Cemil Çiçek, a center right politician but with an intense nationalist tendency, who could cling to AKP’s rise and who always gets important positions the government reiterated recently a crude, primitive statement about PKK members: Most of them are not circumsion. So he implies PKK members are probably Armenians. He continues to deny Kurdish existence. … Read more
Kadir Özbek, head of HSYK, acts like an opposition leader… Ergenekon shadow persists over top jurists, courts Today’s Zaman The suspicious incidents are believed to be the work of Ergenekon, a clandestine criminal organization accused of working to overthrow the government. … Ergenekon suspects intimidate judges with compensation claims Today’s Zaman More and more efforts … Read more
Turkish NGOs defend Ergenekon investigation with report from Hurriyet Dailynews The legitimacy of the Ergenekon case has now been defended on a point-by-point basis by two civil society organizations that published a report Thursday supporting the investigation. complete report can be accessed here. politics roundup: Bulwark polemic in Turkish politics (!) TESEV?s Kurban: Solving Kurdish … Read more
Supposedly leftist Leman humor magazine hits at “Kurdish opening” by making word plays at the word “açılım [opening]”.
Some of the Turkish media also criticised this photo: How come statesmen crouch like that. In order to show the strength the Statemen should stand erect….
and TÜSİAD back off, as usual:
Once I stated that Turkish State have lost Kurds after the closure of DTP. Kurdish opening etc progressed slowly but there had been gains. 30 years ago, you could not utter the word “Kurdish” publicly in this country. Now there is a state TV channel in Kurdish. I don’t claim these are enough but such a thorny issue cannot be solved easily. And Kurdish national consciousness has been gaining ground, more and more public spaces for Kurdishness appeared in the last year. However, organized Kurdish response to politics is to step up terroristic activities. Unfortunately not only the guerilla movement but its political dimension, many leaders of BDP explicitly support terrorist activities. Latest wave of attacks are unbearable. It is highly possible that the Turkish State may start an anti-terror campaign in unprecedented scales with an unforeseen popular support…
Top Statesmen visit the ambushed site … and a few ask why the all powerful Turkish army cannot defend its own soldiers… And the government doesn’t have any other support than its own constituencies. Hard times to be an AKP official. Middle Eastern sympathies cannot become a concrete support in near future, AKP has to … Read more
The Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors of Turkey (HSYK) had just ripped of a key special Prosecutor’s judicial authority who decreed the arrest of a Prosecutor related to Ergenekon case. HSYK had been effective in obstructing judicial investigations against the military tutelage.
Venice Commission secretary slams HSYK, urges judicial reform
President of the Turkish parliament and vice prime minster Bulent Arinc, seen here on the right in 2007. Eight soldiers have been questioned over a presumed plot against Turkey’s vice prime minister, the army has said on its website. (AFP/File/Str)
last updated: 12 Dec 2009- 00:20 (all updates at the very end)
Warning! Judiciary is armed in this country. (by İç Mihrak)
One of what Turkish judiciary is best is closing political parties. Here comes the 25th party closed in modern Turkish history. Pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party has just been closed by the Constitutional Court. Hürriyet lists 141 reasons for the closure.
Nothing but nothing will be resolved by closing a party. This party has been closed and re-opened with a new name for several times. Just satisfying establishment desires, nothing else…
37 Kurdish politicians are banned. Some like Ahmet Türk are indeed moderates… Head of Turkish Constitutional Court stated that they relied on ECHR’s ETA decision…By banning moderates, the Court may have empowered hawkish ones in both sides…
Nationalism; Dominant group Dominated group- VIA
In the mean time, it seems that PKK admitted the responsibility of 7 killed soldiers. Head of murdering PKK team’s photo is released here. That does not mean they are still part of a conspiracy though..and that does still not mean they did thinking of all propaganda tactics used in Turkish media…
A nearly 12 square meter room for Abdullah Öcalan, imprisoned PKK leader, caused uproar among PKK members. Ministry of Justice yesterday released photos of Öcalan’s cell which is nearly 1 m2 smaller than the previous one. More photos here.
Pro-PKK Kurds used Öcalan’s cell as a pretext to celebrate the anniversary of PKK’s establishment. There were riots in many cities and I provide some photos below. My first reaction is that this is a case of habitus. PKK members does not know any other way to continue. After 3 decades of fighting, Kurdish question has come to a new and positive level and with major parts’ contribution, we might witness historical moments. However, PKK reactions mostly serve Turkish nationalists…I do not claim AKP does all good but I am not sure if pro-PKK Kurds help the process at all.. but let me not forget to add. This is a friend’s idea. There are nearly no PKK leaders who can really handle the process. Most of reasonable PKK leaders like Musa Anter were assassinated by either hawkish Kurds or the State apparatus and now we have a different sort of leadership problem…
AFP: Turkey defends prison conditions of Kurdish leader
In a move likely to block the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government?s Kurdish initiative, which aims to expand the rights of the country?s Kurds, sympathizers of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers? Party (PKK) and the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) are taking to the streets and resorting to violence in the cities.
Kurdish rebels address thousands of jubilant supporters in Diyarbakir, Turkey, late Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009. Supporters gathered to celebrate the arrival of rebels and refugees who crossed into Turkey from northern Iraq in response to a Turkish government initiative to try to end decades-long fighting between autonomy-seeking Kurdish rebels and Turkish troops. The rebels saluted and addressed crowds throughout their journey from Turkey’s border crossing of Habur with Iraq to Diyarbakir, the largest city in Turkey’s Kurdish-dominated southeast. (AP Photo )
We have been discussing the event, arrival of a group of PKK and thinking how great and novel this is. In the history of Turkish Republic, I do not remember an explicit moment of peace like this. A rebel group might actually end using arms. Still early to imagine this may be but it is now an substantive possibility.