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ANKARA, March 22 (AFP) - 13h22 - Turkey's army
on Tuesday harshly condemned an attempt to burn a
Turkish flag at a Kurdish festival at the weekend,
warning that it is always ready to take action to
protect the country's unity.
The incident occurred in the southern city of Mersin
during a celebration marking the traditional Kurdish
New Year, the Newroz. A plainclothes policeman
grabbed the flag as it was set ablaze by several
young boys.
"Such a treatment of the flag of a nation... in its
own land by its own so-called citizens is
inexplicable and unacceptable. This is treasonous
behaviour," a general staff statement said.
"Everyone should know that neither the indivisible
unity of this country nor its flag are defenseless,"
it said. "We advise those who would attempt to test
the Turkish Armed Forces' love for the motherland
and its flag to look into the pages of history."
The incident triggered harsh reactions in the
mainstream media, with critics saying that the Kurds
are abusing the relative tolerance of authorities
towards dissidence as Ankara seeks to prove its
democratic credentials to the European Union.
The main pro-Kurdish political movement, the
Democratic People's Party (DEHAP), also condemned
the burning of the flag.
"The incident in Mersin is a provocation," DEHAP
leader Tuncer Bakirhan said in Diyarbakir, the main
city of Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeast,
Anatolia news agency reported.
"The Turkish flag is also the flag of the Kurds," he
said. "We respect it as much as anyone who lives in
Turkey."
Kurdish rebels fought a bloody campaign for
self-rule in southeast Turkey between 1984 and 1999,
with the conflict claiming some 36,500 lives.
The rebels ended a five-year unilateral ceasefire
with the government last June, raising tensions in
the region.
AFP
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