13
February 2007
1. "Strong Call for Removal of Article 301", 100 NGO's and 20 000 signees join the petition by IHOP that call for the removal of the notorious article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. Freedom of expression should only be restrained on accounts of racism, discrimination and call for violence, it said.
2. "Dissident Writer Once Again Faces Trial", General Staff's "secret" criminal complaint results in a trial for Ismail Besikci on accounts of "propulsion to violence and hatred". Known for his dissident opinions on the Kurdish issue Besikci's article appeared on Esmer magazine, December 2005 issue.
3. "Demirel: Deep state is the military", implications of gang activity in the state, murder and illegal deeds are nothing but efforts to harm the image of the state, and what is called the “deep state” amounts to nothing more than the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) taking over the administration of the country three times since 1960 on grounds that the state was brought to the brink of collapse, the "dean" of Turkish politics has said.
4. "Police on high alert for anniversary of PKK chieftain Öcalan’s capture", the Turkish police department is on high alert because Feb.15 will be the eighth anniversary of the capture of the leader of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, and his being brought to Turkey.
5. "Operation initiated Kurdish Rebels in Turkey's Tunceli", the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) launched a wide-scale operation against members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) who are taking refuge in the city of Tunceli to pass the winter.
6. "Opportunity For Turks And Kurds?", whatever happens in Iraq, we must try to limit the terrible fallout from the war. The place to start should be with our indispensable NATO ally Turkey, the front-line state of the post-Cold War era, whose relations with the United States have deteriorated dramatically in the past six years.
1. - Bianet - "Strong Call for Removal of Article 301":
100 NGO's and 20 000 signees join the petition by IHOP that call for the removal of the notorious article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. Freedom of expression should only be restrained on accounts of racism, discrimination and call for violence, it said.
ISTANBUL / 12 February 2007
The Joint Platform on Human Rights (IHOP) established by six NGO's working on the field declared a draft reform proposal for the notorious article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code.
20 thousand signees and 100 NGO's appended to the proposal which demands the removal of the article.
"This article, which led to unacceptable consequences regarding freedom of expression and freedom of the press should be removed to reestablish social peace and give way to full implementation of the freedom of expression in the country".
Following Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink's assassination on January 19, the debate on the already controversial article heightened. Dink himself was convicted of "insulting Turkishness" on one account and more than 60 journalists and writers stood trial with regard to the article.
Despite promises of reform on the article by several government members, the article yet remains to be changed. Another 10 NGO's, mainly business and economy circles also released a reform proposal last week, which only foresees a deduction of penalties and a slight change of wording of the article.
IHOP lists the reasons for the removal of the article as follows:
* With regard to its content, Article 301 is an outdated embodiment that deifies and protects the state and its institutions in the face of its citizens.
* The application of such is an unacceptable violation of human rights.
* Penalization of the act of "insulting" is in controversy with the general principle of the lawfulness of crimes and penalties.
* Freedom of expression should only be restrained on accounts of racism, discrimination and a direct call for violence.
Reminding that there are other articles in the Penal Code that are intended to penalize discrimination and creation of hostilities between groups of citizens, article 301 gives scope for an ambiguous discretionary power, the Platform said.
"As it is, the ambiguity of the article constitutes a threat to citizens' rights to freedom of expression".
IHOP is made up of the Helsinki Citizens' Assembly, Human
Rights Association, Association for Human Rights and Solidarity with
the Oppressed, Turkish Association of Human Rights, Amnesty International
Turkey Branch, Peace Initiative. 
2. - Bianet - "Dissident Writer Once Again Faces Trial":
General Staff's "secret" criminal complaint results in a trial for Ismail Besikci on accounts of "propulsion to violence and hatred". Known for his dissident opinions on the Kurdish issue Besikci's article appeared on Esmer magazine, December 2005 issue.
ISTANBUL / 12 Febriary 2007 / by Erol Onderoglu
Sociolog Ismail Besikci, known for his dissident opinions on the Kurdish issue faces trial for his article titled "We Oppressed Instead of Talking" which appeared on Esmer magazine.
Esmer owner Ferzende Kaya and editor-in-chief Mehmet Ali Izmir will also stand trial with Besikci on accounts of "propulsion to violence and hatred", as quoted on article 216 of the Turkish Penal Code.
Prosecution pressed charges following the investigation brought by General Staff's "secret" criminal complaint.
During the investigation, Prof. Mehmet Emin Artuk of Marmara University Law School denoted that Besikci's statements may constitute the alleged crime.
Prosecutor's indictment rests on this interpretation and Besikci and others' trial begins today with 4 and-a-half years of imprisonment.
Another article that appeared on the magazine, which harshly criticized Gen. Yasar Buyukanit didn't result in a trial following Prof. Arduk's counterview.
Ismail Besikci had faced numerous trials concerning his dissident opinions on the Kurdish issue in Turkey.
He had been in prison for years before a conditional discharge
in 1999.
3. - Turkish Daily News - "Demirel: Deep state is the military":
ANKARA / 12 February 2007 / by Yusuf Kanli and Göksel Bozkurt
Implications of gang activity in the state, murder and illegal deeds are nothing but efforts to harm the image of the state, and what is called the “deep state” amounts to nothing more than the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) taking over the administration of the country three times since 1960 on grounds that the state was brought to the brink of collapse, the "dean" of Turkish politics has said.
In an interview with the Turkish Daily News about the “deep state,” nationalism and the contentious Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) – the issues that have dominated Turkey's agenda since the Jan. 19 murder of Hrant Dink, the editor in chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly newspaper AGOS – former President Süleyman Demirel said the state cannot commit murder or engage in illegal activity. The veteran politician said nationalism was not something to be feared, though a nationalist understanding tainted with racism or based on skull measuring was something that scared him as well. He refuted claims that there were gangs operating within the state and that these gangs constituted the “deep state,” saying that the state cannot be allowed to engage in illegal activities. However, he said there was a sensitivity regarding the security of the state. If there was a deep state, it was the TSK, he said. Acting with that sensitivity and with the pretext provided by the Internal Service Law – the law that sets the guidelines for the duties and functions of the TSK – the TSK has intervened in state administration three times. He said apart from the TSK there was no power within the state that could undertake anything on behalf of the state.
‘Erdogan is wrong!'
Opposing demands to lift the contentious Article 301 that regulates penalties for insulting Turkishness, Demirel said, “Lifting 301 may lead to confrontation. Illegal paramilitary forces may step in. However, 301 may be amended in a manner that won't offend the people.” Demirel said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was wrong in his remarks on the “deep state” and gangs within the state. “I was extremely saddened by such remarks. He has been leading a government for the past five years. If he is convinced that there are gangs active within the state, he is expected to get rid of them. Now he says that ‘others did not get rid of them, how could I?' as if others ever said there were gangs within the state. We said there were no such gangs and naturally did not go after something which did not exist.”
Deep state is TSK
The former president said the state cannot exist outside the frame of law, cannot engage in murder and cannot be involved in illegal activities. “I have served 12 years as prime minister and seven years as the president of the republic. In these periods I have never received a claim that the state was involved in such things,” he said. Nevertheless, he said there was sensitivity in this country against an existential threat to the state. Excluding the military there is no other force in the state that has the power to touch the state. Otherwise, there can be any such element in the state with the ability to stage actions on behalf of the state.”
‘Skies will collapse on them'
Demirel said the wrong discussion was continuing in the country and people were engaged in “stoning ghosts.” He said the government and the security network of the country were obliged to track the criminals and bring them to justice rather than dispersing the guilt and engaging in petty polemics. “It is a gross injustice to implicate the state in a murder. The state cannot kill anyone. There is no interest in murdering Dink for the state. Whoever implicates the state in such a heinous act must know that skies will collapse on him. No one should look for a calf under an ox.” The veteran politician said those who claim there were gangs within the state were obliged to expose them. “But if the government says the state has committed a crime, I revolt against that claim.”
‘I am scared of racist nationalism'
Demirel said there was nothing to fear from nationalism. He said nationalism required one to work for the interests and well-being of the nation. “Nationalism tainted with racism or skull measurers, however, scares me,” Demirel said. He said ethnic nationalism and nationalism based on racist themes were very dangerous and added the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) was based on ethnic nationalism and has been after establishing an independent Kurdish state on Turkish territory. He said if the PKK could not be finished off, it was inconceivable to prevent some other groups that oppose that gang from organizing themselves. “This is Turkish ethnic nationalism. I am scared of ethnic Turkish nationalism. However, Turkish nationalism, as described by Ataturk, is the backbone of the Turkish Republic because it is not based on a race but is an inclusive understanding encompassing all elements who are loyal to this state and which treats all elements forming this nation on an equal basis and considers them equal citizens. Such nationalism exists in all states. Denying nationalism will be a big mistake. The British, the Germans or anyone else are not less nationalistic than the Turks. Nationalism must serve peace, development, the well-being of the nation and public order. But, if you opt for ethnic nationalism, that means confrontation.”
301 can be amended:
Demirel said he always feared polarization in society and unfortunately the contentious Article 301 of the TCK was becoming a source of friction in Turkish society. He was against annulment of Article 301, which regulates penalties against insulting Turkishness. However, he said the contentious article could be amended in a way that would not offend the Turkish public. “No one can insult the Turkish state or institutions of the Turkish state. No one can explain to the Turkish public a lifting of Article 301 because the people will say ‘How can you say let them curse at our state?' If you lift that article, we may have serious frictions in society. Paramilitary elements may step in to do what the judiciary is not allowed to do because the article is lifted. Such a situation would be opening an era in Turkey outside the rule of law. However, the article can be amended in a manner that would not offend the feelings of our people.” We must always stand for the defense of the state. The state cannot be blamed for the mistakes of some institutions or some personalities. The state anyhow is an abstract description. It is a sum of all the powers in the country. We should not harm it.”
Turkey is floundering between etatism and liberalism
Turkey has been floundering between an etatist, or state-dominated, economy and a free market economy and badly needs to undergo state reform, Demirel said. Making an analysis of the latest global and domestic developments in an exclusive interview with the Turkish Daily News, Demirel listed the most prominent global threats as the environment and global warming, energy, economic disparity between peoples and regions, terrorism, narcotics, migration and poverty. The former president said apart from the sole superpower of the United States, China, Russia, the European Union, India and Brazil were also emerging as the new global players.
Live volcanoes around Turkey:
Besides its own problems and the changing international climate, Demirel said, Turkey was surrounded by many “active volcanoes.”
“One of these is the Israel-Palestine problem. Another one is Iraq. Even if we may not yet call it an active volcano, Iran is yet another. The Afghanistan volcano is also very important. There are eruptions of lava and gas from both southern and northern Caucasus. The Georgia-Russia relations, the Chechnya issue, the Nagorno-Karabakh problem are all included among those volcanoes,” said Demirel. Demirel advised that in devising its policies, Turkey's administrators must consider both global challenges as well as the so-called active volcanoes of the region.
Global fever:
The globe is complaining about the harm done to it by mankind, Demirel stated, adding that global warming and environmental challenges must be taken very seriously by everyone. “The globe has a high fever and its temperature is rising. Mankind must be at peace with the globe and should take every measure for its protection. This is extremely important. The globe's problem is the increase in its population and the gradual exhaustion of resources.”
He underlined that the world's daily oil consumption was currently around 80 million barrels, and that the existing 145 billion ton global oil reserve will dry out in 45 years' time, while gas reserves will be exhausted in 60 years and coal reserves in 100 years if current consumption trends continue. He said that with the increased energy consumption of China – a natural consequence of its industrialization – these reserves could all be gone at a much earlier date. Thus, Demirel said, the international community has been seeking alternate energy resources, adding that this bleak energy situation was one of the most important issues of the world at the beginning of 2007.
‘Turkey needs to abandon its etatist mentality… Reform is a must':
Turkey must wake up to the realities of the present day and realize the opportunities and challenges with which it is faced, Demirel stressed: In both democracy, human rights and particularly in terms of market economy, Turkey unfortunately still lags behind other nations. “Turkey needs to undertake further democratization and human rights reforms,” he said, complaining that Turkey had seen little success despite all its efforts in moving toward a market economy.
“Turkey could not give up that etatist mentality. I believe that is the most important handicap hampering Turkey's development. Turkey could not yet understand the new role of the state. The new role of the state requires that it withdraw from the economy and engage in areas that could not be shouldered by others. The most prominent areas where the state must engage itself are defense, public order and security.” Demirel added that a state that cannot successfully undertake such responsibilities cannot do anything else.
People don't trust politicians:
For several reasons, Demirel said, the bridge between
the people and politics and politicians had been disrupted. He said
that people's complaints regarding the functioning of the state was
mostly attributed to the disruption of the bridge between the state
and the people.
4. - Today's Zaman - "Police on high alert for anniversary of PKK chieftain Öcalan’s capture":
12 February 2007
The Turkish police department is on high alert because Feb.15 will be the eighth anniversary of the capture of the leader of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, and his being brought to Turkey.
The police department sent a warning to 81 cities in the country stressing an awareness of PKK militants who are planning demonstrations in Istanbul and in Turkey’s eastern and southeastern provinces. The police department also called for the cancellation of demonstrations that have not received permission in advance. Meanwhile, the leaders of PKK have invited the people to demonstrate on Feb.15, the day they call “The Black Day.”
While the PKK sympathizers in Europe announced that on Feb.10 they will have protest march in Strasbourg; and as it concerns Turkey, various protests are expected in Southeastern provinces, especially around Diyarbakir. Internet sites known to support this organization are still publishing reactions against the PKK-leader’s capture. Police departments around the country have warned their personnel, saying these days are “sensitive days,” requiring them to be more attentive especially around the locations of public organizations and associations. With the possibility of protests on mind, the police have increased the level of law enforcement.
It is said that eight persons claiming to have abandoned
the PKK organization have entered Turkey. While the security forces
assert the possibility of protests and conduct many-sided investigations,
they are also trying to discover the aims of those ex-PKK members that
have entered Turkey. According to the intelligence sources, the PKK
has 1 ton of A-4 explosives and large amount of C-4 explosives. These
sources stated that the PKK acquired these explosives from the ammunition
depots of Iraqi army and somehow transported them into Turkey.
5. - Cihan News Agency - "Operation initiated Kurdish Rebels in Turkey's Tunceli":
TUNCELI / 13 February 2007
The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) launched a wide-scale operation against members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) who are taking refuge in the city of Tunceli to pass the winter.
Special units from the 4th Commando Brigade and from the
Gendarmerie Regiment of Tunceli’s Gendarmerie Region Command launched
the operation. Starting from the early hours of the morning, special
units were dropped from helicopters where the rebels were found to have
been located as a part of the operations that began at the same time.
Cobra and Skorsky helicopters participated in the operation once the
special units were dropped to Tunceli’s various districts, particularly
in the Valleys of Ahpanos and Mercan in the Ovacik district, and Kutudere
and Dokuzkaya.
Kurdish rebels in the region, estimated at 350, reportedly
started to evacuate the caves they had taken refuge in and to fled during
the operations that were launched to wipe them from the region.
6. - The Washington Post - "Opportunity For Turks And Kurds?":
IRBIL / 12 February 2007 / by Richard Holbrooke*
Whatever happens in Iraq, we must try to limit the terrible fallout from the war. The place to start should be with our indispensable NATO ally Turkey, the front-line state of the post-Cold War era, whose relations with the United States have deteriorated dramatically in the past six years.
The immediate issue is raids by Kurdish rebels across Turkey's border with Iraq, which divides an area inhabited on both sides by Kurds who have long felt that they deserve their own country. Despite centuries of enmity, rapprochement is in the long-term interests of both Turkey and the Kurds of northern Iraq. But such an effort would be controversial and could be undertaken only with strong American encouragement.
First, some essential background from Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, which I am visiting after talks with Turkish leaders in Ankara. This peaceful city is disorienting: Am I in war-torn Iraq or booming Kurdistan? Will Irbil eventually become the capital (or part) of an independent Kurdistan? Or will this region become a battleground for another war, this one between Kurds and Turks?
You can call this place Kurdistan, as its citizens do, or northern Iraq, as the Turks do. But either way, the overwhelming majority (98 percent in a 2005 referendum) of its 4 million people do not want to remain part of Iraq. Who can blame them? Nothing here feels like the Middle East. The Iraqi national flag is banned; only the Kurdistan flag flies. And although the Kurds are sending some of their famously fierce warriors to Baghdad to support the Americans, they fear that Gen. David Petraeus's plan to turn the tide in Baghdad will not succeed.
Ever since a nation called Iraq was carved out of the debris of the Ottoman Empire by Winston Churchill and Gertrude Bell at the Cairo Conference of 1921, Turkey and Iran have opposed independence for the Kurds of northern Iraq because both fear that an independent Kurdistan on their borders would encourage existing separatist movements among their large Kurdish populations.
This symmetry of fears has led to semi-secret discussions and even some cooperation between our NATO ally and that charter member of the "axis of evil" on dealing with the PKK. I would not rule out limited Turkish military action against some of those bases -- especially since Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is under enormous political pressure to show strong nationalist credentials against hawkish rivals in an election year.
After years of mishandling relations with Turkey, last year the administration appointed retired Gen. Joe Ralston, the universally respected former NATO commander, as special envoy for the PKK problem. Ralston's intervention helped avoid a Turkish attack in Iraq last summer, and he is accelerating his efforts to get Irbil to rein in the PKK.
But there is a larger issue: the final status of Kirkuk, the multiethnic city that sits in the middle of a huge oil field and lies just outside the official boundaries of Iraqi Kurdistan. The new Iraqi constitution calls for a referendum this year on whether Kirkuk is to be incorporated into the Kurdistan region. The Turks -- who refer repeatedly to the dangers to the Turkmen, their ethnic cousins who live in Kirkuk -- have said that they will not accept such an event. Avoiding a full-blown crisis will require intense mediation by the United States; unfortunately, Ralston's current mandate does not include Kirkuk.
Despite their history, Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan need each other. Kurdistan could become a buffer between Turkey and the chaos to the south, while Turkey could become the protector of a Kurdistan that, though still technically part of Iraq, is effectively cut loose from a Baghdad government that may no longer function. In addition, Turkey has a major economic opportunity in northern Iraq; already, more than 300 Turkish companies and substantial investment are a primary engine of Kurdish growth.
Rapprochement would require major undertakings by both sides. The legendary Kurdish leader who is now president of the Kurdish regional government, Massoud Barzani, needs to rein in the PKK and pledge not to interfere in Turkey's internal affairs. A compromise that took into account legitimate Turkish concerns would be necessary on Kirkuk; while this would be difficult, especially for the Turkish military, I believe it needs to be attempted, with strong American encouragement.
History and myth make a Turkish-Kurdish deal extremely difficult. It takes visionary leaders to alter the stream of history. Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer did it for France and Germany. Nelson Mandela did it in South Africa. But such people are very, very rare. Still, the crisis in Iraq requires Turks and Kurds to think of their common interest. Having just talked to the impressive leaders of both sides, I believe they understand that they face not just a crisis but an opportunity.
* Richard Holbrooke, a former U.S. ambassador to the
United Nations, writes a monthly column for The Post.