November 12, 2009
DIYARBAKIR, Kurdish Southeastern region of
Turkey, — Eight Turkish Kurd rebels based in Iraqi
Kurdistan region have surrendered, becoming the
second such group to turn themselves in since the
government pledged in July to boost political rights
to end a 25-year separatist conflict.
The Turkey's Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels
were being questioned by a prosecutor in the Kurdish
city of Diyarbakir after surrendering on Wednesday
in the town of Silopi on the Turkish side of the
border with Iraq, court officials said.
The group escaped from camps in northern Iraq,
defying rebel leaders' orders, where most of the
PKK's 3,000 or so fighters are based,www.ekurd.netand
have told authorities that "a large number" of other
rebels want to return to Turkey, security sources
said.
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Kurdish PKK freedom fighters, fighting for the
Kurds' identity in its constitution and of their
language as a native language along with Turkish in
the country's Kurdish areas, the party also demanded an end to ethnic
discrimination in Turkish laws and constitution
against Kurds, ranting them full political freedoms. |
When eight PKK members
returned to Turkey with the PKK's permission on Oct
19, tens of thousands of supporters streamed to the
border to welcome them, waving flags and chanting
pro-PKK slogans. Those scenes prompted Prime
Minister Tayyip Erdogan to delay further PKK-approved
returns.
The PKK has dropped its historical demand for an
independent homeland and now seeks greater political
rights for Turkey's estimated 25 million Kurds,
about 15 percent of the population.
Since 1984 the PKK took up arms
for self-rule in the mainly Kurdish southeast of
Turkey (Turkey-Kurdistan) which has claimed around
45,000 lives of Turkish soldiers and Kurdish PKK
guerrillas. A large Turkey's Kurdish
community openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK
rebels. Turkey refuses to recognize its Kurdish
population as a distinct minority.
The PKK demanded Turkey's recognition of the Kurds'
identity in its constitution and of their language
as a native language along with Turkish in the
country's Kurdish areas,www.ekurd.net
the party also demanded an end to ethnic
discrimination in Turkish laws and constitution
against Kurds, ranting them full political freedoms.
The PKK is considered a 'terrorist' organization by
Ankara, U.S., the PKK continues to be on the
blacklist list in EU despite court ruling which
overturned a decision
to place the Kurdish rebel group PKK and its
political wing on the European Union's terror list.
Turkey refuses to recognize its Kurdish population
as a distinct minority. It has allowed some cultural
rights such as limited broadcasts in the Kurdish
language and private Kurdish language courses with
the prodding of the European Union, but Kurdish politicians
say the measures fall short of their expectations.
Erdogan and the military have ruled out such an
amnesty, and only low-level rebels can benefit from
immunity laws.
The European Union, which Turkey wants to join, has
praised Erdogan's efforts to end the conflict. His
so-called democratic initiative aims to expand
cultural and political liberties to address decades
of grievances from Kurds who say they have faced
state-sanctioned discrimination and violence.
Copyright, respective author or news agency,
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