel: (+49) 221 760 76 56 fax: (+49) 221 760 28 87 Sandra Bakutz for the Information Centre for Free Peoples -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Mon Nov 24 07:19:52 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 24 Nov 1997 07:19:52 Subject: 'Kurtulus' Editor On Trial In Turke Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: 'Kurtulus' Editor On Trial In Turkey Information Center for Free Peoples Kalkarer Strasse 2 50733 Cologne, Germany November 21, 1997 Chief Editor Of The 'Kurtulus' Weekly On Trial The chief editor of the magazine Kurtulus, Ayten Ozturk, was arrested on October 13, 1997, on order of the State Security Court in Ankara. The journalist was charged with "leading an organization" according to Article 168/1. Although her concrete "crime" was publishing a special edition of the weekly Kurtulus, Press Law 3713 is not applied. The State Security Court in Istanbul already opened a trial in the same case. There the court decided, applying the new press law, to postpone proceedings for 3 years. However, Ankara ignored this decision and demands a prison sentence of 22.5 years against Ayten Ozturk. The journalist is now being held in custody. Considering the state repression against politically active persons and the unlawful convictions - repeatedly hitting the co-workers of the Kurtulus - we urge you to witness the trial against Ayten Ozturk. Date: December 10, 1997 Time: 9 a.m. Place: Ankara, State Security Court We ask you to respond as quickly as possible in order to make better preparations for the trial delegation. In case you have further questions, we gladly answer them by telephone or fax machine. You can reach us around the clock at Tel: (+49) 221 760 76 56 Fax: (+49) 221 760 28 87 Sandra Bakutz, for the Information Center for Free Peoples (Source: Press Agency Ozgurluk ) From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Tue Nov 25 04:47:10 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 25 Nov 1997 04:47:10 Subject: Cease-Fire In South Kurdistan Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Kurds Agree To Cease-Fire In Iraq ANKARA (November 24, 1997 Agence France-Presse) - Two rival Iraqi Kurdish factions agreed Monday to a cease-fire ending six weeks of fighting in northern Iraq. "To give a chance to efforts for a peaceful solution, we have decided to observe a cease-fire on all fronts to take effect as of midday today, but keeping our right to self-defense," the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) said. "We in principle agree with the cease-fire," Shazad Saib, Ankara representative of the rival Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), told AFP. The KDP statement added that the KDP would resume hostilities if either the PUK or the mainly Turkish-Kurdish Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) "undertook military operations" against its forces. The KDP cease-fire offer comes after it retook ground lost to the PUK since Oct. 12, when heavy fighting broke out in northern Iraq after a truce of nearly a year. The KDP is allied with Turkey, while the PUK is allied with the PKK. The two Iraqi Kurd groups, the KDP and the PUK, have controlled the northern section of Iraq since staging a rebellion inspired by Baghdad's defeat in the Persian Gulf War in 1991. A power-sharing agreement between them broke down in 1994. ---- For A Free And Independent Kurdistan! KURD-L Archives - http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/kurd-l From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Tue Nov 25 04:54:27 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 25 Nov 1997 04:54:27 Subject: Kurdish Refugees In The Ninova Camp Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit HEYVA SOR A KURDISTANE (Kurdish Red Crescent) In der Stehle 26 53547 Kasbach-Ohlenberg Germany Tel: +49-2644-8891 Fax: +49-2644-7845 South Kurdistan (Northern Iraq) Refugees In The Ninova Camp In December 1996 the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) withdrew its support from the 14,000 plus inhabitants of the refugee camp at Atrush in south Kurdistan. This followed unsuccessful attempts by the UNHCR to force refugees from north-west Kurdistan/Turkey back across the border, or to divide them up into smaller camps, thereby giving full control to the ruling party in the region, the Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP). In March 1997 thousands of hungry, freezing people from Atrush set out in a desperate trek in search of food and safety. 7,000 of them settled at Ninova, close to the town of Mosul. This new camp is situated in a buffer zone between KDP units and Iraqi troops. There is still no detailed information available regarding the whereabouts of the other 7,000 refugees from Atrush. This summer a group of human rights activists from various European countries visited Ninova and a camp on KDP territory containing refugees from Atrush who had been forcibly allocated there. What follows is the report of the participants from Germany. "It must be just behind the hill", says our taxi driver, adding yet more to the atmosphere of mounting tension. We had doubted that we would ever reach Ninova. Our visit was not in the interests of Massud Barzani's regionally all-powerful KDP. And now, just short of our destination, the words of Musa Ali Bekir, KDP official in charge of the refugee camps, are ringing in my ears: "They have everything they need in the camp but they want even more...The situation there is better than in any other area." Now the first tents appear on a treeless, dusty plain. A dozen of them strung out along the narrow asphalt road leading into the camp. The others dotted indiscriminately over the seemingly endless plain. At the entrance flutters the faded flag of the UNHCR. The heat is unbearable. Nonetheless, the narrow streets are a buzz of activity. Women have congregated around a decrepit, rusty tanker lorry and are filling plastic canisters with water. Men go by deep in discussion. Our presence causes the greatest interest among the children of the camp who greet us with excitement. Following our initial inquiries, we are directed to the refugees' own organizational body, the camp committee. On the way there we are struck by the state of the tents we pass. Many are broken, some held together only by rags. Branches or twigs with dry leaves have been used to replace missing sides, in an attempt to provide shelter against the dust-filled wind. Other tents have knee-high walls of sun-dried brick or rotten plastic sheeting. The camp committee appear astonished by our visit. According to them, it is almost impossible to penetrate the KDP's blockade. So much the greater, then, is their joy at our arrival. Before we can begin to ask our countless questions about the situation in the camp, our conversation is interrupted. A jeep roars up and screeches to a halt in front of the committee's tent. The driver jumps out, rushes in and, without uttering any greeting, tells us in basic English that we can get all the necessary information from the UNHCR office at the entrance to the camp. Then the, presumably Kurdish, UNHCR worker disappears as quickly as he came. It seems that the UNHCR are also uncomfortable with our visit. A Prison Camp, Administered By The UNHCR It rapidly becomes clear to us that Ninova is a prison camp, not a refugee camp. Our KDP visitors' permit is only valid until nightfall. We had hoped to stay a week at Ninova, in order to gather proper detailed data on the situation there. Reluctantly, we accept the advice of the camp committee to leave before evening. "If you stay longer, no one can guarantee that you will be able to leave again. And the KDP could use it as an excuse for renewed attacks". So we have to take our photos, shoot our film, and collect our information under immense pressure of time. In view of the circumstances, we forego the discussion with the UNHCR personnel. Our aim is to gather the testimony of those who otherwise will have no voice, who do not have the benefit of a European press office and a well-oiled publicity machine: the refugees themselves. We have already spoken to the UNHCR in Dohuk. Its official there, Boonshan Sangnai, diplomatically described the countless measures which will be undertaken for the refugees, including the laying of water pipes, digging of latrines, and provision of new tents. And he stressed that the UNHCR was already providing medical care. The reality which faces us is different. According to the camp committee, more than 40 children had died during the summer as a result of infectious diseases. Malaria, typhus, and dysentery are spreading among the refugees. They lack doctors and medicine. The refugees are prohibited from attending the hospitals in neighboring Dohuk. The drinking water being provided outside is contaminated, as the tanker which the UNHCR has rented is also used for smuggling petrol and diesel oil. The monthly food rations provided by the UNHCR amounts to just 9 kg of flour, 900 g of vegetable oil, 300 g of sugar, and 900 g of lentils per person. There is no fruit or vegetables and no milk. Three quarters of the inhabitants of Ninova are undernourished. According to the refugees, the KDP is attempting to make the situation even more critical: "The little we had, with which to provide for ourselves, has been stolen by the KDP. They have taken over 700 sheep and goats from us. We dare not let the remaining animals out to graze. They are hungry and thirsty. We cannot even leave the camp to collect wood." And armed KDP units are waiting for anyone who does leave. On June 30, one refugee was shot and two other severely injured in the immediate vicinity of the camp. Two more refugees disappeared without a trace. Despite these appalling circumstances, we find the people spirited and resolute. They seem to be standing firm against adversity with every ounce of their strength. The camp committee tells us of the difficulties surrounding the resumption of schooling: "The start of the school term on September 12 is having to be postponed. There is no blackboard, no tent, no pens, and no paper for our 1,000 or more school-aged children." Applications for assistance have been made to the UNHCR and to UNICEF. So far there has been no reply. There is no lack of will in the camp: there are 30 teachers and a number of students who propose to take on the teaching. "Without teaching, our children have no future," sums up the camp committee member. "Our children are dressed in rags and wear shoes made of rubber, which make their feet burn in summer and freeze in winter. In the cold they won't be able to walk to school." Winter Brings Death Even if the money were available, buying clothes would be impossible in the KDP zone because of the blockade and is forbidden on the Iraqi side in Mosul. So far the UNHCR has sent no clothing. Given these restrictions, how can the people survive the winter? "Winter brings death. Without warm clothes and blankets, without sufficient food and medicine, many of us will die. The UNHCR says that we are only here temporarily. That is why they don't give us any building materials or better tents. They will not be able to maintain water provision by tanker lorry when the roads are snowed up. It is far colder here in winter than in Atrush. Where will help come from?" The committee seen disillusioned with public support from Europe and therefore don't expect any fundamental change to result from our visit either. This, at least, lifts a burden from our shoulders, a burden which would be far too great, even if we were in a position to bear it. But, in the face of the refugees' suffering, our initial attempts at self-justification - "of course it is all so complicated..." - have the effect of appearing still more helpless. And the tour to the camp which follows completes the picture of an imminent catastrophe. Everywhere the battle against the onset of winter is being taken up, mounds of earth are being thrown up against the tents and bricks baked in the sun. The laughter of the people doing this work is cut off sharply by an apprehensive glance into the future, but resignation never takes over. Only the children, playing in the sun in front of our video-camera, unconcernedly act out what the adults have taught them to do in an emergency: they dive headfirst into ditches which have been dug up and sometimes covered with twigs and lined with straw. This is what they have been told to do if Turkish planes come over or the KDP fires on the camp again. Nothing in the camp strikes us as disorderly or wasted, not even the ragged old tents. Everything which is available is fully utilized. The camp committee representative observes: "We are actually saving the UNHCR a great deal of work as we are organizing everything ourselves and putting it in the place. This is certainly not the case in all refugee camps." There is no trace here of the agony of poverty and misery. And we ask ourselves: where do these people get their courage? According to the refugees, within the confines of the camp, they have "a little piece of freedom", which they have never known before. "Here we have the first school in which children from north-west Kurdistan are taught in Kurdish. Here we can speak our own language and discuss all our problems openly and freely." Is it possible that it is this very "freedom" which has caused this small refugee camp of 7,000 people to be ground between the millstones of international politics? The UNHCR aid guarantees only that death will be a drawn-out process, thus avoiding a public outcry. Above all, the existence of the refugees is a thorn in the side of the Turkish government. Extra-territorial refugees under the supervision of the UNHCR, fleeing a war which according to Turkish officialdom isn't a war at all, drags the conflict with the PKK into the international arena. Because of this, these few thousand people become an incalculable risk for Ankara, and one they consider worth getting rid of. So, when the KDP offered its services, nobody should be surprised that it was trusted with the camp in the region. Assistance from the UNHCR remains at the level of the execution of an internationally recognized obligation of a disdainful legal body. The refugees in Ninova have no hope that the UNHCR will actually put into effect any of the measures it has promised. So, no water pipes and no new weather-proof tents. And so we leave the people of Ninova with the feeling that we shall return soon but also with the feeling that we will never see many of the people we have spoken with ever again. Sumail - The Place The UNHCR And The KDP Call Paradise The question which continues to concern us is: where are the other 7,000 refugees from Atrush? "The refugees are free. They can come and go as they please. We want them to settle here, to obtain land and build houses." One day after our visit to Ninova we have the opportunity to test out the reality of this statement by the KDP commissioner for refugees, Musa Ali Bekir. We visit the Sumail camp which contains 800 refugees from Atrush, who look up the UNHCR's "offer" to be split off and located in the KDP zone. The visit to Sumail is organized by the so-called "regional government". Having heard a recital of the blessings of their refugee policy, now we are to see it demonstrated in practice. Accompanied by an entire battalion of security officials and local KDP functionaries, we enter the camp. Here there are no laughing children to welcome us and thrust themselves in front of our video-camera. The people seem demoralized and desperate. They are completely apathetic and take hardly any notice of us. This atmosphere distresses us. The camp, which has been erected in a tight space, is divided up into rectangles and on each one a family has pitched its tent. The tents are so close together that there is hardly any room to get past. They are in the same condition as those at Ninova. We leave the official KDP tour to the other delegates, as we have agreed with them earlier. We move away from them so we can speak to the refugees without fear of interruption. Their testimony is shocking: "It was a big mistake coming here. The KDP and the UNHCR promised us that we could move freely about, that we would get identity papers the same as those of the southern Kurds. They promised us land, work, and proper houses. What choice did we have? The UNHCR wasn't giving us any more food. We were hungry. We believed them. But it was all lies. Here everything is even worse." The refugees were blackmailed and cheated into leaving Atrush. Now they get vouchers for food, which they receive from the European NGOs working in the area. The lorry which brings the drinking water comes only once a week to fill the metal water tanks. A typhus epidemic is raging through the camp. Nearly all the children are malnourished. There is no doctor to treat the sick. A woman collected up her last money to pay for an urgent and vital operation. It didn't help - the hospital in Dohuk refused to treat her. She couldn't go anywhere else, it is forbidden to leave the camp. Anyone who does so and runs into a KDP checkpoint risks prison and torture. The work of digging the foundations to build a school has been abandoned: "There was no point. We were getting no building material and we had no teacher. And where were we supposed to buy teaching materials from?" So, who are the lumps of stone piled up outside the camp for? "They arrived three days ago. We were wondering about them too. They certainly aren't for us. We have had nothing in five months." Only later do we discover what these building blocks are for. They were apparently sneaked in a week before our planned visit, especially for us! In the official part of the camp visit, the delegation would be shown the regional government's building plans for the refugees. A cheap propaganda attempt by the KDP to cover up the injustices it had perpetrated. Following our conversations with refugees, we join the rest of the delegation to visit the camp's "sick bay". The outside appearance is pleasant but it visibly pains our KDP escort when we rush inside and immediately begin filming what we see. This consists of a filthy examination couch, a dirty bare room, and a "treatment room" equipped with a chair, a table, and three sorts of painkillers. We have seen enough of the "help" given to refugees from north-west Kurdistan by the KDP. Not without some disgust at the offensive but entirely unsuccessful attempts to bring us closer to the "humanitarian side" of the KDP's refugee policy, we leave the Barzani-controlled area, convinced that sustained public pressure on an international level is vital to improve the conditions of the refugees. The UNHCR must finally release detailed information about the whereabouts of all 14,000 people from Atrush, fulfil its obligations, and guarantee the care and protection of refugees. The people who were driven out of Atrush need our solidarity and our help. (From: Isgard at aol.com) ---- For A Free And Independent Kurdistan! KURD-L Archives - http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/kurd-l From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Tue Nov 25 20:13:43 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 25 Nov 1997 20:13:43 Subject: Nazism in Turkey/MHP/Suzurluk Message-ID: Milliyet: Nov. 26 Tugrul Turkes: Ahead with politics While Tugrul Turkes made the decision to go on with politics after he lost the 5th MHP (The Nationalist Movement Party) Congress, Seval Turkes who was supporting Ramiz Ongun, has blamed Chairman Devlet Bahceli for "letting the dark shadow of Susurluk fall on to the congress" Tugrul Turkes who lost against Bahceli for the second time, has evaluated the congress results to Milliyet with the following words: " The delegates gave preference to Bahceli. I've lost the Chairmanship, but I will continue with politics. From now on we all accept Bahceli as the chairman." Turkes did not comment on the slogans " Catl=FD is not dead, he lives inside us" and " Susurluk plato is the home for the grey wolves" that were shouted out at the congress. "They have used Tugrul" Claiming that some powers from the eventful congress on May 18th are this time focusing on Tugrul Turkes, Seval Turkes- Alparslan Turkes's wife has said the following : "I had supported Tugrul earlier. But with the progressions, I have refined myself. These are the same people who have ruined the last congress. That is why I have supported the weaker candidate. I did not let my name be used. After using my name these gangs would have passivized me. ----- For background on the Suzsurlukcase see: http://www.ozgurluk.org/contrind -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl= List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Tue Nov 25 20:14:06 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 25 Nov 1997 20:14:06 Subject: Turkey: 50 trillion TL "economy" in at prison Message-ID: Milliyet: Nov. 26 50 trillion TL "economy" in at prison Prosecutor Necati Ozdemir explained to Milliyet the affairs, escapes and fastings to death at Bayrampa?a prison Impossible to live without money "There are prisoners at Bayrampasa who cannot attend three sessions at the court for they do not pay for them - if they did they would probably be discharged. Protection costs 100 million TL at the prison. Beds go for 5 to 15 million TL. Halting a transfer to another prison costs 4 to 5 thousands Marks. Visits will cost 3 to 5 million TL. A prisoner who owns a cellular phone works like a post office. Three people die of aids There are approximately 20 Hepatitus B patients in prison. Three people died of aids. No hospital admits these patients, so they live among the other prisoners. At least 50 to 60 prisoners are dependent on drugs. They are imprisoned in another section. We have reduced smuggling of hash?sh, heroin, cocain, chemicals and guns into the prison but we could not stop them. Mentally challenged prisoners After fastings to death of the political prisoners, about 30 of them became mentally challenged. These prisoners, some of them women, have little memory left. They became like children, unable to remember much. Some cannot even stand up. Volunteer doctors come to visit them from time to time for treatment." -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nlList info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Wed Nov 26 11:00:27 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 26 Nov 1997 11:00:27 Subject: Turkey/DHKP-C: History of our party VII Message-ID: THE SAME SITUATION INSIDE THE PRISONS We were in another place Because the junta knew we wouldn't compromise in the resistance and because they feared we would influence the reconciliatory status quo line of opportunism, they gathered the Devrimci Sol prisoners in isolated and separated prison blocks. We were able to make use of this isolation policy of the junta. At the beginning of 1986, almost all Devrimci Sol prisoners in the prisons of Istanbul were put together in the most unhealthy blocks. Although some of us were still in the blocks of the opportunists, conditions for collectiveness were present. We had to use this opportunity. We went through a discussion process of several months to re-educate our people who had been in separate blocks of the same prisons for years, fighting on the line of resistance of Devrimci Sol. We wanted to establish ideological unity, evaluate our entire policy and tactics of the past, look whether we had learnt of the practice of live or not. We wanted to internalise our thoughts about the future. This process of discussion created a vivid atmosphere and we internalised the Devrimci Sol view of democracy. These were the years in which all the dirt, the degeneration and resignation about the cause, caused by defeat, crushed and burned everything like a ball of fire. We were able to save ourselves from this ball of fire, or at least we weren't wounded that much, and we remained on our feet because, for one, of our ideological clarity and our knowledge. In addition to the ideological and psychological decay, caused by the years of defeat, the ideological differences in the world between the revisionist CPSU and the opportunist CPC and AWP caused people to submit to the imperialist ideologies, denying reality. Especially the CPSU, led by Gorbatchov, organised a great conspiracy by transforming its theory of "Removing the shortcomings of socialism, openness and renewal" into a proclamation of capitalism, drawing all socialist and communist parties in the socialist countries of the world into a new discussion, never seen before, with this imperialist theory. Suddenly bourgeois theories were on the agenda of all the revolutionaries in the world. Theories, for instance, that imperialism and capitalism weren't the same anymore, that they had renewed themselves, and therefore rebellions and revolutions by the proletariat were no longer valid. >From now on it would be possible to go over to socialism by a compromise with imperialism. These theories were the ripest form of revisionist politics, develop from 1950, after Stalin's time, by Chrutchov and Brezjnev, leading the CPSU step by step into decay in the superstructure and substructure. They destroyed the spirit of socialism, developed a individualist capitalist culture and betrayed the emerging revolutions and liberation movements. All the conditions were prepared for capitulation and returning to capitalism. The order to deliver the final blow was given to Gorbatchov who will possible be remembered as the biggest traitor in the history of world revolution. Propaganda went to its limits and Gorbatchov was portrayed as a gifted leader, even a bigger leader than Lenin. This biggest conspiracy by imperialism was presented without spilling one word about socialism. The reformists and revisionists in our country, never deviating from the statements of the CPSU for decades, entered the phase of treason on a world level as an extended arm by looking for compromises and ways of submission with the ANAP-government, the extended arm of the junta. The conspiracy was so far reaching, these forces made calls to other organisations for "unity of the left" on the one hand, calling for the struggle against the system, but continued their relations with ?zal on the other, working at their return to the order. ?zal, as a collaborator in the imperialist conspiracy, used the pacifying methods very well, learning from the imperialists and the intrigues, inherited from the Ottoman Empire. He used them to get rid from the CPSU fellow-traveller TKP, which had used the name "communist" for decades although they were revisionist, completely. At the end he succeeded in bringing this party to join the democracy games of fascism and the party was dissolved with an operation. Without doubt the TKP wanted to dissolve themselves, but they intended to do so in the long term, returning to the country, organising large manifestations, without having to openly denounce socialism, and by convincing some other leftist groups and parties. But the spokespersons of the oligarchy, the heirs of the Ottoman Empire and not trusting their own strength and culture too much, didn't have the self-confidence they could go through such long-term programs. Therefore they prevented this program by liquidating the leaders of the TKP after a short time. In the meanwhile, they discussed the theories of Gorbatchov which carried an imperialist stamp. These discussions took place in our country as well, and almost all were involved. The organisations which never were able to imagine something else but the CPSU, who hadn't developed something of their own, suddenly praised capitalism and they discovered its good and nice sides despite the obvious signs of theorising the return of capitalism. Even the imperialist ideologues never dreamt the revisionists left would be so rotten in their beliefs in the own cause and their principles and that they could be crushed in one single blow. We had to show the peoples of the world in what state socialism was in and where the policy of Gorbatchov was leading it. We didn't hesitate in our attitude towards this treason. This was caused by our criticism, in the past until now, against the policy of the CPSU, the CP of China and the Albanian Workers Party. In stead of joining them in their mistakes, we based our policy on our struggle and our revolution, internalised by our cadres and sympathisers. Although they carried out a revolution, have experience, led millions of people for decades and morally and materially were the carriers of immense strength, we - although we were not a party or organisation - had to hold up the flag of Marxism-Leninism on the personal level while the theses of Marxism-Leninism - generally valid - were denounced. A large part of the Turkish left, apart from the revisionists and reformists, did not applaud Gorbatchov's policy but they took an opportunistic path. Claiming there were "positive as well as negative sides", they tried to hide their capitulation policy without making a difference between the principal and the secondary. Some said it had been proven the CPSU had been wrong, the AWP had been right, and they didn't realise they were drawing the left, essentially not different from the CPSU, into a quagmire, trying to liquidate it. Our position towards these mistakes was so clear and open, we left no room for discussions. Gorbatchov want to eradicate the entire socialist system, offering it to imperialism. The education discussions which we started were continued vividly in the prison blocks. The first concrete result of these discussions were our views about the situation of socialism in the world and the policies of Gorbatchov. These views were transformed into knowledge and published. Our people, who hadn't spoken each other and discussed for years were hungry for ideology. When we consider the mistreatments in prison, a lot of our people who couldn't follow events and couldn't develop were, although they were Devrimci Sol in their heart, unconsciously influenced by the opportunistic, revisionist, petite-bourgeois intellectual theories and bourgeois humanitarism which had nothing in common with Devrimci Sol and our policy. Step by step, we were getting rid of our differences, unclarities and mistakes and under these circumstances, in which trust, comradely relations and enthusiasm grew day by day, we discovered ourselves again, we see our good sides and became even more enthusiastic when we saw our resistance. We were going to keep the good sides and we felt we would shook the world once again, this time from Turkey. We entered a stage in which, albeit temporary, the bourgeois ideology was superior, in which the people's masses didn't believe in socialism anymore, in which it would be difficult to defend Marxism-Leninism in the world, to say "I'm a Marxist-Leninist, I'm a socialist". We had to speed up our ideological training, we had to understand and defend it again in its ideological, philosophical, political and historical dimensions, and we had to take on according international tasks. In case our cadres would be equipped with this knowledge, they would be able to destroy the imperialist conspiracy, to strengthen the struggle inside our country, make a positive impression on the sister organisations in the world, and contribute to give them strength. It was impossible that imperialism would be able to free the people's masses from misery and give them freedom. This system of imperialism and capitalism, based on colonialisation, stood firmly on its feet during this phase as well with its exploitation, its tyranny and all it stands for. Whatever the theories they were using to disguise, whatever the views which would deny or deride reality, we had to understand they would only serve to prolong the existence of imperialism and capitalism. And we had to take a stand against this. The only alternative for imperialism and capitalism is socialism. As long as the imperialist and capitalist system remains on its feet, so long socialism will have to be the alternative and this characteristic of being the only alternative must be protected, even though there are heights and depths. The guilt for the temporary ideological hegemony of the bourgeoisie and for the left not resisting these ideological attacks and not keeping its ideological composure, was with the liberation movements who had nothing to do with Marxism-Leninism and revisionist parties like the CPSU which deviated into a situation where it blocked the road for social change. Revisionism witnessed its final end. Although the socialist struggle seemed to retreat substantially, in reality the people would see on the long term who the revisionist policies had bankrupted socialism, how they accepted the order by imperialism to sabotage socialism, how successful they had been in doing so, and how the socialist system had become a virgin market for the imperialists. The revisionist parties disassociated themselves more and more from the people and they no longer guaranteed that the people were taught about the problems of revolution in order to participate actively in its solutions. The revolution was no longer the revolution of the people. When these parties, ignoring the people and estranged from it, tried to carry out socialist policies, they became a caste, ignorant of the people's problems. The revolution had been taken away from the people and they looked for new ways. From a people, not participating in solving its own problems, not seeing society's problems as its own, it can not be expected to be creative and willing to sacrifice. Because these parties had become revisionist, bureaucratic castes and the people's masses and the proletariat had been cut off from the revolution, socialism - previously able to achieve great successes in the super- and substructure against the imperialist-capitalist system - was unable to safe itself from the phase of regression. Other liberation movements used revisionist methods to enter negotiations with the imperialists, in stead of securing the fall of the capitalist system, in stead of renewing Marxism-Leninism with the right solutions, participating the people in solving the problems, and giving more support to the liberation movements in the world. The state mechanism, still existing despite the bourgeois remains and despite imperialism which tried to swallow socialism, governed by the revisionist, took on the function of oppressing the masses, silencing them, governing by bans. Socialism, internationalism, creating the new human being, etc.- in all these areas decay and degeneration continued. Under these circumstances, where in the name of socialism all kinds of economic policies were applied which had nothing in common with socialism, nothing would happen except destroying the hopes of the peoples and the proletariat regarding socialism, and in the end they would be influenced by bourgeois ideologies. When one does not tell the people the truth about events in the world and in the country itself, in the long term it will be impossible to prevent the people to go searching for something new, despite force, pressure and bans. Furthermore, we are living in a world were means of communication have developed considerably. And in the end the peoples' masses, despite all the bans and coercion, came under the influence of the lies and demagogies of the imperialists and they were seduced. And after the manipulation of their consciousness, like they would find the life socialism couldn't offer them under capitalism, they - led by imperialism in co-operation with the revisionists - brought down socialism. But what they brought down, are tried to bring down, wasn't socialism, it was revisionism, alien to them. To understand the truth and to start the struggle once again in the name of socialism, it was necessary that the people would experience themselves that the imperialist-capitalist system hadn't changed at all - like revisionism claimed -, that the most cruel form of exploitation still continued and that people had become goods. Not only the people, dozens of organisations which claimed to be communist, Marxist-Leninist, would experience this and they would take to the arms of Marxism-Leninism. It is impossible for socialism to exist without problems within an imperialist-capitalist system. Despite these experiences, made by the peoples in the world and the Marxist-Leninist organisations, it will take quite a while before the struggle for socialism will start again. It will be problematic for a considerable time because of the influences of the capitalist substructure and the imperialist ideologies. Despite fluctuations, we were absolutely certain we would progress every day because of the experiences we had gathered looking at the revisionist attempts, and that we would enter a much more healthy and more rapid phase of revolutionary increase. On the outside our policy of leading the masses and creating means to do so rapidly developed. Among the youth, the working class, in almost all areas, we were able to gather and lead the mass potential quite rapidly. Our press activities caused a great echo among our people and the public who had to still a great ideological hunger. The left groups also started enterprises, albeit in a weak and timid manner, like publishing papers, as if they wanted to say "We're still here". However, they pursued a press activity which concentrated on discussing the internal problems, far remote from a revolutionary policy. These political circles, who in majority had been abroad during the period of the military junta and who had not waged struggle full of sacrifices, started a battle for hegemony in stead of addressing the urging problems of the revolution, the masses and their organisations. They brought thoughts, hostile to Marxism-Leninism, from Europe into the country and took over the organisations. By complicating the naked, simple and urgent realities of the revolution, making them insolvable and fitting for petite-bourgeois intellectuals, by destroying each other and separating, they made their own lives a hell. No organisation and hierarchy, no trust and comradely relations and other values were left. They even sabotaged their own organisations. The organisations which did this most were the circles of the TKP, the Kurtulus and Devrimci Yol. The circles which in the name of democracy charged each other of despotism finally found peace when they managed to dismantle and dissolve their own organisations, created with their own hands and in which they once put a lot of work, all this in the name of "freedom of discussion. Devrimci Sol should never become such an organisation. Yes, we also discussed about everything. Opportunism watched this and they thought: "Well, they are discussing, soon there will be a split". We made fun of them and discussed the world events, our country, about some of our people, even about ourselves. But we would never split. In these discussions, which lasted for months and in which hundreds of our comrades participated, the foundations were laid for "HAKLIYIZ KAZANACAGIZ", which would become the golden page of our history during the military junta and the trials, showing how the revolutionary people's power would be formed, defining our past, present and future, and becoming a book of education and reference. This work was developed and enriched during these discussions. These discussions carried our ideological unity on a higher level and secured its further development while we were ideologically bombarded by the fascism of September 12. And, not the least, the ideological bombardment of imperialism against socialism was to no avail because of our characteristics. The message that the revolutionary rebellion would go on, a message we sent from the court docks of fascism to the peoples of Turkey, the world, to the friendly organisations and liberation movements was also a response to the attacks by imperialism and the oligarchy. This attitude of our organisation played an important role as a light in the darkness of fascism, showing the future, removing the hindrances before us, becoming a test of determination and a level no other organisation would reach. Many opportunistic groups, already started with their ideological erosion and decay before September 12, increased this on all areas under the conditions of repression by fascism. One of these areas were the courts. This had to be the places where we would demand accountability from the fascists, where we would give the people trust, where we would condemn the ruling forces. But because of these political constructions, the court docks became places where people made themselves, directly or indirectly, dependent from the approval of the oligarchy, where people begged for mercy. They didn't hesitate to claim they had never been an organisation, that they never, no way, intended to bring down the state, they only - based on self-defence - had waged a legitimate and legal struggle against the civic fascists and they had shown the people the way to protect themselves because the state couldn't guarantee the lives of the people, but they had done nothing but publishing articles in legal magazines. As if they were justifying the demagogy of the state prosecutors, the judges and the generals of the military junta, "the left and the right have endangered the lives of the people with their conflicts, democracy was almost lost", they forgot fascism, imperialism and the oligarchy and stated that one of the reasons for the September 12-fascism had been the confrontations between the left organisations like ours and the civic fascists. The spokesperson of the CPSU in Turkey literally begged for recognition of the system. Pointing at us, he stated in court: "We' re not saying one shouldn't take precautions against terrorists. We only oppose executions and torture." He addressed the fascists with these words, without being ashamed of himself. In the end they took a stand which clearly showed to were trying to get away from a conviction by fascism, that they were led by personal fear, denouncing their mission, with their defence pleas in which they claimed they never thought of a revolution, at least this had never been the reason for their actions. This behaviour fed and increased their incredulity, giving birth to self-denial and the liquidation of their organisations. The historical value of our revolutionary attitude in court becomes obvious when one analyses the attitude in this platform carefully, our conclusions were proven right in the time to come. Sometimes the historical value of events and facts can not be understood immediately. Those who turned up their nose, who called our revolutionary attitude "cheap radicalism", already started their own liquidation long before the finale. But we would continue to write history. The discussions which started inside the prisons about ideological clarity, aimed at blocking revisionist tendencies, were meant to be continued with discussions on the outside to achieve an even more collective way of action. But we weren't able to achieve a participation from the outside. This was an omission. This could have happened in other areas as well. And so, initially, ideological ambiguities were apparent in the legal publications and thought emerged which were influenced by the right in some way or the other. But after a certain edition, bigger mistakes were blocked after intervention from the inside, war was declared against reformism and other ways of right-wing thinking. The magazine came to its true mission. Because collectivism was not working good enough on other levels as well, the first signs of danger could be seen of being content with the developing democratic mass movements, that the strategic goals were being forgotten, or at least were not being concentrated enough upon. But the difficulties of that period, the weakness of the leadership in practice, the rare creation of new cadres, the circumstances in which we were attacked ideological from all sides, all this could only be overcome by a broad collective participation and a planned way of action, by not forgetting the strategic goals for one single moment. But the sensitive characteristics of this period were not understood sufficiently, were not fixed firmly in the consciousness, giving room for one-sided thinking. Because of a relative democratic opening, albeit very weak, and our leadership of the mass movements, democratic organisations emerged in almost all areas. Opportunism, seeing the developments, slowly emerged on the political stage again, despite the constant severe ideological crisis. But reformism, pursuing the strategy of compromising with the system, used the masses as a means to get to its goal and tried to keep the mass movements under its control. We possessed an ideological clarity which the opportunists and reformists lacked. This ideological clarity would carry us forward with the mass movements, the creation of new cadres, in organising, the achievement of strategic goals, in almost all fields, and we were able to create a massive potential of strength in a short time. If this ideological clarity, created on the inside with strong participation, would not have been reached on the outside as well, if it would not have developed and become richer, this would have meant we were doomed to remain subjective theory. When ideology is not pursued in a planned and programmed manner in the struggle, it isn't difficult to deviate from the target, despite the ideological unity on paper. When the target and the program are not pursued persistently, when advantages and omissions are not discussed sufficiently, when we don't learn, when lessons aren't tested and introduced in practice, it's impossible to achieved the desired results. And when these results aren't achieved, repetitions will occur, productivity will slowly but surely begin to decline. This can be prevented by open criticism and self-criticism, discussions, and lessons from the practice and the collectivity, creating a new practice. To do this, we need to have an idea of what has to be done, and how, we need to have an idea of the existing conditions and we need an attitude which gives us self-confidence for the role we have to play in the world and in Turkey, and gives us determination in the field of strategic goals. The smallest unclarity and confusion - which will inevitably occur -, not removed as soon as possible, when the program can't be implemented flawlessly, will lead to looking for reasons that indicate "objective conditions", and the omissions and errors will be theorised. The energetic, programmatic work, collectivism and connected principles and values will loose their meaning, they will become empty words, abstractions. The excuses, the talk about "objective conditions" will spread from top to bottom, will-power and centralism of the organisation will be abolished, the responsibles in the areas and fields - and even individuals - will insist on their own views, "knowing it better", people will oppose disciplinary measures, the organisation will take on an anarchistic character, leading to chaos and a stand-still of the movement. In countries such as ours, especially seen its characteristics, the process of moving again is not a inert, difficult, lifeless and prolonged period of silence, suddenly coming into movement. A line of struggle is pursued which looks like this: parallel to the mass movement, there's ideological training, parallel to ideological training the creation of cadres and organisation, parallel to organising the slowly increasing actions. This period has a special meaning and it must be looked at carefully, and almost every theme has to be analysed scrupulously. To be able to organise around a strategic goal, to prevent repetition of mistakes in the past, to remove omissions, especially the newly trained cadres must be known with all their characteristics and one has to concentrate on the strategic goal and the gathering of forces to progress step by step. Control and planning is needed for all the cadres, as well as for all activities like procuring arms and ammunition, other material needs, and finding suitable places for training. During this phase, when we began to withdraw ideologically, psychologically and in terms of organisation from the effects of September 12, it was shown how great the damage had been, caused by fascism. Starting with the oligarchy, through reformism and some opportunists, to petite-bourgeois intellectuals, all joined the choir of animosity towards revolutionary organisations, trying to draw the people to their side, keeping them away from the struggle. This propaganda was so effective, people started to play the most incredible roles to be able to remain on a legal basis, to account to the oligarchy at any moment. This obsession, this notion which breeds pacification, also occurred in our ranks. People panicked during some police operations or some small armed action, they tried to protect themselves by leaving the network of the organisation, by not warning the organisation until they were sure there was no danger for themselves. With the police operation after the bombing of the ANAP regional offices in Istanbul in 1987, we witnessed a typical example. Some people, in positions of high responsibility, didn't even show up for appointments, they tried to get in safety themselves by leaving the network of the organisation. It can be said that, except for a small number of people, nobody acted with the consciousness of the organisation, with the consciousness of a comrade. The pacification, created by September 12, was one of the reasons for this behaviour. On the other hand, people were aware of this reality but the appropriate training of the cadres was not developed and accomplished. Some charismatic personalities, whose faces were already known to everybody, co-operated with the oligarchy, every effort was made to suffocate the increasing revolutionary struggle, anti-propaganda was spread constantly on a legal level against the organisations and the revolutionaries. These charismatic personalities, allowed to visit the offices of these elements to present themselves, used by the bourgeoisie to gain legitimacy, were of course fleeing for an organisational structure full of risks. These people, known for their dissident behaviour, who tried to use the organisation for their own benefits, would be seriously held accountable to achieve a change, or they would not be given any tasks in critical areas. The pain of this situation would be felt later in a much greater dimension. -- Devrimci Halk Kurtulus Cephesi (Revolutionary Peoples Liberation Front) DHKC Informationbureau Amsterdam http://www.ozgurluk.org/dhkc List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Wed Nov 26 11:29:27 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 26 Nov 1997 11:29:27 Subject: Germany attacks Turkish paper/information-centre Message-ID: INFORMATION CENTRE FOR FREE PEOPLES KALKARERSTR. 2 50733 COLOGNE, GERMANY Tel. (00 49) 221 760 76 65 fax. (00 49) 221 760 28 87 November 26, 1997 We, as co-workers and visitors of the Information Centre were once again confronted by an unpleasant visit of the German security forces. Around 9.30 a.m., some 30 policemen, among them plainclothes officers and a state prosecutor, forcibly entered our press office. As was the case during the last search, the people present had to wait for hours in one room... Only one person was allowed to witness the simultaneous search of all the rooms. A woman present, whose passport didn't suffice for identity control, was brought to the police headquarters of Cologne. She has now been released. At 2.20 p.m., around 12 policemen were still inside the building. All our computers were confiscated by the other officials. One single computer was left, so we could "continue the work". However, they must be aware that when the main computer is gone, files cannot be opened on this one. Furthermore they weren't able to say whether the other computers would be released in "a few days", "a week", or in "two weeks". The search was carried out under the pretext that the magazine "Kurtulus" would be distributed from here. Here, in Germany, all non-democratic means are used to paralyse the publishing and distribution of this legitimate magazine which even appears legally in a country such as Turkey. Step by step it is attempted to achieve a ban of the Kurtulus in Germany. About the conduct of the German officials: The state servants confiscated all the money inside the office, saying: "Shall we have a nice dinner tonight?" The female co-workers were addressed with "girls". After all the office and adjoining rooms had been destroyed, they said: "Well, you have all afternoon to clean up" and "There are enough young girls here, aren't there?" Some other striking reactions and remarks: A "gun slinger", apparently suffering from an inferiority complex, panicked when one of our friends came too close when he wanted to see what was going on in the other rooms. He acted furiously and yelled at our friend: "Don't you touch my gun!" The female officers primarily used words like "shit", "mess". etc. People were not allowed to go to the toilet alone. They had to be accompanied and watched by an officer. The end result: Some 700 copies of the Kurtulus and our most important equipment, the computers, were confiscated. We can only say: "We will not be harassed, intimidated and provocated by the state officials! They will not prevent us from working with these arbitrary methods! We stand behind our work, it is legitimate! Long live international solidarity!" We demand, also in Germany, press freedom and we ask for broad support. Protests: Police Headquarters Cologne Criminal Investigation Department fax: (00 49) 221 229 89 22 Police Headquarters Hamburg Am Berliner Tor fax: (00 49) 40 283 79 15 -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Wed Nov 26 17:43:46 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 26 Nov 1997 17:43:46 Subject: Turkey: A gang for TL 250 million (Susurluk - update) Message-ID: A gang for TL 250 million * The special team policemen who were arrested on the grounds that they murdered casinos king Omer Lutfu Topal, the key person in the dirty relations of Susurluk, have been released on bail of TL 250 million. _________________________________________________________________ By Hakan Aslaneli / Turkish Daily News Istanbul - It looks as if the Susurluk case has finally reached the end now with the release of three special team policemen -- Ayhan Carkin, Ercan Ersoy and Oguz Yorulmaz. The judge decided to discharge the three on the grounds that sufficient evidence had been collected and they were found not guilty during the trial held in the Istanbul First Serious Crime Court on Monday. The decision which had the effect of an ice cold shower on people in the courtroom contained the statement that the culprits could be released on bail of TL 250 million. All the members of the Court approved the decision with the single exception of the reserve judge Suzan Yalti who rejected this but the three policemen were freed by majority decision. Special team members who had been included in the charge that they had formed a criminal organization had been released earlier as a result of the hearing held in the Istanbul Security Court on September 112. The Susurluk lock The importance of special team policemen Ayhan Carkin, Ercan Ersoy and Oguz Yorulmaz who were prisoners at Metris Prison for one year was their role in the dirty relations between government, police and mafia which appeared following the traffic accident at Susurluk. The three who were arrested by the gendarme and taken to the Security Department of Istanbul following the murder of Casinos King Omer Lutfu Topal were sent to Ankara afterwards. The policemen, who were released on the order of former Internal Affairs Minister Mehmet Agar who is reportedly the head of the so-called Susurluk gang, were arrested again on the accusation that they killed Topal, following the Susurluk accident. A photograph showing how closely related the head of the special team policemen, Ibrahim Sahin, was with Abdullah Catli and the defendants known as the special team gang in close relation was acquired by the press. It was announced that the special team policemen were a part of the gang. Among these policemen who were all arrested and put in prison, first Ibrahim Sahin and then the others were freed. And so the Topal case, which was considered the key to the dirty relations of Susurluk, seems to be at an end. Topal was killed nearly one year before the Susurluk accident. Twelve sheep sacrificed Twelve sheep were sacrificed when the special team policemen left prison just like the sheep that were sacrificed when the head of special team Ibrahim Sahin left prison. The blood from the sheep was put on the foreheads of the special team policemen while the crowd waiting outside was cheering, "Turkey is proud of you!" The special team policemen who were seen off to their homes by a long convoy of ultranationalists making the sign of the wolf with their hands, an ultranational symbol, spent the first night resting at home. Drug smuggler Yasar Oz who had been charged with the same accusations was granted a release at the same time along with the special team policemen who were arrested on charges of forming a gang and murdering Casinos King Topal and then were freed. Yet Oz was not freed because he had been convicted of another charge. The special team organization which had been formed to combat the Kurdish Workers' party (PKK), the illegal organization in the Southeast, was involved in various illegal businesses. Murdering Omer Lutfu Topal, murdering Kurdish businessman Behcet Canturk and his driver, kidnapping former National Intelligence Service (MIT) member Tarik Umit, kidnapping businessman Mehmet Ali Yaprak and murdering Smitko Lasem, a soldier of Iranian origin are only a few incidents in which the special team policemen were reportedly involved. Is the Prime Minister scared? The special team policemen, who were arrested by the gendarme and taken to the Istanbul Security Department after the murder of Casinos King Omer Lutfu Topal, were interrogated in the Security Department. There were claims that a video tape was available in which Ayhan Carkin, Ercan Ersoy and Oguz Yorulmaz admitted that they were guilty after they were questioned by Kemal Yazicioglu, the former head of the Istanbul Security Department. The existence of this tape was then confirmed by Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz and it was announced that the tape would be handed out to the court as evidence. But Yilmaz, in a written response to questions about the tape just the other day, stated that this tape did not exist. Now there are claims that the Prime Minister who was slugged on the face in Hungary some months ago in what appears to have been a related incident is now scared. The special team who were in a way released with the help of the Prime Minister had fulfilled their objective. Is Susurluk coming to an end? The immunities of True Path Party (DYP) MP Sedat Bucak who was the only survivor in the Mercedes that collided with a truck in Susurluk, Balikesir and Mehmet Agar whose name was mentioned as the head of Susurluk gang are unlikely to be abolished and it may be assumed that the name of Susurluk will gradually become a forgotten chapter in Turkish history. The democratic mass movements and the large number of people in public started a "One minute of darkness for eternal light" campaign when the dirty business of the gang in government was revealed after Susurluk accident. Mehmet Agar who had risen to be the Internal Affairs Minister had to resign from his office by the pressure from the press. DYP MP Sedat Bucak who was in the same car with Abdullah Catli, a defendant in an earlier massacre case, first said that he lost his memory and then said that he would make an announcement after one week. Bucak who promised the explanation has still not made any explanation for nearly one year now. Bucak even announced recently, "Very soon." While Turkey eagerly waits the explanation which will clear things up, the behavior of Bucak has to be considered as making fun of the public. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Thu Nov 27 09:41:10 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 27 Nov 1997 09:41:10 Subject: Germany Attacks Turkish Left-Wing P Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit Subject: Germany Attacks Turkish Left-Wing Paper, Information Center Information Center For Free Peoples Kalkarerstr. 2 50733 Cologne, Germany Tel: +49-221-760-7665 Fax: +49-221-760-2887 November 26, 1997 We, as co-workers and visitors of the Information Center, were once again confronted by an unpleasant visit of the German security forces. Around 9.30 a.m., some 30 policemen, among them plainclothes officers and a state prosecutor, forcibly entered our press office. As was the case during the last search, the people present had to wait for hours in one room. Only one person was allowed to witness the simultaneous search of all the rooms. A woman present, whose passport didn't suffice for identity control, was brought to the police headquarters of Cologne. She has now been released. At 2.20 p.m., around 12 policemen were still inside the building. All our computers were confiscated by the other officials. One single computer was left, so we could "continue to work". However, they must be aware that when the main computer is gone, files cannot be opened on this one. Furthermore, they weren't able to say whether the other computers would be released in "a few days", "a week", or in "two weeks". The search was carried out under the pretext that the magazine 'Kurtulus' is distributed from here. Here, in Germany, all non-democratic means are used to paralyze the publishing and distribution of this legitimate magazine which even appears legally in a country such as Turkey. Step by step it is attempted to achieve a ban on Kurtulus magazine in Germany. About the conduct of the German officials: The state servants confiscated all the money inside the office, saying: "Shall we have a nice dinner tonight!" The female co-workers were addressed as "girls". After all the office and adjoining rooms had been destroyed, they said: "Well, you have all afternoon to clean up" and "There are enough young girls here, aren't there?". Some other striking reactions and remarks: A "gun slinger", apparently suffering from an inferiority complex, panicked when one of our friends came too close when he wanted to see what was going on in the other rooms. He acted furiously and yelled at our friend: "Don't you touch my gun!" The female officers primarily used words like "shit", "mess", etc. People were not allowed to go to the toilet alone. They had to be accompanied and watched by an officer. The end result: Some 700 copies of Kurtulus magazine and our most important equipment, the computers, were confiscated. We can only say: "We will not be harassed, intimidated, or provoked by the state officials! They will not prevent us from working with these arbitrary methods! We stand behind our work, it is legitimate! Long live international solidarity!" We demand, also in Germany, press freedom, and we ask for broad support. Protests: Police Headquarters Cologne Criminal Investigation Department Fax: +49-221-229-8922 Police Headquarters Hamburg Am Berliner Tor Fax: +49-40-283-7915 (Source: Press Agency Ozgurluk, http://www.ozgurluk.org) From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Thu Nov 27 09:16:43 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 27 Nov 1997 09:16:43 Subject: Turkey/Bergama update Message-ID: Nov. 27 1997 Bergama residents reawaken their civil disobedience campaign _________________________________________________________________ By Binnur Akhun / Turkish Daily New Izmir - Minister of Environment Imren Aykut added a new dimension to the Eurogold case by requesting a reassessment, by the Court of Appeal, of the decision to close their mine in Bergama which was made a few months ago by Izmir's No.1 Administrative Court. "Cyanide hasn't come there [Bergama] yet. There are more harmful substances than cyanide flowing into the Buyukmenderes and Gediz rivers. In Izmir and Istanbul some industries are using tonnes of cyanide," claimed Aykut. The minister's statement received a strong reaction from the residents of 17 villages around Bergama. This surprise move by the Ministry of Environment restarted the judgement period for Eurogold which had been going on for years. Asked why she had made this request, which is seen as an overturning of the so-called "victory of the public" following the Administrative Court's decision, Aykut gave an elaborate reply: "All the public (state) institutions invariably go to the Court of Appeal even though they know for certain the result will be unsuccessful, since it is the will of the state. The Ministry of the Environment made such a decision on these grounds. I can't obstruct it. Let's say that one day some event happens there and the company [Eurogold] claims an action for damages amounting to $billions. How would I justify it? Then the state would ask me: "Hey, why didn't you use your right to apply to the Court of Appeal? Why did you cause the state to suffer so much damage?" Aykut, emphasized the present situation saying: "They are still working, because the permission to work and their licence haven't been revoked yet." Referring to the demands of the public to her Ministry, Aykut also added: "They, the Bergama residents, are still saying that the minister of the environment can close it. How can I? I didn't give them their work permit or their licence. In order to be able to close the mine, the harmful effects of cyanide on the environment and the health of human beings should be determined. Now, the mine is not operative, it is just a construction site." Meanwhile, the residents of the Bergama villages announced that they will re-launch the protests which they halted following the Administrative Court's decision. For their first peaceful noncooperation protest, they plan not to participate in the census that will be held on Sunday Nov. 30. In a word-play --sayilmak, means to be respected and to be counted, i.e. in the census -- the villagers' slogan reads: "If the state doesn't respect our will, we won't let it count us." -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Thu Nov 27 09:32:25 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 27 Nov 1997 09:32:25 Subject: Turkey involvement hinders Iraq Kurd peace process Message-ID: Turkey involvement hinders Iraq Kurd peace process 07:44 a.m. Nov 25, 1997 Eastern By Steve Bryant ANKARA, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Feuding Kurdish factions agreed on Tuesday on a ceasefire in northern Iraq but heavy Turkish involvement in the volatile region looked set to block the progress of Western-backed peace efforts. ``The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) is accepting and is committed to an unconditional ceasefire,'' Ankara PUK spokesman Shazad Saib told Reuters. The PUK, led by Jalal Talabani, gained territory from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in mid-October after breaking a Western-sponsored ceasefire that had held for a year. But Massoud Barzani's KDP, supported by Turkish troops, armour and air power, reclaimed the losses in heavy fighting and on Monday declared a unilateral ceasefire. Western diplomats say Turkey's increasing embroilment in the region make attempts to resurrect the Iraqi Kurdish peace process more difficult. Turkey has previously hosted negotiations as one of three NATO-member mediators. ``Ankara is now part of the problem, not the solution. You can't take part in the fighting and then be an unbiased mediator. The PUK won't accept that,'' a diplomat told Reuters. Talabani's group also says resumption of the ``Ankara peace process'' sponsored by the United States, Britain and Turkey is impossible in its present form. ``I rule that out. Turkey is a part of this conflict. They could join as another side, but not as a sponsor,'' Saib said. Northern Iraq has been out of Baghdad's control since after the 1991 Gulf War and a Western air force shields the rugged region from any Iraqi government attacks. Turkey has kept troops in nothern Iraq since May to destroy bases of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) guerrillas who use the area as a base from which to fight for self-rule in southeastern Turkey. Turkey accuses Talabani's faction of harbouring the PKK and says its air strikes on Talabani territory target only the Turkish Kurd group. The PUK denies the charge and says Turkish bombing is coordinated with KDP attacks. Saib said KDP demands that Talabani rein in the PKK were unrealistic. ``They want us to act as their guards against attacks by other groups,'' he said. ``We hope that there will be no more Turkish intervention, no more air raids. It's not just the KDP, Turkey is fighting us as well.'' A delegation of Barzani aides was in Ankara on Tuesday to discuss the peace process with Turkish officials. The Iraqi Kurds have clashed frequently since 1994. A prime bone of contention is revenue from illicit trade in diesel fuel between Barzani's territory and Turkey. The trade halted when Baghdad cut off the flow of fuel to northern Iraq during the recent tensions over U.N. arms inspections in Iraq. The fuel is now flowing into northern Iraq again, but Turkish traders are refusing to accept higher prices demanded by Barzani's fighters, Turkeish border officials said. ^REUTERS@ -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Thu Nov 27 13:29:18 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 27 Nov 1997 13:29:18 Subject: mpeg movies about the revolutionary struggle in Turkey Message-ID: For your information: We have uploaded 13 mpegmovies about the revolutionary struggle in Turkey. The descriptions are not there yet, but the will appear very soon. The movies deal with topics as the 1996 hungerstrike, guerrilla, policeactions against members of our organisation, May 1, demonstrations etc. Hasta la Victoria Siempre! -- Devrimci Halk Kurtulus Cephesi (Revolutionary Peoples Liberation Front) DHKC Informationbureau Amsterdam http://www.ozgurluk.org/dhkc List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu Fri Nov 28 05:00:53 1997 From: kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu (kurd-l at burn.ucsd.edu) Date: 28 Nov 1997 05:00:53 Subject: DHKC Movies Online Message-ID: From: Arm The Spirit For your information: We have uploaded 13 MPEG movies about the revolutionary struggle in Turkey. The descriptions are not there yet, but they will appear very soon. The movies deal with topics such as the 1996 hungerstrike, the guerrilla, police actions against members of our organization, May Day demonstrations, etc. Hasta la Victoria Siempre! Revolutionary People's Liberation Front (DHKC) DHKC Information Bureau - Amsterdam http://www.ozgurluk.org/dhkc From sfop at mech.gla.ac.uk Fri Nov 28 16:59:20 1997 From: sfop at mech.gla.ac.uk (sfop at mech.gla.ac.uk) Date: 28 Nov 1997 16:59:20 Subject: Information Bulletin Message-ID: From: "ihr.eth" Received: (from sfop at localhost sender sfop) by trebino.mech.gla.ac.uk (8.7.5/UK-2.2a/mech-sparc) id QAA29856; Fri, 28 Nov 1997 16:44:41 GMT Information Bulletin Scottish Friends of Palestine On November 29th 1947 the United Nations, in its wisdom, adopted a resolution resulting in the eventual partition of the land of Palestine. From that point onwards the British presence and control over events in Palestine dwindled, until the British Mandate came to an end on May 15th 1948. During this period of time, and beyond, the Jewish Zionist colonisers, who from the time of the Balfour Declaration had firmly entrenched themselves on land, fought a bitter battle against both the British and Palestinian Arab presence in Palestine. It resulted in the eventual permanent expulsion of approxiametly 800 000 Palestinians from their homeland, the destruction and demolition of over 400 Palestinian villages. This took place together with the plunder and acquisition of Arab houses, private property, bank accounts and business concerns. Actions which were given a legal gloss in the immediate aftermath of the foundation of the Israeli state. In the coming months, Israel will, understandably, be celebrating her achieve- ments together with the 50th anniversary of her "independence". At the same time the Palestinian nation will be commemorating the 50th anniversary of al-Nakba- the catastrophe. Tens of thousands will be remembering the day they were either driven away from their homes to escape the fighting and the threat of death. Many, 50 years ago, thought they were leaving only for a few days, to return after the fighting receded. Few, if any, thought that it would turn out to be an interminable exile, with their homes either being demolished or occupied by strangers. This aspect of the struggle to establish and enlarge the State of Israel will, also understandably, be ignored by Israel and her friends .She will choose to ignore the catastrophe which her actions invited, and continue to invite, on the heads of Palestinian people. Actions, which by any definition of the word, can only be summed up as "genocide". At that point of time, with the ending of World War II, the Palestinians became the "victims of the victims". Scottish Friends of Palestine regard it as imperative that the events which befell the Palestinian people are not ignored. An understanding of the events is crucial to any understanding of the present and any sorting out of the future. Many people in Israel are ignorant of the foundations of their state [See "By Dint of whitewash not Confusion: The portrayal of the Arab-Israeli History and Civics Textbooks, 1955-95" Eli Podeh Gileston Peace Publn 1997 (Hebrew)]. Many friends of Israel are likewise ignorant . many simply do not understand why the Middle East has turned out to be the cauldron we saw yesterday, see to-day and predict for tomorrow. For the Palestinian people who either live under a still brutal military occupation, as refugees in surrounding Arab states or as citizens in their adopted country, current events must rekindle any latent anger. In recent weeks the sanctity of UN resolutions has been trumpeted throughout the media, worldwide with regard to Iraq. If the same resolve , with regard to UN resolutions, had been observed over the past 50 years in the pursuit of Palestinian rights then the Middle East would be a totally different place today. It is the intention of Scottish Friends of Palestine, in the coming year to email a variety of adresses, including your own. These will attempt to redress the balance with regard to anticipated Israeli and possibly unitended, pro- Zionist tendencies within the media. These emails will seek to provide information to those bodies who , aware of the contradictions implicit within Israel's celebrations, could be at a loss as to how to respond. We hope the information will be valued and used by all recipients. If you do not wish to receive this information, please reply to this email. For those who would argue that it is best to try and bury the past , they must answer the question as to why it is only the Palestinian past which should be buried. As it is , the much acclaimed but slowly disintegrating Oslo peace accord between Israel and the PLO was a mechanism for burying the past with regard to the 1948 exiles. If ever implemented, Oslo will consign the fate of these 1948 exiles ,and their children , to the distant future. Israel prefers to pretend that they do not exist and consider that they certainly have no claims on the land from which they were expelled half a century ago. To undertsand current events there must be an understanding and appreciation of those past events which affected hundreds of thousands of innocent Palestinians . The reality of the catastrophic events which overtook the Palestinian nation 50 years ago is the mirror image of the the celebrations about to be launched by the State of Israel. Without the catastrophe there would be no celebration. Without a measure of justice being offered to the Palestinian people there will be no lasting peace in the Middle East. Information Bulletin Scottish Friends of Palestine email sfop at mech.gla.ac.uk From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sat Nov 29 21:16:52 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 29 Nov 1997 21:16:52 Subject: Turkey found guilty of "burning villages in the Southeast" Message-ID: Nov 29, 1997 Turkey again found guilty by European court Turkish Daily News Ankara - The European Court of Human Rights on Friday again found Turkey guilty on charges of "burning villages in the Southeast," the Anatolia news agency reported. Villagers from the Saggoze village applied to the Human Right Commission in 1993, accusing Turkey of burning their houses. Meanwhile, the European Court of Human Rights will discuss the result of the case concerning Greek Cypriot citizen Titina Loizidou. Turkey's refusal to pay compensation to Loizidou, despite a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, has led to new problems between Turkey and the European Council. Turkey refused to pay the fine, saying that it would not accept any responsibility for an incident which took place out of its territory. -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sat Nov 29 21:16:56 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 29 Nov 1997 21:16:56 Subject: NATO, PFP members to hold joint military exercise in Istanbul! Message-ID: 29 Nov. 1997 NATO, PFP members to hold joint military exercise in Istanbul next month _________________________________________________________________ Turkish Daily News Ankara - Members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and participants in the Alliance's Partnership for Peace (PFP) program will hold a joint military exercise between Dec. 1-5 in Istanbul, military sources told the Turkish Daily News on Friday. Forces from NATO members Turkey, Portugal and the United States, along with troops from PFP participants Albania, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Hungary, Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Poland, Romania and Ukraine, will take part in the exercise, named Cooperative Demand '97 (CD-97). The major aim of the exercise will be to train NATO and PFP commanders and headquarter personnel in preventing confrontation with units with different military equipment, organization and doctrine, the sources said. In order to create a common understanding of PFP's Operation to Support Peace concept and improve the harmony between different military systems, the training will also include procedure drills for headquarter personnel on the execution of humanitarian assistance by multinational forces. Turkish Brig Gen. Mehmet Karatas, the operational bureau chief of NATO's LANDSOUTHEAST command, and Brig Gen. Suleyman Canpolat, the 66th Armored Brigade Commander, will be the directors of the exercise, the sources stated. NATO's Partnership for Peace program was designed to fill a security vacuum in Europe after the collapse of communism. The NATO allies want to upgrade PFP to help smooth the ruffled feathers of countries which will fail to gain membership to the Alliance next year. _________________________________________________________________ -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl From english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl Sun Nov 30 16:58:43 1997 From: english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl (english at ozgurlluk.xs4all.nl) Date: 30 Nov 1997 16:58:43 Subject: NYT: Talking in Turkey: Dissent in a land of contradictions Message-ID: http://www.nytimes.com/library/review/113097 ----- _________________________________________________________________ TALKING IN TURKEY: DISSENT IN A LAND OF CONTRADICTIONS _________________________________________________________________ The New York Times November 30, 1997 By STEPHEN KINZER ISTANBUL, Turkey -- A new prison drama opened here recently to a packed house, and by the time the premiere performance ended, more than a few of the spectators were in tears as they stood to applaud. At one point in the play the lead character, a blind and bearded chain-smoker, says to a fellow inmate, "Sometimes I wonder whether the people doing this to us are human or whether they are totally oblivious to the people around them." "Whatever they do," his friend replies, "it's fear that makes them do it." The play is remarkable not just for its trenchant treatment of human rights issues, but because it was written by the lawyer and social critic Esber Yagmurdereli, who happens to be a blind and bearded chain-smoker with long experience in Turkish prisons. Yagmurdereli was recently sentenced to another long jail term, but he was released after a wave of foreign and domestic criticism. For years a faceless prisoner, Yagmurdereli has suddenly become the most prominent figure in the human rights firmament here. In a situation that recalls the more highly publicized experiences of China's dissidents, his case reflects some of the contradictions of Turkish politics. Western governments criticize rights abuses in Turkey, but continue selling weapons to the security forces. Critics openly damn the regime, but are often brought to trial for doing so. Prisoners, including those convicted of aiding terrorism, are freed when foreign pressure demands it. Yagmurdereli's release, for example, came as the European Union was reviewing Turkey's application for membership and as Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz was preparing to visit Germany and the United States. Officials said they were releasing him because he was in poor health, but as he walked out of jail he told reporters, "I have not been given a medical examination as far as I know." "What I want is that my ideas be regarded as true or false, rather than as useful or harmful," he said. "Expression of one's thoughts is still an offense in Turkey. My release in this way does not mean the problem has been eliminated, and I will continue my struggle to resolve this problem as long as it exists." In Turkey as in other countries where human rights are at issue, protesters and their foreign supporters have always found it useful to single out a figure who crystallizes the debate. Journalists concerned about press restrictions here picked the jailed editor Ocak Isik Yurtcu last summer, and soon after they began organizing international protests on his behalf, he was released. Campaigners against jailhouse torture have seized on the cases of Metin Goktepe, a journalist who died in police custody in 1996. In Washington, pro-Kurdish activists are staging a hunger strike not just for Kurds in general, but specifically to win the freedom of a prominent Kurdish firebrand, Leyla Zana, a member of the Turkish Parliament who was stripped of her seat in 1994 and then jailed on charges of supporting terrorism. Yagmurdereli, who lost his sight as a child, was sentenced to death in 1978 after being convicted of directing a terrorist cell. His sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment, which in Turkey is equivalent to 35 years. He served more than 13 years, seven of them in solitary confinement, before being paroled in 1991. Although terms of his parole meant that he would have to serve the remainder of his sentence if he committed another crime, he nonetheless threw himself back into political activity. He helped form a left-leaning party and organized a campaign to gather one million signatures protesting the war against Kurdish separatists in southeast Turkey. Inevitably the justice system finally caught up with Yagmurdereli again. He was convicted of encouraging separatism and sentenced to a year in prison, plus the nearly 22 years remaining on his previous life sentence. He had served just three weeks when the Government bowed to foreign pressure earlier this month and suspended his sentence for one year, a highly unusual if not unique maneuver. Turkish rightists were furious. "Yagmurdereli is a sheer terrorist, not a human rights figure or anything like that," said Altemur Kilic, a conservative politician and columnist. "The government is showing its weakness by releasing him." Turkey is in a unique position among the world's human rights violators. In many ways it is a free and open society. It considers itself pro-Western and is a valued member of the NATO alliance. Precisely these aspects of Turkish society encourage writers, politicians, and journalists to challenge the state in ways that would be unthinkable in Iran or Iraq, Burma or Belarus, Cuba or Kenya, Syria or Sudan. But in doing so, they confront a power structure that fears that open discussion of issues like Kurdish identity will encourage separatist terrorism. Like many of Turkey's problems, the human rights dilemma has its roots in the Kurdish southeast. Military commanders and their civilian supporters insist there can be no serious change in military and police tactics, or in laws restricting freedom of speech, until the war there is over. But the war itself is fueled by resentment over those tactics and laws. Although European countries have condemned Turkey's human rights record, its strategy in the southeast and specifically its imprisonment of Yagmurdereli, the United States has been more cautious. A strong coalition in Washington, led by powerful Greek, Armenian and pro-Kurdish lobbies, presses for action against Turkey, but successive administrations have blocked it on the grounds that Turkey's strategic position is too valuable. Turkish human rights leaders are not impressed when foreign governments urge Turkey to improve its human rights record, and they were unmoved by German, French and British appeals on behalf of Yagmurdereli. "As long as these countries sell weapons to Turkey, they don't have the right to say anything about human rights here," said Nadire Mater, who has been active in many human rights campaigns. "These public statements are like a game. A government says something or makes some protest, but at the same time these governments are selling weapons which are used to carry out the violations. That is not being serious." Copyright 1997 The New York Times Company -- Press Agency Ozgurluk For justice, democracy and human rights in Turkey and Kurdistan! Website: http://www.ozgurluk.org mailto:ozgurluk at xs4all.nl mailinglists: petidomo at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl List info: english-request at ozgurluk.xs4all.nl