Ankara under growing pressure from military to face up to Kurdish rebels
By Michael Kuser [The Financial Times - Published: August 12 2005]
The Turkish governmentis turning its attention once again to its long fight with Kurdish militants, after devoting much of its energy during the past two years to the start of accession talks to the European Union.Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's prime minister, plans to visit the south-eastern city of Diyarbakir today, where he is expected to promise a new government initiative to tackle the area's high unemployment and address Kurdish demands for greater cultural rights.
Mr Erdogan spoke on national television on Wednesday asking rebels from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers party, PKK, to renounce the use of arms and use democratic means to achieve a better life.
The PKK broke a unilateral ceasefire last year after complaining that the government had failed to give Kurds more cultural and linguistic freedom. The PKK has moved away from seeking a separate Kurdish state, but has increased attacks this summer, killing both civilians and soldiers in a number of bombings that have set the country on edge. The Kurdish conflict has claimed some 37,000 lives since it began in 1984.
Ankara's sudden focus on the Kurdish problem appeared to be a response to criticism from the military last week that the government was not doing enough to help it fight terrorism.
Turkey's chief of general staff, General Hilmi Ozkok, last week complained that the armed forces would succeed against the insurgents, "despite limited authority", a remark analysts said referred to steps taken in recent years to curb the military's influence and power.
Another top Turkish general recently said that the army could not hope to end the conflict without the government also addressing social and economic development in the Kurdish region. Up to 75 per cent of people in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish south-east are unemployed.
The Turkish military has a long history of intervening in politics and the top military officer's remarks revived old tensions between the staunchly secularist military establishment and the government, which is run by former Islamists.
The justice minister responded to the general's criticism this week by announcing that the government would make its new anti-terror legislation the focus of the cabinet when it meets in September, adding that the government and army "are on the same side".
On Wednesday, Mr Erdogan promised to show "no mercy" to those resorting to violence. The reforms, unpalatable to the military establishment, include transferring military control of the national security council to its civilian members and requiring security officials to get permission from provincial governors in the predominantly Kurdish south-east to set up roadblocks.
Ankara made the reforms as part of its efforts to harmonise Turkish law with EU norms before joining the 25-member bloc, negotiations for which are now scheduled to start on October 3.
Turkish commanders have voiced their desire to raid the rebels' hideouts in the mountains of northern Iraq as they used to in the 1990s, but US authorities have repeatedly blocked the idea.
The commander of US forces in Europe, General James Jones, is to meet Turkish officials soon to discuss "more concrete measures" to co-ordinate efforts against the PKK, the US chargé d'affaires in Ankara said this week.
On Thursday, a suspected Syrian al-Qaeda militant appeared in an Istanbul court after having been caught on Sunday with 875kg of plastic and chemical explosives. CNN-Turk quoted the man's lawyer as saying his client had intended using the explosives against Israeli ships docking in Turkey. A second Syrian suspect was arrested in the same operation.
In the past week five cruise ships carrying 5,000 Israeli tourists were diverted from Turkish ports because of feared security threats.
