THE MODEL OF DEMOCRACY

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

"Turkey's democracy is an important example for the people in the broader Middle East, and I want to thank you for your leadership."
~ George W. Bush to R. Tayyip Erdogan, June, 2005.

Mayors from Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast region walk towards the courthouse to attend their trial in the southeastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir September 26, 2006. REUTERS.

56 Kurdish mayors of the Demokratik Toplum Partisi (DTP) went on trial today in Amed, Turkish-occupied Kurdistan, for writing a letter to Danish PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in order to urge Denmark's continued support for the right of free expression and for the continued broadcasting of Roj TV from Denmark.

Let's review. Here's the letter and the names of all the mayors who signed it:

His Excellency Anders Fogh Rasmussen
DiyarbakIr, December 27, 2005
Dear Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen:

This letter is to express our concerns about the ongoing debates and developments around the situation of ROJ TV. As the members of Democratic Society Party (DTP) who are mayors of 56 municipalities located predominantly in the Kurdish-populated regions of Turkey, we are worried about the anti-democratic approaches through which the case of ROJ TV is being handled by Turkish government in the international arena. Unfortunately, we observe that there still exists a fundamental difference between Turkey and the European civilization in matters of freedom of press and expression.

That the ROJ TV broadcasts are aired from Europe is a disturbing fact for us, too. This has been a direct consequence of the constitutional and legal regulations that do not allow for free Kurdish broadcasting in Turkey. It was only thanks to the pressures in the process of Turkey's integration with the EU that Turkey has granted limited rights for Kurdish language broadcasts, with state television airing 45-minute programmes on a weekly basis. Privately-owned local television stations wanting to broadcast in Kurdish, on the other hand, are still faced with legal and often arbitrary administrative obstacles. As it also well-known by the international community, restrictions on freedom of expression are situated at the heart of the authoritarian political tradition that has repressed any kind of difference in terms of culture, language and identity in Turkey.

We expect the Turkish government to abide by and fulfill the political criteria stated in the Copenhagen Document. So, rather than banning the ROJ TV, we hope that Turkey will eventually legalize, embrace and become a constituent of the voice of ROJ TV. We wish that one day ROJ TV will be able to broadcast from nowhere else but from Istanbul, Ankara or Diyarbakir, and will be only one among many other Kurdish TV stations that will be launched also with the support of Turkish government.

It is a well-known fact that ROJ TV has millions of audiences within and outside Turkey. Whether one agrees or not with the broadcasting policy of the TV station, the content and arguments of its programs, is something to be discussed, and should always be discussed given the fact that free flow of information and ideas is the lifeblood of political debates. But the banning of ROJ TV would not contribute to our efforts to create a truly pluralistic and democratic life in Turkey. We believe that, within the current state of politics, voice of ROJ TV represents a constructive and positive contribution towards the progress of freedom of _expression, that is, one of the essential foundations of European democratic civilization that cannot yet be fully guaranteed within Turkey.

For a truly democratic life to flourish in Turkey, ROJ TV should not be silenced. This is the sincere and common demand of the people we represent at the level of local governments. The elimination of the voice of ROJ TV would mean the loss of an important vehicle in the struggle for democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms of democratic civilization.

Kind regards,

1- Osman BAYDEMIR Mayor, Diyarbakir Metropolitan President, Union of South-Eastern Anatolia Region Municipalities
2- Husseyin KALKAN Mayor , Batman
3- Ahmet ERTAK Mayor, Sirnak
4- Metin TEKKE Mayor, Hakkari
5- Songol Erol ABDIL Mayor, Tunceli
6- Firat ANLI Mayor, Yenisehir
7-Yurdusev OZSOKMENLER Mayor, Baglar
8-Kutbettin TASKIRAN Mayor, Silvan Bayrambasi
9-Zulfikar KARATEKIN Mayor, KayapInar
10- Nadir BINGOL Mayor, Ergani
11-Abdullah DEMIRBAS Mayor, Surici
12- Sukran AYDIN Mayor, Bismil
13-Fikret KAYA Mayor, Silvan
14-Seyhmus BAYHAN Mayor, Lice
15-Abdullah AKENGIN Mayor, Dicle
16-Mehmet KAYA Mayor, Kocakaya
17-Esat ONER Mayor, Batman Gercus
18-Murat CEYLAN Mayor, Siirt Kurtalan
19-Seyfettin AYDIN Mayor, Siirt Gokbasi
20-Ethem SAHIN Mayor, Urfa Suruc
21-Emrullah CIN Mayor, Viransehir
22-Ismail ARSLAN Mayor, CeylanpInar
23-Huseyin OGRETMEN Mayor, Halfeti
24-Aydin BUDAK Mayor, Cizre
25-Resul SADAK Mayor, Idil
26-Muhsin KONUR Mayor, Silopi
27-Gulcihan SIMSEK Mayor, Van Bostanici
28-Hursit TEKIN Mayor, Semdinli
29-Faik DURSUN Mayor, Beytussebap
30-M.Salih YILDIZ Mayor, Yuksekova
31-Hursit ALTEKIN Mayor, Hakkari Esendere
32-Ayhan ERKMEN Mayor, Mardin Dargecit
33-Cihan SINCAR Mayor, Kiziltepe
34-Molla SIMSEK Mayor, Konya Cihanbeyli Gulyazi
35-Ramazan KAPAN Mayor, Mardin Derik
36- Nuran ATLI Mayor, Mazidagi
37-Mehmet TANHAN Mayor, Nusaybin
38-Ayhan ERKMEN Mayor, Kars Digor Dagpinar
39-M.Selim DEMIR Mayor, Batman Bekirhan
40-A. Kadir AZAOGLU Mayor, Kiziltepe Senyurt
41-A.Kerim ADAN Mayor, Mardin YalImlI
42-Zeyniye ONER Mayor, Savur
43-Demir CELIK Mayor, Mus Varto
44-Tahir KAHRAMANER Mayor, Malazgirt
45-Ali YILDIZ Mayor, Malazgirt
46-Orhan OZER Mayor, BulanIk Gedik
47-Mukaddes KUBILAY Mayor, Dogubeyazit
48- M.Nezir ARAS Mayor, BulanIk
49-Nusret ARAS Mayor, Igdir HoShaber
50- Leyla GUVEN Mayor, Adana Seyhan Kayadikili
51-Muzaffer YONDEMLI Mayor, AydIn Ovaeymir
52-Osman KESER Mayor, Adana YakapInar
53-Hasan KARAKAYA Mayor, Yaylakonak
54-Seyfettin ALKAN Mayor, Batman BalpInar
55- Burhan KORHAN Mayor, Batman Besiri
56- Fahrettin ASLAN Mayor, Besiri


The Turkish state is against everything the mayors said in that letter. Let's not forget, either, that the mayors are representing their people, so this letter is a representation of the will of the Kurdish people.

A report on the opening of the trial can be read at the International Herald Tribune . The mayors are standing behind their letter and, if convicted, each one will receive up to 15 years' imprisonment for aiding a "terrorist" organization. It looks like it's a good thing there are Danish observers at the trial, because Denmark is the country which has yet to receive any proof from the Ankara regime to prove that Roj TV has any so-called terrorist links--after more than a year of trying.

Part of Turkey's argument for alleged PKK ties to Roj TV is based on the fact that Roj TV regularly airs interviews with PKK leadership and reports on clashes in the region, but if that meant that Roj TV had ties to PKK, then we could say the same about American TV for all the videos it airs from Osama bin Laden. I won't go into the fact that the Ankara regime hosts HAMAS delegations in Ankara, even though it's widely known that HAMAS is on The List®. The US also recently hossted the terrorist leader of the terrorist Iranina state within its borders, as well as the former president of that same terrorist state, Mohammed Khatami.

But what's a little terrorism among friends, eh?

Further along in the IHT article, we see who's really in charge of Turkey:

The country's powerful military is highly suspicious of the Kurdish mayors' affiliation and is critical of their performance.



Since when is military control of civilian government a democratic mechanism? In democracies, politicians only have to worry if their constituents are critical of their performance or their "affiliations," but in Bush's model of democracy, Turkey, politicians have to worry if the Pashas are critical of their performance. Yet, remember, this is America's model of democracy for the Middle East. Someone should tell them that most Middle Eastern countries are already emulating this model.

Let's put it this way: For America, talk of democracy is the opiate of the people.

Under our shining Turkish democracy, many of these mayors are also facing charges for other "crimes," like "violating the right to assembly":

Baydemir faces other charges, along with DTP leader Ahmet Turk and some 32 civil group heads, for violating the right to assembly.

Diyarbakir police late Sunday filed a complaint against the mayor and those who attended a demonstration to protest the recent bomb attack in Diyarbakir that killed 10 people, including seven children.

The problem here is that there is no right to free assembly in Turkey, which is another reason why I cannot understand people who speak of "democracy," and "Turkey" in the same breath while maintaining a straight face. The only right to assemble applies to government-sponsored assemblies, which usually deteriorate into lynching parties, while the police stand by and enjoy the show.

Yenisehir mayor, Firat Anli, spoke for his comrades before entering the court, from the AP, carried on the Houston Chronicle:

Appearing before the court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, the mayors pleaded innocent to the charges and defended their letter as "free speech."

"We are standing behind each of the 405 words in our famous letter," Yenisehir Mayor Firat Anli told the court, reading from the five-page statement. "If examined, our letter points to the need for maturity to tolerate opposition to freedom of speech and the establishment of a democratic living system."

Who is it, then, who really wants to see democracy in Turkish-occupied Kurdistan? The US? The Ankara regime? The EU? Or these Kurdish mayors?

And what of the EU? They say the situation of human rights in Turkey is regressing :

Turkey can expect to get bad marks for human rights in an upcoming report to be released by the European Parliament, four members of the body's subcommittee on human rights said yesterday at the conclusion of a fact-finding mission.

[ . . . ]

The impression is that the situation is going backwards, said Italian lawmaker Vittorio Agnoletto, who said he was particularly disturbed by an overwhelming military presence in southeastern Anatolian provinces like Hakkari.

When I was in Hakkari, I felt like I was in a prison, Agnoletto said. It is not possible to consider all the population of a region as terrorists.

So what is the EU doing about it? Nothing, other than the usual hand-wringing and whimpering. And what of the European literati? Who can tell me where all of them are? They always get themselves worked up into a lather over the prosecutions of famous novelists, but where are they now? Where is that same fanatic devotion to the right of freedom of expression for all of these Kurdish mayors, or for the Kurdish people? What about the question of democracy for Western Turkey?

Was that a pin that just dropped?
Source: Mizgîn
http://www.rastibini.blogspot.com

Trial of 56 Turkish mayors over Kurdish TV starts

ALARAB ONLINE
Tuesday 26,september.2006

Fifty-six Kurdish mayors went on trial on Tuesday over a letter they sent to Denmark 's prime minister in a case that has raised concerns in the European Union.

The members of the Democratic Society Party (DTP), which champions Kurdish rights, face up to 15 years in jail if convicted of the charges. Forty-five of the mayors attended the court on Tuesday. They were accused of allegedly helping the Kurdish rebels when they urged Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen not to close Danish-based Kurdish broadcaster Roj TV.

Ankara accused Roj TV of being a mouthpiece of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 with the aim of carving out an ethnic homeland in the southeast.

More than 30,000 people have been killed in that conflict. The EU and the United States , as well as Turkey , view the PKK as a "terrorist" organisation.

Rasmussen said in June that putting the mayors on trial over the letter contravened the values of the EU, which Turkey hopes to join.

Ankara , which began EU membership talks last October, has been criticised by Brussels for its slow pace of reform.

Turkey is under EU pressure to improve the cultural rights of its ethnic minorities, especially the 12 million Kurds who until the 1990s were banned from using their language in public.
Brussels has also called on Turkey to lower the 10 percent threshold of votes needed to enter parliament in Ankara , which has prevented Kurdish parties from winning seats.

The trial comes a week after Brussels and Turkey 's media called on the government to scrap a controversial article of the penal code which has allowed nationalist-minded prosecutors to take intellectuals to court for allegedly insulting Turkishness.

Turkey: 56 Kurdish Mayors on Trial

Wed.September 27,2006

Fifty-six Kurdish mayors went on trial in southeastern Diyarbak{inodot}r on charges of helping Kurdish separatists.

They are charged by state prosecutors with "knowingly and willingly" helping Kurdish rebels when they urged Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen of Denmark not to close the Danish-based Kurdish satellite broadcaster ROJ TV.

Turkey accuses ROJ of being a mouthpiece of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party. The mayors each face up to 15 years in jail if convicted. The judge adjourned the trial until Nov. 21.
Source: The New York Times

Pro-Kurdish Mayors on Trial in Turkey

Written by The Media Line Staff
Published Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Fifty-six Turkish mayors stood trial on Tuesday for trying to help keep a Kurdish television station broadcasting from Denmark.

The trial is being held in a criminal court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast.

The mayors belong to the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party. They are being tried for sending a letter to the Danish prime minister in December 2005, asking him to keep Roj TV on the air.

Roj is a Turkish television channel based in Denmark and banned in Turkey.

If found guilty, the mayors could face up to 15 years in prison.

The mayors pleaded not guilty, defending the letter as free speech.

Ankara maintains that Roj is a mouthpiece of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a party that Turkey, the United States and the European Union (EU) designate a terrorist organization.

Officials from the television channel deny these allegations.

Turkey has asked Denmark to revoke the station's broadcasting license, but Copenhagen has refused to comply with the request, citing freedom of speech.

The trial could be a stumbling block in Turkey's accession to the EU.

The EU has been pressing Turkey to incorporate reforms and improve its human rights record, including granting more rights to Kurds in the country.

Copyright © 2006 The Media Line. All Rights Reserved.

Have comments? Email editor@themedialine.org

The MidEast News Source

Wed.September 27, 2006

Turkey Puts 56 Mayors on Trial for Aiding Kurds
The European Union is once again watching Turkey very carefully this week as Ankara puts on trial 56 mayors, who it alleges have been aiding the Kurdish separatist movement, the PKK. Turkey is hoping to join the EU, but several European capitals have expressed concern about human rights in Turkey. A court has begun hearing the case against the group of mayors who are accused of helping a Denmark-based Kurdish TV channel remain on air. Ankara says Roj TV is an organ of the PKK. The mayors could face up to 15 years in jail after they wrote to the Danish government calling for it to allow broadcasts to continue. Domestic Kurdish-language broadcasts hardly exist and are severely censored.

DTP mayors: We stand behind what we said

The New Anatolian with AP / Ankara
27 September 2006


A group of mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) on trial for a letter supporting a Danish-based pro-Kurdish broadcaster yesterday accused the indictment against them of being a product of a recent escalating in nationalism in Turkey.

The 56 DTP mayors in question wrote to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen last year asking him to keep allegedly pro-Kurdish Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Roj-TV, which is based in Denmark, on the air despite a statement from the Turkish government asserting that the broadcaster is a mouthpiece for the terrorist organization.

In the first hearing yesterday the 45 mayors present, including Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir whose name crops up in several other indictments and investigations regarding his help for the terrorist group, defended what they wrote.

The trial is being held in Diyarbakir, where a recent mysterious bomb attack escalated tension. Baydemir also faces an investigation for participating in a march held after the bombing.

Danish diplomats and human rights activists were also present to monitor the case.

The indictment against them, prepared by the Diyarbakir Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and sent to the Diyarbakir High Criminal Court in June, seeks sentences ranging from seven-and-a-half to 15 years in prison under Article 220/7 of the revised Turkish Penal Code (TCK) which stipulates the same sentences for people who deliberately aid and abet terrorist groups as group members.

The Danish premier has strongly criticized the indictment against the mayors. "I find it rather shocking ... that because you write a letter to me, you are being accused of violating the law," Anders Fogh Rasmussen told Danish public radio in June.

Mayors on trial for aiding PKK

ANKARA - Turkish Daily News

Mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) went on trial yesterday in Diyarbakır for intentionally aiding the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) by writing a letter to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen last year, asking him to keep the Denmark-based Roj TV on air despite Turkey's requests to get it closed down.

Forty-six mayors, including Diyarbakır Mayor Osman Baydemir, attended the first hearing of the trial at a criminal court in Diyarbakır, while 10 others were absent.

"I repeat here what we wrote in the letter, and I am ready to serve whatever criminal punishment it may entail," Baydemir told the court.

DTP mayors go on trial for aiding PKK

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

'I repeat here what we wrote in the letter and I am ready to serve whatever criminal punishment it may entail,' says Osman Baydemir to the court

ANKARA - Turkish Daily News

Fifty six mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) went on trial yesterday in Diyarbakır for aiding the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a charge that carries up to 15 years in prison.

The charges against the mayors stem from a letter they sent to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen in December, asking him to allow Roj TV, a Denmark-based television station to stay on the air, despite Ankara's requests to get it closed down.

Forty six mayors, including Diyarbakır Mayor Osman Baydemir, attended the first hearing of the trial at a criminal court in Diyarbakır, while ten others abstained.

In a statement to the court, the Justice Ministry said Roj TV was a continuation of Med TV and Medya TV, whose broadcasting licenses were earlier revoked in France and Britain for being linked with the PKK. The executive chairman of the channel is also a member of the executive board of the PKK and its offshoot Kongra-Gel, the ministry also said.

Senior PKK militants often join the station's broadcasts by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq.

"I repeat here what we wrote in the letter and I am ready to serve whatever criminal punishment it may entail," Baydemir told the court. "I am against all types of violence. I am against the Kurdish opposition using violence as well."

He said some of the programs broadcast on Roj TV were very useful and added that there would be no need for Roj TV to broadcast from abroad if televisions here could broadcast in Kurdish.

"We reject the indictment and the accusations it levels," said Fırat Anlı, one of the mayors at the hearing. He said he was speaking on behalf of all the mayors. He said the indictment did not meet the necessary requirements to be considered an indictment, complaining that it rather looked like a complaint letter by Interior Ministry inspectors.

The indictment charges that by seeking to prevent the closure of the station, the mayors have committed the offense of "knowingly and willingly supporting" a terrorist group.

It says that Roj TV hosts PKK leaders, carries PKK statements inciting violence and follows a broadcasting policy "in line with PKK propaganda."

Last year, the Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen demanded that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license. The Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech.

The mayors, on the other hand, wrote to Rasmussen that silencing Roj TV "would mean the loss of an important vehicle in the struggle for democracy and human rights" in Turkey.

The Roj TV issue has strained Turkish-Danish relations as well. In reaction to the prosecution of the mayors, Rasmussen said in June that putting the mayors on trial over the letter contradicted the values of the European Union, which Turkey hopes to join.
During a visit to Copenhagen in November, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan boycotted a joint news conference with Rasmussen after the latter rejected his request that a Roj TV reporter be barred from entry.

Dozens of Kurdish mayors stand trial in Turkey on charges of supporting Kurdish guerrillas

The Associated Press

Published: September 26, 2006
ANKARA, Turkey Turkey began trying more than 50 Kurdish mayors Tuesday for allegedly supporting the main outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group by asking Denmark's premier to resist Turkish calls to shut down a Kurdish television station.

Dozens of mayors appeared before the court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, and pleaded innocent to charges of aiding and abetting a terrorist group.

The 56 mayors defended the letter they sent to Denmark's prime minister, saying in a joint statement to the court that it had been an act of "free speech."

"We are standing behind each of the 405 words in our famous letter," Yenisehir Mayor Firat Anli told the court, reading from the five-page statement. "If examined, our letter points to the need for maturity to tolerate opposition to freedom of speech and the establishment of a democratic living system."

The trial — seen as the latest test of freedom of speech in Turkey — is likely to strain relations further with the European Union, which has been pushing the country to strengthen the rights of its Kurdish minority and eliminate limits on free speech.

On Tuesday, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said "I cannot imagine a country which does not respect such a fundamental principle as freedom of expression as an EU member." The EU wants Turkey to change laws that penalize insulting the Turkish Republic, its officials or "Turkishness."

The trial was being monitored by Danish diplomats and human rights activists, and the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen has criticized the mayors' indictment.

For Turkey, the trial revolves around a highly sensitive issue, and comes at a time when the autonomy-seeking Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, has stepped up its bombings and attacks across the country, targeting civilians and tourists as well as troops.

The mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democractic Society Party were indicted after writing a letter to Denmark's Rasmussen asking him to keep the Roj TV station, which is banned in Turkey, on the air in Denmark, despite claims by Turkey that it is a PKK propaganda machine.

Rebel commanders often join the station's broadcasts by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq, and the station broadcasts images of rebels training or attacking Turkish soldiers.

The court adjourned the trial until Nov. 21 to determine whether Abdullah Hicap, chairman of the board of Roj TV, had ever faced prosecution in Turkey.

Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, one of the most influential voices in the Turkish-Kurdish community, said he was prepared to face punishment if convicted. Most of the Kurdish mayors, including Baydemir, already face separate charges for their alleged ties to the rebels.

The country's powerful military is highly suspicious of the Kurdish mayors' affiliation and is critical of their performance. Over the weekend, the military sent dozens of soldiers to the streets of the southeastern city of Hakkari to collect garbage, while a group of people in civilian clothes carried banners reading: "Don't engage in separatism, do your work!"

The PKK has been listed by the European Union and the United States as a terrorist organization.

Danish-Turkish relations have long been strained over Kurdish groups based in Denmark.

In November, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan walked out of a joint press conference with Rasmussen in Denmark because Roj TV journalists were in the audience.

The Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen demanded last year that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license. The Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech. But authorities there are investigating whether the station has any links to the rebels, a claim the station has denied.

Turkey began negotiations a year ago to join the European Union and is under pressure to expand freedom of speech and improve the treatment of its Kurdish minority. Though Ankara has granted some language and other cultural rights, it does not recognize the Kurds as an official minority, and has ruled out any dialogue with the guerrillas.

A Turkish prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison for the mayors in the June indictment.


ANKARA, Turkey Turkey began trying more than 50 Kurdish mayors Tuesday for allegedly supporting the main outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group by asking Denmark's premier to resist Turkish calls to shut down a Kurdish television station.

Dozens of mayors appeared before the court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, and pleaded innocent to charges of aiding and abetting a terrorist group.

The 56 mayors defended the letter they sent to Denmark's prime minister, saying in a joint statement to the court that it had been an act of "free speech."

"We are standing behind each of the 405 words in our famous letter," Yenisehir Mayor Firat Anli told the court, reading from the five-page statement. "If examined, our letter points to the need for maturity to tolerate opposition to freedom of speech and the establishment of a democratic living system."

The trial — seen as the latest test of freedom of speech in Turkey — is likely to strain relations further with the European Union, which has been pushing the country to strengthen the rights of its Kurdish minority and eliminate limits on free speech.

On Tuesday, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said "I cannot imagine a country which does not respect such a fundamental principle as freedom of expression as an EU member." The EU wants Turkey to change laws that penalize insulting the Turkish Republic, its officials or "Turkishness."

The trial was being monitored by Danish diplomats and human rights activists, and the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen has criticized the mayors' indictment.

For Turkey, the trial revolves around a highly sensitive issue, and comes at a time when the autonomy-seeking Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, has stepped up its bombings and attacks across the country, targeting civilians and tourists as well as troops.

The mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democractic Society Party were indicted after writing a letter to Denmark's Rasmussen asking him to keep the Roj TV station, which is banned in Turkey, on the air in Denmark, despite claims by Turkey that it is a PKK propaganda machine.

Rebel commanders often join the station's broadcasts by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq, and the station broadcasts images of rebels training or attacking Turkish soldiers.

The court adjourned the trial until Nov. 21 to determine whether Abdullah Hicap, chairman of the board of Roj TV, had ever faced prosecution in Turkey.

Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, one of the most influential voices in the Turkish-Kurdish community, said he was prepared to face punishment if convicted. Most of the Kurdish mayors, including Baydemir, already face separate charges for their alleged ties to the rebels.

The country's powerful military is highly suspicious of the Kurdish mayors' affiliation and is critical of their performance. Over the weekend, the military sent dozens of soldiers to the streets of the southeastern city of Hakkari to collect garbage, while a group of people in civilian clothes carried banners reading: "Don't engage in separatism, do your work!"

The PKK has been listed by the European Union and the United States as a terrorist organization.

Danish-Turkish relations have long been strained over Kurdish groups based in Denmark.

In November, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan walked out of a joint press conference with Rasmussen in Denmark because Roj TV journalists were in the audience.

The Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen demanded last year that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license. The Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech. But authorities there are investigating whether the station has any links to the rebels, a claim the station has denied.

Turkey began negotiations a year ago to join the European Union and is under pressure to expand freedom of speech and improve the treatment of its Kurdish minority. Though Ankara has granted some language and other cultural rights, it does not recognize the Kurds as an official minority, and has ruled out any dialogue with the guerrillas.

A Turkish prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison for the mayors in the June indictment.


ANKARA, Turkey Turkey began trying more than 50 Kurdish mayors Tuesday for allegedly supporting the main outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group by asking Denmark's premier to resist Turkish calls to shut down a Kurdish television station.

Dozens of mayors appeared before the court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, and pleaded innocent to charges of aiding and abetting a terrorist group.

The 56 mayors defended the letter they sent to Denmark's prime minister, saying in a joint statement to the court that it had been an act of "free speech."

"We are standing behind each of the 405 words in our famous letter," Yenisehir Mayor Firat Anli told the court, reading from the five-page statement. "If examined, our letter points to the need for maturity to tolerate opposition to freedom of speech and the establishment of a democratic living system."

The trial — seen as the latest test of freedom of speech in Turkey — is likely to strain relations further with the European Union, which has been pushing the country to strengthen the rights of its Kurdish minority and eliminate limits on free speech.

On Tuesday, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said "I cannot imagine a country which does not respect such a fundamental principle as freedom of expression as an EU member." The EU wants Turkey to change laws that penalize insulting the Turkish Republic, its officials or "Turkishness."

The trial was being monitored by Danish diplomats and human rights activists, and the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen has criticized the mayors' indictment.

For Turkey, the trial revolves around a highly sensitive issue, and comes at a time when the autonomy-seeking Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, has stepped up its bombings and attacks across the country, targeting civilians and tourists as well as troops.

The mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democractic Society Party were indicted after writing a letter to Denmark's Rasmussen asking him to keep the Roj TV station, which is banned in Turkey, on the air in Denmark, despite claims by Turkey that it is a PKK propaganda machine.

Rebel commanders often join the station's broadcasts by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq, and the station broadcasts images of rebels training or attacking Turkish soldiers.

The court adjourned the trial until Nov. 21 to determine whether Abdullah Hicap, chairman of the board of Roj TV, had ever faced prosecution in Turkey.

Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, one of the most influential voices in the Turkish-Kurdish community, said he was prepared to face punishment if convicted. Most of the Kurdish mayors, including Baydemir, already face separate charges for their alleged ties to the rebels.

The country's powerful military is highly suspicious of the Kurdish mayors' affiliation and is critical of their performance. Over the weekend, the military sent dozens of soldiers to the streets of the southeastern city of Hakkari to collect garbage, while a group of people in civilian clothes carried banners reading: "Don't engage in separatism, do your work!"

The PKK has been listed by the European Union and the United States as a terrorist organization.

Danish-Turkish relations have long been strained over Kurdish groups based in Denmark.

In November, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan walked out of a joint press conference with Rasmussen in Denmark because Roj TV journalists were in the audience.

The Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen demanded last year that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license. The Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech. But authorities there are investigating whether the station has any links to the rebels, a claim the station has denied.

Turkey began negotiations a year ago to join the European Union and is under pressure to expand freedom of speech and improve the treatment of its Kurdish minority. Though Ankara has granted some language and other cultural rights, it does not recognize the Kurds as an official minority, and has ruled out any dialogue with the guerrillas.

A Turkish prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison for the mayors in the June indictment.


ANKARA, Turkey Turkey began trying more than 50 Kurdish mayors Tuesday for allegedly supporting the main outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group by asking Denmark's premier to resist Turkish calls to shut down a Kurdish television station.

Dozens of mayors appeared before the court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, and pleaded innocent to charges of aiding and abetting a terrorist group.

The 56 mayors defended the letter they sent to Denmark's prime minister, saying in a joint statement to the court that it had been an act of "free speech."

"We are standing behind each of the 405 words in our famous letter," Yenisehir Mayor Firat Anli told the court, reading from the five-page statement. "If examined, our letter points to the need for maturity to tolerate opposition to freedom of speech and the establishment of a democratic living system."

The trial — seen as the latest test of freedom of speech in Turkey — is likely to strain relations further with the European Union, which has been pushing the country to strengthen the rights of its Kurdish minority and eliminate limits on free speech.

On Tuesday, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said "I cannot imagine a country which does not respect such a fundamental principle as freedom of expression as an EU member." The EU wants Turkey to change laws that penalize insulting the Turkish Republic, its officials or "Turkishness."

The trial was being monitored by Danish diplomats and human rights activists, and the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen has criticized the mayors' indictment.

For Turkey, the trial revolves around a highly sensitive issue, and comes at a time when the autonomy-seeking Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, has stepped up its bombings and attacks across the country, targeting civilians and tourists as well as troops.

The mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democractic Society Party were indicted after writing a letter to Denmark's Rasmussen asking him to keep the Roj TV station, which is banned in Turkey, on the air in Denmark, despite claims by Turkey that it is a PKK propaganda machine.

Rebel commanders often join the station's broadcasts by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq, and the station broadcasts images of rebels training or attacking Turkish soldiers.

The court adjourned the trial until Nov. 21 to determine whether Abdullah Hicap, chairman of the board of Roj TV, had ever faced prosecution in Turkey.

Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, one of the most influential voices in the Turkish-Kurdish community, said he was prepared to face punishment if convicted. Most of the Kurdish mayors, including Baydemir, already face separate charges for their alleged ties to the rebels.

The country's powerful military is highly suspicious of the Kurdish mayors' affiliation and is critical of their performance. Over the weekend, the military sent dozens of soldiers to the streets of the southeastern city of Hakkari to collect garbage, while a group of people in civilian clothes carried banners reading: "Don't engage in separatism, do your work!"

The PKK has been listed by the European Union and the United States as a terrorist organization.

Danish-Turkish relations have long been strained over Kurdish groups based in Denmark.

In November, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan walked out of a joint press conference with Rasmussen in Denmark because Roj TV journalists were in the audience.

The Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen demanded last year that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license. The Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech. But authorities there are investigating whether the station has any links to the rebels, a claim the station has denied.

Turkey began negotiations a year ago to join the European Union and is under pressure to expand freedom of speech and improve the treatment of its Kurdish minority. Though Ankara has granted some language and other cultural rights, it does not recognize the Kurds as an official minority, and has ruled out any dialogue with the guerrillas.

A Turkish prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison for the mayors in the June indictment.

Two years of imprisonment for each word of the letter
SABAH, English Edition
27.09.2006
56 DTP mayors, who wrote a letter to Denmark to request ROJ TV not be shut down, are now to be judged and each is liable to be imprisoned for up to 15 years. The judge told the defendants who were applauded by groups when arriving to the judicial court: "You are paid 3,000 YTL in salary by the government. Is it a proper act to watch this channel?" In the defense of the defendants it was said that: "840 years of imprisonment is demanded for a letter containing 405 words. That makes a 2-year sentence for each word."

yildiz

Two years of imprisonment for each word of DTP mayors

A total of 840 years worth of imprisonment was demanded for 56 mayors of DTP, who were being judged for sending Rasmussen a letter in order not to close ROJ TV. The president judge reminded that Anlı from DTP receives salary from the government.

The trial of 56 mayors of DTP for whom a penalty of 15 years of imprisonment each was demanded because of sending the Prime Minister of Denmark Anders Fogh Rasmussen a letter in order not to close Roj TV in line with articles no. 341/3 and 220/7 of TCK (Turkish Criminal Code) "helping terrorist organization knowingly and willfully." The defendants confirmed their words by saying: "we have written the mentioned letter in order to respond our citizens' right to use their cultural and democratic rights. We confirm all 405 words of our notorious letter and repeat its content."

Kurdish Mayors on Trial in Turkey

Kurdish Mayors on Trial in Turkey


Last Updated: Wednesday, 27 September 2006, 01:55 GMT 02:55 UK



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Fifty-six Kurdish mayors have gone on trial in Turkey, charged with aiding and abetting a terrorist organisation.

They were indicted after writing to the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen asking him not to close down Danish-based Kurdish Roj TV station.

The government in Ankara says the station is a mouthpiece for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

Mr Rasmussen has expressed his shock that such a trial could take place in a country seeking EU membership.


Outrage


Forty-five of the mayors attended the opening hearing in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated south-east.

They are charged by state prosecutors with "knowingly and willingly" helping Kurdish rebels.

In court on Tuesday, the mayors argued that their letter to the Danish prime minister contained no words of support for the PKK and that asking the Danes not to close down a television channel was within their right to free expression.

The mayors - all members of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party - face up to 15 years in prison each if found guilty.

The trial has been adjourned for two months.

Mr Rasmussen expressed his outrage over the indictment of the mayors earlier this year:

"I find it rather shocking... that because you write a letter to me, you are being accused of violating the law," he told the Danish media in June.

"It is shocking that it can take place in a country which is seeking EU membership," Mr Rasmussen.

Despite strong pressure from Ankara to revoke Roj TV's licence, the Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech.

Turkey - as well as the EU and the US - views the PKK as a terrorist organisation.

The PKK implemented a five-year unilateral ceasefire after its leader Abdullah Ocalan was arrested in 1999, but resumed armed activities in 2004.

After Abdullah Ocalan's arrest it also dropped its demands for an independent Kurdish state, calling instead for Ankara to open a political dialogue, increase cultural rights for Kurds and release imprisoned PKK members.

Ankara has mostly ignored such

Turkey tries scores of Kurdish mayors

Aljazeera.net

Tuesday 26 September 2006, 20:56 Makka Time, 17:56 GMT

Fifty-six Kurdish mayors have gone on trial in Diyarbekir, a city in southeastern Turkey, on charges of supporting Kurdish separatists.

The men were charged with "supporting terrorism" on Tuesday for writing a joint letter to Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the Danish prime minister ,last December.

The mayors had asked Fogh Rasmussen to ignore the Turkish government's call to close down Roj TV, a Denmark-based Kurdish television station.

Turkey says Roj TV is a mouthpiece of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an armed separatist group, which Ankara , together with the European Union and the US, classifies as a terrorist organisation.

Mayors defend free speech

The Turkish prosecution has said that by seeking to prevent the closure of the station, the mayors have committed the offence of "knowingly and willingly supporting" a terrorist group.

It says that Roj TV hosts PKK leaders, carries PKK statements inciting violence and follows a broadcasting policy "in line with PKK propaganda".

Among the accused is Osman Baydemir, one of Turkey's most popular Kurdish politicians and mayor of Diyarbakir, the largest city of the predominantly Kurdish southeast.

The mayors rejected the accusations, arguing that the letter aimed to defend freedom of press and the interests of the Kurdish people in the southeast, where Roj TV enjoys a wide audience.

One of the mayors, Firat Anli, said as he presented a joint defence on behalf of all defendants: "We stand behind each and every word of the letter... This trial is yet another reflection of the undemocratic approaches to the Kurdish question in Turkey.

"Rather than defending a certain channel, our letter underlined the need to tolerate different voices, even if they are dissident, and to ensure freedom of press and freedom of expression."

Turkey 's EU ambitions

The mayors had written that silencing Roj TV "would mean the loss of an important vehicle in the struggle for democracy and human rights" in Turkey.

They said efforts to press Denmark into banning the channel contradicted Turkey 's commitment to improve its democracy record in its bid to join the EU.

Fogh Rasmussen rejected Turkey's demands to close Roj TV and said that Turkey should not put the men on trial.

"I find it rather shocking ... that because you write a letter to me, you are being accused of violating the law," Fogh Rasmussen told Danish public radio in June.

"It is shocking that it can take place in a country which is seeking EU membership."

Recently, Turkey has come under intense scrutiny for putting a series of high-profile authors on trial.

Turkey says reforms on track

By Gareth Jones

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's prime minister insisted on Tuesday that European Union reforms were fully on track, but the EU's top enlargement official said he was tired of telling Ankara to change laws that restrict free speech.

In a move underlining the EU's human rights concerns, dozens of Kurdish mayors in Turkey's troubled southeast went on trial for opposing the closure of a Kurdish broadcaster.

"The reform process is continuing at full speed and without us losing any of our enthusiasm," Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan told lawmakers from his ruling centre-right AK Party.

"We are doing these reforms not because the EU wants them but because Turkey needs them," he said.

Erdogan was speaking as members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, debated a report critical of Ankara's reform record over the past 12 months.

Parliamentary sources said the report by Dutch MEP Camiel Eurlings was likely to be adopted on Wednesday in an amended form, deleting a clause which urges Ankara to recognise the mass killings of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey as "genocide".

EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn told the Strasbourg assembly Turkey must implement more reforms before the Commission's own annual report, due to be published on November 8.

Rehn said he was tired of pressing Turkey to abolish or reform an article of its penal code that makes it a criminal offence to "insult Turkishness", and which has been used to prosecute a number of intellectuals.

"Despite the acquittal of the novelist (Elif) Shafak, freedom of expression remains under threat in Turkey," he said, arguing that the mere existence of such judicial proceedings had "a chilling effect" on journalists, writers and activists.

CHANGING MENTALITY

Erdogan gave no indication on Tuesday that his government might be ready to scrap or modify the controversial article 301.

"It is not enough just to change laws to entrench human rights and freedoms. You also need to change the mentality.... We must be patient," Erdogan said.

Justice Minister Cemil Cicek, an opponent of change, said Shafak's acquittal last week showed the law was working well.

Opposition leader Deniz Baykal, whose nominally centre-left Republican People's Party has taken an increasingly nationalist stance ahead of national elections due next year, made clear he did not back any change to the present law.

"(Erdogan) is seeking a partner to share the shame of making it possible to insult the Turkish identity. He should knock at another door... We will not support him," he said.

Against similarly loud nationalist opposition, Erdogan defended plans to ease property restrictions for non-Muslim minorities, another key EU demand.

A pious Muslim, Erdogan ridiculed suggestions that the plans would bolster the influence of Orthodox Christian Patriarch Bartholomew, based in Istanbul, and pave the way for the creation of a "mini-Vatican" in Turkey's biggest city.

Parliament, where the AK Party has a big majority, is now debating the 'religious foundations' law, though EU diplomats say the current draft does not go far enough in restoring confiscated properties to non-Muslim religious minorities.

In Diyarbakir, biggest city of Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast, 56 mayors faced charges of "knowingly and willingly" helping Kurdish rebels by writing to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen earlier this year urging him not to close Denmark-based Roj TV.

Ankara views Roj TV as a mouthpiece for "terrorists" and has urged Copenhagen to shut it down. Rasmussen has refused, citing freedom of expression. He has also criticised the trial of the mayors, who face up to 15 years in jail if convicted.

The criminal court judge adjourned the trial until November 21.

Turkey blames rebels of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) for the deaths of more than 30,000 people since it began its armed campaign for a homeland in the southeast in 1984.

(c) Reuters 2006. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.

This article: http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=1425332006

Last updated: 26-Sep-06 19:04 BST

Fifty-six Kurdish mayors on trial for 'helping rebels'

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Fifty-six Kurdish mayors went on trial yesterday over a letter they sent to Denmark's prime minister in a case that has raised concerns in the EU. The mayors from Turkey's largest Kurdish party are charged by state prosecutors with "knowingly and willingly" helping Kurdish rebels when they urged Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen not to close Danish-based Kurdish broadcaster Roj TV. The members of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) each face up to 15 years in jail if convicted. The trial was adjourned until November 21.

56 Turkish mayors on trial over Kurdish TV

Published: Wednesday, 27 September, 2006, 11:10 AM Doha Time

DIYARBAKIR: Fifty-six Kurdish mayors went on trial yesterday over a letter they sent to Denmark's prime minister in a case that has raised concerns in the European Union.
The mayors from Turkey's largest Kurdish party are charged by state prosecutors with "knowingly and willingly" helping Kurdish rebels when they urged Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen not to close Danish-based Kurdish broadcaster Roj TV.

The members of the Democratic Society Party (DTP), which champions Kurdish rights, each face up to 15 years in jail if convicted. Forty-five of the mayors attended the court yesterday. The criminal court judge adjourned the trial until November 21.

"The problem (of Kurdish rights) cannot be solved by closing Roj TV, which has been forced to broadcast from Denmark," said Yenisehir mayor Firat Anli in a defence statement on behalf of the mayors, noting that similar channels had been shut in the past.

"The way to reach a solution for our problems is to enable people to produce and watch Kurdish language broadcasts without bans or limitations in these ancient lands in which we live," he said.
Ankara accused Roj TV of being a mouthpiece of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 with the aim of carving out an ethnic homeland in the southeast.

Rasmussen said in June that putting the mayors on trial over the letter contravened the values of the EU, which Turkey hopes to join.

The Danish government has also resisted pressure from Turkey to shut the station, citing freedom of expression. – Reuters

Kurdish mayors stand trial in Turkey

Tuesday, September 26, 2006 · Last updated 3:02 p.m. PT

By SELCAN HACAOGLU
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

ANKARA, Turkey -- Fifty-six Kurdish mayors stood trial Tuesday, accused in Turkey's latest freedom-of-speech case on charges of helping terrorists by arguing to keep a Kurdish TV station on the air.

The Denmark-based Roj television station is banned in Turkey. It often features leaders of the main outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group speaking by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq. Their comments are accompanied by images of rebels training or attacking Turkish soldiers.

The mayors from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party were indicted after writing a letter to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen asking him not to pull the plug on the TV station, despite claims by Turkey that it is a PKK propaganda machine.

In recent years, the autonomy-seeking Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, has stepped up its bombings and attacks across Turkey, targeting civilians and tourists as well as troops. The PKK has been listed by the EU and the United States as a terrorist organization.

Appearing before the court in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, the mayors pleaded innocent to the charges and defended their letter as "free speech."

"We are standing behind each of the 405 words in our famous letter," Yenisehir Mayor Firat Anli told the court, reading from the five-page statement. "If examined, our letter points to the need for maturity to tolerate opposition to freedom of speech and the establishment of a democratic living system."

A Turkish prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison for the mayors, most of whom face separate charges for their alleged ties to the rebels. The court adjourned the trial until Nov. 21.

Danish-Turkish relations have long been strained over Kurdish groups based in Denmark. The trial could damage Turkey's relations with the European Union, which has been pushing it to strengthen the rights of its Kurdish minority and eliminate limits on free speech.

On Tuesday, EU official Olli Rehn said he could not imagine having a country as an EU member that doesn't respect freedom of speech. The EU wants Turkey to change laws that penalize insulting the Turkish Republic, its officials or "Turkishness."

The military is suspicious of the Kurdish mayors' affiliation and critical of their performance.

photo

Tuncer Bakirhan, former leader of a now defunct pro-Kurdish People's Democracy Party, or DEHAP, leaves a courthouse after his trial in Ankara, Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2006 for using an expression that shows respect to the imprisoned Kurdish rebel chief of Abdullah Ocalan and calling him "Mr. Ocalan," when Bakirhan and other members dissolved the party last year. DEHAP is facing closure on charges of ties to Kurdish guerrillas. The party members regrouped under a new political movement, Democratic Society Party.(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)

Turkey starts trial of 56 mayors charged with helping Kurdish rebels

A criminal court in southeastern Turkey on Tuesday started a trial of 56 mayors charged with "knowingly and willingly" helping keep a Kurdish TV station on the air in Denmark, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported. Of the total, 45 mayors including Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir attended the opening hearing in the court in Diyarbakir , Turkey's largest Kurdish-dominated city, according to the report.

The 56 mayors of the Democratic Society Party (DTP) are indicted of sending a letter to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen in December 2005 asking him to keep Danish-based Kurdish Roj TV on the air.

The mayors may face up to 15 years in prison under Articles 314 and 220 of the new Turkish Penal Code (TCK) if found guilty.

The Turkish government claims that the TV station is a media organ of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), asking Denmark to revoke the station's broadcasting license.

But the Danish government has refused to acquiesce, citing freedom of speech, saying that Danish police have been investigating whether Roj TV has any ties with the PKK, which the station has repeatedly denied.

The PKK, blacklisted as a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, has stepped up violence in Turkey since it called off a five-year unilateral ceasefire in June 2004.

The conflict has claimed more than 30,000 lives since 1984 when the PKK launched an armed campaign for an ethnic homeland in the mainly Kurdish southeastern Turkey.

Source: Xinhua

Kurdistance had the following to say about ROJ TV last week

Friday, September 22nd, 2006 @ 21:48 EDT
Kurdistance

Save Roj TV, whose courgeous work we have discussed on this weekly before, are beginning a new letter campaign

the "Save ROJ TV" action urges you to participate in its letter campaign to neutralize the Turkish state global conspiracy against Kurdish culture and heritage.

For more information and to participate check with their website .
Deborah Ann Dilley

Source : http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/author/delal/

Turkey tries over 50 Kurdish mayors over TV station support

Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa
Published: Tuesday September 26, 2006

Ankara- The trial began in the south-eastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir on Tuesday of 56 Kurdish mayors accused of aiding the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), designated a terrorist group by Ankara. The defendants are accused of writing a letter to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen urging him to allow a pro-Kurd television station, which is banned in Turkey but which broadcasts from Denmark, remain on the air. The Ankara government accuses the Roj TV channel of being a "mouthpiece" for the PKK and has demanded that Copenhagen revoke its broadcasting licence.

The mayors, among them Osman Baydemir, prominent mayor of Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, face prison terms of up to 15 years if convicted, news agency Anadolu reported.

© 2006 DPA - Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa

Turkey begins trial of dozens of Kurdish mayors accused of supporting rebels

The Associated Press

Published: September 26, 2006
ANKARA, Turkey More than 50 Kurdish mayors went on trial Tuesday to face charges of aiding and abetting a terrorist organization for seeking to keep a Kurdish television station on the air in Denmark.

The trial, seen as the latest test of freedom of speech in Turkey, is likely to further strain relations with the European Union, which has been pushing the country to strengthen the rights of its Kurdish minority.

The 56 mayors were indicted after writing a letter to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen asking him to keep the Roj TV station, which is banned in Turkey, on the air in Denmark despite claims from Turkey that it is a mouthpiece for the country's main rebel group, the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK.

Rebel commanders often join the station's broadcasts by satellite telephone from their mountain hideouts in northern Iraq.

Last year, the Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen demanded that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license. The Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech. But authorities there are investigating whether the station has any links to the rebels, a claim the station has denied.

The trial is being held in Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeast, where Kurdish guerrillas have recently escalated their attacks in a fight for autonomy that has lasted more than two decades.

Forty-five of the mayors attended Tuesday's opening hearing. Danish diplomats and human rights activists were also present to monitor the case.

Firat Anli, mayor of the small town of Yenisehir, near Diyarbakir, told the court that he and the other defendants "were standing behind every word" of the letter they sent to Fogh Rasmussen. He said the indictment was not objective and all should be acquitted.

Turkey began negotiations a year ago to join the European Union and is under pressure to expand freedom of speech and improve the treatment of its Kurdish minority. Ankara does not recognize the Kurds as an official minority and has ruled out any dialogue with the guerrillas.

A Turkish prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison for the mayors in an indictment in June that accuses them of aiding and abetting a terrorist group. The PKK has been listed by Turkey, the European Union and the United States as a terrorist organization.

The Danish premier has strongly criticized the mayors' indictment.

"I find it rather shocking ... that because you write a letter to me, you are being accused of violating the law," Fogh Rasmussen told Danish public radio in June. "It is shocking that it can take place in a country which is seeking EU membership."

Danish-Turkish relations have long been strained over Kurdish groups based in Denmark.

In 1995, a political arm of the PKK opened its fourth European office in Copenhagen, sparking protests from the Turkish Embassy. The office later closed because of a lack of funding. In 2000, Turkey protested that a Kurdish-language satellite TV station, Mesopotamia TV, was allowed to broadcast from Denmark to Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Over 50 DTP mayors to stand trial for Roj-TV letter

The New Anatolian / Ankara
26 September 2006

Scores of mayors from a pro-Kurdish political party in Turkey are to stand trial today for urging Denmark's premier to let a controversial Danish-based Kurdish broadcaster stay on the air.

Fifty-six pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party's (DTP) mayors wrote to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen last year asking him to keep allegedly pro-terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Roj-TV, which is based in Denmark, on the air despite a statement from the Turkish government asserting that the broadcaster is a mouthpiece for the organization.

The mayors, including controversial Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, will be tried on charges of "aiding and abetting a terrorist group."

The indictment against them, prepared by the Diyarbakir Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and sent to the Diyarbakir High Criminal Court in June, seeks sentences ranging from seven-and-a-half to 15 years in prison under Article 220/7 of the revised Turkish Penal Code (TCK) which stipulates the same sentences for people who deliberately aid and abet terrorist groups as group members.

An army of lawyers, including Diyarbakir's Bar Association head Sezgin Tanrikulu, his deputy Tahir Elci, and Human Rights Association's (IHD) Diyarbakir branch head Selahattin Demirtas, will defend the accused.

Reports say the defendants will underscore freedom of expression and the right to broadcast and provide education in one's mother tongue.

The issue of closing Roj-TV last year created a diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Denmark. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan boycotted a news conference with Rasmussen in Copenhagen to protest the presence of Roj-TV journalists there.

Also the Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen requested Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license but to date the Danish government has refused to do so, citing freedom of speech. Later, the U.S. intervened and urged Denmark to close down the channel, sending Copenhagen a secret letter which has been included in a file on the channel.

However Danish police have been investigating whether Roj-TV has any ties with the PKK, something the station has repeatedly denied. It's unclear when the probe might end.

In 1995 a political wing of the PKK opened its fourth European office in Copenhagen, sparking protests from the Turkish Embassy. The office later closed because of a lack of funding. In 2000 Turkey protested that a Kurdish-language satellite TV station, Mesopotamia TV, was allowed to broadcast from Denmark to Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

DTP mayors' trial begins today

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

ANKARA - Turkish Daily News

The trial of local pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) mayors starts today on charges of sending a letter to Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen in December 2005 requesting that a television station Ankara claims is a mouthpiece for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) not be closed down.

The case was opened when the Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into 56 DTP mayors for a letter they wrote to Rasmussen asking that the pro-PKK Roj TV remain operating.

The DTP mayors asked the Danish prime minister in their letter to keep Roj TV on air in Denmark despite pressure from Ankara , which demanded that Denmark revoke the station's broadcasting license.

But the Danish government has refused to acquiesce, citing freedom of speech, saying that Danish police have been investigating whether Roj TV has any ties with the PKK, something the station repeatedly has denied.

The indictment by the prosecutor says Roj TV is the reincarnation of pro-PKK television stations Med TV and Medya TV, whose broadcasting licenses were pulled by British and French authorities due to their connections with the PKK.

The indictment also says the DTP mayors' letter aimed at the continuity of Roj TV broadcasts in the Scandinavian country, referring to a sentence in the letter that said: "The elimination of this voice [Roj TV] will amount to the loss of an important mechanism in the struggle for basic freedoms."

In their testimonies, Iğdır's Hoşhaber Mayor Nusret Aras and Adıyaman's Yaylakonak Mayor Hasan Karakaya said they did not agree with the content of the letter, adding that they did not know who wrote it, the indictment read.

The DTP mayors are now facing up to 15 years in prison under Articles 314 and 220 of the new Turkish Penal Code (TCK).

9 Years Jail Demand for Rights Activist

Diyarbakir prosecutors have demanded 9 years imprisonment for IHD Provincial Chairman Selahattin Demirtas due to remarks he made on Gun TV and Roj TV. Demirtas is accused of "propaganda" for terror organization.
BIA News Center
20/09/2006 Erol ONDEROGLU BİA (Diyarbakir) - Public prosecutors have demanded a total of 9 years imprisonment for Turkey's Human Rights Association (IHD) Diyarbakir representative Selahattin Demirtas, charging him on two counts for remarks he made on television during interviews with Roj TV and Gun TV.

Subject to the charges is Demirtas's reference to the isolation conditions of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan, saying that this treatment had led to an increase in human rights violations in Southeast Turkey and his aired views that Ocalan himself could be seen a counterpart to any peace efforts in the region.

The Diyarbakir 5th High Criminal Court prosecutor demanded 4.5 years jail for Demirtas due to the statement he gave to Roj TV in relation to a February 7, 2003 press statement he made under the title "Tension caused by war and isolation has increased violations".

In his views aired by Gun TV on June 24, 2005 Demirtas said that in order for any peace project in Turkey to be successful, Ocalan could not be left out of the process.

Demirtas appeared before the Diyarbakir 4th and 5th High Criminal Courts on September 19, Tuesday, defending his position and maintaining that any views he expressed should be evaluated under the freedom of opinion.

"I mentioned the proposals we came up with for the solution of the Kurdish problem" Demitas said in his defense. "One of these was our proposal to establish dialogue with Ocalan. I had no intention of praising anyone or conducting propaganda. To stop the bloodshed, even Ocalan should be talked to".

Both cases against Demirtas were adjourned to November 14 where his trial will continue for conducting the propaganda of an organization or its goals. Each count is punishable by 3 years imprisonment but as the offense was committed through the press, the sentence can be increased by half adding up to a total of 9 years jail term for the activist. (EO/II/YE)

An American delegation visits Gever !

A delegation from American embassy personnel and officials in Turkey visited the town of Gever . While in there they met the mayor, Democratic Society Party (DTP) member Mr. Salih Yildiz.

Among other issues , Yildiz informed the delegate that he and 55 other mayors will be tried for writing a letter to Danish prime minister supporting ROJ TV.

Salih adds " ROJ TV must be left in peace, in the present situation if another channel in Turkey or in any other place take up the Kurdish issue, it will be labeled as "terrorist" by authorities.

It is an open fact that we and together with us 20 million other Kurds watch ROJ TV, because it shows the culture and language of Kurdish people, and as an objective channel make viewers informed about the events. No other media outlet covers this kind of meeting that we have today. If There was no ROJ TV, no body knew that you were visiting us. Roj TV functions as a source of information for Kurdish people, a right that they should not be denied of".

For their part the American delegation expressed their content of visiting Gever.

21.09.2006

Source: ROJ TV, News Centre

European Parliamentarians were informed about the importance of ROJ TV for Kurdish People.

A delegation of European Parliament consisting of : Helene Flautre ( France), Richard Howitt ( Britain ), Vitterio Agnoletto (Italy), John Attard-Montalto ( Malta), Simon Coveney (Irland) and Laima Liucija Andrikiene ( Lithuania) currently visiting Turkey on a fact finding mission concerning the violation of human rights, Kurdish situation, the plight of displaced people, violence against women and suicide.

The delegate in Colemerg met the Mayor Matin tekche a member of Democratic Society Party (DTP) and other representatives of civil society organizations.

The delegation was informed in the meeting that the beaming of ROJ TV in the area is disturbed constantly.

Both the mayor and representatives of civil society informed the delegate about the importance of ROJ TV for the Kurdish viewers in the area.


Source: ROJ TV , News Centre

Statement of the Left Party of Sweden on ROJ-TV

Kurdish TV-station ROJ-TV broadcasts programs in different languages spoken in the Middle East: Arabic, Turkish and Kurdish among others. It is possible to watch the programs in several countries in the Middle East.

A lot of the TV-programs are social programs and some of these are critical of the social order and when it comes to some regimes in the Middle East the programs are also critical of them.

Many programs broadcast by ROJ-TV are therefore regarded as a political liability to the regimes in the Middle East. The Turkish government for example is regarding the programs of ROJ-TV in Kurdish in this way.

The Left Party of Sweden must stress upon the fact that the freedom of expression belongs to one of the most fundamental rules of the democratic game. If the Republic of Turkey is striving for membership in the European Union and has in view to develop its democracy and manage to come to an end with the lack of human rights in the country even the slightest whispering of limiting the possibilities of critical radio- and TV-stations or other media in Europe immediately will jeopardize the possibilities of a Turkish membership in the European Union. It is a behavior which can not be tolerated in a democracy..


In the same way it would be an utterly embarrassing disgrace if a state, a government in Europe or EU-institution submitted to pressure of such an evidently undemocratic demand.

Stockholm , 14th of September


Ulla Hoffmann Amineh Kakabaveh

Member of the Swedish Parliament Member of the International Committee

Left Party of Sweden %

A letter campaign

Dear caller; the “Save ROJ TV” action urges you to participate in its letter campaign to neutralise the Turkish state global conspiracy against Kurdish culture and heritage. The content of the formulated letter below can be cut and pasted into your own e-mail, and send to concerned authorities. ROJ TV needs your democratic and civilised action to survive.

Your Excellency …………….

As you are aware, Turkish authorities in recent weeks have resorted to an orchestrated campaign of accusation and smearing propaganda against the Kurdish satellite television, ROJ TV. The aim of this unjust and antidemocratic endeavour is to divert the attention of public opinion and EU countries from the realities of Turkey and military assaults against Kurdish people. While Turkish state discriminates against Kurdish language inside Turkey, wants to export its archaic and unacceptable policies to European countries as well.Turkish latest effort is contrary to Turkey’s accession to European Union. Your Excellency; I as an European citizen urge you to defend the right of existence and free broadcasting of ROJ TV and protest against unjust campaign of Turkish authorities.

(your signature)

Addresses’ of some concerned authorities:

Prime Minister of Denmark
Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen
E-mail: stm@stm.dk
Fax: +45 – 33 92 33 00

Minister of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Per Stig Moller
e-mail um@um.dk
Fax: +45 32 54 05 33

Minister of Justice
Madam Lene Espersen
E-mail : im@im.dk
Fax: + 45 33 93 35 10

Minister of Culture
Mr. Brian Mikkelsen
E-mail: kum@kum.dk
Fax: + 45 33 91 33 88

Index on Censorship
6-8 Amwell Street
London EC1R 1UQ
United Kingdom
E-mail: rohan@indexoncensorship.org

Kurdish station again in hot water

25.08.2006

Turkish authorities have sent a formal complaint to Denmark in the ongoing dispute over ROJ-TV-TV's transmission

The Turkish government has once again complained to Danish authorities about Kurdish television station ROJ-TV. The station has been accused by both Turkey and the US as being complicit in supporting and inciting terrorism.

The Danish Radio and Television Board received the latest complaint directly from the Turkish authorities in Ankara . The transmission of ROJ-TV in Denmark has been the focus of heated discussions between the Turkish, Danish and US governments over the past year.

In November 2005, police conducted a thorough investigation into ROJ-TV, but the station has been allowed to continue its broadcasts. That investigation is still ongoing.

ROJ-TV has continually denied all accusations by the Turkish government and claims the station has a right to its viewpoints.

'ROJ-TV is a Kurdish TV-station with Kurdish angles on the news, and it doesn't care for the Turkish government,' said station manager Tahsili Zonoozi.

Turkey has consistently argued that ROJ-TV is nothing more than a propaganda outlet for the armed Kurdish organisation PKK, which stands on the US' terror list.

The Turkish government believes the broadcasts show a transgression of Danish laws against spreading hate relating to sex, race, religion or nationality. The complaint also asserts that ROJ-TV has broken a Danish law aimed at protecting minors from programmes which harm their 'physical, mental or moral development, including programmes containing pornography or unmotivated violence'.

Accompanying the complaint were outtakes from several ROJ-TV broadcasts transferred to DVD by the Turkish authorities.

Discussions on the subject have been at the highest levels. PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen has repeatedly criticized the Turkish government for their handling of the situation. He lashed out at the Turkish government for bringing charges against 56 Kurdish mayors, who had sent a letter to him requesting that ROJ-TV be allowed to continue operating in Denmark.

In November 2005, Turkey's prime minister, Tayyip Erdogan, walked out of a press conference with Danish Rasmussen, because he allowed ROJ-TV to cover it.

ROJ-TV has been given three weeks to respond to the current complaint.

Source : The Copenhagen Post on line

Swedish Elections debated on ROJ TV

On Sunday 17 September Swedish electorate go to polling stations in order to chose their Representatives for Parliament, County councils and city councils.

One of the interesting aspect of this year's elections from a Kurdish perspective is the nomination of a huge number of Kurdish origin candidates by Swedish political parties.

There are 33 Swedish Kurds contending for a seat in the parliament, 32 for county councils and 75 persons run for a seat in city councils.

On Friday evening a special debate program was arranged on ROJ TV for some of the Kurdish origin candidates. Jabar Amin from Swedish green Party, Gulan Avci from Swedish Liberal Party, Amineh Kakabaveh from Swedish Left Party were studio guests.

The nominees of Swedish Social Democratic Party , Tara Twna and the sole Kurdish origin candidate of Swedish New Moderates Awat Mohammed joined the debate by telephone.

All participants called upon Kurdish voters to exercise their democratic rights and vote on 17 September. Some of the contenders with Kurdish origin have big chance to come into Swedish Parliament.

Two polling stations have been set up in Silêmanî and Hewlêr in Southern Kurditan for Swedish citizens there for casting their ballots.

The Impact of Satellite

….. From the 1950's to the mid part of 1990's cross-border cultural exchange was mostly through limited radio broadcasts (Radio Yerevan-Kurdish section, Radio Bagdad and Tehran Kurdish sections). The fact that literate Kurds have used three different alphabets (Arabic, Latin and Cyrillic) to write in Kurdish, has also kept them isolated from each other, too. The biggest handicap, however, is the lack of a formal education system in Kurdish. Colonizers have imposed the language of the dominant nation and prohibited the teaching of Kurdish. These all have facilitated the deepening of dialect differences and assimilation of Kurds into other languages and cultures.
This bleak scene is rapidly changing though. Now Kurds have at least three satellite TV stations that broadcast mostly in Kurdish (and through online also). These broadcasts (of Roj TV, Kurdistan TV and KurdSat TV) are viewed by most of the Kurds. Not only are they informed about social and cultural developments in different parts of their homeland, but also they get to see the images, lives, conditions of each other; they have a taste of each dialect and can -by comparison- perceive the sounds and shapes of the spoken dialects. Directors such as Bahman Qobadi (from Iranian Kurdistan = see his Turtles Can Fly, Marooned in Iraq) and Salim Hiner (from Iraqi Kurdistan = see Lemon Vodka) have also contributed immensely to Kurds getting to know other Kurds via the films. We wish them long life to create more……

Dr. Burhan Elturan , Indiana University, September 1,2006

Sourrce: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/postglobalinbox/2006/08/republic_of_kurdistan.html

Mayor on Trial...

September 2006

A court case was launched against Emin Sari, Vice-mayor of Semdinli, on the allegations that he joined a programme on ROJ TV on the phone. The indictment wants Sari to be sentenced according to the Artcile 301 TPC. The case will commence at Semdinli Penal Court of First Instance. After the hearing of the case of non-commissioned officer Tanju Cavus in connection with Semdinli Incident on 20 January Emin Sari joined a programme by phone. When he was talking about the case the line was cut. (Özgür Gündem)

Source: Info.Turk