Topic: voa Subject: TURKEY VERSUS THE KURDS A N D PUBLIC OPINION By ANDREW N. GUTHRIE/WASHINGTON From: "Demetrios E. Paneras" DATE=03/30/95 TYPE=WORLD OPINION ROUNDUP NUMBER=6-08911 TITLE=TURKEY VERSUS THE KURDS A N D PUBLIC OPINION BYLINE=ANDREW N. GUTHRIE TELEPHONE=619-3335 DATELINE=WASHINGTON EDITOR=PHIL HAYNES CONTENT= INTRO: TENS OF THOUSANDS OF TURKISH TROOPS PUSHED ACROSS THE NATION'S RUGGED SOUTHWESTERN FRONTIER AND INTO NORTHERN IRAQ LAST WEEK IN PURSUIT OF GUERRILLAS OF THE P-K-K, OR KURDISH WORKERS PARTY. ONE U-S EDITORIAL DESCRIBED THE ASSAULT AS THE LARGEST FOREIGN TURKISH MILITARY ACTION SINCE THE DEMISE OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE. WORLD PUBLIC OPINION HAS GENERALLY SWUNG AGAINST THE TURKS AS REPORTS OF KURDISH REFUGEES BEING CAUGHT IN THE BATTLE FILTERED OUT OF THE REMOTE REGION. WE GET A GLOBAL SAMPLING OF EDITORIAL COMMENT NOW FROM ______________IN THIS WEEK'S WORLD OPINION ROUNDUP. TEXT: WORLD MEDIA REACTION TO THE INCURSION RANGED FROM WITHERING DISAPPROVAL TO PAINED DENUNCIATIONS OF ANKARA'S METHODS, MIXED WITH SOME EXPRESSIONS OF UNDERSTANDING FOR TURKEY'S NEED TO SUBDUE THE SEPARATIST KURDISH WORKERS PARTY. MANY ANALYSTS FOCUSED ON WHAT WAS PERCEIVED AS A SUBDUED OFFICIAL U-S REACTION AND 'UNDERSTANDING' OF TURKISH OBJECTIVES. OTHER NEWSPAPERS SHARPLY CRITICIZED THE UNITED STATES FOR WHAT ONE PUNDIT CALLED ITS 'SELECTIVE MORALITY'. WE BEGIN OUR SAMPLING IN TURKEY, WHERE THE MASS CIRCULATION INDEPENDENT HURRIYET SAYS: VOICE: "TURKEY FACES UNDESERVED INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE FOR AN ISSUE ON WHICH IT IS RIGHT. ... ONE CANNOT WIN SUCH OPERATIONS AT THE FRONT. THERE IS ALSO A DIPLOMATIC ASPECT. SO WE SHOULD HAVE PLANNED WHAT EACH OFFICIAL WOULD SAY (IN PUBLIC) BEFORE THE OPERATION STARTED." TEXT: MEANWHILE, TURKEY'S OTHER LARGE, NATIONAL DAILY, "MILLIYET," CARRIED THIS IN A COLUMN BY SAMI KOHEN: VOICE: "YESTERDAY (3/28) THE UNITED STATES ASKED THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT TO COMPLETE THE OPERATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. WHAT WILL ANKARA DO NOW? COMPLETING THE OPERATION WILL TAKE WEEKS, IF NOT MONTHS. BUT WHAT WILL HAPPEN LATER? ..... TURKEY MUST ACCELERATE ITS EFFORTS TO FIND A SOLUTION FOR THE POST-OPERATION PERIOD." TEXT: MEANWHILE, THE COUNTRY'S SENSATIONALIST "SABAH" CARRIED A COLUMN BY MEHMET ALI BIRAND, IN WHICH HE SAID: VOICE: "I BELIEVE THAT THERE WILL BE A TURKISH ARMY PRESENCE IN NORTHERN IRAQ WHEN THE OPERATION IS COMPLETED. YOU MAY CALL IT A BUFFER ZONE OR A SECURITY STRIP. ... OTHERWISE ALL THESE EFFORTS AND COSTS WILL BE USELESS." TEXT: TURNING TO CONTINENTAL EUROPE, GERMANY'S "DIE WELT" IN BERLIN DESCRIBED GERMANY AS "IN SHOCK" OVER THE TURKISH ACTION: VOICE: "THE BONN GOVERNMENT WAIVERS BETWEEN SUPPORTING NATO ALLY TURKEY, WHICH IS PRACTICING EXCESSIVE SELF-DEFENSE IN IRAQ, AND INDIRECTLY PROTECTING HUMAN RIGHTS ON BOTH SIDES BY EXERTING PUBLIC PRESSURE ON ANKARA..." TEXT: THE INFLUENTIAL "FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE" COMMENTED THAT GERMANY BE RESTRAINED IN ANY ACTION AGAINST THE TURKS: VOICE: "ANKARA, IN ANY CASE, IS PUSHING THE MATTER TO THE EXTENT THAT THE 'TRADITIONAL GOOD ALLY' GERMANY MUST CONSIDER TAKING COUNTERMEASURES. THEY WILL, HOWEVER, BE MODERATE BECAUSE TURKEY WILL EASILY COPE WITH THE POSSIBLE FREEZING OF SUBSIDIES FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF TWO FRIGATES." TEXT: HOWEVER, IN BRITAIN, THERE WAS SENTIMENT FOR A POLITICAL SOLUTION TO THE KURDISH/TURKISH DILEMMA FROM "THE FINANCIAL TIMES" OF LONDON: VOICE: "NORTHERN IRAQ ... IS A WESTERN RESPONSIBILITY.... STUNG BY INTERNATIONAL CRITICISM, THE TURKISH PRIME MINISTER HAS ASKED FOR INTERNATIONAL HELP. SHE SHOULD BE TAKEN AT HER WORD. THE POWERS WHICH PROVIDED RATHER COLD COMFORT IN 1991 SHOULD NOW TRY AGAIN AND DO BETTER." TEXT: AND IN THE LIBERAL "GUARDIAN" THERE WAS A COMMENT ABOUT THE UNITED STATES REACTION: VOICE: "PRESIDENT CLINTON ... DECLARED 'HIS UNDERSTANDING FOR TURKEY'S NEED TO DEAL DECISIVELY WITH P-K-K TERRORISM.' THE FOUNDING FATHERS MUST BE TURNING IN THEIR GRAVES." TEXT: WHILE IN FRANCE, THE INFLUENTIAL "LE MONDE" COMMENTED IN A FRONT-PAGE EDITORIAL: VOICE: "(THE TURKISH INCURSION INTO IRAQ) IS A REAL SETBACK FOR THE EUROPEANS. BECAUSE ONLY THREE WEEKS AGO, DESPITE ANKARA'S POOR RECORD ON HUMAN RIGHTS, THE EUROPEAN UNION CONCLUDED A CUSTOMS AGREEMENT WHICH SPECIFIED THAT TANCU CILLER'S GOVERNMENT WOULD CHANGE ITS BEHAVIOR TOWARD THE KURDISH MINORITY. IT IS VISIBLY NOT DOING SO..." TEXT: TURNING EASTWARD, TO RUSSIA, A COLUMN IN MOSCOW'S BUSINESS NEWSPAPER "KOMMERSANT-DAILY," NOTES: VOICE: "BAGHDAD FUMES OVER THE VIOLATION OF ITS BORDERS. THE E-U AND MOSCOW ARE CONCERNED ABOUT HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS. ONLY THE UNITED STATES MAINTAINS COMPOSURE..." TEXT: AN ESPECIALLY STRONG REACTION COMES FROM ICELAND, AND THAT NATION'S SECOND LARGEST DAILY, "DV" VOICE: "THE E-U HAS DENOUNCED TURKEY'S WARFARE, BUT THE UNITED STATES HAS BEEN TALKING OUT OF ALL SIDES OF ITS MOUTH. THE ATTITUDE OF THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION IN WASHINGTON IS CONSISTENT WITH THE RECREATION OF THE FOREIGN POLICY OF THAT GOVERNMENT, WHEN IT SCREWS UP ONE AFFAIR AFTER ANOTHER.... ... THE BEST THING WOULD BE TO RID NATO OF TURKEY, SO THAT WE WILL NOT HAVE TO ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY IN THE FUTURE FOR THE MEDIEVAL CONDUCT OF A COUNTRY WITH AN AGE-OLD TRADITION OF CRUELTY." TEXT: IN THE MIDDLE EAST, TUNISIA'S ARAB-LANGUAGE "AS-SABAH" IN TUNIS COMMENTED: VOICE: "NO MATTER HOW STRONG AND FRIENDLY THE HISTORICAL RELATIONSHIP (BETWEEN ARAB STATES AND) TURKEY, IT DOES NOT GIVE ANKARA THE RIGHT TO VIOLATE THE BORDERS OF (OUR BROTHER) IRAQ ON THE PRETEXT OF PURSUING KURDS. " TEXT: AND IN THE PALESTINIAN REGION OF THE WEST BANK, THE PRO-JORDAN "AN-NAHAR" COMMENTED: VOICE: "WE DO NOT AIM TO ARGUE ON WHO IS THE VICTIM AND WHO IS THE VICTIMIZER IN THE CURRENT CONFLICT BETWEEN KURDS AND TURKEY.... TURKEY HAS FOUND AN EXCUSE TO OCCUPY PART OF NORTHERN IRAQ, JUST LIKE ISRAEL DID WHEN IT OCCUPIED PART OF LEBANON.... WE ARE LIVING IN [A] WORLD WHERE THE LAW OF THE JUNGLE RULES AND THE RIGHTEOUSNESS BELONGS TO THE POWERFUL...." TEXT: FOR SOME REPRESENTATIVE VIEWS FROM THE SOUTH PACIFIC, WE TURN TO THE REGIONAL DAILY "THE WEST AUSTRALIAN" OUT OF PERTH, WHICH WROTE: VOICE: "IT IS HARD TO ESCAPE THE JUDGMENT THAT WESTERN NATIONS ARE EXERCISING SELECTIVE MORALITY IN THEIR TACIT ACCEPTANCE OF TURKEY'S MILITARY PUSH INTO NORTHERN IRAQ AGAINST REBEL KURDS......." TEXT: AND IN HONG KONG, THE ENGLISH-LANGUAGE "HONG KONG STANDARD" STRESSED A SIMILAR LINE: VOICE: "WHEN IRAQ'S POWERFUL, MODERN ARMY WAGES HIGH-TECH WAR AGAINST OVER-MATCHED KURDISH GUERRILLAS, KILLING AND UPROOTING INNOCENT CIVILIAN POPULATIONS, THE WEST KNOWS WHAT TO CALL IT: UGLY REPRESSION, VERGING ON GENOCIDE. WHAT THEN SHOULD THE WEST THINK WHEN TURKISH FORCES ATTACK KURDS IN SOUTHEASTERN TURKEY? OR WHEN TURKISH PLANES BOMB IRAQI KURDISH AREAS?" TEXT: AND OUR LAST WORD ON THIS SUBJECT COMES FROM MEXICO, WHERE "UNOMASUNO" IN MEXICO CITY PROCLAIMED: VOICE: "WE ARE PERPLEXED OVER THE PASSIVITY OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IN THE FACE OF THE TURKISH MILITARY OFFENSIVE AGAINST THE KURDISH PEOPLE.... WILL A HOLOCAUST LIKE THAT EXPERIENCED BY THE JEWISH PEOPLE AT THE HANDS OF THE NAZIS IN EUROPE BE NECESSARY FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO ACT AT LAST? SO FAR, NO GOVERNMENT SEEMS WILLING TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION." TEXT: AND ON THAT HISTORICAL NOTE, WE CONCLUDE THIS BRIEF GLIMPSE OF WORLD MEDIA OPINION REGARDING THE TURKISH INCURSION INTO NORTHERN IRAQ IN SEARCH OF P-K-K GUERRILLAS. NEB/ANG/PCH 30-Mar-95 4:14 PM EST (2114 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America ------------------------------------------------------------------------------