DATE=10/29/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=TURKEY / KURDS (L ONLY)
NUMBER=2-255609
BYLINE=AMBERIN ZAMAN
DATELINE=ANKARA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: More members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers
Party, or P-K-K, have surrendered to Turkish
authorities. Amberin Zaman in Ankara reports that the
latest surrender is seen as a move by the P-K-K to
show that its imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, is
serious about making peace.
TEXT: The eight P-K-K members were whisked away by
police after their arrival at Istanbul's airport.
The group was led by a member of the P-K-K's political
wing, Haydar Ergul. In a news conference in Brussels
on Thursday, Mr. Ergul said his group had timed its
surrender to coincide with Republic Day celebrations
in Turkey to prove its commitment to Turkey's unity.
Earlier this month another such "peace mission" led by
the P-K-K's former European spokesman, Ali Sapan,
surrendered to Turkish authorities at the Iraqi-
Turkish frontier. That group was arrested and its
members now face trial on charges of promoting
separatism.
The P-K-K members began surrendering in response to a
call from their leader, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been
trying to present himself as a peacemaker since his
capture by Turkish agents in Kenya last February.
A Turkish court tried, convicted and sentenced Mr.
Ocalan to death on treason charges. The P-K-K
leader's appeal is being reviewed by a Turkish court,
which is due to deliver its opinion November 25th.
So far, Turkish officials have rejected Mr. Ocalan's
peace initiatives, which include ordering his
guerrillas to withdraw from Turkish territory and to
end their 15-year armed struggle for Kurdish self-
rule. Turkish officials dismiss the peace moves as no
more than an attempt to prevent Mr. Ocalan's
execution.
In a statement issued through his lawyers Friday,
Ocalan rejected those claims. He said his P-K-K
guerrillas had targeted what he called the "oligarchic
republic," not the hoped-for "democratic republic" in
which the Kurds of southeastern Turkey could become
peaceful and productive citizens.
Analysts say the P-K-K leader is trying to position
himself and his movement in time for a meeting of the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
which will be held in Istanbul next month. Human
rights will be a key topic at the meeting.
Turkey continues to reject any negotiations with the
P-K-K, which it considers a "terrorist group." In
addition, the Turkish army is keeping up its pressure
on the P-K-K rebels inside Turkey as well as the
Kurdish-controlled region of northern Iraq, where the
P-K-K has numerous bases.
Still, there are signs the Turkish government may be
easing its policy toward Kurdish groups it considers
non-violent - notably the pro-Kurdish People's
Democracy Party that won elections in a number of
municipalities in southeast Turkey last April.
Turkish President Suleyman Demirel met with the
Kurdish mayors in Ankara last month in a move that has
been widely seen as recognition of their party's
legitimacy.
Even so, opponents are accusing the People's
Democratic Party of acting as the political wing of
the P-K-K. That claim got support this week when Mr.
Ocalan's brother, Osman, was quoted as saying the
party could not act independently of the P-K-K's
wishes. (Signed)
NEB/AZ/JWH/LTD/JP
29-Oct-1999 09:45 AM EDT (29-Oct-1999 1345 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
