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Turkey: Kurdish mayor 'Osman Baydemir' on
trial for links with armed rebels
3.10.2006 |
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DIYARBAKIR,
Kurdistan-Turkey, October 3 ,-- The mayor of
Turkey's biggest Kurdish-populated city apparead in
court Tuesday on charges of collaborating with armed
Kurdish rebels and could face 10 years in jail if
found guilty.
Diyarbakir mayor Osman Baydemir was charged with
"knowingly and willingly aiding an illegal
organisation" during deadly Kurdish riots earlier
this year.
Baydemir had hailed "the courage" of youthful
Kurdish rioters as he tried to reason with them in a
bid to end the unrest that came after rebels from
the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were
killed in clashes with the army.
Baydemir said he shared the rioters' grief for the
slain rebels, but also urged them to end the
violence against the security forces. |
Diyarbakir mayor Osman Baydemir |
At the opening of the trial, Baydemir rejected the
charges, arguing he had not acted on his own and was
asked by the regional governor's office to try to
talk the rioters into ending their action.
The court adjourned to a later date to hear more
witnesses.
Turkish authorities accused the PKK of orchestrating
the riots that began in Diyarbakir in March before
spreading to other towns in the region and to
Istanbul, claiming a total of 16 lives.
Kurdish politicians in Turkey are routinely regarded
with suspicion and often seen as instruments of the
PKK's separatist campaign.
Baydemir belongs to Turkey's main legal Kurdish
political organisation, the Democratic Society
Party, which is under judicial investigation for
links with the rebels.
The PKK has been fighting for Kurdish self-rule in
the southeast since 1984 in a conflict that has
claimed more than 37,000 lives.
At the weekend, the group declared a unilateral
ceasefire, saying it wants to pave the way for a
resolution of the conflict through dialogue.
AFP
The use of the term "Kurdistan" is vigorously
rejected due to its alleged political implications
by the Republic of Turkey, which does not recognize
the existence of a "Turkish Kurdistan".
Others estimate as many as 40 million Kurds live in
Big Kurdistan (Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Armenia),
which covers an area as big as France, about half of
all Kurds which estimate to 20 million live in
Turkey.
The Kurdish flag flown officially in Iraqi Kurdistan but
unofficially flown by Kurds in Armenia. The flag is
banned in Iran, Syria, and Turkey where flying it is
a criminal offence"
Southeastern Turkey:
North Kurdistan (
Kurdistan-Turkey) wikipedia
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