Kurdish Parties Harshly Criticise KADEK-PKK Practices
A statement from 20.12.2002, published in Turkish and Kurdish by the HEVKARI-Platform in Germany (an organization of 18 Kurdish parties from all parts of Kurdistan), has condemned the use of violence and the liquidation of high ranking party officials. It also called on the KADEK/PKK leadership to finally put a stop to the internal use of violence against its critics and dissi-dents.
According to information from IMK e.V., KADEK has, in recent months, had high ranking PKK dissidents liquidated, with guerilla members Faruk Bozkurt (Nasir) and  Berzan Dürre (Harun) being  amongst them.
Around one and a half to two years ago the PKK leadership jailed in Iraq more than 60 high ranking PKK activists who wanted to leave the party in protest against “new PKK policies”. Some of these were liquidated. As the names of those detained became known to the insider scene in western Europe, a world wide campaign for their release was called for.
Because of this the PKK leadership refrained from further liquidation of the persons known to be held.
The KADEK leadership is now again about to re-turn to their former practices.
If the international community remain silent, many people who had fought for many years for the PKK will lose their lives because of their criticism to-wards the new policies of the KADEK-PKK leader-ship.
We therefore call on human rights organizations to again campaign to force the KADEK leadership to finally end their policy of violence towards its crit-ics and people who think differently to them. (Source: Call from HEVKAR-Platform in Germany, 20.12.02 and IMK e.V. from 06.01.03)

Books from Kurdish Writer and Aca-demic Confiscated 
Ankara’s public prosecutor and state security courts have confiscated 3 volumes of books published in September of last year entitled “Kurdish Music, Dances and Songs” and the book “Kurdish Women – From Past to Present”.
The author, Bayrak, had already dealt with such themes in books published in 1991. These were also confiscated in 1993 by the state security courts.
Mehmet Bayrak had made a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg concerning the latter with the court recently deciding in his favor. The Turkish state must pay Bayrak 11,000 Euros in compensation.
The state security court’s confiscation orders, which were issued against Bayrak on 27.12.2002, alleged that “….the books in their current form oppose the unity of nation and state. Furthermore, their content partitions the population into different races thereby inciting hate and hostility”. (Source: Hürriyet from 31.12.02 IMK e.V.press statement from 07. 01 03)

Mine Explosions
On November 30th Sahin Sak (15) was injured when he stepped on a mine near the village of Te-kevler in the district of Uludere (Sirnak). (Source: Evrensel from14.12.2002)

Death Fasts 
On the evening of December 15th Feride Harman died in a house in Aksaray-Istanbul where she had continued her death fast after having been released from prison. She had been in prison since 1996 for being a member of the DHKP/C and had initially been transferred to an Ankara hospital from the prison in Malatya. She had been provisionally re-leased from prison on August 23rd. She had been on a death fast since 28th July 2001. (Source: Cumhuriyet, 17.12.2002)

Two Cases Against Torturers
Ankara’s public prosecutor has initiated two legal proceedings against 3 police officers for assaulting Ipek Avci and Yener Arslan on 26th February. The lawyer Nuray Özdogan said that following a complaint from her, an initial case was opened against the police officers Mustafa Özdemir, Yusuf Koç and Mehmet Nedim Emre under § 245 (ill treatment) and § 456 (assault without intent to kill). It began on May 22nd before criminal court No. 16 in Ankara but had been referred to the administrative courts in order to obtain permission to hold court proceedings against police officers. Later, the human rights committee from the district of Altindag, reported the incident to the parliamentary inquiry commission for human rights who then also brought charges. A second case was then to begin on December 30th before the 18th criminal court in Ankara. At the same time, however, a court hearing will be held in the 24th criminal court against Ipek Avci and Yener Arslan for resisting authorities of the state. (Source: TIHV, 18.12.2002)

Children Mistreated in Ankara 
The Police officers Gültekin Gürbüz, Selim Sakar, Ata-soy Kara, Mustafa Parla and Murat Özel must answer to a criminal court in Ankara for the mis-treatment of the children A.A. (9), A.A. (14), B.B. (10) and Ö.A. (10). They allegedly took the children from a playground to a police station and then, according to the children, they were forced to undress to see whether they had been circumcised. Whoever refused was beaten. (Source: Hürriyet from 19.12.2002)

Kurdish Radio and TV Broadcasts 
The regulations on TV and radio broadcasting in local langauges and dialects have come into force following their official publication on December 18th. Radio broadcasts in other languages are not permitted to be longer than 45 minutes per day or 4 hours per week. Programmes are to be repeated in Turkish following each broadcast. TV broadcasts are to be transmitted with subtitles. They are not permitted to exceed 30 minutes per day or 2 hours per week. Procedures must now be worked out between the Turkish public broadcaster TRT and the Turkish TV and radio  board of control. In doing so, viewer profiles are to be taken into consideration. (Source: Radikal,19.12.02)

Sentence Upheld Against Soysal
A prison sentence of 18 years and 9 months against Cevat Soysal, who is entitled to asylum in Germany and was deported from Moldavia to Turkey, has been upheld by the 9th Chamber of the Court of Appeal. Ankara’s state security court had sentenced him for being a former member of the PKK. (Source: Özgür Gündem vom 20.12.2002)

Kurdish Choir Found Not Guilty 
On December 19th, the 4th chamber of Diyarbakir’s state security courts found members of the choir of trade union’s confederation not guilty on allega-tions of supporting an illegal organization. They had sung Kurdish songs at a congress of the teacher’s union Egitim-Sen in February last year. Those charged were Altun, Alpkaya, Sedat Balibey, Neset Güçmen, Bendi Velat Eminoglu, Ertaç Demirel, Ramazan Demir, Zahire Tetikbasi and Cangin Dogan. (Source: Özgür Gündem vom 20.12.02) 

Another Death by Death Fasting/ Arrest of Demonstrators/ Pardons 
Berkan Abatay, who had been on a death fast in the F-Type prison on Tekirdag since May 2001, died in Bayrampasa’s prison hospital on 20th December. On December 22nd, 50 people assembled in Sam-sun to protest against the F-type prisons. Twenty people were arrested by police. President of state Sezer gave pardons to the prisoners Suzan Baran and Namik Kemal Bektas who are suffering from Wernicke-Korsakoff-Syndrome. His decision, un-der Article 104 of the constitution, was made public on 21.12.2002. (Source: Cumhuriyet from 22-23.12.2002)

No Legal Action Against Village Guard 
The public prosecutor in Beytüssebap has decided no to take legal action against the village guards who had physically and verbally assaulted the law-yer Muharrem Sahin from the lawyers’ association in Diyarbakir, nor against the soldiers who had also participated. During the elections on November 3rd Sahin arrived in the village of Ayvalik (in the dis-trict of  Beytüssebap), as a representative of the lawyers’ association in Diyarbakir, to investigate allegations of irregularities in voting. Sahin has said that he would appeal against the public prosecutor’s decision and would take the case to the European Court of Human Rights if necessary. (Source: Özgür Gündem from  23.12.2002)

DHKP-C Case
On 20.12.2002, Istanbul’s state security court made a judgment against 6 suspected member of the Revolutionary People’s Freedom Party / Front (DHKP/C). Selami Kurnuz and Mustafa Baris Akay were sentenced to 12 ½ years and Erhan Keskin and Aysun Akdag to 45 months in prison. Yücel Urbay and Hasan Urbay were found not guilty. (Source: Evrensel from 21.12.2002)

Arrests 
Six people who were arrested during police raids in Kücükarmutlu (Istanbul) between 15-18.12.2002 were detained in custody on 19.12.2002 under alle-gations of being members of an illegal organization.
On 17.12.2002, students from the university of Sivas organized protests against the Turkish educa-tion board, possible US strikes against Iraq and disciplinary measures taken against students. Six of the participating students were detained in custody. (Source: Evrensel-Yeni Safak vom 20.-23.12.2002)

Torture in Bostanici
Hamza Özkan, head of HADEP in Bostanici (in the province of Van), Hakim Ata, Abdullah Kacan, Nuriye Gecer, Halime Kamis and Nazmi Peyan, who were arrested in raids from 19.12.2002, were detained in custody on 21.12.2002. Filiz Saybak (16) was released. She said that while in police custody she had been subjected to psychological pressure to become an informant and to report on HADEP activities. She was then pulled around by the hair. (Source: Özgür Gündem vom 22.12.2002) 

Harsh Criticism of Turkish Officialdom by Kurdish-Turk Actor 
In a statement in the newspaper Milliyet Kunst, the most well known Kurdish-Turk actor and writer, Yilmaz Erdogan, has heavily criticized Turkish officialdom which, through its regulations, has made “impossible”  “Kurdish courses” and “Kurd-ish broadcasting on TRT”.
Erdogan described the regulations for Kurdish broadcasts on the Turkish public channel TRT, as “stupidity”. He criticized Turkish policy for want-ing, through such regulations, to put off Kurdish viewers from wanting to watch such broadcasts and at the same time persuade Europeans that “their requirements have been fulfilled”. 
Erdogan asked politicians why Kurdish broadcasts couldn’t be transmitted over private channels.
Concerning Kurdish courses he went on to say, “Learning Kurdish is a political risk. Where should Kurdish teachers come from when they must have a Turkish university education degree and subject themselves to a security check?  What if a candidate has published a magazine and has been convicted because of it? If Turkey wants to pull the wool over the eyes of the Europeans then it should at least do so by  refraining from insulting its citizens with such regulations.” (Hürriyet, 22.12.02)

Military Training for Turkmen from Iraq
Turkey, who is taking measures to prevent the es-tablishment of a Kurdish state in northern Iraq, has begun training 3,000 Iraqi Turkmen in Turkey.
Turkey think that Turkmen do not receive their rights under the regional parliament controlled by Kurdish groups and that through military training the Turkmen could be used to exercise their legiti-mate right to defense. (Source: Hürriyet, 06..01.03)

Comments from IMK editorial team:
Because the majority of Turkish newspapers avoid using the term “Kurdistan” as much as they can, they therefore did not refer to “the regional parlia-ment of South Kurdistan”.
Turkey does not only have a military presence of over 16,000, heavily armed military personnel in South Kurdistan, but has also in recent months massively strengthened forces on the border to Iraq and built air bases in North Kurdistan in order to militarily intervene in the event of a US war against Iraq. Turkey’s main concern is that Kurds in Iraq will demand an independent Kurdish state follow-ing an Iraqi war.
According to an interview with the Turkish foreign minister Yakis in Hürriyet from 06.01.2003, the Turkish government are investigating whether they have any claim under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne to the oil reserves in Mossul and Kirkuk.

Turkish Constitutional Court Reject Complaint Against Reforms 
The Turkish constitutional court has rejected a complaint from Turkish nationalists (MHP) against the lifting of the death penalty and other reforms. This was reported in the Turkish media. By submit-ting a complaint to the constitutional courts, the MHP intended to overthrow the reforms passed by the Turkish national asssembly at the beginning of August  with a view to eventual EU membership. 
Along with the abolishment of the death penalty, the complaint was also aimed at guaranteeing cultural rights of the Kurds and non-Muslim minorities. The MHP are no long represented in parliament since the elections from November 3rd. (Source: Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ Online), 27.12.2002 (sda/dpa)

Court Case Against German Founda-tions to Continue at the End of January 
The controversial “spy” case against German foun-dations in Turkey is to be continued on January 30th. This was revealed by the head of the State security courts in Ankara following an initial hear-ing of the 15 German and Turkish defendants. The public prosecutor has accused representatives of 4 German foundations and their Turkish partners of forming secret agreements and societies against the security of the Turkish state. They are liable to up to 15 years imprisonment. (Source: dpa, 26.12.02)

Thierse Wants Legal Clarification From Ankara 
German Foundations Consider Charges to be Unsubstantiated and Expect Not Guilty Verdict 
The president of the German parliament, Wolf-gang Thierse (SPD), has called on the Turkish government to make a clear judgment in the case against the German foundations. Representatives of the foundations deny the allegations of con-spiracy and spying and say that they expect a not guilty verdict.
BERLIN, 27th December (afp/dpa). The head of office of the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation in An-kara, Wulf Schönbohm, recently said to Inforadio Berlin-Brandenburg, “I hope that the case will be concluded at least by the middle of next [this] year and that we will be found not guilty”. The charges were unsubstantiated and contained no hard evi-dence of any offense. The accusation that the Ger-man foundations had endangered the unity of the Turkish state by inciting ethnic minorities, was “absurd”.
Schönbohm also said that Thierse’s restraint was not to be criticized, “The government can not inter-fere with the legal processes of a constitutional state”.
The Turkish government’s distancing from the case was criticized by Thierse on Inforadio, “To date there has been little heard of a wide political debate in Turkey”. However, if the case were to end in a guilty verdict “this would be a slap in the face for those working towards a European perspective for Turkey”. Thierse spoke of a “an attempt at intimi-dation by certain sections of the Turkish judiciary”. He said that the stance taken by the political leader-ship was therefore of interest, particularly that of the “new man in power” and head of the governing the party AKP, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The unhin-dered political activity of foundations should of course be part of the normal life of a democracy, and that had to be understood by Turkey, said Thierse.
The Turkish public prosecutor has accused 9 Ger-mans and 6 Turks of forming a “secret society” to strike at Turkey’s political and social order. There was also “evidence” of spying activity. The accused are liable to up to 15 years imprisonment. The background to the allegations is a conflict between environmentalists and the Turkish government on the extraction of gold in the west Turkish city of Bergama using cyanide.
Office head Schönbohm said that the case, which was opened and then adjourned until 30.01.2003, was only possible because under Turkish law a public prosecutor can bring serious allegations without having to have any evidence or having the allegations firstly scrutinized. In Deutschlandradio Berlin, Schönbohm attacked the institution of state security courts and said that in general there were still major deficiencies in Turkey’s judicial system. The head of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation, Ralf Fücks, recently said that it was an attempt by die-hards to sabotage Turkey’s convergence with the EU. Fücks also expected the case to collapse. (Source: Frankfurter Rundschau, 28.12.2002)

TURKISH SOLDIERS
Left Wing Activist Killed
Turkish soldiers have shot dead a leader of the banned left wing party DHKP-C. Celalettin Ali Güler was killed during a clash near Tokat. Güler had escaped from prison in 1993 and had allegedly been involved in attacks against police officers. 
(Source: taz Nr. 6941 from 30.12.2002 ap)

The Tragedy of Faili-Kurds in Iraq
Since its founding, the Iraqi regime has persistently followed a policy of eradicating its Kurdish popula-tion through Arabization and ethnic cleansing. Expulsions, compulsory resettlement and the sepa-ration of Kurdish families have also been part of the policy. Faili-Kurds have been particularly affected by such. The reason has been that the Faili-Kurds are of Iranian origin, belong to the Shiite  religious community and represent a risk to the Iraqi regime. Thousands of families have been split up because sections of these families were Faili. Fathers were compulsorily expelled so that they could not repro-duce more Faili children and, for the same reason,  their daughters were not permitted to marry Faili men.
At the beginning of the Iran-Iraq war (1980), the regime forcibly deported to Iran 150,000 Faili Kurds from the cities of Baghdad, Kut, Basreh, Badreh, Musul, Jassan, Chaneqin, Mandeli and Jelaula. The majority were businessmen, engineers, technicians, public workers and students. Their property was confiscated and their qualifications and citizenship were revoked and declared invalid. The fate of 6,000 youths aged between 16-30, who disappeared without trace at the beginning of the war, is still unknown. Expulsions continued during the 8 years of war. The reasons then were that the Faili Kurds were collaborating with Iran because they were Shiites and of Iranian origin. Even after the war and later during the liberation of large parts of Kurdistan, the regime persisted with its policy of expulsion. This was then justified on grounds that the Faili were cooperating with Kurdish freedom fighters and therefore had to be expelled from the country and deported to Iran.(Source: Kurdistan Newe, No. 2913, 12.11.2002)

Sections of Saddam’s Partisans Join Al-Quaeda 
Sixty members of Saddam’s partisans have joined up with the organization Soldiers of Islam, part of the Al-Quaeda network, in Kurdistan. According to our sources, these partisans, with the Soldiers of Islam, have completed training in various areas, in order to be able to carry out operations against American interests. They receive financial support from the Iraqi regime and can expect the Al-Quaeda leadership to agree to plans for them from the re-gime.
It is also claimed that sections recently arrived in Kurdistan where they immediately began training. (Source: SCIRI, December 2002)

Weapons of Mass Destruction Hidden in Concrete Pipes 
Trucks loaded with concrete pipes, sealed at both ends, have recently come to the notice of the Iraqi population. According to our sources the trucks were seen on roads leaving the provinces and caused disquiet amongst the population because it was assumed that the vehicles were transporting missiles, chemical weapons and other lethal arms to hide them from the international weapons inspec-tors. Such foolish methods by the authorities could topple the country into another war. (Source: SCIRI Vienna, Dezember 2002)

Vehicle and Occupants Set On Fire 
The Iraqi regime has already intensified its check-points on the borders to Kurdistan in recent months. Kurdish traders have often been victims to such practices. On 19.12.02, a number of traders were ambushed in their vehicle by Iraqi troops near the village of Siyaw in the district of Hewler (Arbil). The vehicle was shot at and completely burnt out. All its occupants died. Their remaining goods were confiscated by the soldiers. 
On 14.12.02, Saddam Hussein’s security forces apprehended a 13 year old, who was carrying wash-ing up liquid, at a checkpoint. He tried to escape but was followed by soldiers. During the chase he fell into a river and drowned. (Source: Hawwelati, No. 103, 23.12.02) 

American Newspaper Los Angeles Times Reports on Effects of Ethnic Cleansing in Iraq 
The following is from a report by Ronen Right who recently visited expelled Kurds and reported on their situation. The report was published in the “Los Angeles Times”:
“Kurdistan’s cold winter is about to begin. Hassan Karim and his wife and 6 children live in a tiny triangular tent made of plastic, without a door. They, like many others, were recently expelled and have been put up in a refugee camp. They are ac-commodated in tents and small huts…with roofs made of plastic and cardboard. They sit on thin, old carpets and have nothing else which makes up a home. Hassan is 38 years old and is an ordinary worker.
According to a report from the “Washington Brukings Association”, 800,000 Kurds from the oil regions in Kurdistan have been expelled by the Iraqi regime since the 1970s and 300,000 Kurds and other minorities from the country’s central regions. Their property has been confiscated and they still live in refugee camps under disastrous conditions. The association accuse the United Nations and other responsible authorities of major neglect. In a detailed report from “Human Rights Watch” on the situation of those expelled and the policy of ethnic cleansing by the Iraqi regime, Saddam Hussein’s actions against the Kurds are seen as a major crime against humanity. The United Nations must act against the campaign of Arabization and the serious breaches of human rights against the Kurds. The policies have now reached Kurdish graveyards. Kurdish names are being deleted and replaced with Arabic names. The regime has also made extra land available to resettled Arabs for their graveyards so that they can bring the coffins of their dead to Kurdistan. In this way the regime want to show that Kurdistan originally belonged to the Arabs. According to a directive from the Iraqi leadership (Directive 199, September 2001) all non Arabs, after their 18th year, must change any  non-Arab affiliations to Arabic ones. Non adherence to this directive would have social and legal consequences. (Source: Kurdistani Newe, No. 2933, 09.12.02) 

Kurdish Traders Shot Dead by Iranian Military 
Reliable sources say that on 15.12.2002 Iranian security forces fired, without any warnings, on a Kurdish trader and his horse near the town of Piran-schar. His horse was killed instantly, his goods were confiscated and he tried to escape. The soldiers took chase and soon after shot him dead. Trading in goods is the only source of income for thousands of Kurds who are unable to find any other work. Such attacks on traders often take place with many people being shot dead in this way.
When the town’s inhabitants heard of the incident they gathered at the “Sardascht Square” and “Istigh-lal Street”. They demonstrated against the security forces’ brutal methods and demanded the quick investigation and arrests of the perpetrators. Three thousand Kurds took part in the protest. There were clashes between demonstrators and the military. Detailed information is not yet available concerning possible victims. There is talk of a state of emer-gency in the town. Further protests actions were expected. (Source: Komala Press Statement, 16.12.02) 

Kurdish Fighters Tortured to Death 
Another member of the KDP-Iran, Habibullah Tanhaeyan, 41 years old, married  and father of 3 children from the town of Sanandaj, has been tortured to death by the Iranian intelligence ser-vices. Habibullah had been arrested 4 times. He was  apprehended on 11.12.02 by agents of the Iranian intelligence services in Sanandaj and sentenced to death on 15.12.02 for cooperating with the KDP- Iran. Four days later, on 19.12.2002, his body was handed over to his family. Injuries and other traces of torture were clearly visible on the corpse.
This all took place while a European human rights  delegation was in Teheran to inform itself of the human rights situation in Iran. (Source: Press Statement by the KDP-Iran, 24.12.02)
 
Pro Kurdish Magazine Banned in Teheran 
The pro Kurdish magazine “Rafeh” published in Persian by Kurdish students, has been banned by Iranian authorities. The publishers have been ac-cused of making propaganda for “separatism”. “Rafeh” was a cultural magazine published by the organization “Kaziweh”, an association of sociol-ogy students from the University of Teheran. There had only been 3 issues of the magazine prior to the ban being imposed. (Source: Hawwelati , Nr. 104, 30.12.02) 

Reformists Order a Stop to Stonings 
TEHERAN, 29th December (afp). Stoning is to be abolished in Iran. The member of parliament Dschamileh Kadiwar said that the country’s judges had already received the necessary directive. Ac-cordingly, judges should impose other punishments for adultery, such as imprisonment or fines. The directive will remain in force until the appropriate legislation is amended. The reformist dominated Iranian parliament have been debating since Octo-ber on penalties to replace stoning. A spokesperson from the conservative dominated judiciary said that a statement would soon be issued.
According to information from EU diplomats, there had been two confirmed cases of stoning in 2001. No cases had been confirmed for 2002.
Kadiwar said that the decision to abolish stoning was unconnected with pressure from the EU. It had more to do with “developments in the administra-tion of justice for Shiite Islam”, the state religion in Iran. (Source: Frankfurter Rundschau, 30.12.2002)

Syrian Journalist Arrested 
“Spreading False Information”
The Syrian journalist Ibrahim Hamidi, a correspon-dent for the respected London paper “Al-Ha-yat”, was, according to the agency Sana, arrested on 27.12.2002. According to official statements, he is to be taken to court for spreading false information. The authorities refer to a report by Hamidis from 20.12.2002 on preparations by the Syrian govern-ment and UNO for receiving a possible million Iraqi refugees in the north east of Syria. The report was based on “informed sources” and named the members of a ministerial committee. The talk was of plans for reception camps for possible Iraqi refu-gees, and cooperation with UNHCR, the Syrian Red Crescent Moon and the IKRK. Hamidi also said that official activity was being kept secret for political reasons. Press laws provide harsh penalties for the spreading of false information. Groups such as “Reporters sans frontières” and the Egyptian Human Rights Society have acknowledged the case and have called for Hamidi’s immediate release.
Hamidi was one of the first Syrian correspondents for a foreign paper standing for a certain degree of intellectual independence. He runs a daily gauntlet between jealous controllers of the state monopolized propaganda machinery and the journalist ethic of providing truthful and comprehensible information. He has been seen for years as one of the most knowledgeable people on Syria and regularly writes for Lebanese and other newspapers. The legal action being taken against him for apparently minor errors, and his detention from the first day on, testify to the authorities’ desire to suppress this independent voice at the first possible chance. More evidence is not needed of a major setback to political openness since the taking up of office by the new president, Asad. (Source: Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 30. Dezember 2002, Nr.302)

Two Kurdish Politicians Arrested in Damascus 
According to information from Kurdish sources, the members of the Kurdish Yekiti party’s politburo in Syria, Hassan Saleh and Marwan Osman, were arrested on 15.12.2002 following a meeting with the Syrian minister of the interior, Ali Hamud, in Damascus. The two Kurdish politicians had been called to the meeting by police heads in Damascus.
The Yekiti Party had organized a peaceful protest on 10.12.2002 before the Syrian parliament, at which hundreds of citizens and party members took part and distributed fly sheets.
The fly sheet protested against the Syrian government’s policies of repression against the Kurdish people. The demonstrators also called for the reinstatement of citizenship to 200,000 Kurds whose citizenship was revoked by special legislation from 1962. The Syrian government were also called on to respect human rights and to uphold political freedom and to provide Kurdish children the right to learn in their native language in schools.
On the International Day of Human Rights, parlia-mentary president, Abdulkader Kadura, and the head of the Baath Party in Damascus received the organizers and issuers of the fly sheet and spoke with them for over half an hour on the fly sheet’s content and the demands of the Kurds. 
The Arabic media and Syrian political parties, who are active on issues of democracy and human rights, saw the meeting as positive and expressed their hope that the Syrian government would finally take the Kurdish problem seriously following the first visit by a leading statesman, president Basher Al-Assad, to the Kurdish regions in northern Syria.
The details of the demonstrations and the arrests of members of the Yekiti Party have been confirmed by the party’s head, Abdulbaki Yusef. He revealed their names in a press statement. 
The news agency Achbar-Alsharq, which provides information on Syria, also has information confirm-ing the statement..
According to information from the IMK, the 2 politicians continue to be detained. (Source: Translation of the YEKITI press statement and information from IMK e.V.)

Kurds Illegally Cross Border: German Border Guard Patrol Apprehend Men
A short stop over in Germany was expensive for 4 Kurds. A German border guard patrol, using ther-mal imaging cameras, observed the men illegally crossing the green border between Poland and Germany near Neu-Grambow. This was revealed by Wolfgang Priemer, a spokesman for the authorities.
Checks on the 4 further revealed that they only possessed Turkish documentation. During question-ing they said that they were members of a Kurdish homelands association and therefore had to leave Turkey. They paid 160 US dollars to travel by taxi from Warsaw to the German-Polish border. They then illegally crossed the green border near Neu-Grambow. The men were deported back to Poland. (Source: Nordkurier, 20.12.2002)

Eight Illegal Immigrants Drowned 
Athen. At least 8 illegal immigrants drowned over Christmas when 2 boats capsized in Greek waters.
On Christmas Day, 5 people died when their dingy sank between the Turkish coast and the Greek island of Chios. There is no hope for 4 missing people. Coastguards rescued 12 of the mainly Kurdish refugees. A Greek person was arrested as a suspected people smuggler. On Christmas Eve, 3 illegal immigrants died not far from the island of Corfu in the Ionian Sea when their boat overturned. A further 160 Kurds could save themselves by swimming ashore. They had sailed from Greece heading towards Italy. Two human smugglers, allegedly Albanians, escaped. (Source: Westdeutsche Allgemeine, 27.12.2002 (dpa)

Comments from the IMK e.V. on Ger-man Foreign Office’s Report on the Situation in Turkey 
When somebody from a foreign country arrives in Germany and submits an application for asylum, the “German National Department for Foreign Refugees” in Nuremberg checks whether the refugee is at risk of being politically persecuted if compulsorily deported back to his/her homeland.
Such a decision largely depends on how the home-land situation is portrayed. 
Because the department’s asylum officers usually have little insider knowledge of the country of origin (perhaps they once visited the beach in Anta-lya), they are dependent on reports and views of people who can be trusted to know more about such matters. Amongst such sources are the reports from the German Foreign Office on the state of affairs in each country.    
There was a time when German administrative courts knew how to interpret a foreign office report: “If the foreign office claim….by referring to ‘a public statement by the military regime’….that torture was now an offense and would be investi-gated by public prosecutors….then in diplomatic terms….this would be a dangerous playing down of the real situation” – from a judgment by Berlin’s administrative courts from 19.05.1982 - Informa-tion Sheet on Alien Legislation 1982, page 257). A news magazine then immediately interpreted such “reports” as more likely to have been drawn up at cocktail parties rather than based on research at the country in question (Asyl – Vergessen Sie's; in: DER SPIEGEL No. 39/1991 from 23.09.1991, page 68). 

This assessment of the reports from the German Foreign Office was made by a lawyer (member of the IMK e.V.) who is familiar with both asylum law and asylum practices in Germany.

(The full report can be read on our Web site at www.kurden-de). 
 

New Publication

Dear Friends,

The IMK e.V. would like to inform all those involved in refugee work about the dissertation by Mehmet Bayval on “Psychosocial Development of Child Refugees”. 

The dissertation studies the conditions under which child refugees live in Germany. It looks at aspects of psychology, sociology, ethnology, politics and law.  
· The first part of the dissertation deals with definitions, refugee causes, statistics and interna-tional and national law. The issues referred to are the right to stay, residency and procedures concerning entry.. 
· The second half focuses on actual living situations, psychosocial development of child refu-gees,– e.g. in the areas of accommodation, education and identity, and outlining measures which would influence the living conditions of young refugees. 

The dissertation is available (in German) for the sum of 6,-- Euro ( incl. post). 

As before, please let us know your e-mail address. E-mail is faster and cost effective.
We would also like to refer you to our Web page where the following interesting articles are available:
· IMK e.V press statement from 07.01.2002 (German and English)
· Comments of German Foreign Office’s State of Affairs Reports (German)
· Open Letter to German Government on possible Turkish EU entry (German)
· Thoughts on the subject of Iraq I and II, by Alexander Kauz (German)
· Campaign against impunity - “Justice Heals” (German)
· “Squaring the Circle”, by Ofra Bengio (German and English)
· A joint press statement from the GfbV, KOMKAR, Kurdish Communities in Germany and the IMK e,V, from October 24th (German)
· A report from the Turkish Daily News on the village guard system (German and English)
· IMK e.V press statement on the 40th anniversary of Syria’s racist census (German)
· An analysis of the behavior of the Turkish media during the German general elections (German) 
· An annual report from the PSK on developments in Turkey and north Kurdistan (German and English)
· IPPNW-Report on the actual situation in Turkey and Kurdistan (German)
· An article byAshiti Amiron on Syria and Syrian Kurdistan (German)
· PSK statement on Turkish Parliament’s “EU Compliance Package” (German and English)
· The Article “Kurds and Kurdistan” by Shahin Sorekli from Australia (English)
These do not necessarily reflect our opinions but do concern the current debates on the issues we deal with. Visit us at www.kurden.de
Best regards,
The Editorial Team
 
 

   ISSN 1438- 08 Herausgeber: IMK e.V., Postfach 07 38, D-53137 Bonn, Telefon: + 49 228 362 802,   Fax: + 49 228 363 297, E-Mail: IMK-Bonn@t-online.de und imkkurds@aol.com   Besuchen sie auch unsere Website: http://www.kurden.de    Verantwortlicher Leiter: Abubekir Saydam   Abonnementbedingungen (pro Jahr):· Stiftungen, Parteien, Regierungen und internationale Organisationen sowie Gremien: Euro 92,00 · Gerichte, Rechtsanwälte, Menschenrechtsorganisationen, Flüchtlingsberatungsstellen: Euro 46,00 · Förderabonnement, Einzelpersonen und kleinere Vereine: Euro 31,00    Spendenkonto: Volksbank Bonn (BLZ: 380 60 186),   Konto-Nr.: 201 246 90 23
 

Dear Readers,
WIs 175 is the first issue in this year of our Human Rights Information Service.
We would like to use the occasion to thank all our readers who have supported us both morally and financially.
We ask for your continued support for this year and have again included our letter of appeal.
The IMK-Team
 
 

Appeal from the IMK e.V.

Dear Readers,

Since January 1999 we have been issuing our Weekly Information Service (WIS), in English and German, with the financial support of the regional government of North Rhine Westphalia and the Diakonischen Werkes in Stuttgart. This bilingual, regular information service is sent by e-mail, Fax and post to around 3,400 addresses worldwide.
As well as the information service, we organize one-day and weekend events on human rights issues concerning Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria, either independently or in cooperation with other organi-zations and institutions.
Our annual weekend conference at the beginning of December, in cooperation with the Evan-gelischen Akademie Bad Boll, running since 1995, is an example of our continued human rights ac-tivities.
The IMK e.V. issues reviews on current topics as well as carrying out studies. Making reports and providing evidence concerning human rights are also part of our activities. For years we have been a contact point for refugee councils, lawyers, courts and international organizations.
Just as we thought the continuance of our human rights activities was guaranteed for the mid term, we received the bad news that the regional government in North Rhine Westphalia had issued a stop on spending which directly affected our work on human rights and our human rights information service. 
Because of this stop, an expected 46,000 Euros from Düsseldorf, which had been planned for our human rights work, has not been released– this, despite us having already performed the work since the beginning of the year.
Our organization therefore finds itself in dire financial straits with our information service being hardest hit.
We would very much like to continue with this service. Its continuation should also not just be as-sured for the present but also for the future. Our addressees are, according to themselves, very happy with this service because they can use it for their own activities in refugee care and advice work as well as in political activities.
We would like to thank all those who have supported us financially through subscriptions, sponsorship contributions and donations. These make an important contribution to the continuation of our work. 
This year, following the shortfall in funds because of the spending stop by North Rhine Westphalia, we are even more dependent on your help. With your help, we hope to continue our human rights work next year.

We appeal to you to make donations, subscriptions or sponsorship contributions to the above ac-count.

Yours gratefully,

Abubekir Saydam 
(Office Manager, on behalf of the Management Committee