·  EUROPEAN  HUMAN  RIGHTS  COURT  FINDS TURKEY GUILTY IN
DESTRUCTION OF VILLAGE AND DISAPPEARANCE OF VILLAGERS.
On 18 June, the European Human Rights Court in Strasbourg found Turkey guilty of
the destruction of a Kurdish village by soldiers and the disappearance of
three of the villagers.

On 6 May 1994, soldiers assembled the inhabitants of the village of
Debovoyu, giving them one hour to evacuate their homes. They then set fire
to the houses. The next day the villagers went to the Kurdish town of Kulp
to complain to the gendarmerie commander of the district. They received
permission to return to the village to harvest the crops. On 24 May the
soldiers returned to the village and took away three men of the Ohran
family, to act as guides. They were seen again soon after in a neighbouring
village then disappeared forever.

The European Court considered that the Turkish State had violated the right
to life of the Orhan family as well as the ban on the use of torture, as
well as the rights to freedom, to respect of private and family life, to
property and to effective and individual recourse of the petitioners.
Turkey only conducted superficial and tardy enquiries into the
disappearance of these men, according to the judges. Furthermore, the
deliberate destruction of this family's goods was "particularly serious and
unjustified" facts for the petitioners they added.

Ankara will have to pay more than 150,000  euros damages to a Kurdish
family that has lost three of its members and whose houses and certain of
whose property were deliberately set on fire.
 

·  PARLIAMENT LIFTS STATE OF EMERGENCY IN HAKKARI AND TUNCELI.
On 19 June, the Turkish Parliament voted for lifting the State of Emergency, that has been in force
for the last 14 years, from two Kurdish provinces: Hakkari and Tunceli.
This measure, recommended by the State Security Council (MGK), a body
dominated by the Armed Forces, but including the President and five
Ministers, will take effect as from 3 July. The European Commission had
welcomed these recommendations and asked that they be really carried out.

As against this, two other Kurdish provinces had the State of Emergency
prolonged for a further four months "for the last time", in obedience to
the MGK's advice : Sirnak and Diyarbekir.

The lifting of the State of Emergency in the Kurdish provinces is one of
the "medium term" political measures demanded of Turkey by the European
Union prior to joining. The Turkish government had committed itself, last
year, to lifting the State of Emergency, though without giving any date, in
its "national programme" which details the measures aiming at putting
Turkey in conformity with European political and economic standards. Mr.
Bülent Ecevit's three-party coalition government is divided on these
reforms, particularly on the abolition of capital punishment, authorisation
of a Kurdish language TV channel as well as Kurdish language teaching. His
ultra-nationalist partner, Devlet Bahceli's National Action Party (MHP ­
neo-fascist) is obstinately opposed to them. Moreover, on the initiative of
associations of soldiers' parents, organised by the MHP, these families
presented, on 18 June, a petition to Parliament containing  2.5 million
signatures, calling for the execution of Abdullah Ocalan.
 

· TURKISH PRESIDENT VISITS  IRAN.  On 17 June, the Turkish
President, Ahmet Necdet Sezer, began a difficult official visit of two days
to Iran, accompanied by a strong delegation of 120 businessmen and 20
journalists. He was received by his Iranian opposite number, Mohammad
Khatami, in a colourful ceremony at the Saadabad Palace, in the Northern
part of the capital, followed by two hours of private discussions, no
details of which have filtered out.

Turkey is politically opposed to Iran on a number of regional issues.
Consequently, encounters are difficult though economic relations are
improving. Ankara was worried by Iran's testing of a ballistic missile
capable of reaching Turkey. Tehran, for its part protests at Turkey's close
military and security relations with Israel, its sworn enemy. Secular
Turkey and Islamic Iran frequently accuse one another of being the source
of all evils ­ Ankara accusing Iran of supporting the Kurdistan Workers'
Party PKK while Iran accuses Turkey of harbouring the Iranian People's
Moujahidin opposition. The Turco-Israeli alliance is "one of the principal
obstacles" to bi-lateral relations, stresses the moderate English language
daily Iranian News on 17 June.

Despite political quarrels, trade relations have improved rising to 1.4
billion dollars a year. And, above all, in January 2002 Iran began
exporting natural gas to Turkey via an over 2,500 Km long pipeline, in the
context of an agreement worth 30 billion dollars.
 

· TURKEY "IN COMMAND"  IN AFGHANISTAN.  On 20 June, Turkey,
the only Moslem country in NATO, took over the reins of the International Security
and Assistance Force (ISAF) that is to ensure the maintenance of peace in the
Afghan  capital. The Turkish General, Hilmi Akin Zorlu, will command 4,000
troops from 19 different countries.

In the course of a ceremony to mark the transfer of powers in Kabul, Ankara
took over from London, which wants to disengage itself. The British Defence
Secretary, Geoffrey Hoon, thus announced that, by the summer, its
contingent in Kabul will have dropped from 1,300 to 400 men.
Furthermore, the 1,700 Royal Marines, present at the Bagram air base North
of the capital will leave in stages by July.

The handing over ceremony took place the day after the official
presentation of the interim government of 14 Ministers, which will run the
country till the elections, due in 18 months time. Turkey will increase its
contingent in Afghanistan to 1,400 men by the end of the month. With 1,200
men, Germany will have the second largest contingent.