1
November 2002
2. "Turkish hope of joining EU grows", as tension rises before Sunday's election, Washington urges Brussels to reward human rights reforms by Ankara.
3. "Talk Turkey", the West should act now to avoid disappointment later.
4. "Turkey´s new era beckons", Turkish politics has been dominated for the past 20 years by the same political parties and the same leaders, and corruption has flourished. This corruption, combined with economic mismanagement, has triggered a series of economic crises. Turkey is now the recipient of 16 billion dollars of IMF and World Bank loans and is committed to a severe economic austerity plan.
5. "Turkey's turning point", Turkish voters go to the polls on November 3rd, in an election widely seen as the most important for many years. The old guard is on the way out—but who will run this strategically important country in future, and how?
6. "Germany: No Turkey in the EU", if the German foreign minister has anything to do with it, Turkey will not be offered admission into the European Union.
7. "Syrian Kurds Speak Out for Equality", most of Syria's Kurds live along the border with Iraq and have watched enviously as their Iraqi brothers govern themselves and make money from oil — all with U.S. and British planes protecting them from attack by Saddam Hussein.
8. "Crucial US allies on Iraq fall out over oil", two of the United States' closest strategic allies in its campaign against Saddam Hussein - Turkey and the autonomous Kurdish enclave in northern Iraq - have fallen out amid a chorus of belligerent pre-election rhetoric.
9. "Lawyers have not been able to meet with Ocalan for three weeks", Hatice Korkut, lawyer of KADEK President Abdullah Ocalan, stated that they had not been able to meet with him for three weeks. It is striking that the lack of meetings coincides with Nvember 3 elections.
10. "EU - Turkish troika met in Ankara", Turkish and EU officials met in Ankara to discuss future of relations. EU officials pointed out the need for improvement in political criteria while Turkish officials state it was a good positive meeting. (...)the source indicated that KADEK, which is not on the EU terrorist organizations list was discussed. The source mentioned that even KADEK members state that they are the followers of PKK and therefore it has to be put on the list.
1. - The Christian Sience Monitor - "Iraq colors Kurdish campaign in Turkey's national election":
A Kurdish party could win representation for the first time Sunday, analysts say.
ISTANBUL / 1 November 2002 / by Ilene R. Prusher
On the eve of Turkish elections, thousands of Kurds throng a working
class neighborhood of this city to cheer on their favorite political
party. Circles of young people join hands in a Kurdish dance or halay,
and women wear ethnic dresses in the Kurdish national colors of yellow,
red, and green.
The scene is one of many signs that tensions between the Kurds and the
Turkish government are slowly cooling. After spending most of the last
decade battling militant Kurdish separatists in the southeast, hopes
of joining the European Union have compelled the government to let Kurdish
voices be heard in a way they never have before.
Yet just as this more relaxed political environment was making itself felt, the government is finding new cause – the likelihood of US military intervention in Iraq – to be deeply wary of resurgent Kurdish nationalism.
"It seems ironic that at a time when the Kurdish people in Turkey feel more at ease, the Turkish establishment feels more of a threat," says Professor Kemal Kirisci, an expert on Kurdish affairs at IRISCI, Bosphorus University in Istanbul.
At Sunday's rally – one week ahead of national elections – the predominantly Kurdish DEHAP (Democratic People's Party) drew more than 200,000 people, according to Turkish media reports. DEHAP leaders say this is the first election season they or any other pro-Kurdish party have been able to campaign without much harassment from the government. Analysts say the primarily Kurdish party might even squeeze into office by picking up enough votes – at least 10 percent – to gain seats in parliament. It would mark the first time Kurds have group representation in Turkey.
"This is the first time we've ever been this free," says Pinar Yilmaz, a teenage textile-factory worker in a glittery robe and headscarf. "Before, because of the pressure by police, people were too afraid to attend."
A Kurdish turnaround
The new atmosphere stems from several important trends in Turkey.
The defeat of the PKK, or Kurdistan Workers' Party, and the life imprisonment of its leader Abdullah Ocalan ended an era of violence. Bloodshed and disillusionment have also led many Turkish Kurds away from secessionism and toward demands for more cultural autonomy instead.
"There has been a Kurdish turnaround: they want to be a part of a multicultural Turkish state," says Mr. Kirisci.
With tensions winding down in the largely Kurdish southeast has come an increased push to join the European Union, whose guidelines have obliged reluctant Turks to loosen restrictions on the Kurds. Just this summer, parliament voted to lift the ban on broadcasting and education in the Kurdish language.
Though he doesn't think that DEHAP will make it into parliament, Kirisci says "[DEHAP's campaign] will reinforce Turkey's democratic credentials."
Others say they wouldn't count out a DEHAP success on Sunday. Public opinion surveys show DEHAP winning about 7 percent of the vote. But election analysts say many Kurds are still hesitant to admit they support a Kurdish party, fearful the government will link them with the outlawed PKK or another militant group.
"DEHAP is an unknown, and they might surprise us," says Tarhan Erdem, a polling expert in Istanbul. "If DEHAP is able to make their supporters believe they can pass the threshold, they will get more supporters." Some non-Kurdish Turks, he says, particularly liberals who sympathize with the party's vaguely socialist outlook, may vote DEHAP as a way of protesting Turkey's establishment.
Take Ahmet Demir, who is DEHAP's secretary-general – and not a Kurd. He thinks that the party's success in attracting more voters comes from merging with smaller left-wing Turkish parties to show that the party's ultimate goal is getting Kurds and Turks to work together.
"The ideology that brings me to this party is that I'm a human being, I live in this country, and I want there to be more democratic space for people."
Jitters over war with Iraq
Part of DEHAP's agenda is to implement policies that have gone ignored: such as the lifting of the ban on Kurdish language education. Its goal is not, Mr. Demir says, to break off Kurdish areas from Turkey or any other countries with Kurds, which include Iran, Iraq, and Syria.
Between 4,000 and 5,000 PKK guerrillas are stationed in Northern Iraq. Turkey is afraid that if a war against Iraq begins, they will try to blend in with the expected flood of refugees into Turkey.
Demir blames Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit – whose support rating is so low that his Democratic Left Party is expected to disappear after Sunday's ballot – for using war jitters over Iraq as a campaign tactic.
"The Turkish prime minister is saying meaningless things, because no one is talking about a full independent state in Northern Iraq."
But Mehmet Metiner, a former politician in previous Kurdish and Islamic parties, argues that most Kurds would be delighted if a US war in Iraq led to the creation of an independent Kurdistan.
"The [DEHAP] party will say they're socialist and against the war, but they're hoping that a war will let the militants come down from the mountains and let Kurds live freely in Turkey."
Mr. Metiner says he's not voting for DEHAP – many Kurds won't, otherwise it would be assured of a bloc in parliament.
Kirisci says that about 14 million of Turkey's nearly
70 million citizens identified themselves as of Kurdish origin in a
May poll, up from 12 million last December – another indicator
of an increased comfort level. 
2. - The Guardian - "Turkish hope of joining EU grows":
As tension rises before Sunday's election, Washington urges Brussels to reward human rights reforms by Ankara
BRUSSELS / 1 November 2002 / by Ian Black
The European Union is moving towards giving Turkey a long-coveted
"date to fix a date" for the start of membership negotiations,
whatever the outcome of Sunday's general election.
Diplomats say there are good chances that even a government dominated by the pro-Islamic Justice and Development party (AKP) - which is currently leading in the opinion polls - will be given a concrete sign at the EU's summit in Copenhagen next month that it can join the club.
With Iraq in mind, Washington is pressing its EU partners hard to recognise the strategic value of Turkey, a long-standing Nato ally, and overcome reservations about the Muslim country's political and human rights record.
Turkish legislation passed in August submitted to long-standing EU demands by abolishing the death penalty in peacetime, ending bans on Kurdish-language broadcasting and education and easing curbs on the press.
But groups such as Amnesty and Human Rights Watch say much more needs to be done, especially to help the hundreds of thousands of displaced Kurds to return to their homes in the south-east.
Last week's EU summit in Brussels called for the reforms to continue, but failed to say whether a date for starting membership talks would be forthcoming.
An election victory for the AKP, while viewed with suspicion by Turkey's generals, is not an issue for Brussels, as the party is pro-European, democratic and reformist.
"What matters is delivery," a well-placed diplomat said. "The Turks have a long way to go, but they've gone incredibly far already. We've seen the greatest reform since Ataturk."
Britain, echoing the US, is pressing for a so-called "rendezvous clause": a date to fix a date. So is Greece, which believes that its problems with its neighbour will be better addressed from within the EU.
Brussels sources predict that the Copenhagen summit will fix a point in 2003 or 2004 to review progress on Ankara's reforms and then set a date to begin membership negotiations, maybe in 2008, soon after Romania and Bulgaria are likely to join.
Ten other countries are to be invited to join the EU in Copenhagen.
The most important EU player is Germany, historically among the most cautious about Turkey's membership, but which has come round to the idea. France, Italy and Spain are also now onside. However, smaller EU countries such as Austria and Sweden still have serious doubts.
Turkey is in a position to make demands. Brussels badly needs its agreement to a long-delayed deal to allow Nato's assets to be used by the fledgling EU rapid reaction force.
Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy and security chief, said the next few weeks would be "decisive" for the EU's relationship with Turkey.
Ankara's goodwill is also vital if the slow-moving UN
talks on Cyprus are to progress towards a peace settlement in time to
avoid the grim prospect of the island joining the EU in 2004 while still
divided, with Turkish troops occupying its northern part.
3. - The Times - "Talk Turkey":
The West should act now to avoid disappointment later
1 November 2002 
The likelihood that a political party with Islamist sympathies will
win Turkey’s general election this weekend should be a cause for
concern, if not yet for alarm, to Turkey’s Western allies. A Turkish
electorate so disillusioned with years of unimpressive government, and
with a crippling recession, that it is ignoring mainstream parties in
a desperate attempt to find more compelling leadership on the political
fringes, is a potent force for potentially dangerous change. The vote
raises questions about the secular, moderate stance of a country that
straddles East and West, Christian and Muslim worlds. Although an Iranian-style
lurch from the embrace of the West towards religious radicalism remains
a distant possibility, it is one that this vote will bring a little
closer.
There is scant comfort to be gleaned from the thought that the controversial Justice and Development Party (AK Party) will almost certainly have to share power with the moderate Republican People’s Party (CHP). This is an unlikely marriage. The CHP is the only mainstream party in the running, its supporters are at the opposite end of the political spectrum from the AK Party and will be doing their best on Sunday to defeat it. Nor is there much reassurance to be found in the fact that the AK Party’s leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a former Mayor of Istanbul, is not running himself after being jailed for reading an aggressive religious poem. He might end up as Prime Minister anyway, as he remains an obvious candidate for the job. Despite Mr Erdogan’s recent eschewing of the most inflammatory rhetoric, his insistence that his party is democratic and secular, his refusal to endorse the introduction of Sharia and his overtures to Western business, Turkey’s partners and his own opponents remain sceptical of the way he would behave in office.
It would be short-sighted to put all the blame for this unsettling state of affairs on the present Turkish governing coalition, whose three parties have become so unpopular that they may fail to get any seats at all in the next parliament. Western countries must acknowledge their own guilt too. Whether by snubbing Turkey, or simply taking it for granted, they have added to the burdens of office for Turkey’s rulers.
The cornerstone of Turkey’s foreign policy is its relationship with America. That friendship has become more important than ever to Washington as it draws up plans for war on Iraq, Turkey’s neighbour. The Turks are willing to help, even though they fear that war will cause unrest among the 12 million Turkish Kurds if the Kurds of northern Iraq are granted self-rule. The United States’ demands for Ankara’s help — use of an airbase inside Turkey from which to launch a US attack on Iraq, the use of Turkish troops to help to catch Iraqis fleeing over the border, and a Turkish crackdown on Iraqi cross-border oil smuggling — threaten the nation with the same sort of massive internal tension faced last year by Pakistan, another awkward and unstable US ally in the war in Afghanistan. It would be a mistake for the US to dismiss Turkey’s genuine difficulties too casually; wise policymakers in Washington will go on recognising the importance of the friendship.
One way that the US can help Ankara is by keeping up pressure
on the European Union at least to consider Turkey’s longstanding
application to join the grouping. Despite making democratic reforms,
Turkey has been left out in the cold as the EU presses ahead with expansion
into Eastern Europe. Ankara is still hoping a date for the beginning
of negotiations on EU entry will emerge this year. It would make more
sense to act to deflect extremism in Turkey than simply to watch and
wring anxious hands.
4. - Radio Netherlands - "Turkey´s new era beckons":
31 October 2002 / by Dorian Jones 
In the Kadikoy district of Istanbul the Motherland party campaign
bus tours the streets, blaring out slogans and its rousing campaign
song. This is traditional - all 18 of the parties standing for election
have campaign songs – and elections in Turkey are traditionally
an exciting time of music, rallies and discussion. But this election,
to be held on Sunday, few people seem enthusiastic.
Turkish politics has been dominated for the past 20 years by the same political parties and the same leaders, and corruption has flourished. This corruption, combined with economic mismanagement, has triggered a series of economic crises. Turkey is now the recipient of 16 billion dollars of IMF and World Bank loans and is committed to a severe economic austerity plan.
All this has led to popular anger against established politicians; the most astonishing collapse in support being that for Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit. His Democratic Left party won the last election with 21 percent of the vote, but according to the latest polls his support is now only 3 percent. His two right-wing coalition partners are hardly faring any better.
Opposition struggling
The main opposition, led by the former Prime Minister Tansu Ciller, is struggling to pass the 10 percent electoral threshold required for parliamentary representation. Ms Ciller's True Path party - like the other established parties - is mired in corruption scandals.
There are a couple of new developments, however. First is the Genc, or "Young" party. Its billionaire businessman leader, Cem Uzan, entered politics only a few months ago after buying one of Turkey's numerous parties. Since then he's taken the country by storm, with carefully orchestrated rallies starting with concerts by pop stars and ending with free food. His message is simple and aimed straight at the heart; stand up to the IMF and the European Union. He also demands increases in public spending, and his campaign is slavishly supported daily by his own media empire.
Charges
Despite facing racketeering charges in Turkey and the US, Mr Uzan is challenging for second place and his party is expected to be one of the few to secure parliamentary representation. Politics professor Haluk Sahin of Istanbul's Bilgi University isn't surprised by his apparent success.
"It has all the right symbols, chauvinism, anti IMF-ism and anti-politics, the sort of campaign you have seen others like Ross Perot in the US or Berlusconi in Italy wage. Mr Uzan projects himself as the young outsider who will get rid of the status quo; his whole campaign is based on this premise."
The other faction to have gained from Turkey's disillusionment with politics is the pro-Islamic AK party. Already far ahead in the polls, the only question is whether it will secure an absolute majority.
Like Genc, AK is a new party. It was launched a year ago and is now challenging the established order of Turkish politics. But that's where the similarities end. The AK party rose from the ashes of the Islamic Virtue Party, which was shut down by Turkey's constitutional court after being found guilty of undermining the secular state. Despite the connection, party leader Tayyip Erdogan is keen to distance himself from religion.
Istanbul record
Addressing his supporters, Mr Erdogan focuses on the economy, calling for justice and an end to corruption. During his stint as mayor of Istanbul, Mr Erdogan was widely credited for having brought order to the city, improving public services, and curtailing corruption. That success is a key factor in his popularity.
But for many, questions remain about the party and its leader in particular. For example, Mr Erdogan was imprisoned for sedition three years ago after reciting a poem calling for religious war. Professor Haluk Sahin says AK and its leader remain a conundrum.
"Tayyip is a very prototypical Islamic militant . . . he has all the elements of a modern age fundamentalist. But at the same time he is a man who has higher ambitions, who has a sense of realism. But again whether this is merely a tactical change or a thorough change of ideology we are not in a position to say."
The AK party has been working hard to dispel concerns both inside Turkey and abroad. The charm offensive is being led by AK's deputy leader Abdullah Gul, who has been touring the financial capitals of Europe and America to quell fears about his party. Mr Gul has also been stressing his party's commitment to improving human rights and pursuing Turkey's bid to join the European Union. He says there's no question of any hidden agendas.
Military objections
Many in Turkey seem to believe him. According to polls, AK is seen as the most trusted party. The same polls indicate that only a third of its support comes from religious voters. But one institution in Turkey is yet to be convinced; the army.
The army sees itself as the guardian of the secular state. It 1997, it forced Turkey's first Islamic led government out of office. Generals repeatedly warn of the threat of radical Islam. Earlier this year the army chief of staff was quoted saying Mr Erdogan "speaks without using his brain". He also said the war against radical Islam would last a thousand years.
Political commentator Mehmet Ali Birand says confrontation between the army and an AK government isn't inevitable if the latter acts carefully, but difficult times lie ahead:
"They [the military] don't like the AK party and they are ready to do anything to stop them to get to power, but they can't do anything. They can't intervene. If the AK party behaves normally, without adding any religious motifs, the military cannot do anything."
Wider example
Turkey is about to embark on an important experiment, one with global implications, according to Professor Haluk Sahin:
"The coming elections are important because if AK
can prove themselves to be a conservative party of democratic Muslims,
then it will put an end to a very fundamental fear that Turkey has had
of Islamic politics. We are engaged in an experiment not only for Turkey,
but for the rest of the world."
5. - The Economist - "Turkey's turning point":
Turkish voters go to the polls on November 3rd, in an election widely seen as the most important for many years. The old guard is on the way out—but who will run this strategically important country in future, and how?
31 October 2002
IT WASN’T by chance that Turkey once was at the centre of a
huge empire. Its location, bordering the European Union, the eastern
Mediterranean, and, perhaps most important of all, Iraq, has assured
it continuing strategic importance. This has not always been a blessing,
though, as Turkish voters know. Turkey’s neighbours and allies
have often turned a blind eye to human-rights transgressions committed
by economically incompetent governments whose support was geopolitically
important.
Now the Turkish electorate, at least, has had enough—if the opinion polls are anything to go by. The economy is still struggling to regain any kind of momentum after last year’s acutely painful recession—GDP shrank by 7.4%—sparked by the collapse of Turkey’s currency peg to the dollar. The government of prime minister Bulent Ecevit faces a crushing defeat in the election on November 3rd. Mr Ecevit’s Democratic Left Party is expected to gain fewer than 10% of the votes—not enough, under the election rules, to retain any seats in parliament. Not only has the prime minister’s coalition government failed to deliver economic recovery; it also stands accused of being soft on the corruption that has plagued Turkish politics for generations.
So polling day seems likely to mark a turning point in Turkish politics: the polls show that only two of the 17 parties contesting the election can count on reaching the 10% threshold. In the lead is the Justice and Development Party, led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a former mayor of Istanbul and former Islamist. Mr Erdogan cannot stand for parliament himself—he is banned because he was once convicted of (supposedly) inciting a Muslim rebellion by reciting a poem at a meeting. His popularity, though, owes more to the perception that he is free from corruption than to his Islamist roots.
The Republican People’s Party (CHP), founded by the father of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk, and now led by Deniz Baykal, is in second place. This strong showing owes much to the involvement of Kemal Dervis, the former economy minister who was brought back from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to try to pick up the pieces after last year’s crisis (and who was sacked by Mr Ecevit earlier this year). The CHP is also likely to win support from voters concerned about Mr Erdogan’s Islamic credentials.
Mr Erdogan’s electoral list hardly smacks of Islamic fundamentalism, though, and many voters seem happy with the prospect of him winning an outright majority. The main risk to democracy would be the army’s mistrust of Mr Erdogan. Turkey’s top business people, and many of the country’s western allies, would be content with an alliance between Mr Erdogan and Mr Baykal. In a recent televised debate, the two men seemed to agree on many issues.
Getting rid of corrupt politicians is only the start. Mr Ecevit’s government was fatally weakened by its inept handling of Turkey’s economic crisis. In spite of a renegotiated IMF loan—$16.3 billion over three years—progress on many of the reforms demanded by the Fund has been slow, especially in the area of bank reform. Turkey has been further squeezed by the global economic slowdown and by wider concern about emerging-market risk. The financial markets and the IMF will be looking for a clear and early signal from the new government that economic reform is at the top of its agenda.
One aim the incoming government will share with its predecessor is membership of the European Union. Turkey has long sought to join, and in recent months even Mr Ecevit’s government has tried to meet some of the minimum requirements for membership laid down by the EU. Turkey’s record on human rights is the main stumbling block, and although the recent abolition of the death penalty was a big step forward, the EU wants Turkey to do more. The EU says it is still too soon to set a date for the opening of accession negotiations.
But the EU is set to admit Cyprus in 2004, with or without a negotiated end to the Greek-Turkish division of the island. Discussions under United Nations auspices have, as yet, got nowhere: Turkey blames Greek Cypriot intransigence, while the EU points the finger at Turkish insistence on what amounts to retrospective legitimacy for its 1974 invasion of the then Greek Cypriot-run island. Any breakthrough at this late stage will depend crucially on the attitude of the new Turkish government—and might in turn depend on a softening of the EU line on Turkey’s own application.
Erdogan: Turkey's new face? 
That application has been publicly and warmly endorsed by America,
which, for its own reasons, is keen to see Turkey in the EU. As armed
conflict with Iraq nears, Washington needs to be able to count on Turkish
support, both political and practical: America will probably want to
use Turkish air bases and might also look for Turkish troop support.
Turkey is also the only Muslim member of NATO (though it has always
been a fiercely secular state).
Yet most Turks oppose war with Iraq, and the issue has hardly featured in the election campaign. Turkey is worried about the costs such a war would impose on its already weak economy—through the disruption of trade and tourism in particular. It is also nervous that if a change of regime in Iraq led to the creation of a separate Kurdish state there, Kurdish separatists in Turkey would step up their campaign. Turkey’s treatment of its Kurdish population has been one of the EU’s key concerns about human rights in the past.
The signs are that in the end, a new Turkish government will, albeit reluctantly, support an American intervention in Iraq, whether or not it is backed by the United Nations. In return, though, Turkey will be looking for American backing in its negotiations with the IMF and, possibly, for bilateral aid from Washington as well.
That, in turn, could make life awkward for the IMF—if
it were to find itself giving cash to another Turkish government which
had promised, but not delivered, reform. If the opinion polls are right,
though, the Turkish electorate has also tired of promises unfulfilled.
It, too, will want results from the new government—and is less
likely than in the past to tolerate failure.
6. - The Washington Times - "Germany: No Turkey in the EU":
If the German foreign minister has anything to do with it, Turkey will not be offered admission into the European Union
1 November 2002
Yesterday, in a press breakfast at the German Embassy, Foreign Minister
Joschka Fischer compared the likelihood of Turkey's admission into the
EU with Mexico and Central America's admission into the United States.
That sounds to us like a firm and permanent veto. When a reporter suggested
that EU consideration of Turkey would be helpful to the United States,
the admirably honest and colorful foreign minister suggested that, while
friends do many things for each other, getting married to a third party
because a friend requests it is not one of them. These two vivid analogies
— admission into the United States and marriage — strongly
suggest that it is Turkey's lack of cultural affinity to Europe (not
merely democratic and economic criteria) that is at the heart of German
opposition to Turkey's eventual entry into the EU. The foreign minister
made it clear that religious differences were not a factor in his calculations.
While such cultural considerations are, in our opinion, perfectly reasonable, we have not previously heard such a senior European official so frankly express such criteria for admission to the EU. If in fact Turkey is not to be seriously considered for eventual EU admission, then our government should advance our own trade and economic support policies for our friend and vital ally Turkey. Turkey is, and will remain, a lynchpin of our anti-terrorism struggle. It deserves the maximum economic and trade support that we can muster.
We also should mention that Mr. Fischer went out of his
way to strongly rebut the assertion of many American commentators that
Germany has turned anti-American. He identified the three pillars of
German foreign policy as commitments to: 1) trans-Atlantic interests;
2) European unity; and 3) Germany's moral obligation to Israel. Our
government should be responsive to German demonstrations (in concrete
terms) of those vital values.
7. - The Associated Press - "Syrian Kurds Speak Out for Equality":
DAMASCUS / 1 November 2002
Most of Syria's Kurds live along the border with Iraq and have watched
enviously as their Iraqi brothers govern themselves and make money from
oil — all with U.S. and British planes protecting them from attack
by Saddam Hussein.
Now that Iraqi Kurds are gaining even more stature as potential allies in a war on Saddam, the Kurds next door in Syria are starting to speak out about their own demands for equality and the right to teach their children and publish newspapers in their own language.
Use of Kurdish in schools and publications is illegal, and Syrian authorities have traditionally viewed the 8 percent Kurdish minority with suspicion. But lately the government has appeared willing to at least show more openness to Syria's Kurds.
``Kurds are an integral part of Syrian society and should have the same rights as Syrian citizens,'' said Marwan Zirki, head of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Gathering, one of 14 Kurdish groups in Syria, none of which is recognized by the government.
``I was born in this land and have lived and served in this land,'' says 60-year-old Ibrahim Omari. ``My blood is one hundred percent Syrian.''
The Kurds are descendants of an ancient people who lived in what today are parts of Iran, Turkey, Iraq and Syria. Throughout history they have bridled under the rule of others, and in the last decade thousands of Kurds have been killed as Turkey and Iraq put down Kurdish revolts.
Syrian Kurds have been spared such upheaval, but they — and Western human rights groups — complain of a lack of basic rights of official neglect in the poor provinces of Hasakeh and Qamishli where most live.
The Syrian Constitution does not mention the 1.5 million Kurds in this country of 18.3 million.
In the poor and mainly Kurdish neighborhood of Rokn El-Din in Damascus, the only sign of Kurdish identity is in street names, and Kurds say most of the residents speak their language only indoors.
About 160,000 Kurds have been denied Syrian nationality, meaning they cannot vote, own property, go to state schools or get government jobs. They carry special red identity cards that identify them as ``foreigners.''
Also, some 75,000 Kurds are not recognized at all and have no identity cards. They cannot even be treated in state hospitals or get marriage certificates. They are called ``maktoumeen,'' or unregistered.
One ``maktoumeen,'' 18-year-old Rankeen, said he is so discouraged he wants to emigrate to Germany as a refugee.
``It's like I don't exist. If I die, there is nothing to prove I was ever alive,'' said Rankeen, who gave only his first name.
He said he was born in Syria, but his grandfather was stripped of citizenship in a 1962 census aimed at finding Kurds who came illegally from Turkey. Those who could not prove they had lived in Syria since 1945 lost their citizenship.
The government maintains that Kurds who fled from Turkey or Iraq are not Syrians, but that Kurds who are citizens enjoy the same rights as other Syrians.
Syria, Turkey and Iran fear a war on Iraq would split the country, leading to an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq and new demands for independence by the region's other Kurds.
Now, Iraqi Kurds are seeking to convince surrounding nations — and the United States, which also opposes a breakup of Iraq — that all they want is autonomous status in an Iraqi federation.
In an unusual move, Syrian Vice President Abdul-Halim Khaddam met with an Iraqi Kurdish delegation recently. And when Syria's Kurdish groups recently held an unprecedented round-table discussion of their plight, many Syrian intellectuals participated and authorities did not interfere.
Syria's nascent human rights groups have complained about the suffering and poverty of the Kurds.
In August, President Bashar Assad made what is believed to be the first visit to Kurdish areas by a Syrian leader since the country's independence in 1946. Assad did not mention the Kurds in his speech; he spoke of ``national unity'' and the ``need to abide by law and order.''
Abdul-Hamid Darwish, head of the Kurdish Progressive and Democratic Party in Syria, told The Associated Press the Syrian Kurds do not want separation from Syria.
``We do not seek the establishment of a Kurdish area,''
he said. ``We just want to administrate our area and to freely practice
our cultural, social and political rights.''
8. - The Guardian - "Crucial US allies on Iraq fall out over oil":
ANKARA / 1 November 2002 / by Owen Bowcott
Two of the United States' closest strategic allies in its campaign
against Saddam Hussein - Turkey and the autonomous Kurdish enclave in
northern Iraq - have fallen out amid a chorus of belligerent pre-election
rhetoric.
As party minibuses are touring the streets broadcasting arabesque folk music and political slogans to drum up support for the weekend poll, the veteran prime minister Bulent Ecevit and senior generals have threatened to seize the oil-rich Iraqi cities of Kirkuk and Mosul in the event of war.
But the outburst of nationalist rhetoric in Ankara is having a limited impact on an election in which politicians across the political spectrum would prefer to avoid an American-led war for fear of it destabilising a weak economy.
In party headquarters - uniformly decked out with carnival-style bunting and streamers - the crippled economy is the main issue.
Turkey is crucial for America's military preparations. The air base at Incirlik, in southern Turkey, is used daily by British and US planes patrolling the no-fly zones over northern Iraq.
Air assaults on Iraqi defences north of Baghdad would be difficult to launch without these Turkish bases.
But earlier this month Mr Ecevit, 77, who has served as prime minister five times, declared: "We know that the United States cannot carry out this operation without us. That is why we are advising that it abandon the idea. We're telling Washington we are worried about the matter."
Few doubt that Turkey would fall into line once war became inevitable, but it remains anxious about the economic chaos war would bring. As it frequently points out, enforcement of sanctions against Saddam Hussein's regime has cost the country between £25bn and £40bn in lost trade over the past decade.
Unemployment, in a population of 68 million, is well over 10%, and inflation is running at 35%. An influx of Iraqi refugees would further hinder recovery.
But last month, the army reluctantly began preparing emergency tents at sites along the border.
On top of the economic worries, Mr Ecevit's recurring nightmare is that war would lead to the creation of a Kurdish state in northern Iraq.
The outgoing prime minister, whose protracted illness led to the collapse of his governing coalition and early elec tions, fears that Turkey's 12 million Kurds, mainly in the south-east, would break away and fragment the country.
Reconciliation between the two Kurdish factions in northern Iraq earlier this summer sharpened Ankara's suspicions that America had secretly offered independence in return for Kurdish cooperation.
The Turkish government further reasoned that if the Kurds occupied Kirkuk and Mosul, once Ottoman cities, the oil wealth in the area would boost their political aspirations.
Threats have come from government spokesmen and retired generals, suggesting that Turkish troops would occupy cities in northern Iraq once fighting began.
Rightwing parties have urged preventive occupation of the oilfields. Opponents have warned of a Cyprus-style crisis.
Hoshar Zebari, the head of international relations for the Kurdistan Democratic Party, held talks with the government in Ankara. Afterwards he told the Guardian: "Mr Ecevit and Mrs Ciller have been competing with each other over who is more nationalistic on the issue of attacking the Kurds in northern Iraq.
"We made clear we will oppose unilateral intervention by Turkey. People will resist."
Mr Ecevit, the leader of the Democratic Left party, has not been a persuasive election campaigner. Few expect his party to poll above the 10% threshold which allows a party is parliamentary representation.
The threshold has also proved a barrier for Turkey's Kurdish groups. To improve its chances of success, the main Kurdish party, Hadep, has teamed up with two smaller leftwing parties.
The authorities are clearly worried about this strategy. More than 20 members of the party have been banned from standing as candidates.
At Hadep headquarters in a quiet Ankara side-street, Kemal Pozoz, the vice-president, sits warming his hands on a tulip-shaped glass of sweet tea.
"Turkey's rulers have their eyes on the oil-producing areas," he said. "The Kurds in Iraq want a federal country. In Turkey we just want our basic human rights and to be able to receive education in the Kurdish language."
Support is growing, he insisted. Last weekend in Istanbul at least 300,000 people, mainly Kurds forced out of their villages in the south-east, attended a party electoral rally.
"Maybe every Kurd has a utopia in his mind of an
independent state," Mr Pozoz says, "but we are demanding our
rights within the Turkish state."
9. - Kurdish Observer - "Lawyers have not been able to meet with Ocalan for three weeks":
Hatice Korkut, lawyer of KADEK President Abdullah Ocalan, stated that they had not been able to meet with him for three weeks. It is striking that the lack of meetings coincides with Nvember 3 elections.
DIHA/ISTANBUL / 31 November 2002
Ocalan's lawyers were not allowed to go to Imrali Island to meet
with Ocalan yesterday on the grounds of communication problems. Lawyer
Hatice Korkut said that the reason officials gave was that communications
problems. Korkut continued to say the following: "We are talking
about a man who has been under isolation for 4 years. We have not been
able to see him for 3 weeks. There is a case in ECHR and there are cases
here and in Athens. We have not got any information about his health.
Last week they said that the boat was out of order. Our demand is to
guarantee the dates and system of the meetings."
"It is a 4-year-old problem"
Korkut reminded that they could go to Imrali only by a
boat called "Imrali 9" and continued with words to the effect:
"It is very small and worn-out. In bad weather conditions the trip
is difficult. We have been experiencing the same problem for 4 years.
Several times we set off and then turned back without meeting with our
client. We have appealed to Bursa Public Prosecution Office and Justice.
10. - Turkish Daily News - "EU - Turkish troika met in Ankara":
Turkish and EU officials met in Ankara to discuss future of relations. EU officials pointed out the need for improvement in political criteria while Turkish officials state it was a good positive meeting
ANKARA / 1 November 2002
Turkish foreign ministry officials and EU officials met to discuss
technical details of relations in Ankara on Thursday.
Michael Zilmer-Johnes, political Director from Denmark, stated that they know it is a very critical moment for Cyprus issue and that they are hoping that there will be an improvement soon on the subject. Zilmer-Johnes indicated that Turkey still has some disadvantages that it has to overcome including regulations to prevent torture as well as religious foundations in Turkey, meaning minority foundations's rights.
Turkey voiced its request for a date to start negotiations at the meeting.
Turkish sources stated that it was a good meeting because the European side started to understand the Turkish approach. The source mentioned that the Cyprus issue is not a part of the Political criteria but Political dialogue and stated that Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC) made a lot of efforts to reach a solution in Cyprus. The source mentioned that Turkey wants to reach a solution but Greek Cyprus has to make efforts as well.
The source indicated that KADEK, which is not on the EU terrorist organizations list was discussed. The source mentioned that even KADEK members state that they are the followers of PKK and therefore it has to be put on the list.
Talking about the non-muslim minorities issue, the source stated that there is a need for time and that laws as well as regulations have just been amended. Turkey asked EU officials to wait to see the implementation.
The source also indicated that amnesty international reports
do not reflect reality and that Turkey made a lot of efforts to meet
the prevention of torture in order to fight torture. Giving an example
the source stated that there was a reform on F-type prisons.