US embassy cable - 04ADANA103

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000103 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PREL, TU, PTER, ADANA 
SUBJECT: SE TURKEY GREETS CHARGE WITH A MIXED REVIEW ON REFORMS 
 
1.  (U) Charge visited Adana and Gaziantep July 29-30 to hear 
from members of the business and non-governmental community 
about developments in the region.  Their views varied widely 
from cautious optimism about democratic reforms to despair at 
the maintenance of the status quo. 
 
Wrongful imprisonment results in compensation... 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
2.  (SBU) At a private dinner with human rights activists, an 
Adana-based lawyer shared a story that illustrated the "two 
steps forward, one step back" view that most interlocutors 
seemed to share.  (Note:  Presidents of both the Human Rights 
Association and the Human Rights Foundation of Adana declined on 
principle to hold any representational events with the Consulate 
during Charge's visit, citing Abu Gharib and America's 
"complicity in inciting violence" in the Middle East.  End 
note.)   She reported that one of her clients had been jailed 
for close to ten years on charges of supporting terrorists 
before he was eventually acquitted and released.  She applied 
for compensation for his wrongful imprisonment and he was 
awarded some 40 billion Turkish lira (about USD27,000). 
 
...But the law does not always prevail 
-------------------------------------- 
 
3.  (SBU) She said that although she had requested more than 
five times that amount for her client, the award of any 
compensation is positive news.  On the other hand, according to 
our contact, the law clearly states that lawyers representing 
such clients are to receive a payment of ten percent of the 
award (on top of the award).  When she approached the judge to 
discuss the procedure for her payment, he told her that he had 
decided the extra ten percent would not be paid since private 
lawyers, in his view, did not need to receive such high fees, 
and that the law (which she physically placed before him) would 
not impact his decision. 
 
4.  (SBU) One Adana NGO leader insisted that despite recent 
amendments to the laws, nothing had changed in the daily life of 
Turkey's Kurdish population and moreover, he charged that 
security forces were reacting to violence disproportionately. 
In Mus, for example, he alleged that security forces tortured 
HPG (People's Defense Force) terror group members captured in 
June, and mutilated the corpse of another alleged terrorist, 
cutting off his ears after his death.  This individual himself 
had been the target of numerous indictments and expressed his 
anger and despair, with not a word of praise for the EU 
harmonization process.  His voice was unique among interlocutors 
in its bitterness.  Most of the others acknowledged a mixed, but 
generally more positive, atmosphere of gradual progress that had 
been created by recent reforms.  He also alleged that police, 
who now were being more closely scrutinized on pre-trial 
detention conduct and lawyer access, were resorting to beatings 
and pressure on citizens without arrests, or conducting 
"extra-judicial killings."  He cited the police's killing of an 
alleged PKK assailant in Adana on May 28 as an example.  TNP in 
that case claim the terrorist was armed and about to shoot when 
they fired on him.  He died of these wounds in the hospital, 
later on May 29. 
 
5.  (SBU) Most human rights activists joined the Adana NGO 
activists in asserting that there would be political instability 
in south-east Turkey "until the Kurdish question was dealt 
with."  They expressed skepticism that the AK Party attached a 
high priority to addressing their regional agenda, as well. 
Some agreed with the notion that Kurdish issues were part of a 
broader group of democratization issues which EU accession was 
putting on Turkey's national agenda, such as religious freedom 
for non-Muslims (Christians, Alevis) and women's rights.  Others 
asserted that Turkey's major political focus in the run-up to EU 
accession decisions in December was "solving the Kurdish 
question." 
 
AK Women:  Our rights are supported 
----------------------------------- 
 
6.  (SBU) In a separate meeting, a diverse group of Gaziantep 
AKP Women's Branch activists greeted the Charge with enthusiasm 
and positive news about the role of women in their party. 
Interlocutors included young and middle-aged, veiled and 
unveiled women, and most were involved in positions of 
responsibility ranging from Social Welfare director to Legal 
Affairs advisor.  "Europeans perceive women in the southeast of 
Turkey to be treated poorly," said one, "but in our homes and 
party, women's rights are supported." 
 
7.  (SBU) When queried about the weak number of women candidates 
in March local elections, they claimed that it was not party 
policy to keep women out.  Relations among genders within the 
party "are like men in cars who like to cut women off - normal 
competition," said one.  They claimed that most women didn't 
have enough experience, and didn't want more responsibility 
anyway.  They pointed out that women in Gaziantep have been very 
successful in business, even if they had yet to take off in 
politics (they also highlighted that Gaziantep's AKP 
parliamentarian Fatma Sahin was a positive and encouraging 
example for women.) 
 
8.  (SBU) Despite claiming to have insufficient experience, the 
women shared that they played an "important" role in the local 
election campaign.  Most went door-to-door, handed out pamphlets 
and got to places that "men couldn't go," they said.  One had 
been in politics for twelve years, but insisted she didn't want 
to become a candidate (Note: This same activist refrained from 
shaking Charge's hand upon his departure.  End note.)  The 
meeting had gone on some 30 minutes when the party's local 
Deputy Director (a man) invited himself in and proceeded to 
dominate the meeting, querying the Charge on U.S. policy in 
Iraq.  One of the younger women seemed almost embarrassed by his 
performance; others appeared unphased.  Whether it was his rank 
in the party or his gender, his presence changed the tenor of 
the discussion which he then unabashedly dominated. 
 
9.  (SBU) Comment:  Charge's series of meetings in Adana and 
Gaziantep, which also included outreach to journalists and 
entrepreneurs, provided Consulate Adana's contacts what appeared 
to be much appreciated access to a senior Embassy official. 
Participants seemingly relished the opportunity to tell their 
stories to a visitor from Ankara.  The sum total of the tales 
recounted provided some room for encouragement about 
democratization and the human rights situation in the south of 
Turkey, but highlighted the considerable room for improvement 
that still exits. 
 
 
REID