[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 11, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H2930-H2931]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TURKISH-KURDISH CONFLICT MUST BE RESOLVED

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 19, 1999, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) is 
recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, as our military campaign in the Balkans 
continues, with the noble goal of stopping the ethnic cleansing that 
the dictator Milosevic has perpetrated against the Kosovar Albanian 
people, another similar atrocity continues to be perpetrated in the 
mountains of eastern Turkey against the Kurdish people.
  There is a crucial difference between the situations in Kosovo and in 
Kurdistan. In the case of Kosovo, the forces of NATO are being used to 
stop the murderous rampage unleashed by Milosevic. But the Turkish 
regime that is responsible for the war against the Kurds is actually a 
member of NATO.
  Unfortunately, because Turkey is viewed as a strategic ally of the 
U.S. and the West, the plight of the Kurds in Turkey has not been given 
adequate attention by the United States. In fact, Mr. Speaker, we may 
actually be contributing to the oppression of the Kurds.
  The issue of Turkey's war on the Kurds and American support for 
Turkey was brought into sharp focus earlier this year with the 
apprehension of Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the Kurdish independence 
movement. Mr. Ocalan has been fighting for autonomy for the Kurdish 
people, who are the victims of oppression by Turkey as well as Iraq, 
Iran and Syria.
  Mr. Speaker, the Turkish regime refuses to even acknowledge the 
Kurds' existence, referring to them as ``mountain Turks'', prohibiting 
all expression of Kurdish culture and language in an effort to forcibly 
assimilate them, while jailing, torturing, and killing Kurdish leaders.
  It is true that the Kurdish communities in Iraq, Iran and Syria also 
suffer terribly, and we should keep in mind the fate of the Kurds in 
those countries--indeed, the U.S.-led Operation Provide Comfort in 
Northern Iraq is an action we can all be proud of. But, frankly, we 
tend to expect egregious human rights violations to occur under the 
Iraqi, Iranian and Syrian regimes. Turkey, on the other hand, is a 
member of NATO, touted as a democracy, a participant in Operation 
Allied Force. Turkey has received over the years millions of dollars in 
economic and, especially, military assistance courtesy of the American 
taxpayer. We have a right to expect better, and Turkey, as a member of 
NATO and a candidate for the European Union has an obligation to do 
better.
  Furthermore, the mistreatment of the Kurdish population of Turkey is 
not the only example of Turkey's blatant violation of American values, 
ideals or interests. The continued occupation of Northern Cyprus and 
the blockade against Armenia are two other glaring examples where 
Turkey pursues the kind of policies that we should not accept from any 
nation, but particularly one of our allies.
  Mr. Speaker, I was appalled when it was reported that American 
intelligence and diplomatic services actually helped a Turkish commando 
team to capture Mr. Ocalan in Kenya in February of this year. This 
shameful collaboration with Turkey has resulted in Mr. Ocalan being 
held in solitary confinement on an island prison in Turkey. He will be 
tried in a secret military-type court with no jury and no foreign 
observers.
  The prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. There is little hope 
that Mr. Ocalan will receive a fair trial. In fact, the debate in the 
Turkish press is not about whether he will get a fair trial but rather 
when he will be executed.
  According to a recent report by Amnesty International, Mr. Ocalan's 
defense lawyers are routinely beaten and harassed by Turkish police. 
The police have even tried to incite public riots against the defense 
team. The lawyers and their families have received telephone threats.
  I should point out that this is in violation of the United Nations 
Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, which states that lawyers 
shall not be identified with their clients or their clients' causes as 
a result of discharging their functions.
  In the United States and in other countries where the rule of law is 
respected, we believe that everyone, even the most unpopular 
defendants, has a right to a fair trial. There is no place for a lynch 
mob mentality.
  After 3 months in solitary confinement, denied proper access to his 
lawyers and being constantly guarded by armed soldiers wearing ski 
masks, Mr. Ocalan may be suffering a psychological breakdown. All of 
his meetings with his lawyers are monitored. It is quite possible that 
he has been subjected to torture.
  But if Turkey does go ahead and hang Mr. Ocalan, the result would be 
to create a martyr for the Kurdish people and to unleash an all-out 
civil war that would be disastrous for all the people

[[Page H2931]]

of the region, both Turks and Kurds. Such an outcome is not in anyone's 
interests, not that of Turkey, not the Kurdish people, not the 
neighboring countries, certainly not the United States.
  Mr. Speaker, in order to encourage the U.S. Government to play a 
constructive role in heading off a crisis in Turkey, my colleague, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Filner), and I will be circulating a 
letter this week asking our colleagues to sign a letter to President 
Clinton urging his intervention, to implore that the Turkish 
authorities show some basic fairness in trying Mr. Ocalan and to spare 
his life.
  The government of Turkey's undeclared war on the Kurds has claimed 
close to 40,000 lives and caused more than 3 million people to become 
refugees. Before his arrest, Mr. Ocalan had announced that he was ready 
to renounce violence and negotiate, but Turkey did not even consider 
the request. Even worse, Mr. Speaker, the United States did not 
encourage such negotiations to begin.
  Mr. Speaker, it is my belief that it would be more appropriate to 
have an International Tribunal prosecute Mr. Ocalan since Turkey is at 
war with the Kurds and cannot be expected to conduct a fair trial. 
Seeking a fair trial for Mr. Ocalan should be the first step in our 
efforts to press Turkey to enter into negotiations to achieve a 
political solution to this tragic struggle.
  What is truly tragic about the conflict between the Turkish regime 
and the Kurdish people is that the Turkish and Kurdish people have not 
always lived in conflict. There is hope that reconciliation could occur 
but only if the Turkish authorities recognize the rights and distinct 
identity of the Kurds and finally halt their goal of controlling and 
conquering the Kurds.

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