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Danish police summons Turkish diplomats
over gun at Kurdish ROJ TV trial
3.9.2011 |
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September 3, 2011
COPENHAGEN, — Denmark's PET intelligence
service summoned Turkish embassy officials this week
after discovering a diplomat had carried a gun to a
Copenhagen trial of Kurdish broadcaster ROJ-TV, the
Politiken daily reported Saturday.
ROJ-TV is currently on trial in Denmark charged with
supporting the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which
figures on terrorist organisation lists in Turkey
and other countries.
Politiken reported that a Danish Kurd attending a
court session on Thursday discovered the diplomat
was armed and reported the issue to defence
attorneys,www.ekurd.netwho
in turn informed the judge and police.
"This is completely unacceptable. There are no
special rules for diplomats. |
Danish police. Photo: Getty Images |
You are not allowed to
carry weapons, and certainly not in a courtroom,"
head of the Danish Judges Association Mikael
Sjoeberg told Politiken.
PET, which is responsible for diplomatic affairs,
said the Turkish embassy had been summoned to a
meeting Friday.
"The Turkish Embassy was called to a meeting with
PET. They were told that bearing arms in a Danish
courtroom must never be repeated," PET told
Politiken.
"We have now taken the initiative to review all
embassy personnel weapons licences in order to
clarify the conditions under which these licences
are given," it added.
Since it was established
in 1984, the Kurdistan Workers' Party PKK has been
fighting the Turkish state, which still denies the
constitutional existence of Kurds, to establish a
Kurdish state in the south east of the country, sparking a conflict that has claimed some 45,000
lives.
But now its aim is the creation an autonomous
Kurdish region
and more cultural rights for ethnic Kurds who
constitute the greatest minority in Turkey,
numbering more than 20 million. A large Turkey's
Kurdish community openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK rebels.
PKK's demands included releasing PKK detainees,
lifting the ban on education in Kurdish, paving the
way for an autonomous democrat Kurdish system within
Turkey, reducing pressure on the detained PKK leader
Abdullah Öcalan, stopping military action against
the Kurdish party and recomposing the Turkish
constitution.
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.
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.
Copyright ©, respective
author or news agency,
AFP | ekurd.net | Agencies
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