|
Kurdish child on Trial in Turkey for
Singing Kurdish 'Anthem'
19.6.2008
|
|
|
|
June
19, 2008
ISTANBUL, Turkey, — Members of a
Kurdish children's choir have gone on trial in
Turkey, facing up to five years in prison.
The choir - whose members are aged from 12 to 17 -
is accused of spreading propaganda for the Turkey's
outlawed Kurdish separatist rebel group, the
Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
The charges were brought after the group took part
in a world music festival in San Francisco, and sang
a march in Kurdish.
The prosecutor's indictment claims the song is the
anthem of the PKK. |
The song was performed during an international music
festival |
Turkey has been fighting the PKK since the 1980s, in
a conflict that has cost almost 40,000 lives.
In a statement on the case, Amnesty International
argues that singing a historic anthem cannot be
judged a threat to public order - and is therefore a
matter of free expression. It warns that the
children will be considered prisoners of conscience
if they are found guilty.
Old Kurdish
The children's choir performed in America in several
languages, but it is a march in Kurdish that has
caused the controversy.
The prosecutor claims the song "Ey Raqip", or "Hey,
Enemy", is the anthem of the PKK: the separatist
militant group Turkish troops have been fighting for
two decades.
The indictment also says PKK flags were displayed at
the music festival - and accuses the children of
making propaganda for terrorists.
One of the singers told the BBC the lyrics to the
march were in an old form of Kurdish,www.ekurd.net
and he and his friends
did not even understand them. He said the choir
wanted to showcase Kurdish culture, not engage in
politics - and they only sang the march in response
to a request from the audience.
Three teenagers - aged 15 to 17 - went on trial on
Thursday in an adult, serious crimes court in
Diyarbakir, in the mainly Kurdish south-east of the
country.
They face up to five years in prison if they are
convicted.
Six younger choir-members, aged 12-15, will be tried
in a children's court on the same charge in July.
Suspicion
Michael Santoro, who is in charge of the San
Francisco World Music Festival and, who personally
invited the choir from Diyarbakir to take part,
said: "These events were not political propaganda,
nor were they designed with a separatist agenda in
mind."
He said the events were "designed to mentor, empower
and showcase musicians, composers and artists that
historically have been under-represented due to
cultural, political and economic barriers".
As for the prosecutor's claim that the children
performed beneath PKK flags, Mr Santoro recalls that
one audience member draped the flag of Kurdish
northern Iraq on part of the stage,www.ekurd.net
but says there were no
PKK flags or insignia at the venue.
There is far more freedom in Turkey today to speak
or sing in Kurdish than when the PKK took up arms,
in the days when even the existence of the Kurds was
officially denied here.
Private courses in the Kurdish language are now
permitted and there is some Kurdish language
broadcasting on Turkish state TV.
But there are still strict limits. Those who insist
on a distinct Kurdish identity are widely viewed
with suspicion and state prosecutors regularly file
criminal charges for spreading PKK propaganda or for
supporting separatism.
The main pro-Kurdish political party, the DTP, has
20 seats in the current parliament but is now on
trial and facing closure. It is accused of having
links to the PKK and being the "focus of activities
against the integrity of the state".
Kurdish human rights groups also say many children
who were involved in street protests that became
riots in the south-east two years ago are still on
trial there.
They have been charged with supporting the PKK - or
even belonging to it.
Copyright, respective author or news agency,
BBC
* Since 1984 when the Turkey's Kurdistan Workers'
Party (PKK)
took up arms for self-rule in the country's mainly
Kurdish southeast of Turkey. A large Turkey's
Kurdish community openly sympathise with the Kurdish
PKK rebels.
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, 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.
**
Kurds are not recognized as an official minority in
Turkey and are denied rights granted to other
minority groups. Under EU pressure, Turkey recently
granted Kurds limited rights for broadcasts and
education in the Kurdish language, but critics say
the measures do not go far enough.
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" Southeast
Turkey.
Others estimate over 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.
Turkey is home to 25 million ethnic Kurds, a
large Turkey's Kurdish community openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK for a
Kurdish homeland in the country's mainly Kurdish
southeast of Turkey.
Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed
severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish language,
prohibiting the language in education and broadcast
media.
The Kurdish alphabet is still not recognized
in Turkey, and use of the Kurdish letters X, W, Q
which do not exist in the Turkish
alphabet has led to judicial persecution in 2000 and
2003
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
Top |
Kurd Net
does not take credit for and is not responsible for the content of news
information on this page
|
® 