Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
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Revue <strong>de</strong> Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro <strong>de</strong> la Prensa-Bastn ()z<strong>et</strong>i<br />
Turkisb Daily News<br />
FRlDAY,APRIL25.1997<br />
European Court of Human Rights<br />
to discuss controversial DEP case<br />
SAADETORUÇ<br />
AnluJra- Turkish Daily News<br />
• The European Court of Human Rights<br />
will hear arguments on Friday concerning<br />
the long prison terms given to the former<br />
pro-Kurdbh Democrac)' ~ar:tr (DEP)<br />
dcpu'tié-S: i\1thöügh tTîêC()Ûff.IS ß(lt<br />
l'XIll'l'll'd III !"l'mil'.. a dCl'ision suon,<br />
''Turkcy will most probably be con<strong>de</strong>mned<br />
~Itthe trial," claimed a source<br />
close to the trial. The European<br />
Commission of Human Rights last year<br />
released a report about the <strong>de</strong>tention period<br />
in Turkey, emphasizing that Turkey<br />
had violated the European Convention of<br />
Human Rights, Afterwards, the commission<br />
sent the case to the court,<br />
KHRPin contact<br />
with gov.mm.nt<br />
Kerim YlldlZ, the head of the Kurdish<br />
Human Rights Project (KHRP), said in a<br />
telephone interview with the Turkish<br />
Daily News on Thursday that Turkey had<br />
implemented all the necessary steps that<br />
the human rights court had called for such<br />
as paying compensation and reducing the<br />
periods of <strong>de</strong>tention and interrogation.<br />
Noting that the court has further cases<br />
concerning the HEP, DEP and HADEP<br />
on its agenda, Y ddlz argued that Turkey<br />
would have. t~iI1ce JJlolY amendments to<br />
its di>mdmc laws=!'oltùwlIIg the court"!;<br />
<strong>de</strong>cisions. "It was an ,~"'use of the constitution<br />
when the DEP <strong>de</strong>puties were taken<br />
into custody, though Turkey has accepted<br />
the European Convention of Human<br />
Rights," Yddlz said. "We welcome all the<br />
positive steps that the Turkish government<br />
has taken on the human rights<br />
issue," he said, but ad<strong>de</strong>d, "Although we<br />
are in contact with the Turkish government,<br />
they continue making statements<br />
against us." Yddlz pointed out that he had<br />
expressed his complaints in a l<strong>et</strong>ter which<br />
he sent to Justice Minister Sevk<strong>et</strong> Kazan.<br />
Asked to give <strong>de</strong>tails about their contacts<br />
with the Turkish government, ylldlZ<br />
<strong>de</strong>clined, saying that, "For now, I think it<br />
is enough to say that we are in regular<br />
contact with the government."<br />
"In a few months' time, the casc:s in<br />
the court will be open to the public,"<br />
y ddlz said. The first case, concerning<br />
"disappearances," will be discussed by<br />
the court in the very near future. 1be<br />
court will also hear complaints about<br />
freedom of exprcssion and of the press'<br />
J\'t(t -:ttsoUt lhé "tJestroctiori M-Villages'ln<br />
the Southeast. Roland Dumas, the former<br />
French Foreign Minister, applied to the<br />
court in 1994 with a group of European<br />
attorneys on behalf of the former DEP<br />
<strong>de</strong>puties Orhan Doitan, Mahmut Ahnak,<br />
Leyla Zana, Ahm<strong>et</strong> TUrk, Sim Salulc and<br />
Hatip Diele. Another case before the<br />
court concerns the <strong>de</strong>cision of the Turkish<br />
Constitutional Court to close the DEP.<br />
The six DEP <strong>de</strong>puties were <strong>de</strong>tained after<br />
a <strong>de</strong>cision by the Turkish Parliament on<br />
March 2, 1994 to lift their parliamentary<br />
immunity. Leyla Zana, Hatip Diele,<br />
Orhan Dogan and Selim Sadaie were sentenced<br />
to 15 years in prison on charges of<br />
"e~tablishing the political wing of the<br />
outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party<br />
(PKK)."<br />
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE, SATURDAY-SUNDAY, APRIL 26-27, 1997<br />
r WarofNerves Heats Up in Turkey 1"<br />
By Kelly Couturier<br />
Special to 1M In~matiollD1 Herald TrlbuM<br />
ANKARA - The Turkish government<br />
appeared on the briJik of collapse<br />
Friday as tension b<strong>et</strong>ween the staunchly<br />
secular military and ~ pro-Islamic<br />
Welfare Party <strong>de</strong>epened.<br />
As Prime Minister Necm<strong>et</strong>tin<br />
Erbakan, lea<strong>de</strong>r of the Welfare Party,<br />
com~l<strong>et</strong>ed a round of me<strong>et</strong>ings with<br />
civilian and military lea<strong>de</strong>rs a day before<br />
a key me<strong>et</strong>ing of the military-dominated<br />
National Security Council, 0pposition<br />
lea<strong>de</strong>rs and political analysts<br />
said the to-month Islamist-Ied coalition<br />
government was living its final days.<br />
Saying the coalition's "naturallife"<br />
had ~expired, the leftist 0pposition<br />
, lJulent Ecevit, ad<strong>de</strong>d,<br />
"It'slegallife is also about to expire."<br />
Doubts about the future of the coalition<br />
were even surfacin, within the<br />
Welfare Party, which has dismissed until<br />
now any notion of leaving the government.<br />
"It seems that we have our<br />
back to the wall," Minister of State<br />
Abdullah Gul was quoted in the local<br />
press as saying.<br />
Worries about the fate of the government<br />
caused the Istanbul stock exchange<br />
to close 4.9 percent lower.<br />
The content of Mt. Erbakan's talks<br />
with civilian and military lea<strong>de</strong>rs was<br />
not disclosed. but anal)'sts said they most<br />
likely focused on a senes of measures the<br />
military wants the government to implement<br />
to counter Islamic radicalism.<br />
Mt. Erbakan has dragged his fe<strong>et</strong> on<br />
carrying out thé measures, which inclu<strong>de</strong><br />
a ban on pro-Sharia propaganda<br />
on television and radio, tighter restrictions<br />
on religious dress and purges o~<br />
Islamist activists from state offices.,<br />
Sharia is the Islamic legal co<strong>de</strong>.<br />
The military is also seeking stricter<br />
surveillance of donations to political<br />
parties from religious organizabons and<br />
an overhaul of the education system to<br />
cUscourage the growth of religious<br />
middle and high schools.<br />
The Security Council, which inclu<strong>de</strong>s<br />
the nation's top five military lea<strong>de</strong>rs as<br />
well as senior government officials,<br />
presented the measures to the govern-.<br />
ment in February and is expected to<br />
review its performance in implementing<br />
them at its me<strong>et</strong>ing Saturday. The council,<br />
nominally a consultative body, has<br />
in practice dictated policy to civilian<br />
governments.<br />
Mr. Erbakan r<strong>et</strong>urned from a pilgrimage<br />
to Mecca earlier this week to face an<br />
open challenge from the ranks of the<br />
military, whose generals. while ruling<br />
out a coup, have ma<strong>de</strong> no secr<strong>et</strong> of their<br />
27':)