TENSION ESCALATING IN RUN-UP TO NEVRUZ HOLIDAY IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 000574 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/13/2017 TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM PREL OSCE TU SUBJECT: TENSION ESCALATING IN RUN-UP TO NEVRUZ HOLIDAY IN SE TURKEY REF: ANKARA 559 Classified By: DCM Nancy McEldowney for reasons 1.4(b),(d) ¶1. (U) This is a Consulate Adana cable. ¶2. (C) Summary: The judicial offensive against several DTP politicians and growing militant activity by PKK supporters raise the possibility that this year's Nevruz (March 21) holiday could be particularly violent, according to many of our contacts in the region. A key advisor to Diyarbakir mayor Baydemir blamed both the government and hard-liners within the Kurdish community for the situation, which he said is weakening forces in the DTP that want to renounce violence. In Diyarbakir, business and civic organizations are working to defuse tensions as they did following an unexplained bomb attack in September that killed several people. End summary. "Political" Attacks by Judiciary on DTP -------------- ¶3. (C) The prosecutions against numerous DTP officials in recent weeks have ratcheted up tension in SE Turkey in advance of the traditional Nevruz (March 21) holiday (reftel). Though such pre-Nevruz tension is normal, our contacts noted that there are greater risks this year due to the upcoming Turkish elections as well as sensitivities about events in Northern Iraq. ¶4. (C) An aide to Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, Siyar Ozsoy, told us that the tension generated by the wave of DTP arrests and the rumors that imprisoned PKK leader Ocalan has been poisoned would likely result in violence during Nevruz. He blamed both the government and hard-line elements within the Kurdish movement for the dangerous situation. The prosecutions, he said, are squeezing those in the DTP who oppose violence and want to pursue peaceful politics because the government's actions are sending the signal that those who are trying to work within the system are not welcome to do so and may even be locked up for their trouble. ¶5. (C) Ozsoy suggested two possible explanations for the prosecutions, though he noted that the situation is opaque so these are just his personal "conspiracy theories": --The "deep state" is working to increase tension during the Presidential election period as a way to discredit Erdogan's leadership qualities and sabotage his presidential aspirations. --It could also be an emotional reaction to developments in ;Northern Iraq. As the KRG becomes more assertive, the GOT (or elements therein) is reacting against Turkey's Kurds as a way to warn them from establishing closer ties with Iraqi Kurds. This is backfiring, he said, as hostility from Ankara only increases the sympathy of Turkish Kurds towards those in Iraq. ¶6. (C) Sahismail Bedirhanoglu, the President of a SE Turkey business association (GUNSIAD),said that the judiciary is being "flagrantly violated", noting that the charges have no legal basis but are designed to provoke tension. While most observers blame forces within the unelected Turkish establishment for the arrests, the director of Diyarbakir's Gun-TV, Cemal Dogan, believes that the AK Party is pushing the anti-DTP campaign to burnish its nationalist credentials and because it views the DTP's electoral strategy as a threat to its own lock on a majority of the parliamentary seats in the SE. PKK Spoiling for a Fight -------------- ¶7. (C) Making matters worse, Ozsoy said that Ocalan supporters are stoking the passions of disillusioned Kurdish youths in a way designed to produce confrontations and bloodshed with the goal of generating more support for further PKK violence. He said that, if indeed there is anything behind the poisoning story, Ocalan's people should have been more cautious about whipping up emotions in the ANKARA 00000574 002 OF 002 pre-Nevruz period. He stressed that the Kurdish youth are not "sound, rational people" and if the current trends continue the DTP will not be able to control them during Nevruz. Dogan also said the poisoning allegations are raising tensions to such dangerous levels that the PKK cease-fire could be in danger, even though according to his sources, Ocalan has ordered the cease-fire to continue until the conclusion of the Turkish presidential elections in May. Turkish law-enforcement operations across the SE continue to yield arrests of PKK militants and seizures of weapons and materials that suggest the cease-fire is indeed a tactical pause rather than a prelude to renouncing violence. Is There a Way Back from the Brink? -------------- ¶8. (C) Bedirhanoglu told us that GUNSIAD and other civil society organizations will meet with the governor, mayor and DTP officials to try to defuse the tensions and allow the holiday to pass peacefully. A similar coalition of citizens' groups has been successful in exerting a calming influence in Diyarbakir during recent periods of tension, notably following an unexplained bombing in September. Ozsoy said that DTP mayors plan to issue a press release urging peaceful celebrations, but they need help from the government, mainly the governors, who could work with the mayors to better organize the celebrations. ¶9. (C) The security forces and organizers of these events do not communicate about security, which obviously increases the risk for confrontation. Last month, one of the Diyarbakir deputy governors told us they prefer a more relaxed approach to Nevruz policing (e.g., they take pictures of people waving Ocalan posters to build the case against them rather than wading into the crowd to try to arrest them on the spot). But he acknowledged that the governor does not have the last say in the security arrangements, a point underscored by Land Forces Commander Basbug, who during a recent Diyarbakir visit warned that illegal actions, including chanting pro-PKK slogans, would not be tolerated during Nevruz. Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) While the motives behind the increased tensions are obscure, the approaching elections and events in Northern Iraq provide a number of reasons to raise tensions and, some believe, even provoke violence. The AK Party may favor actions that would prevent popular DTP-linked Kurds from running in the elections. The military and security forces may seek to discourage political activism among the broader population by hindering militant Kurds during Nevruz. There is also evident tension among Kurdish politicians, and the militants' stoking unrest over Ocalan's health may also be a warning shot against those in the DTP who want to pursue electoral politics. ¶11. (C) Working together and with a bit of luck, Diyarbakir's civil society and pragmatic governor may succeed in lowering the temperature in Diyarbakir, the most populous city in the region, avoiding a repeat of last year's violence. Other cities with less developed civil society networks -- and less deft leaders, both local and central government-appointed -- may find it more difficult to avoid conflict. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON