TURKEY: KURDISH LAWYER CLAIMS PKK BEING WEAKENED

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 001770 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR EUR/SE E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/10/2028 TAGS: PREL PTER PGOV TU IZ SUBJECT: TURKEY: KURDISH LAWYER CLAIMS PKK BEING WEAKENED BY MISGUIDED LEADERSHIP REF: A. ANKARA 1404 ¶B. ANKARA 1449 Classified By: Adana Principal Officer Eric Green for reasons 1.4 (b, d ) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY AND COMMENT: Hamza Yilmaz, a former lawyer for Abdullah Ocalan, told us he believes the PKK is losing the battle for the hearts and minds of the Kurdish community as the AKP has used religion to appeal to rural Kurds and the PKK/DTP's violent tactics and internal confusion have turned off the intellectuals and even rank and file fighters. Ocalan and the DTP's reaction to the Ergenekon case has raised further questions. Instead of supporting efforts to expose the activities of the deep state, Ocalan has told his followers to avoid involvement, fueling speculation that he is cooperating with or being used by the conspirators. The confusion at the top level of the DTP, he said, results in dysfunction at the local level. Meanwhile, the continued dominance of the PKK suffocates any rival parties that want to pursue the Kurdish struggle through non-violent means. Yilmaz probably overestimates the level of grassroots discontent with the PKK, but he accurately depicts Kurdish intellectuals' frustration with the counterproductive prolongation of violence and the sense that Kurds are missing an opportunity to advance Turkey's democratization by sitting on the sidelines of the Ergenekon case. End summary and comment. -------------- PKK LOSING POPULARITY? -------------- ¶2. (C) Adana PO and PolOff met in late September with human rights attorney Hamza Yilmaz, who has been involved with Kurdish politics for decades and served for 2-3 years as PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan,s attorney starting in 1999. Yilmaz said he believes the PKK is becoming less popular as members of three groups are now losing sympathy: --Kurdish peasants. This group was always turned off by the PKK's hostility toward religion (which is now being revised) and was therefore easily attracted to AKP's piety. (AKP's focus on rural development, health and education has also likely helped with this constituency.) --Intellectuals. Whereas in the past many intellectuals offered unquestioning support for the PKK regardless of its methods, many are now blunt in rejecting armed struggle and are openly calling on the organization to lay down its arms. --Disillusioned rank and file. The mixed messages from the PKK leadership and the absence of easily articulated goals for the movement is starting to take its toll on the loyalty of many of those in the front lines. Yilmaz cited Ocalan's strange tap-dance on federalism as emblematic of the leadership's confusion. "Ocalan's various conflicting statements have made PKK brains murky." (Note: Kurdish intellectuals frequently exaggerate the degree of dissatisfaction among PKK foot soldiers. Other sources report that PKK recruiting continues apace (ref b). End Note) ¶3. (C) The PKK/DTP attitude towards the ongoing Ergenekon case, according to Yilmaz, is another major source of disquiet in the Kurdish community. Many Kurdish human rights activists regard the case as a chance for vindication since many of those accused of plotting against the Turkish state have also been suspected of involvement in "mysterious" killings of Kurdish leaders in the 1990s. Many Kurds would like to step forward and offer evidence to the prosecutors of the Ergenekon case or piggy-back on the case to file additional charges. (Note: Some have complained that the prosecution is paying too little attention to crimes against Kurdish leaders (ref a). End Note) But shortly after the case was made public, according to Yilmaz, Ocalan issued an order to Kurds not to get involved in any way and the DTP has not been proactive in encouraging the prosecution. This has ANKARA 00001770 002 OF 002 opened up fault lines among Kurds and even within the DTP. He said recently a group of DTP politicians approached him to discuss filing a parallel case against Ergenekon suspects for crimes committed against Kurdish politicians. Yilmaz said the fact that some are daring to disobey Ocalan's direct order for the first time is significant in that it reveals fractures in the organization and among supporters. ¶4. (C) Yilmaz suggested there was enough evidence to be suspicious about whether Ocalan was involved with Ergenekon. Ocalan himself fueled suspicion that he was negotiating with the "deep state" by boasting that he met in prison with some Ergenekon suspects. Yilmaz did not explicitly endorse the idea that Ocalan cooperated with Ergenekon, but said it was plausible since in his dealings with Ocalan it was clear the PKK leader was principally concerned with his own survival. He recounted a time when Ocalan,s attorneys discussed with him an amnesty deal for low level PKK members. Ocalan was uninterested in any proposals that didn't provide freedom for himself, saying that it was now "every man for himself." Yilmaz added that Ocalan's erratic leadership of the movement, photographic evidence linking Ocalan to military officials, and other machinations that defy political logic also suggest that Ocalan had made deals with the deep state to sabotage the Kurdish political movement. -------------- SIGNS OF DTP MALAISE IN MERSIN -------------- ¶5. (C) With hundreds of thousands of Kurdish immigrants, Mersin should be a natural stronghold for the DTP and indeed in 2000 the party almost captured the city's mayoralty. Yilmaz said that divisions at the top levels of the DTP have weakened the local party. For example, after the DTP provincial chairperson resigned, it took four months to find a replacement. The confusion, thoughtlessness, and a lack of logic in the appointment of DTP candidates for elected positions, Yilmaz indicated, suggest that the DTP almost wants to lose these contests. The party itself is divided between those who espouse violence, and those who don't. As Yilmaz put it, "As long as the armed struggle continues, the people who support peaceful politics are not able to get grassroots support." He complained that attempts by those advocating non-violent politics, such as Seraffetin Elci (leader of a tiny Kurdish party),continue to be blocked by the PKK. Yilmaz stated that, while there are numerous PKK sympathizers in Mersin, there have not been active cells of militants ("they would have called my colleagues for legal advice," he said) for the last 6-7 years. He speculated that a bomber captured in the city in August was dispatched from far eastern Turkey. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey WILSON