Kurdish Party DTP Approves Declaration For Autonomy
ANKARA, Nov 8--Turkey's leading pro-Kurdish party called on
the government on Thursday to grant autonomy to the mainly Kurdish southeast as
a solution (Northern Kurdistan) to the violence that has plagued the
impoverished region for more than two decades.
"A democratic and federal system is the most suitable solution (to Turkey's
Kurdish problem)," Aysel Tugluk, an influential Democratic Society Party (DTP)
lawmaker, told a party convention in Ankara.
The party approved a declaration calling for autonomy for Kurds in the
southeast, a move expected to raise tensions further.
Calling for greater autonomy for the Kurds remains a highly contentious issue in
Turkey and has led to prosecutions.
The DTP said a military offensive, approved by Turkey's parliament, was no
solution to the long-running problem.
"Everyone knows very well that the solution to the Kurdish problem lies in
democratic moves rather than (military) operations," Tugluk said.
DTP offices have been attacked by ultra-nationalist groups in the past few weeks
and calls for the party to denounce the PKK as a terrorist organization have
intensified.
Many Turks remain deeply suspicious of the DTP and believe it is just a
mouthpiece of the PKK.
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's government, which is seeking European Union
membership, has eased some curbs on Kurdish language and culture, but many Kurds
say this is not enough.
"The most urgent issue that needs to be solved by politics is the Kurdish
problem," said Nurettin Demirtas, who is expected to be appointed the DTP's new
chairman later on Thursday.
The DTP wants the government to ease restrictions on the Kurdish language
further, give Kurds the choice about whether to learn Turkish and give them
other political and cultural rights.
