22 October 2003

1. "Turkish rights activists acquitted under EU-inspired reforms", a Turkish state security court Tuesday cleared 13 people, most of them human rights activists, of terrorism-related charges in the wake of judicial reforms aimed at boosting the country's EU membership bid, a defense lawyer said.

2. "Three police hurt in PKK attack in southeast Turkey", three police officers were wounded in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday after Kurdish guerrillas opened fire on their vehicle, security officials said.

3. "Don't send Turkish troops to Iraq", last week's bombing near the Turkish embassy in Baghdad underscored the virulent Iraqi opposition to the deployment of Turkish troops in Iraq. Though the Pentagon is under pressure to diversify peacekeeping forces, it must balance the need to rotate troops with the imperative of strengthening Iraqi governance.

4. "Cyprus, the Aegean, Iraq and Turkey's Future", if our government fails to develop new foreign policy perspectives, serious political problems are in the cards for us, and soon.

5. "Kurdish weekly magazine banned in Iran", Iran's judiciary has closed down a Kurdish-language weekly magazine published by a former MP after the appearance of just four issues, the Shargh newspaper reported Monday.

6. "EU Concern Over Turkey's Stance Toward the Non-Muslim Comminities", the EU Council of Ministers is concerned with the way the Turkish authorities deal with the non-Muslim communities and their property. The issue was raised by Greek Euro-deputy Yiannis Marinos, elected with the right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy.

7. "Putting Turkish troops in Iraq would be a mistake", opinion by Hassan Fattah. He is the editor of the Baghdad-based independent weekly newspaper Iraq Today, wrote this commentary for THE DAILY STAR.

8. "Turkish Settlers Fear a Reunited Cyprus", it is a timeless scene -- elderly folk hobbling to prayers at the local mosque while the Mediterranean sun beats down on the lush olive groves and cypress trees surrounding their tranquil village.

1. - AFP - "Turkish rights activists acquitted under EU-inspired reforms":

ANKARA / 21 October 2003

A Turkish state security court Tuesday cleared 13 people, most of them human rights activists, of terrorism-related charges in the wake of judicial reforms aimed at boosting the country's EU membership bid, a defense lawyer said.

Prosecutors had initially called for jail sentences of 4.5 to 7.5 years for the defendants from the Human Rights Association (IHD), a leading advocacy group, on the grounds that its protests and press statements against a controversial prison reform amounted to "aiding and abetting illegal organizations."

But the court ruled Tuesday that the charges no longer constituted a crime because they were abolished under reforms parliament recently adopted to align the country with European Union democracy norms, lawyer Yusuf Alatas told AFP.

The judge also granted a request by the defense to return computers and documents confiscated by police during a raid on an IHD office in Ankara in 2001, Alatas said. The IHD has come under fire for its leading role in a campaign against the so-called F-type prisons in which one to three-person cells replaced large dormitories for dozens of inmates. The reform was introduced in 2000.

Hundreds of inmates belonging to far-left outlawed groups went on a long-running hunger strike to protest the new jails, which they said left them socially-isolated and more vulnerable to mistreatment.

Scores of non-governmental groups backed their stand. The hunger strike claimed 66 lives. Turkey is under pressure to catch up with EU political norms by December 2004 when EU leaders will decide whether to open accession talks with the sole Muslim candidate country.

2. - Reuters - "Three police hurt in PKK attack in southeast Turkey":

DIYARBAKIR / 21 October 2003

Three police officers were wounded in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday after Kurdish guerrillas opened fire on their vehicle, security officials said.

The gunfight occurred in the centre of the small town of Derik in Mardin province, a few hundred kilometres (miles) from the Iraqi border. Security officers have launched a sweep in search of the rebels in the area, the officials said.

The separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), also known as KADEK, launched a bloody campaign for an ethnic homeland in the mainly Kurdish southeast in 1984. More than 30,000 people, mostly Kurds, have died in the violence.

Fighting has dropped off sharply since 1999, when PKK commander Abdullah Ocalan was captured and subsequently ordered his fighters to withdraw from Turkey to northern Iraq.

The PKK declared an end to its five-year unilateral ceasefire in early September and many in the southeast are worried the rebels could increase attacks if they come under pressure by U.S. forces now administering Iraq.

Washington and Ankara have agreed to a preliminary pact to deal with the PKK, which is described as a terrorist group by Washington.

3. - The Christian Science Monitor - "Don't send Turkish troops to Iraq":

NEW YORK / 22 October 2003 / by David L. Phillips *

Last week's bombing near the Turkish embassy in Baghdad underscored the virulent Iraqi opposition to the deployment of Turkish troops in Iraq. Though the Pentagon is under pressure to diversify peacekeeping forces, it must balance the need to rotate troops with the imperative of strengthening Iraqi governance.

Overruling the Iraqi Governing Council, which unanimously rejects the presence of Turkish troops, would undermine the Iraqis on whom the US relies to steward restoration of Iraq's sovereignty.

As the successor state to the Ottoman Empire, which ruled Iraq until 1917, Turkey is viewed with suspicion by Arabs and Kurds alike. In 1517, Arabs across the Middle East were angered when the Muslim Caliphate was moved from Cairo to Constantinople and Sultan Selim I proclaimed himself the Prophet's sole representative and leader of Sunni Islam. Iraq's Shiites have a special resentment resulting from their political and economic marginalization during Ottoman rule. Also, Iraqi Kurds have a deep distrust of Turkey. Massoud Barzazi, head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Iraq, accuses Ankara of trying to undermine democratic developments in Iraqi Kurdistan, where Iraqi Kurds have made the most of the US and British security umbrella to advance prosperity and self-rule since the Gulf War in 1991.

Ankara is worried about the emergence of an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq. It is also concerned that Turkish Kurds may be inspired by their Iraqi Kurdish brethren to demand greater rights in Turkey. Ankara has been involved in a violent struggle with the Turkish Kurds who make up the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which the US identifies as a terrorist group. Turkish armed forces have routinely launched military operations against PKK hide-outs deep inside Iraqi Kurdistan.

Tensions between Turkey and the Iraqi Kurds have worsened since the war. Ankara has been implicated in a series of events fomenting conflict between Iraqi Turkmens and Kurds. Last April, a Turkish Red Crescent convoy was stopped at a checkpoint, and weapons and explosives were found in bags identified as humanitarian supplies; Turkish Special Forces were accused by US military authorities of posing as aid workers and smuggling munitions to Iraqi Turkmen militias. In an even more serious incident on July 4, US troops detained 11 Turkish Special Forces for plotting to assassinate Kirkuk's Kurdish mayor.

Even before last Thursday, when the UN Security Council voted to authorize a US-led multinational force in Iraq, the Turkish parliament agreed to send 10,000 troops to Iraq. Discussions are already under way between the US and Turkey about how to deploy Turkish forces.

Turkey's eagerness represents an abrupt about-face from its approach before the war. It's no secret that Turks were against military action and that Turkish authorities did everything possible to impede Washington's war plans. In a huge setback for Pentagon planners, the Turkish parliament voted to bar the passage of US forces from Turkey into northern Iraq on March 1. As a result, the Army's 4th Infantry Division didn't make it to Iraq while major military operations were under way, nor did it arrive in time to help prevent postwar looting. Even after military operations had begun, Ankara delayed Pentagon plans to launch sorties from Turkey's Incirlik air force base. As a result, Turkey was the last NATO member to authorize US overflights (March 21).

The Joint Chiefs want to replace US forces with international peacekeepers. Recognizing there is a problem between Turks and Kurds, the Pentagon thinks it can avoid a confrontation by assigning Turkish peacekeepers to the Sunni triangle northwest of Baghdad. But because of the historical legacy, Turks are distrusted by all Iraqis - not just Kurds in the north.

Ankara says it wants to help the US stabilize Iraq and that, after a year, Turkish troops will be withdrawn. But Iraqis are skeptical, believing that Ankara is more interested in safeguarding its interest in Iraq than in helping secure the country. Members of the Iraqi Governing Council are concerned that Turkey, once in, may never leave.

Given the hostile Iraqi reaction, Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Ertayyip Erdogan is getting cold feet. To avoid a showdown between Turks and Iraqis, the US should find an elegant, face-saving way for Mr. Erdogan to withdraw his offer of Turkish troops. Iraqis are already chafing under occupation, and the presence of Turkish troops will stir further resentment. They believe that Turkish troops are more trouble than they're worth.

* David L. Phillips is a senior fellow and deputy director of the Center for Preventive Action at the Council on Foreign Relations.

4. - Aksam - "Cyprus, the Aegean, Iraq and Turkey's Future":

22 October 2003 / by Tuncay Ozkan

If our government fails to develop new foreign policy perspectives, serious political problems are in the cards for us, and soon.

The first critical issue is Iraq. The international community currently sees Turkey as a country has which failed to set out its own conditions on the Iraq issue despite our Parliament's authorization for the government to send troops to the region. The US considers our country its second trump card in its relations with Iran and Syria. Heeding the warnings of its two influential allies, Iran yesterday announced that it would voluntarily refrain from uranium enrichment, a process which can produce fuel for nuclear weapons. In other words, Tehran took an important step in its relations with Washington, in an attempt to deprive the superpower of the opportunity to move jointly with Israel against it. In truth, Iran is in a real bind, stuck between the latest developments in its neighbors such as Azerbaijan and Iraq and its own domestic dynamics, namely the ever-growing opposition movement. Under these circumstances, Tehran would like to improve its relations with Ankara. However, our government will never be allowed to move closer to its neighbor. Ankara can't risk another rift with Washington. The Bush administration sees us as a standby subcontractor, ready to be used as a trump card whenever necessary. Washington will never allow us to take bolder or more effective steps in the region, besides the ones it's designated.

In my opinion, Turkey won't be supported by the US in the future, not even on the terrorist PKK issue. We'll see this clearly in the months to come. If we fail to develop better policies, we'll be forced to swallow every foreign policy proposal thrown our way, without even getting a chance to have our say. We'll first suffer economically, then politically. Our relations with the EU will suffer. Both the Kurdish issue and the transborder water disputes will cause new problems with Iraq. Turkey is fated to become a victim of international isolation.

Can we head off such negative developments? Of course. The only way to do so is to develop and pursue more consistent and determined foreign policies. Ankara must develop a new Middle East strategy. We must launch new initiatives on the Cyprus and Aegean issues. If we accept submission to and imposition under foreign countries, we'll lose. Let's not forsake our own ideals.'

5. - AFP - "Kurdish weekly magazine banned in Iran":

TEHRAN / 20 October 2003

Iran's judiciary has closed down a Kurdish-language weekly magazine published by a former MP after the appearance of just four issues, the Shargh newspaper reported Monday.

The paper said the judiciary in western Kurdistan province gave no explanation for its banning of Avay-e-Kurdistan (Voice of Kurdistan), published by Ali Nemat Zadeh.

The report said the closure was the first time a Kurdish language paper has been banned in Iran, which has a Kurdish minority numbering some six million.

6. - Macedonian Press Agency - "EU Concern Over Turkey's Stance Toward the Non-Muslim Comminities":

BRUSSELS / 21 October 2003

The EU Council of Ministers is concerned with the way the Turkish authorities deal with the non-Muslim communities and their property. The issue was raised by Greek Euro-deputy Yiannis Marinos, elected with the right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy.

Mr. Marinos had stated that non-Muslim communities like Greek Orthodox Christians, Armenians, Jews, Catholics and others live in Turkey. The institutions they have founded own real estate and the Turkish authorities try to take away their property by using legal and other techniques.

In a written statement the Italian EU Presidency expressed the Council of Ministers serious concern over the issue and stressed that in all recent meetings with Turkey it was underlined that the existing situation in the country regarding religious institutions is restrictive and called on Turkey to adopt a different approach.

7. - The Daily Star (Lebanon) - "Putting Turkish troops in Iraq would be a mistake":

Baghdad / 22 October 2003

Just as representatives of Shiite groups sat for lunch at theTurkish Embassy in Baghdad last Tuesday, a suicide bomber careened into the rear entrance of the embassy, killing himself and severely injuring several of the embassy’s security staff. Nobody inside was scathed, but the blast managed to shatter dishes and dinnerware that the Shiite leaders were to dine on. The unlikely confluence of events highlights the complex dynamics in Turkey’s bid to deploy troops in Iraq.

Perhaps no two nations in the Middle East have as tight a bond and yet as deep distrust as do Turkey and Iraq. US plans to bring in Turkish troops to keep the peace and relieve US soldiers have underscored that complex relationship.

The love-hate relationship stems back to the days of the Ottoman Empire. Only 100 years ago, Iraq was Turkey’s gateway into the Arab world. Iraq received much of Istanbul’s largesse but also bore the brunt of its taxation and power. Iraq was divided into three parts under the Ottomans ­ greater Mosul, greater Baghdad, and greater Basra. The sultan, seizing on Iraq’s vast oil wealth, boldly decreed that Mosul belonged to Turkey. One-hundred years on, most Iraqis believe, Turkey still holds those claims.

Yet has long been one of Iraq’s largest trade partners, and Iraqi consumers look highly upon Turkish goods and foodstuffs, citing them for their high quality and low prices. In an unprecedented move, Turkey refused to allow US troops to cross through its borders to Iraq during the war, leading many Iraqis to bow to its nascent democracy even as their Arab neighbors cow-towed to US power. Turkish food and customs have influenced much of Iraq’s culture, and for many in the north, Turkey is a critical gateway to the rest of the world.

Yet the thought of Turkish troops on Iraqi soil has resurrected the deep socio-ethnic distrust between the two nations. Not surprisingly, it is Iraq’s Kurds ­ who in recent months have worked tohighlight themselves as Iraqis ­ who have objected most vociferously. Turkey has viciously crushed any attempts by its own Kurdish population to achieve self-determination. For Iraq’s Kurds, Turkish troops on their soil represent an attempt at destroying whatever autonomy and political power they have achieved. Many Kurds believe that Turkey is opposed to a federal Iraq, a system that has become a central tenet for Iraq’s minorities today. Turkey’s claims on greater Mosul, including Kirkuk’s rich oil fields, also threaten to oppose Kurdish hopes of gaining control of the north. And just as important, say Kurdish leaders, is the fear that Ankara might use its presence in Iraq to try to interfere in Iraq’s internal political affairs.

But Iraqis in the middle and southern ends of the country have just as much to be concerned about. Most Iraqi politicians have adamantly opposed any involvement by Iraq’s neighbors, stressing that Turkey’s entry would surely open the door for meddling by others like Iran and Saudi Arabia. Turkey has already shown a predilection to pursue its own interests in Iraq by maintaining a military presence in the north to chase separatists who slipped over the border into Kurdish Iraq.

In July, the coalition arrested several Turkish military officers for “disturbing activity,” allegedly a plot to assassinate the Kurdish governor of Kirkuk. And just days after the Turkish Parliament approved the deployment, Turkish authorities had a detailed deployment plan, raising eyebrows even further.

Such incidents have only raised fears of much broader Turkish intentions. If Turkish troops are allowed to cross into Iraqi territory, many Iraqis fear, Iran may take the nod and put its hands in even further than it already has. That, say members of the Governing Council, could rip the country’s already divided ethnicities and sects even further apart.

Perhaps the strongest argument against a Turkish presence is that it would delay the handover of the country to Iraqi forces. With Turkey just across the border, there may well be less and less of a reason for Turkey to leave. Much as Syria came to bring stability to Lebanon in the 1980s and remained in control ever since, Turkish troops may established a permanent presence inside the oil-rich nation.

Last week the Turkish government reiterated its intention to deploy troops, insisting that the bombing will not discourage them. A spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the attack, noting the incident shows “how grave the security situation in Iraq is” and “how strong the need is for everyone to immediately contribute to ensure security and stability in the country.”

The fundamental fallacy in bringing Turkish troops to Iraq is that they are predominantly Muslim, and will therefore be able to control a Muslim population better than American soldiers have. Whatever cultural sensitivity Turkish troops may have, however, Iraqis stress that they will still be viewed as outsiders. They speak a different language, and come loaded with almost as much political baggage as US soldiers do. “What’s the difference between Turkish troops and Koreans at that point?” asks one political analyst. Ultimately, the real answer appears to be proximity and a shared history. For Iraqis, that is especially troubling.

* Hassan Fattah, the editor of the Baghdad-based independent weekly newspaper Iraq Today, wrote this commentary for THE DAILY STAR

8. - Reuters - "Turkish Settlers Fear a Reunited Cyprus":

BAHCELI / 21 October 2003 / by Gokhan Tezgor

It is a timeless scene -- elderly folk hobbling to prayers at the local mosque while the Mediterranean sun beats down on the lush olive groves and cypress trees surrounding their tranquil village.

But this is no ordinary village. Its residents are haunted by fears they may be thrown out of their homes if Cyprus's hostile factions clinch an elusive peace settlement in time for the island's entry into the European Union (news - web sites) in May.

The residents of Bahceli in northern Cyprus are mostly mainland Turks from the city of Trabzon on Turkey's northern Black Sea coast, who came to Cyprus's breakaway North in search of a better life.

Turkish troops invaded the northern part of the island in 1974 in response to a brief Greek Cypriot coup backed by the military junta then ruling Greece.

Three decades later, leader Rauf Denktash's Turkish Cypriot statelet -- recognized only by Turkey and targeted by international trade sanctions -- is under heavy pressure to cut a deal with the majority Greek Cypriots to the south.

Under a United Nations (news - web sites)-brokered blueprint for peace, the Greek Cypriots would be allowed to take back some of the territory seized by the Turkish army in 1974.

Bahceli -- or Kalogrea as it is known to Greek Cypriots -- does not feature on the U.N. maps outlining territorial transfers, but many of its 430 residents still fear the Greek Cypriots would return to claim what was once theirs.

"If they want me to leave the island, I will leave," said 80-year-old Hamit Aygun.

"I would have to respect the decision of the lawmakers. But I would rather die because everything I have worked for in the past 30 years is here. I have nothing in Turkey."

Aygun said his home once belonged to the richest Greek Cypriot landowner in the village. He has built four more houses since arriving from Trabzon to work as a truck driver.

ISOLATED

Denktash has already rejected the U.N. blueprint, but U.S. and EU officials are urging Turkey to use its influence to force the veteran leader back to the negotiating table.

A settlement would allow Cyprus to enter the EU reunited. Without a deal, the internationally recognized Greek Cypriot government will join the EU anyway, cementing the island's division and leaving the Turkish Cypriots even more isolated.

Many of Bahceli's buildings are abandoned, including the village health center. The mosque is a converted Greek Orthodox church. Most residents scrape a living from rudimentary farming.

"I have worked here and toiled on this land for 28 years ... I cannot go back to Turkey," said Yusuf Tuncturk, another octogenarian, who boasted of having 22 grandchildren born on the island.

The village is a tight-knit community with just three main, extended families. Apart from the children, the villagers mostly speak with a strong Black Sea accent which distinguishes them from born-and-bred Turkish Cypriots.

Serkan Aygun, a 20-year-old student born on Cyprus to mainland Turkish parents, said this was the only home he knew.

"Peace is necessary. I'm not against peace, but it has to be a just peace. No one should be uprooted from their homes," he said.

Aygun complained that as the child of mainland Turks he could not travel freely to southern Cyprus.

"People should be allowed to travel from the North to the South and the South to the North freely," said Aygun.

ELECTION LOOMING

Turkish Cypriots will have a say on their future in a general election set for Dec. 14. Opposition parties have vowed to sideline Denktash and reach a settlement with the Greek Cypriots before May if they win the poll.

But support for Denktash appears strong among the settlers.

"People in this village are going to support parties which will defend and protect their rights as mainland Turks," said Mustafa Gul, the village head.

Talip Sengun, who drives a taxi in the nearby town of Kyrenia, said leaving the island would prove traumatic.

"If these people and other mainlanders who have lived here their whole lives are forced to move off the island, they will be like fish out of water," he said.