Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro
de la Prensa-Basln Özeti
This week, a demonstration was mounted in Ankara in support of the Anatolia news agency after it was accused
by the government of being too informative in its reporting of a high-level government corruption case.
Batman was also in the news after a radio station that played a Kurdish song, entitled I Am Wounded, was ordered
off the air for 90 days.
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The suppression of Kurdish rights, the sometimes violent crackdowns and repression levelled at the left and right,
the interference of the military in politics, the disregard for political pluralism, the restrictions on free speech, and
a pattern of disrespect, bordering on contempt, for basic human rights are all issues that are certain to bedevil, and
possibly scupper, Mr Ecevit's hopes of getting Turkey into the EU.
Add to that this week's ~ous row with France over its condemnation of the 1915 Armenian massacres as "genocide",
Turkey's disputes with Greece and Cyprus and its fragile economic situation, and Turkey's EU accession
begins to look like an ever more distant prospect.
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Iran Parliament condemns press crackdown by courts
AFP - 24 January 2001
TEHRAN, Jan 24 (AFP) - A majority of reformist members of the parliament Wednesday condemned the conservative-dominated
courts for the arrest of journalists and closure of reformist papers and for recent sentences handed
out to "political detainees", television reported. In an open letter to the head of the judiciary, Ayatollah
Mahmud Hashemi-Shahrudi, more than 150 deputies expressed their "deep concern" over "the illegal actions" of
the judicial system. .
"We hereby wish to express to you Mr. Shahrudi our deep ~oncern over recent verdicts concerning the press and
the sentences meted out to political prisoners," the deputies said in their letter, an extract of which was broadcast
The signatories deplored "the lack of cooperation" by Shahrudi's collaborators and called for respect for at least "a
minimum of citizens rights." "Unfortunately Mr. Shahrudi, your collabOI:ators at the heart of the judicial system
spread mistrust among the population, and that is why we ask to work to dispel the worries and have the law respected,"
they wrote.
The conservative-dominated courts have been running an unprecedented offensive against the reformist movement
headed by the country's president, Mohammad Khatami. Some 20 publications have been suspended and 10
journalists jailed for various offences concerning their work.
During the past few days, the reformist movement has intensified its attacks on the courts after heavy sentences
on around 10 supporters of President Khatami for taking part in a Berlin conference deemed un-Islamic .
... .. .. .. ...
AFP January 24, 2001
UN, Iraq ready aid distribution plan
BAGHDAD: The United Nations and Iraq are preparing a new aid distribution plan for the latest phase of the oilfor-food
programme, the UN aid coordinator Tun Myat said on Wednesday. .
..
The joint coordination committee, which is co-cllaired by the United Nations and the government of Iraq, met
Sunday "as part of the ongoing preparations to conclude the distribution plan for phase nine of the humanitarian
programme," Tun Myat said. The Iraqi cabinet called the same day on the United Nations to give the green light
to Iraqi financial assistance to the Palestinians and to impoverished Americans. Baghdad says it has set aside aid
of one billion euros (940 million dollars) for the Palestinians and their uprising against Israel and has also offered
100 million euros ($94 million) to poor US citizens.
The United Nations has so far failed to approve the Palestinian aid, but noted that the oil-far-food programme was
designed to benefit Iraqis only. "So far, there has not been any notification of approval by the Security Council,"
Tun Myat said on Tuesday.
"My understanding is that there has been no agreement because some Security Council members said the original
oil-for-food resolution was primarily meant for the benefit of Iraq," he said. The matter had been discussed by the
UN sanctions committee and passed on to the Security Council.
Iraq, which has been under an embargo since it invaded Kuwait in 1990, is allowed under the oil-for-food programme
to export a limited amount of oil in exchange for food and other basic necessities.
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