Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
04ANKARA6941
2004-12-14 15:02:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ankara
Cable title:  

LIFE IN TURKEY'S MOST SOUTHEASTERN PROVINCE

Tags:  PGOV PHUM TU 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

141502Z Dec 04
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006941 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/14/2014
TAGS: PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: LIFE IN TURKEY'S MOST SOUTHEASTERN PROVINCE
BETTER, BUT FAR FROM PERFECT


Classified by Political Counselor John Kunstadter, E.O.
12958, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

This message is from AmConsul Adana.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006941

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/14/2014
TAGS: PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: LIFE IN TURKEY'S MOST SOUTHEASTERN PROVINCE
BETTER, BUT FAR FROM PERFECT


Classified by Political Counselor John Kunstadter, E.O.
12958, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

This message is from AmConsul Adana.


1. (C) Summary: An early November visit to Hakkari province
yielded a mixed picture of Turkey,s heavily-Kurdish, most
Southeastern province, wedged between Iran and Iraq. The
once-oppressive security environment has been replaced by
streets full of pedestrians, a hotel full of Istanbul
visitors on a philanthropic mission, restaurants full of
diners. However, since June, tension has increased with
anti-PKK operations in the region, alleged intrusive searches
at checkpoints, and an increased number of detentions for
supporting terrorists. Access to detainees is given
grudgingly but consistently and torture occurs but is no
longer systematic, according to one human rights lawyer.
Locals regard with skepticism the new Compensation
Commissions for displaced villagers, worrying about excess
documentary requirements and inadequate compensation. The
city's pro-Kurdish DEHAP party mayor is focused on the lack
of infrastructure and the city's 78% unemployment rate, along
with a recent outbreak of stomach illness in the community.
A number of village guards and their families have accepted
government assistance and are building new communities
outside the city. End Summary.

Relative "Paradise," Still Far From Perfect
--------------


2. (C) Attorney Rojbin Tugan, who has been practicing in
Hakkari since 1996 with a focus on human rights, told poloff
in early November that the atmosphere in Hakkari was
unimaginably good compared to previous years. "Never did I
think I'd see people out on the streets until midnight," she
said, adding that, relatively speaking, "it is like a
paradise in Hakkari now." Our observations were consistent
with her remarks. Commerce is notably livelier and a store
manager told us that Hakkari residents are out fishing in the
river at night, like in the old days.


3. (C) Despite that difference, Tugan added that since June,
tension had been mounting, with a steady increase in the
number of detainees being held as supporters of terrorists.
She is defending some of the suspects. She noted that the
"Human Shield Initiative" group, which has been traveling to

mountainous regions to protest clashes and anti-PKK
operations, had many members detained in the region. She
thinks the group is poorly-organized. She said that when
detained, its members are charged with supporting terrorists,
instead of less serious charges such as trespassing or
obstructing justice.


4. (C) Tugan stated that access to detainees had been fairly
good in Hakkari, and certainly much improved over previous
years. Prison personnel are "not very happy about it," she
said, but when she hears of detentions through family members
and approaches the Security Directorate, they begrudgingly
allow her immediate access. Tugan complained about a recent
notice sent around by the public prosecutor placing
restrictions on when attorneys could make jail visits. Tugan
said this is illegal and she plans to discuss this with the
prosecutor. She stated that while torture still exists, it
is no longer systematic. However, Tugan claimed that
jandarma are still conducting illegal searches and frisks at
checkpoints in the area. She asserted that these actions are
illegal. As Hakkari's leading human rights lawyer, she has
experienced government harassment in the past and believes
that security forces keep her under surveillance. Her work
with UNHCR on refugee issues in the area has been especially
sensitive, and has drawn reaction from JITEM (jandarma
military intelligence),which in the past warned UNHCR not to
visit her office.


5. (C) Tugan has applied to be a member of Hakkari
Province's Compensation Commission, which is reviewing
submissions for compensation based on Law 5233 (reftel); the
Van Bar Association is supporting her. (Note: There is no
Hakkari Bar, as the town only has eight lawyers, two of them
not even from Hakkari. One is reportedly the wife of the
local military commander. End Note.) Tugan claimed the
Hakkari Governor is looking for a lawyer "sympathetic" to the
state to join the Committee (such as the commander's wife,
she added). Although skeptical that many claims will meet
the government's excessive documentary criteria requirement
-- specifically proof of ownership of land and property --
she wants to be a part of the process.


6. (C) Tugan also recently launched a new organization to
educate women and children about land mines and to raise
awareness about the topic. According to some anti-land mine
groups, Hakkari is reportedly one of the most heavily mined
areas in Turkey, with both the government and the PKK having
planted them in the 1990s. Tugan hopes to work with the EU
on this project.

DEHAP Mayor: Provide Services to Reward Democratic Views
-------------- --------------


7. (SBU) Hakkari's pro-Kurdish DEHAP party mayor, elected in
March 2004, appears energetic, and came across well. He
began work for the party straight out of university, and
stayed there until becoming a candidate in Hakkari in the
latest local elections. The mayor and public prosecutor are
both concerned with Hakkari,s high unemployment rate: a
staggering 78% (Note: Officially, unemployment is 9.3%
nationwide. End Note.),with government providing one of
very few sources of jobs.


8. (C) The mayor lamented the lack of investment and
infrastructure in the city, predicting that years of neglect
would be difficult to counteract quickly. He noted that
Hakkari, in this "almost-EU country," had seen 1000 citizens
going to the hospital in the past three weeks to cope with
diarrhea, an illness uncommon in developed countries. The
mayor said that that the sewage and potable water
infrastructure are in disrepair and there could be seepage,
and citizens' immunity to such illness is low because of poor
general public health conditions. Like Tugan, the mayor was
downbeat on the prospects of the Compensation Law providing
much in the way of relief to displaced citizens. The
European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) provides better
compensation for such claims, he said.


9. (C) He noted that despite the AK Party's attempt to win
support in Hakkari, he received almost 70% of the vote.
Hakkari, he said, a 100% ethnic Kurdish area bordering Iraq
and Iran in a mountainous setting, had always kept its
independent spirit. The government attaches great importance
to "capturing this area," he claimed, but by using pressure
rather than provision of services. "We want to give services
to reward people for keeping a democratic view," he stated.
To that end he is trying to cultivate good relationships with
local government officials. For eight years, due to
government suspicion of DEHAP and its predecessor party, the
governor had not once visited the mayor's office, he said,
but since he took office the governor had visited twice.
While the local military commander had not yet visited, the
mayor had been to pay a courtesy call on him.

Public Prosecutor Investigates Chemical Weapons Rumors
-------------- --------------


10. (C) In late summer and early fall, Hakkari human rights
organizations focused on press reports alleging that Turkish
security forces used "chemical matter" in an operation in
nearby Bercelan Pastures. Reports of some livestock deaths
in the area and the diarrhea outbreak in town were cited as
ostensible support for these claims. Tugan was cautious
about the reports. "I'm a lawyer," she said, "and I base my
decisions on evidence and facts." She could not corroborate
the press rumors.


11. (C) Hakkari's public prosecutor said he welcomed the
opportunity to address the rumors. Given public concern
about the incident, he said, the government formed a panel to
investigate the claims. When the panel was criticized for
not including a wide enough cross section of community and
non-governmental leaders, he claimed a new panel was formed
and that as of early November, they were awaiting results of
forensics tests from water and plant life collected in the
area. He said that the governor and other public officials
had organized a visit and picnic in the area where the
operation in question was undertaken, in order to demonstrate
to citizens that there was nothing to fear. (Note: He, as
an "investigator that must remain neutral," did not go. End
note.) He did not appear defensive in discussing the
question, and it appeared that government officials realized
at least that the reports must be acknowledged and addressed
rather than ignored. In press reports we saw subsequent to
our visit, however, the local HRA representative had
reportedly been indicted for spreading this "false" story to
the press.

Istanbul Visitors...in Hakkari??
--------------


12. (SBU) Not only were the streets of Hakkari bustling, but
the main hotel in town was booked with a group from the
Association to Support Contemporary Life. The group was in
town to inaugurate three schools constructed in Hakkari
province with donations from the group. (Note: This
Istanbul-based secular NGO works on a grant basis and focuses
on education, particularly education for young women. End
Note.) Hakkari's Governor (who, without a diplomatic note,
declined to meet with us) held a dinner in their honor the
previous evening. Yet old images about Hakkari persist. One
member of the group said that when she spoke with her mother
and told her she was in Hakkari, her mother replied, "You
must be crazy -- get on the first plane out of there!"

Returns Trickling to the Riverbanks
--------------


13. (SBU) Departing Hakkari toward the road that straddles
Turkey's border with Iraq, there was a significant amount of
new construction on the riverbanks just outside of town.
Along the road we spoke with one village guard and his
extended family who had come to the site three months earlier
to build. (Note: This group of six families had moved from
their village in 1990, when the government informed them it
was no longer safe there.) According to them, all those
being allowed to build and settle along the road were village
guards and their families, and they were provided 1500 bricks
and 30 wood crossbeams by the government. This particular
settlement had just six houses, but there were many others
along the road, and one had a school that appeared to be
recently constructed. There was no water or electricity
available for the community, and one claimed that they had
been "deceived by the state." When they agreed to move to
this area and build, he said, they did not realize they would
be giving up rights to any compensation under the new
compensation law. Still, there was no shortage of families
who had taken up this offer, and significant settlement was
happening along the river.


14. (C) Comment: Many aspects of the visit to Hakkari were
encouraging: the access to detainees at least one lawyer is
receiving; her comment that torture is no longer systematic;
attempts by the governor and mayor to strengthen the
relationship between the two offices; the fact that a
skeptical public prosecutor actually felt the need to
investigate and respond to allegations at Bercelan Pasture;
and the general return to "normalcy." Yet the checkpoints
surrounding the city illustrate that the government is still
nervous about security in the area; the rumors of chemical
weapons illustrate that the locals still regard the
government with suspicion. At four checkpoints between
Hakkari and neighboring Sirnak province, even diplomats are
required to stop their vehicle, register with officials and
wait 5-10 minutes. More striking than these security
measures, however, is the 78% unemployment figure. Unless the
government to provides alternatives for Hakkari,s people,
the return to relative normalcy will lose its glow and
discontent will fester into anger. If Turkey receives a
positive answer from the EU, the EU is in for an eye-opener
when it takes a closer look at what will be needed to inject
life into the poorest regions of Turkey, like Hakkari. End
comment.
EDELMAN