DIYARBAKIR MAYOR OSMAN BAYDEMIR: AIMING TO BE A

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 004902

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/21/2021
TAGS: PREL PTER PGOV TU IZ
SUBJECT: DIYARBAKIR MAYOR OSMAN BAYDEMIR: AIMING TO BE A
VOICE OF MODERATION

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Classified By: Adana Principal Officer Eric Green for reasons
1.4(b),(d
)


1. (U) This is an AmCon Adana message.

2.(C) Summary: Osman Baydemir, the 35-year old mayor of
Diyarbakir, aspires to a national leadership role among the
Kurds in Turkey. Baydemir,s moderate approach * he
renounces violence and calls for immediate dialogue between
the Turkish government and Kurdish political leaders *
avoids much of the pro-PKK agenda of his Democractic Socity
Party (DTP)colleagues. He said, however, that he cannot
publicly condemn the PKK given his constituents, sympathies.
A Baydemir aide said separately that the mayor is jockeying
for position within the Kurdish establishment and wants his
contacts with the U.S. to enhance his status and promote his
goal of becoming the Kurds, interlocutor with the GOT. In
order to establish his credentials as part of the solution
and gain the trust of those in national government who view
him with immense suspicion, he needs to demonstrate that he
is capable of changing the culture of violence that has
dominated the politics of Turkey,s Kurds for the past 15
years. End Summary.

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Pushing for Dialogue
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3. (C) In a 17 August office call, Diyarbakir mayor Osman
Baydemir told Adana Consulate Principal Officer and Poloff
that Turkey needs a roadmap to solve the Kurdish issue. The
first step needs to come soon in the form of dialogue, he
said, but no one in the Turkish state seems prepared to do
so. Dialogue would stop the violence and could be a stepping
stone to bringing about a lasting solution. Baydemir added
that the Kurdish issue &could be a problem in Turkey for 20
to 30 years, but the important thing is to remove weapons
from the equation.8


4. (C) In addition, Baydemir, who among all other Kurdish
politicians is arguably most accountable to his constituents
as the mayor of the cultural capital of Turkish Kurds,
stressed the need to have national-level representation for
Kurds in the Southeast. Baydemir complained about the
10-percent national election threshold, which effectively
bars members of his Democratic Society Party (DTP) from being
elected to Parliament. When poloff noted that there are
currently Kurdish deputies serving in Parliament, Baydemir
said that Kurds need "Kurdish deputies, not Kurdish-origin
deputies8 ) drawing the distinction between ethnic Kurds
currently in Parliament, whom he believes are not
representing the Kurdish cause, and DTP members whose agenda
centers on advancing Kurdish rights.


5. (C) A more long-term solution to the issue might be a
looser administrative structure in Turkey, Baydemir argued.
Turkey,s centralized system is inefficient and unable to
cope with Turkey,s pressing social and economic problems.
Turkey,s geography, he continued, is suitable for
establishing up to seven administrative regions that could be
more responsive to local needs. The offices of governors and
mayors, especially in big cities, should merge, which would
place the police under the responsibility of an elected
mayor, as is the practice in the U.S. While Baydemir said
that he favors federalism for Turkey as a long-term solution,
he believes that advocating such an approach now is not worth
the suspicions it would engender within the GOT.


6. (C) While sounding a moderate note, Baydemir was
nevertheless pessimistic that progress would happen quickly.
Right now, he said, the security forces are focused on
stopping violence with more violence instead of addressing
the causes of violence. He added that the ruling Justice and
Development Party (AKP) government is unlikely to take any
positive steps prior to the next national election, which
must be held by fall 2007. Ominously, Baydemir warned that
Turkish Hizbullah is on the rise again in the Southeast,
saying that it should not be surprising that Hizbullah is
gaining strength at a time when the security forces seem to
be embracing the harsher counter-insurgency tactics of the
1990s. Baydemir implied that elements of the Turkish state
have begun supporting Hizbullah again, as they did in the
mid-1990s. Other contacts in the Southeast, however, have
noted that while Hizbullah is increasing its activities, it
is doing so without the state,s support and protection.

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Baydemir advisor: Use the Mayor
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7. (C) In a separate meeting on 18 August, Seyhmus Diken * a

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Kurdish intellectual, author, and former vice chairman of
Diyarbakir,s chamber of commerce who currently serves as an
advisor to Baydemir * urged the U.S. to see Baydemir as a
spokesman for Turkey,s Kurds and a potential interlocutor
for the GOT. Diken told us that Turkish government officials
in Ankara tend to see Baydemir merely as a mayor of a
moderately-sized city, not as a national Kurdish political
figure. Baydemir, Diken claimed, is flexible and capable of
moderating the DTP-PKK,s reliance on the use of force.
Although Baydemir is reluctant to condemn the organization
publicly * it could mean political suicide * Diken believes
he is a force for change. For example, Diken noted that
Baydemir did not to sign a petition circulating in Diyabakir
strongly supporting Ocalan as the Kurds, political leader.


8. (C) Diken conceded that although the youthful Baydemir is
an increasingly important voice for Kurds in the Southeast
and has national leadership potential, his influence within
DTP is limited by the party,s &Stalinistic8 leadership
structure as well as the continuing role of the PKK.

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Comment
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9. (C) Baydemir presents himself as a smart, popular
administrator who, as the mayor of the largest city in
Turkey,s Kurdish region, is a natural to serve as his
community,s spokesman on the national stage. To pull this
off, he must walk a fine line: he believes he cannot afford
to publicly break with the PKK. This is a familiar message
that we hear regularly from DTP interlocutors. In order to
establish his credentials as part of the solution and gain
the trust of those in government who view him with suspicion,
he needs to demonstrate that he is capable of changing the
culture of violence that has dominated the politics of
Turkey,s Kurds for the past 15 years.

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Baydemir bio note
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10. (U) Born in Dokuzceltik on outskirts of Diyarbakir on
June 6, 1971. Graduated from Diyarbakir,s Dicle University
Law Faculty in 1994. Joined the Human Rights Association
(HRA) following a one-year apprenticeship as an attorney.
Became national vice chairman of HRA in 1997 and
simultaneously began serving as chairman of the Diyarbakir
HRA branch. From May to December 2003, took English lessons
in the U.S., although prefers to speak Turkish in meetings.
Married to Reyhan Yalcin, an attorney who is currently the
national vice chairman of the HRA.

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