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KurdistanObserver.com
Letter By 56 Kurdish Mayors To Rasmussen: Save ROJ
TV
Save ROJ TV Initiative
His Excellency Anders Fogh
Rasmussen
Diyarbakır, December 27,
2005
Dear Mr. Anders Fogh
Rasmussen:
This letter is to express
our concerns about the ongoing debates and developments around the situation of
ROJ TV. As the members of Democratic Society Party (DTP) who are mayors of 56
municipalities located predominantly in the Kurdish-populated regions of Turkey,
we are worried about the anti-democratic approaches through which the case of
ROJ TV is being handled by Turkish government in the international arena.
Unfortunately, we observe that there still exists a fundamental difference
between Turkey and the European civilization in matters of freedom of press and
expression.
That the ROJ TV broadcasts
are aired from Europe is a disturbing fact for us, too. This has been a direct
consequence of the constitutional and legal regulations that do not allow for
free Kurdish broadcasting in Turkey. It was only thanks to the pressures in the
process of Turkey's integration with the EU that Turkey has granted limited
rights for Kurdish language broadcasts, with state television airing 45-minute
programs on a weekly basis. Privately-owned local television stations wanting to
broadcast in Kurdish, on the other hand, are still faced with legal and often
arbitrary administrative obstacles. As is also well-known by the international
community, restrictions on freedom of expression are situated at the heart of
the authoritarian political tradition that has repressed any kind of difference
in terms of culture, language and identity in Turkey. We expect the Turkish
government to abide by and fulfill the political criteria stated in the
Copenhagen Document. So, rather than banning the ROJ TV, we hope that Turkey
will eventually legalize, embrace and become a constituent of the voice of ROJ
TV. We wish that one day ROJ TV will be able to broadcast from nowhere else but
from Istanbul, Ankara or Diyarbakir, and will be only one among many other
Kurdish TV stations that will be launched also with the support of Turkish
government.
It is a well-known fact
that ROJ TV has millions of audiences within and outside Turkey. Whether one
agrees or not with the broadcasting policy of the TV station, the content and
arguments of its programs, is something to be discussed, and should always be
discussed given the fact that free flow of information and ideas is the
lifeblood of political debates. But the banning of ROJ TV would not contribute
to our efforts to create a truly pluralistic and democratic life in Turkey. We
believe that, within the current state of politics, voice of ROJ TV represents a
constructive and positive contribution towards the progress of freedom of
expression, that is, one of the essential foundations of European democratic
civilization that cannot yet be fully guaranteed within Turkey.
For a truly democratic life
to flourish in Turkey, ROJ TV should not be silenced. This is the sincere and
common demand of the people we represent at the level of local governments. The
elimination of the voice of ROJ TV would mean the loss of an important vehicle
in the struggle for democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms of
democratic civilization.
Kind regards,
1- Osman BAYDEMİR
Mayor, Diyarbakır Metropolitan
President, Union of
South-Eastern Anatolia Region Municipalities
2- Husseyin KALKAN
Mayor , Batman
3- Ahmet ERTAK
Mayor, Sirnak
4- Metin TEKÇE
Mayor, Hakkari
5- Songül Erol ABDİL
Mayor, Tunceli
6- Firat ANLI
Mayor, Yenişehir
7-Yurdusev ÖZSÖKMENLER
Mayor, Bağlar
8-Kutbettin TASKIRAN
Mayor, Silvan Bayrambaşı
9-Zülküf KARATEKİN
Mayor, Kayapınar
10- Nadir BINGOL
Mayor, Ergani
11-Abdullah DEMİRBAŞ
Mayor, Suriçi
12- Sukran AYDIN
Mayor, Bismil
13-Fikret KAYA
Mayor, Silvan
14-Şeyhmus BAYHAN
Mayor, Lice
15-Abdullah AKENGIN
Mayor, Dicle
16-Mehmet KAYA
Mayor, Kocaköy
17-Esat ONER
Mayor, Batman Gercüş
18-Murat CEYLAN
Mayor, Siirt Kurtalan
19-Seyfettin AYDIN
Mayor, Siirt Gökçebağ
20-Ethem
ŞAHIN Mayor, Urfa Suruç
21-Emrullah CIN
Mayor, Viranşehir
22-İsmail ARSLAN
Mayor, Ceylanpınar
23-Huseyin OGRETMEN
Mayor, Halfeti Y.Göklü
24-Aydin BUDAK
Mayor, Cizre
25-Resul SADAK
Mayor, İdil
26-Muhsin KONUR
Mayor, Silopi
27-Gulcihan ŞIMŞEK
Mayor, Van Bostaniçi
28-Hurşit TEKİN
Mayor, Şemdinli
29-Faik DURSUN
Mayor, Beytulşebap
30-M.Salih YILDIZ
Mayor, Yüksekova
31-Hurşit ALTEKİN
Mayor, Hakkari Esendere
32-Ayhan ERKMEN
Mayor, Mardin Dargeçit
33-Cihan SINCAR
Mayor, Kızıltepe
34-Molla ŞİMŞEK
Mayor, Konya Cihanbeyli Gölyazı
35-Ramazan KAPAN
Mayor, Mardin Derik
36- Nuran ATLI
Mayor, Mazıdağı
37-Mehmet TANHAN
Mayor, Nusaybin
38-Ayhan ERKMEN
Mayor, Kars Digor Dağpınar
39-M.Selim DEMIR
Mayor, Batman Bekirhan
40-A. Kadir AĞAOĞLU
Mayor, Kızıltepe Şenyurt
41-A.Kerim ADAN
Mayor, Mardin Yalımlı
42-Zeyniye ONER
Mayor, Savur Sürgücü
43-Demir ÇELİK
Mayor, Muş Varto
44-Tahir KAHRAMANER
Mayor, Malazgirt
45-Ali YILDIZ
Mayor, Malazgirt Gölkuru
46-Orhan ÖZER
Mayor, Bulanık Rüstem Gedik
47-Mukaddes KUBILAY
Mayor, Doğubeyazıt
48- M.Nezir ARAS
Mayor, Bulanık
49-Nusret ARAS
Mayor, Iğdır Hoşhaber
50- Leyla GUVEN
Mayor, Adana Seyhan Küçükdikili
51-Muzaffer YÖNDEMLİ
Mayor, Aydın Ovaeymir
52-Osman KESER
Mayor, Adana Yakapınar
53-Hasan KARAKAYA
Mayor, Yaylakonak
54-Seyfettin ALKAN
Mayor, Batman Balpınar
55- Burhan KORHAN
Mayor, Batman Beşiri
56- Fahrettin ASLAN
Mayor, Beşiri İkiköprü |
