Erdogan: I am Opposed to Kurdish Autonomy EvenIf It Is In Argentina

[Ali Asker]

KurdistanObserver.com
Erdogan: I am Opposed to Kurdish Autonomy EvenIf It Is In Argentina.

Time: Friday January 30th at 4:00 p.m.
Location: 79 JFK Street, Cambridge
Contact: Sardar Jajan at 617-538-1319

Members of the New England Kurdish Community will gather in front of
Harvard's Kennedy School of Government on Friday January 30th, to
protest the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan.

Erdogan's public address is titled "Democracy in the Middle East,
Pluralism In Europe: The Turkish Perspective".

Turkey has very successfully portrayed itself to the west as a true
democracy and a model for the Islamic world. However, Turkey's form of
democracy by no means has same principles that we are familiar with.
In Turkish 'democracy', human rights abuses such as torture are
systematic (according to Amnesty International and Human Rights
Watch).

In addition, death and rape in custody repeatedly goes unpunished.
Against the ideals of pluralism, the Turkish government has waged an
ongoing campaign of cultural genocide against its indigenous Kurdish
population. Education and broadcasting in Kurdish have been forbidden,
fathers and mothers are arrested for simply trying to register their
children's names in Kurdish, millions of Kurds have been forcefully
displaced from their villages and towns, thousands of students have
been expelled from universities and jailed for signing petitions
asking for education in Kurdish, and Kurdish political parties are
harassed and often banned. Their representatives, like Mehdi Zana,
have been victims of the cruelest tortures, Elected representatives
who advocate for the Kurds, like Leyla Zana, once brought before the
US Congress to speak on abuses against the Kurds in Turkey, have been
unjustly imprisoned for more a decade for their non-violent advocacy
of Kurdish cultural rights. Kurds who will gather on Friday, among
them political asylum seekers from Turkey, are very familiar with the
ongoing human rights and ethnic persecutions that are endemic in
Turkey.

Erdogan's Turkey has a Kurdishphobia. He is opposed to anything
Kurdish at anytime and anywhere. Not content with the persecution of
their own Kurds, Erdogan's Turkey is continuing its aggression by
undermining the reasonable efforts of the Kurds in Iraq. The efforts
of the Turkish government are aimed at preventing viable pluralism in
Iraq. Real pluralism in that region needs to be built on the protected
rights of the regional ethnic groups- supported by regional autonomy.
In that way, Kurds and Arabs could build a model nation for the Middle
East, based on the principles that we cherish. Once asked for his
comments about developments in South Kurdistan (Northern Iraq),
Erdogan said, " I am opposed to Kurdish autonomy (in Iraq) even if it
is in Argentina". Against the wishes of the US, Erdogan's government
has been working aggressively with both Syria and Iran to prevent the
Kurds from achieving any autonomy (in Iraq), This is seen as a
continuing anti-Kurdish policy similar to that of Erdogan's
predecessor, Ecevit. Ecevit's government supported Saddam Hussein on
anything related to the Kurdish issue.

The Turkish perspective on pluralism is "Happy is he who call himself
a Turk" or "One Turk equals the whole world". These racist phrases are
written in every public place, especially in schools and on the tops
of mountains and hills. Students, from elementary age to high school
level, are forced to read these racist phrases every morning.

Perplexed and concerned that a distinguished university like Harvard
would bring Erdogan to speak on democracy and pluralism- a topic with
which he is clearly unfamiliar; and because of Turkey's lack of real
democracy and Erdogan government's anti-Kurdish attitude, The New
England Kurdish Community will be holding a protest in front of
Kennedy School of Government on Friday, January 30th.

http://www.kurdistanobserver.com/

[Roman]

The Turkish perspective on pluralism is "Happy is he who call himself a
Turk" or "One Turk equals the whole world". These racist phrases are
written in every public place, especially in schools and on the tops of
mountains and hills. Students, from elementary age to high school level,
are forced to read these racist phrases every morning.

Confirms what can be watched in these groups: those accusing others most
aggressively as being racists are themselves the real practicing racists.
Probably no other groups like the turks and the Zionists play that game so
notoriously.

Roman

[jj]

Doesn't it kinda make you feel funny to hide away like a scared little girl
Roman the German(MWAHAHAH) hmmmmm?

What colour skirt are you wearing today, pink or red? Got your pompom shoes
on as well? Boy, I bet you look an ugly sight, just like that queer bumboy
friend of yours, GAYson the son of a GAY father....

[defaultnot]

"Roman" <***@here.de>

Look at your own fucken ass, blood-thirsty Turk killer!!

+++

The lack of free speech and other human rights can only produce
mouth-pieces of their sponsors including anti-Turkish hate mongers,
leftists and nationalists leaving no romm for free-thinking. This is
just another version of soviet-era oppression.

++++++++++++++++=


http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2002/06/18062002172019.asp

Armenia: The Murky Business Of Media Funding

By Ruzanna Khachatrian

After 12 years of overall press freedom, Armenia's print media
continue to grapple with serious economic difficulties, which remain
the greatest obstacle to their independence. The vast majority of
Armenian newspapers rely on the politically motivated assistance of
wealthy individuals to stay afloat. As RFE/RL reports, that kind of
sponsorship takes its toll on the objectivity and quality of news
reporting.

Yerevan, 18 June 2002 (RFE/RL -- Armenian Service) -- Aram Abrahamian
needs an extra $3,500 each month to be a happy man. That amount of
money, says the editor of "Aravot" (Morning), would spare one of
Armenia's leading newspapers the headache of scrambling for funds to
pay for its printing and other production costs.

That is quite a sum for the newspaper, whose net monthly revenues from
sales and advertising do not exceed $10,000.

Where does Abrahamian hope to get such money? "From political,
official, and business circles. Unfortunately, things are now not so
good that I can get the entire sum from one source each month and live
comfortably. I have to beg for the money," Abrahamian said.

Abrahamian's woes are typical for the vast majority of Armenian
newspapers, which are far from being self-sufficient, let alone
profitable. Their main preoccupation is how to close budget gaps
arising from their poor commercial performance. Recourse to so-called
"sponsors," their editors admit, is the most common way of staying
afloat.

But that tactic, as one Western, media watchdog group put it recently,
leaves Armenia's print media "at the mercy of government officials and
wealthy sponsors."

No wonder that most publications have little incentive to improve the
quality of their reporting, which still leaves much to be desired
after 12 years of overall press freedom. Nor do they see an urgent
need to become truly commercial by attracting more readers and
advertisers. Most Armenian newspapers have extremely low circulations.

One newspaper claims to have emerged from this quagmire, however. The
"Iravunk" (Right) biweekly, which is close to a small opposition
party, prints the highest number of copies per issue: 15,000. It tends
to present news from a leftist and somewhat nationalist perspective.
Hovannes Galajian is its editor-in-chief. "Our main source of revenues
is sales. That is followed by advertising. In normal economic
conditions, it should be the other way around," Galajian said.

Such claims of self-sufficiency are dismissed as "fairy tales" by
Gagik Mkrtchian, the editor of the "Hayots Ashkhar" (Armenian World)
daily, a staunch advocate of Armenian President Robert Kocharian. "All
newspapers have sponsors. One paper could cover 30 percent of its
costs, another one 50 percent. But unfortunately, no media outlet can
survive without sponsors," Mkrtchian said.

Mkrtchian did not deny that his newspaper is funded by Defense
Minister Serge Sarkisian, Kocharian's most powerful associate. And
"Hayots Ashkhar" is not the only publication with which Sarkisian has
had links.

Abrahamian stunned many in 1999 when he revealed that "Aravot" had
been funded by the minister for the previous two years. He said the
payments began in 1997 when Sarkisian was serving as national security
minister in the administration of then-President Levon Ter-Petrosian,
whom "Aravot" had always supported.

The liberal daily has never forgiven Kocharian and his allies for
forcing Ter-Petrosian to step down in February 1998, hence its
hard-hitting coverage of the current regime.

Abrahamian said that if the powerful defense chief offers to resume
funding, he will "think" before accepting or rejecting the money.
"Taking money for publishing a newspaper is the same as taking a stone
for hewing. I don't see anything bad in it," Abrahamian said.

His comments are echoed by Nikol Pashinian, the young editor of
"Haykakan Zhamanak" (Armenian Time), another leading pro-opposition
daily. One of the country's best-selling periodicals, it prints only
3,500 copies a day to keep costs down. Pashinian said that 20 percent
of the newspaper's costs are covered by "business circles," which he
refuses to name. He says his sponsors do not decide on the content of
the newspaper because they only want to "promote liberal values" in
Armenia.

Armenia boasts seven national dailies, two biweeklies and two
weeklies, which among them offer a broad range of opinion. All but one
are privately owned, belonging to their editors, staff, or political
parties. At least six of them support Kocharian, despite occasionally
criticizing some government policies. Their average print run is
between 4,000 and 5,000, which is the main reason why they are
unattractive to major advertisers. The latter prefer to deal with
regional and national television stations that have far bigger
audiences and are more profitable.

Businesspeople who give cash to Armenian newspapers seem to be doing
so for political considerations. Those who have close government
connections are simply told by their political patrons to help the
pro-presidential media.

Things are less certain in the case of pro-opposition media funding.
The money appears to come mainly from opposition politicians or their
cronies involved in business. This is especially true of "Aravot" and
"Haykakan Zhamanak." The editors of these newspapers complain that
many entrepreneurs are wary of placing advertisements in
anti-Kocharian publications for fear of government retribution.

"They are sponsoring us because we are saying what they can't say
[openly]. In Armenia, the authorities can ruin any business within
half an hour," Pashinian said.

Gurgen Arsenian of the Arsoil petrol company and Khachatur Sukiasian,
the owner of the SIL group, are thought to be among those businessmen.
Both men built their fortunes under the former regime and are now
independent members of the Armenian parliament. They admit "helping"
some media, but deny having any political agendas, except the
promotion of "liberal ideas."

Sukiasian, who is one of Armenia's wealthiest persons, claims that
publications with different political orientations frequently turn to
him for assistance and that he never refuses them.

But such assistance comes at a cost. According to the New York-based
Committee to Protect Journalists, the CPJ, the severe financial
constraints are limiting the influence and independence of the
Armenian media. "Dire economic conditions proved to be the greatest
obstacle for the independent media in Armenia," the CPJ said in its
annual report on press freedom in Armenia, released in March. As a
result, the report concluded, Armenian journalists "censored
themselves and slanted their reporting in exchange for the financial
support of wealthy patrons."

The closure in April of the main independent A1+ television station
only exacerbates the dire media situation in Armenia. The existence of
A1+ was a rare example of an Armenian media outlet achieving
self-sufficiency through objective and unbiased reporting.

The station, which was often critical of the authorities, lost its
broadcast frequency to an entertainment company in a move that was
criticized in the opposition media for being politically motivated.
Kocharian has denied any interference in the frequency bidding.

[Roman]

On 29 Jan 2004 10:57:26 -0800, defaultnot wrote:

[turkish crap snipped]

Kinda touching to see so much mental disorder concentrated in one person,
faulty nutter. Not that it is not perceptible all the time, but sometimes
when you throw a specially hefty fit even the most naive person can see
that you are not quite right in your head. You are nothing more than
amusing, boy! ;-)

Roman

[Jason K. Lambrou]

Post by Roman
[turkish crap snipped]
Kinda touching to see so much mental disorder concentrated in one person,
faulty nutter. Not that it is not perceptible all the time, but sometimes
when you throw a specially hefty fit even the most naive person can see
that you are not quite right in your head. You are nothing more than
amusing, boy! ;-)
Roman

Does faultynutso have a legitimate job? I know he is missing his right arm
because of some crime he comitted in Saudi Arabia, so it makes it pretty
hard to have a good physical job since he is so stupid that he can't use his
brain
to make a living.

[defaultnot]

***@hotmail.com (Ali Asker)


To hell with you!!! Blood-thirsty PKK/KADEK terrorist

Like all your fellow Armenian, Greek and PKK/KADEK terrorists, Turk
haters and Turk killers, you too are a brian-washed and unconditional
Turk hater, a piece of dirt, the lowest of the low terrorist, assasin
and murderer of innocent Turks, anti-Turkish hate monger, a disgrace
to humankind.


"kurdistanobserver" is an anti-Turkish hate propaganda fabricator
of PKK/KADEK terrorist organization.


The terrorist organization PKK/KADEK, with the support of the
enemies of Turkey (Syria, Greece, Russia and other countries
in Europe and elsewhere) and with the income it obtained from
illegal drug trafficking, robberies, extortions, etc. murdered
nearly 40 thousands innocent human beings in Turkey and ruined
the health and property of many thousands of others to destroy
democratic goverment of the Republic of Turkey and establish a
marxist, lennist, communist PKK/KADEK dictatorship in South East
Turkey.This is against the laws of all countries in the World
including Turkey. Any country, as well as Turkey, will defend
itself against such terrorism as a most legitimate and legal right.

To hell with you all PKK/KADEK terrorists !!!!!


PKK/KADEK is not a democratically elected represantative of
Kurdish citizens of Turkey. Democratically elected represantatives
of the citizens of Turkey of Kurdish descend are in the goverment
as MPs, ministers, PMs, presidents, judjes, etc., certainly not
as terrorists murdering innocent human beings. Plus, all citizens
of Turkey of Kurdish descend, like everybody else, are serving
their country as soldiers, officers and generals in the military,
police officers, lawyers and judges in the law enforcement
organizations, pursuing their lives as business man and woman,
professional careers in the private business and goverment
institutions. And, none of them feel they have to murder innocent
human beings "to defend themselves". All citizen of Turkey,
regardless of race, language, religion, gender, etc., have their
undeniable right and freedom under the law to defend their rights
and freedoms, pursue solutions for the problems they think they
have by only legal, peacefull and democratic ways and means,
definitely not "whatever means is possible" and certainly not
by terrorism.