Barbara J Miles  03/26/2008 01:22:17 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Barbara J Miles

Cable 
Text:                                                                      
                                                                           
      
UNCLAS    SENSITIVE     ADANA 00012

SIPDIS
CX:
    ACTION: POL
    INFO:   TSR RAO PMA ECON FCS PA DCM MGT DAO AMB CONS

DISSEMINATION: POL /1
CHARGE: PROG

VZCZCAYO793
RR RUEHAK
DE RUEHDA #0012/01 0860842
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 260842Z MAR 08
FM AMCONSUL ADANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4645
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 1187
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 1016
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEUITH/ODC ANKARA TU
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHAK/USDAO ANKARA TU
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 1248

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000012 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PTER TU IZ
SUBJECT: NEVRUZ 2008: BIG TURNOUT, ISOLATED VIOLENCE 
 
Summary and Comment 
----------------------------- 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  The pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) 
regards the large turnout as proof of its growing popularity - 
and sympathy for the PKK, which has been under attack from the 
Turkish military.  Violence erupted in a number of cities where 
the authorities refused to grant permission for celebrations. 
In Van, one protester was killed and over 150 injured in clashes 
with the police.  While it is unlikely that either the 
government or the DTP wanted Nevruz marred by violence, the lack 
of trust between the two parties resulted in poor coordination 
and the misguided attempt to cancel celebrations in a number of 
cities produced chaos that is being exploited by pro-PKK 
militants.  In the cities where celebrations were allowed to 
proceed as the organizers planned, violence and property damage 
were avoided.  Contrary to the hopes of some DTPers, Nevruz 2008 
is not a foundation on which to build political progress on the 
Kurdish issue in coming months.  End summary and comment. 
 
Spring Fling 
--------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Nevruz, which takes place on the spring equinox, 
March 21, is the traditional Kurdish new year's celebration, 
though the holiday's origins stretch back to ancient the Persian 
and Zoroastrian cultures.  Its Zoroastrian roots are reflected 
in its rituals, which include jumping over fires and dancing to 
traditional music.  The GOT banned Nevruz altogether until the 
1990s and it now tolerates celebrations, but there is frequent 
tension as the militant Kurds often use the holiday as a 
platform to display support for the PKK and its imprisoned 
leader, Abdullah Ocalan. 
 
DTP: We're Getting Stronger 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  At least a half-million Kurds nation-wide 
participated in Nevruz celebrations during the last several 
days.  DTP officials claim that about twice as many people 
turned out for celebrations this year compared with 2007.  They 
cite a number of factors for increased activism.  The recent 
ground operation - and the widespread perception in the 
southeast that the PKK had successfully repulsed the Turkish 
offensive - fueled enthusiasm for the holiday among militant 
nationalists.  DTP leaders also claim that they are receiving 
increased support in the southeast at the expense of the AKP, 
which is less popular now due to its support for the anti-PKK 
operations in Northern Iraq. 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  In Diyarbakir, the DTP and the governor's office 
initially disagreed about the venue for the event, but an 
agreement was reached and the DTP provided about 5,000 
volunteers to help with security.  About 350,000 people joined 
the celebration and despite a lot of pro-PKK, pro-Ocalan 
chanting and displays, there were no serious clashes with the 
police and only a few arrests.  While the DTP is touting the 
large turnout as a measure of partisan support, a journalist who 
attended said that about 30% of those participating were there 
to celebrate their Kurdish heritage and enjoy the music rather 
than as a political statement. 
 
Lack of Agreement Results in Violence 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  In Van, the organizers applied to hold the 
celebration on March 22, so that participants would not have to 
miss work to attend.  Despite submitting their application 20 
days prior to the event, the governor's office responded on 
March 20 that the celebration could only be held on the 21st. 
On the 22nd, about 1,500 protesters converged on the DTP offices 
to express opposition to the governor's decision.  According to 
local contacts, the police warned the crowd to disperse and then 
violence broke out, with protesters throwing stones and the 
police using firearms.  A total of 155 people were injured and 
one protester was killed.  The following day, about 10,000 
protesters turned out to mourn the man who was killed, leading 
to additional confrontations with the police.  Local contacts, 
including the Bar Association president and members of HakPar, a 
Kurdish party, told us the violence would not have erupted if 
the governor's office had allowed the celebrations to proceed as 
proposed.  The governor, according to one contact, deliberately 
delayed the decision in order to put the organizers in a 
difficult position. 
¶6.  (U)  In Yuksekova, in the far southeastern corner of Turkey 
near the Iranian border, the authorities also refused permission 
for a weekend celebration, triggering the same reaction, which 
has led to one death and four days of violent protests. 
 
Politics, Conspiracy Theories, Harassment 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  In a sign of posturing in advance of the 2009 
municipal elections, the DTP is blaming the ruling Justice and 
Development Party (AKP), its principal rival for votes in the 
southeast, of sanctioning the attempts to ban the holiday in 
certain cities and the subsequent violence.  One DTP statement 
accused PM Erdogan of trying to buy off Turkey's Kurds with a 
"box of candies", i.e. the much-discussed economic package for 
southeastern Turkey.  And a DTP contact in Diyarbakir told us 
that elements of the state wanted violence to spread the myth 
that all Kurds are violent terrorists. 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  Not unusually, the government also found petty ways 
to disrupt the celebrations.  The government barred the DTP from 
displaying posters with its new slogan "Enough is enough" 
(referring to continued violence).  The authorities originally 
forbade the party from displaying the slogan in Kurdish, so the 
organizers printed it in Zaza (another Kurdish dialect), Spanish 
and English, but the court banned that poster as well.  In 
Adana, the DTP relied on open-air trucks to transport many of 
its supporters in from the rural areas to participate.  Despite 
Turkey's notoriously blasi attention to traffic safety, the 
police fined all those riding on the trucks, mostly poor migrant 
families, about $1.30 per person for violating the rules.  In 
Diyarbakir, Turkish Air Force F-16s and helicopters buzzed the 
crowd repeatedly. 
GREEN