16 May 2005

1. "Europe signals Turkey: Retry Abdullah Ocalan", the Turks often complain that because they are Middle Eastern Muslims, Europe is making them jump through many more hoops than any other candidate for membership in the European Union. There is some merit to that complaint, but there is no denying the fairness of the latest hoop that went up - that Turkey at last provide a fair trial to the Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan.

2. "Turkey weighs response to call for Kurd leader's retrial", European court puts Ankara's quest to join EU in possible peril.

3. "Öcalan case: a litmus test for Turkey’s EU ambitions", the EU signals that Turkey’s handling of the Europan court's advice to retry outlawed PKK leader Öcalan will test the candidate country’s commitment to implement EU-inspired rights reforms.

4. "Anxiety eases over initial reactions to Öcalan retrial ruling", contrary to what was expected, the opposition has not tried to exploit the issue and nor have nationalist hard-liners taken to the streets for violent protests.

5. "Ocalan may spoil Turkey's EU dream", the politics of Europe, its conventions and code of conduct is too often in unadorned, impenetrable prose. But, there is an inescapable poetry about the European chain of events that have suddenly recalled to public view Abdullah Ocalan, the Kurdish firebrand who led a bloody war against the Turkish state and was jailed in 1999.

6. "Syrian Kurds rally at trial of activists", hundreds of demonstrators rallied outside Syria’s feared state security court Sunday chanting for freedom and demanding an end to the 42-year-old state of emergency.

1. - International Herhald Tribune - "Europe signals Turkey: Retry Abdullah Ocalan":

15 May 2005

The Turks often complain that because they are Middle Eastern Muslims, Europe is making them jump through many more hoops than any other candidate for membership in the European Union. There is some merit to that complaint, but there is no denying the fairness of the latest hoop that went up - that Turkey at last provide a fair trial to the Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan.

The question now is whether Turkish leaders will comply with last week's confirmation by the European Court of Human Rights of its ruling two years ago that Ocalan's 1999 trial was not fairly conducted. Ocalan, who led a separatist rebellion in which at least 30,000 people died, is serving a life sentence for treason.

It is not unfair to watch closely how Turkey responds. Turkey had offered many excuses for not taking care of this obvious problem. It argued that the ruling by the Strasbourg court was largely procedural and that its rulings are not binding. It noted that the tyrannical system of state security courts in which Ocalan was originally tried for "treason through separatism" have since been scrapped, and his original death sentence was commuted when Turkey abolished the death penalty in 2002 in line with EU requirements.

But Turkey's handling of the long-standing yearnings for autonomy of its Kurdish minority is one of the central issues on which its progress on human rights will be judged.

A new and fair trial for a man so reviled by most Turks would be a notable achievement. Under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the country has been trying, even if fitfully, to improve its levels of democracy and human rights. We hope that Erdogan will show his government can properly handle a case that arouses such intense emotions.

The Turks often complain that because they are Middle Eastern Muslims, Europe is making them jump through many more hoops than any other candidate for membership in the European Union. There is some merit to that complaint, but there is no denying the fairness of the latest hoop that went up - that Turkey at last provide a fair trial to the Kurdish nationalist leader Abdullah Ocalan.

The question now is whether Turkish leaders will comply with last week's confirmation by the European Court of Human Rights of its ruling two years ago that Ocalan's 1999 trial was not fairly conducted. Ocalan, who led a separatist rebellion in which at least 30,000 people died, is serving a life sentence for treason.

It is not unfair to watch closely how Turkey responds. Turkey had offered many excuses for not taking care of this obvious problem. It argued that the ruling by the Strasbourg court was largely procedural and that its rulings are not binding. It noted that the tyrannical system of state security courts in which Ocalan was originally tried for "treason through separatism" have since been scrapped, and his original death sentence was commuted when Turkey abolished the death penalty in 2002 in line with EU requirements.

But Turkey's handling of the long-standing yearnings for autonomy of its Kurdish minority is one of the central issues on which its progress on human rights will be judged.

A new and fair trial for a man so reviled by most Turks would be a notable achievement. Under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the country has been trying, even if fitfully, to improve its levels of democracy and human rights. We hope that Erdogan will show his government can properly handle a case that arouses such intense emotions.

The Turks often complain that because they are Middle Eastern Muslims, Europe is making them jump through many more hoops than any other candidate for membership in the European Union. There is some merit to that complaint, but there is no denying the fairness of the latest hoop that went up - that Turkey at last provide a fair trial to the Kurdish nationalist leader Abdullah Ocalan.

The question now is whether Turkish leaders will comply with last week's confirmation by the European Court of Human Rights of its ruling two years ago that Ocalan's 1999 trial was not fairly conducted. Ocalan, who led a separatist rebellion in which at least 30,000 people died, is serving a life sentence for treason.

It is not unfair to watch closely how Turkey responds. Turkey had offered many excuses for not taking care of this obvious problem. It argued that the ruling by the Strasbourg court was largely procedural and that its rulings are not binding. It noted that the tyrannical system of state security courts in which Ocalan was originally tried for "treason through separatism" have since been scrapped, and his original death sentence was commuted when Turkey abolished the death penalty in 2002 in line with EU requirements.

But Turkey's handling of the long-standing yearnings for autonomy of its Kurdish minority is one of the central issues on which its progress on human rights will be judged.

A new and fair trial for a man so reviled by most Turks would be a notable achievement. Under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the country has been trying, even if fitfully, to improve its levels of democracy and human rights. We hope that Erdogan will show his government can properly handle a case that arouses such intense emotions.

2. - Chicago Tribune - "Turkey weighs response to call for Kurd leader's retrial":

European court puts Ankara's quest to join EU in possible peril

DIYARBAKIR / 14 May 2005 / by Catherine Collins

More than a thousand people met in the heart of Diyarbakir on Friday to demonstrate support for jailed Kurdish separatist leader Abdullah Ocalan a day after Europe's top human-rights court said he deserves a new trial.

Chanting "Long live leader Ocalan" in Kurdish, about 1,500 supporters demonstrated peacefully in the unofficial capital of Turkey's 15 million- to 20-million Kurds. Heavily armed soldiers and police watched from alleys and side streets.

"Some nations consider Ocalan a terrorist, but many Kurdish people still feel a connection to this man," said Firat Anli, a city official.

Turkish government leaders said the country's judiciary would decide how to respond to the European court's call for a new trial for Ocalan, who is blamed by Turkey for causing the deaths of tens of thousands of people during 15 years of conflict in this region.

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, who earlier said Ocalan would receive the same guilty verdict if tried 100 times, told reporters Thursday that the decision would be "in line with the Turkish constitution and international agreements to which Turkey is a party."

Most political observers said Turkey has little choice but to give Ocalan another trial. Its bid for European Union membership hinges on being perceived as reforming a spotty human-rights record, and rebuffing the court would be a black eye.

The European Court of Human Rights ruling said Turkey had violated international treaties by restricting Ocalan's contact with his lawyers after his arrest in 1999 and by permitting a military officer to take part in the initial stages of his trial.

He was convicted of treason and sentenced to death, but the punishment was changed to life in prison when Turkey abolished the death penalty in response to EU demands. He has been the solitary prisoner on an island in the Sea of Marmara since his conviction.

Ocalan's capture in Kenya led to a cease-fire between the army and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. But sporadic fighting in recent weeks has sparked concerns about the possibility of renewed violence on a larger scale.

Few people expect the verdict would be different the second time around. In his first trial, Ocalan confessed to his role in the conflict.

"Any legal system in the world would condemn a man like him, who has confessed his sins," said Ankara University political scientist Dogu Ergil. "But there is no doubt some people still look at him as a leader."

There are concerns that the trial could produce new tensions. Turkey's powerful generals have made no effort to hide their contempt for another trial, creating fears of a backlash against Kurds and rising nationalism.

Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, chief of Turkey's land forces, said the European court's decision was politically motivated.

"You get a crooked result when you issue a political decision on a legal matter," he said Thursday, according to the Associated Press.

Human-rights advocates and Kurdish leaders said they hoped Turkey's courts would make the decision but they expressed concern over the impact of statements by the generals and politicians. They said such comments could damage the relative peace that has prevailed in the southeastern part of the country over the past six years.

"Statements by Gul and the general staff not only could prejudice the court but could cause racist attacks against Kurds," said Reyhan Yalcindag, vice president of the non-governmental Human Rights Association in Diyarbakir.

Mesut Bestas, chairman of the Diyarbakir branch of the Kurdish-oriented political party Dehap, said he does not expect a fairer trial for Ocalan.

"Government officials and high-ranking military officers have already made their views clear, and because of that I see little possibility of a fair trial," he said.

3. - Turkish Daily News - "Öcalan case: a litmus test for Turkey’s EU ambitions":

The EU signals that Turkey’s handling of the Europan court's advice to retry outlawed PKK leader Öcalan will test the candidate country’s commitment to implement EU-inspired rights reforms

ANKARA / 15 May 2005 / by Elif Unal Arslan

To keep Turkey on the right track for eventual European Union membership, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government will have no choice but to accede to last week's European court ruling that recommended the retrial of the imprisoned leader of outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan.

The European Court of Human Rights, a body of the Council of Europe, of which Turkey is a member, declared the 1999 trial of Öcalan to be unfair and advised Ankara to give Öcalan a retrial or reopen his case. The court itself is not a part of the EU, but the implementation of its decisions is a significant hallmark for a country's human rights records.

Ahead of a December EU summit at which Turkey won an Oct. 3 date to initiate entry talks, Erdogan's administration gained considerable popularity in Europe for passing sweeping reforms through Parliament. Among such reforms included the allowance of education and broadcasting in languages other than Turkish.

Since December, however, Ankara has come under severe criticism by the bloc for a slump in its reform efforts.

EU to monitor Öcalan decision execution:

In the eyes of Europe, Turkey needs to maintain improvements in its human rights record as part of other reform efforts in order to make headway on a bumpy road toward the EU. Turkey's full membership to the bloc is due take at least 10 years. Throwing the ball into Ankara's court regarding the Öcalan case, Europe is now signaling that it sees Turkey's handling of the European court decision as a litmus test for its commitment to EU entry.

"The European Court of Human Rights is a core European institution and a fundamental implementer of human rights regulations and the rule of law. It is evident Turkey will have to comply," said EU Enlargement Commissioner Ollie Rehn.

European Commission spokesman Amadeu Altafaj Tardi said the executive body of the EU closely monitored the follow-through of all the court's decisions. “This also a part of the implementation of the Copenhagen criteria [for EU membership], so it is very important for us, so it's reflected in every annual report on Turkey,” said Tardi.

Better sooner than later:

The EU Commission later this year is due to release a progress report assessing Turkish efforts to meet entry criteria. Erdogan's government is likely to suffer a blow by Brussels in ties with the EU if it falters in displaying that it is complying with the European court decision on Öcalan.

“From a political point of view, we expect Turkey to hold a new trial that will be fair and independent,” said Vittorio Emanuele Agnoletto, a member of the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee. “The timing will be fundamentally important.”

Turkish officials seem to rely on the likelihood that the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers, which will supervise the execution of the Öcalan verdict, may delay handling the matter for about a year.

The Erdogan government may tend to use such a period of time to ease pressure at home by opposition parties, ultranationalists and the state establishment, which united in dismissing the court verdict as political.

Some observers, however, say it is better for the government to act sooner rather than later in line with the court ruling since any tardiness perceived by the EU could be played as a trump card by the anti-Turkey camp within the bloc.

Turkey has already amended its Constitution to establish the superiority of European court rulings over domestic court decisions. But a subsequent amendment to relevant laws has blocked a retrial for 90 cases, including that of Öcalan. The government may need to make further amendments to make way for the retrial as recommended by the European court.

4. - Turkish Daily News - "Anxiety eases over initial reactions to Öcalan retrial ruling":

Contrary to what was expected, the opposition has not tried to exploit the issue and nor have nationalist hard-liners taken to the streets for violent protests

ANKARA / 15 May 2005 / by Kemal Saydamer

Initial reactions in Turkey appear to have doused fears of a possible nationalist backlash following a European Court of Human Rights ruling that imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Abdullah Öcalan was not granted a fair trial.

Everyone expected the flames of Turkish and Kurdish nationalism to be fanned and that social tension would heighten. Indeed, some foreign observers expected demonstrations in some areas of the country. Furthermore, many people feared a repeat of events such as those that occurred in Trabzon, where a flag desecration incident and the subsequent lynching attempt of four leftist activists made the news recently. Fortunately, no such repeat has occurred.

Important early stages overcome

The possibility of large-scale protests and disorder had reduced considerably by the end of the initial stages of the announcement. The stance of the opposition regarding the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government remained neatly within the limits of acceptable criticism. Contrary to what the West expected, everyone was making commonsense statements.

A legal and technical issue

Meanwhile, it was, however, expected that more radical groups within the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) would criticize MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli, but they made no such move. As for now, common sense is expected to prevail in the country.

Henceforth, the issue must be handled from a purely legal point of view. The danger of damaging tensions will gradually diminish if certain elements do not act rashly.

AKP wants to handle the issue quickly

The AKP government is not seen as searching to escape from its responsibilities on the issue. On the contrary, its mentality is to finally close the whole issue by the retrial. The Foreign Ministry has stated unequivically that Turkey must abide by the ruling of the European Union's top human rights court if it does not want to experience the consequences of not doing so.

Possible forthcoming scenarios:

Öcalan's lawyers can apply to the 11th Ankara High Criminal Court -- which replaced the now-defunct State Security Court (DGM) -- over the case. The Council of Europe's committee of ministers has issued a warning to Turkey that it must abide by the ruling of the EU court.

The opening phase of the procedure is that the Ankara court will pave the way for a retrial by abiding by Article 90 of the Constitution, which rules that international law supersedes domestic law -- such as the Turkish Penal Code's (TCK) article that currently excludes the possibility of any retrial for Öcalan.

Another scenario is that the local court could reject the retrial of Öcalan with a ruling by the domestic legislature. However, Öcalan's lawyers could appeal to the Istanbul High Criminal Court to overrule this decision. Then the high court could either rule to retry Öcalan, or the case would come on the agenda of the Justice Ministry. Justice Minister Hüseyin Çelik could appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeals and demand Öcalan's retrial.

Another possible scenario is that the issue could be brought before the Constitutional Court, which could rule that Turkey abide by the European Convention on Human Rights and pave the way for Öcalan's retrial.

5. - The Times of India - "Ocalan may spoil Turkey's EU dream":

14 May 2005 / by Rashmee Roshan Lall

The politics of Europe, its conventions and code of conduct is too often in unadorned, impenetrable prose. But, there is an inescapable poetry about the European chain of events that have suddenly recalled to public view Abdullah Ocalan, the Kurdish firebrand who led a bloody war against the Turkish state and was jailed in 1999.

There is a poetic charm about the seascape that imprisons Ocalan. Fast within the waters of the Sea of Marmara, he lives in solitary splendour on his island prison of Imrali. The Sea of Marmara is an inland strip of water that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean, thus separating Turkey’s Asian landmass from its protruding European finger.

Ocalan’s imprisonment just there, at that particular cartographical confluence, has a certain poetic justice. For, he, more than any one else in Turkey, has suddenly come to represent the sum and substance of 40 years of Turkish striving to join the European Union (EU).

On Thursday, Europe called for justice for Ocalan, insisting on a re-trial, a fair shot at freedom. Ankara is suspicious and mutinous, but must drag itself before the bar of the European court of public and political opinion yet again, or face rejection by Brussels.

After decades of striving to underline its European "values" and assert its geographical and cultural "right" to join the rich man’s club, Turkey faces the prospect of being thwarted by the man it has always held to be public enemy number one. Through the 15 years that Ocalan’s Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) mounted a guerrilla struggle against the Turkish Army, NATO’s second largest, he was portrayed as a blood-thirsty killer fanatically dedicated to dividing and destroying the Turkish republic. Now, unwittingly and by default, that may come true if Turkey’s hopes of joining the EU wither and die because it won’t bend the knee to Brussels.

No one is under any illusion that Europe might be heartily relieved were Turkey to declare its reluctance to play by European rules over Ocalan. Four months from now, Turkey is to begin long-cherished accession talks with the EU. Rejecting the European Court of Human Rights’ ruling on Ocalan would signal that Turkey is just not European enough to respect the rights of political prisoners. Europe would feel it is probably right to be ambivalent about taking Turkey into its privileged Christian club of civilised nations. Turkey would have effectively blackballed itself.

There is one other element of poetic justice. At his high-security trial on Imrali island, back in October 1999, Ocalan had recanted, offering to call off his guerrillas and turn the PKK into a civilian political party loyal to the Turkish republic. Ocalan’s words, which caused shock and anger among Kurds, were hailed by European diplomats as "a great chance for the state (of Turkey)". But at least one European observer at the trial admitted it was "hard to imagine them taking it (because) compromising with an enemy you’ve been fighting and denouncing so fiercely for so long runs against something that’s very deeply ingrained in this part of the world. Then too, Ocalan had managed to position Turkey as the political antipode of Europe.

It would be ludicrous if it were not quite so serious. But perhaps the getting Ocalan or getting Europe question is not quite so poetic after all. It is something of a burlesque, a grotesque exaggeration of an amazing piece of political theatre.

6. - AFP - "Syrian Kurds rally at trial of activists":

DAMASCUS / 15 May 2005

Hundreds of demonstrators rallied outside Syria’s feared state security court Sunday chanting for freedom and demanding an end to the 42-year-old state of emergency.

"Long live liberty," the protestors chanted in both Arabic and Kurdish as the trials of three Kurdish activists got underway. "We want democracy," "End the emergency laws".

The authorities dispatched around 15 riot police to the courthouse but they did not intervene.

Placards brandished by the demonstrators demanded the release of political prisoners, many of them members of Syria’s 1.5 million-strong Kurdish minority.

Pictures of Kurdish cleric Sheikh Mohammed Mashuq al-Jaznawi figured prominently. The sheikh has not been seen since he left the Islamic Studies Centre in Damascus on Tuesday, said rights lawyer Anwar Bunni.

As the demonstration unfolded outside, the state security court jailed one Kurdish activist and adjourned the trials of two others.

Abdul Rahman Mahmud Ali of the mainly Turkish-based Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) was sentenced to two years for "membership of an underground organization seeking to annex Syrian territory to another country," Bunni told

The PKK, which waged a bloody campaign for self-rule in Kurdish regions of southeastern Turkey from 1984 to 1999, once championed a state encompassing all Kurdish-inhabited territory, including northern Syria, although it has since moderated its line.

The court adjourned until June 19 the trial of another Kurdish activist -- Shevan Abdo -- detained more than a year ago following clashes with security forces and Arab auxiliaries in March last year.

The court adjourned until next Sunday the case of Mahmud Ali Mohammad, an official in the Kurdish Al-Wahda party who was also arrested last year.

Bunni hit out at the the continued use of the security court, whose verdicts cannot be appealed, for trying political activists.

"Despite all their claims, the Syrian authorities are continuing to use the security services and this illegitimate court to repress society and political parties," the rights lawyer said.

Kurdish activists say they have been hit by a fresh wave of arrests in recent weeks after the major crackdown of last year.

"This new wave of arrests ... flies in the face of the amnesty for 312 Kurdish prisoners announced by President (Bashar al-Assad) on March 30," the leader of the Kurdish Yakiti party, Hassen Saleh, told Al-Arabiya television Thursday.

"Despite the amnesty, more than 100 Kurds detained in last year’s crackdown remain in jail," Saleh said.

The Kurds, who make up around nine percent of Syria’s largely Arab population, have been campaigning for recognition of their language and respect for their civil rights.