US embassy cable - 05ADANA207

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000207 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION, RETRANSMIT INCLUDES ANKARA REFTEL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, ADANA 
SUBJECT: LOCAL SOUTHEAST REACTION TO SEMDINLI BOMBING INCIDENT 
 
REF: ANKARA 6772 
 
1. (SBU) Summary: During a November 8-10 trip to the southeast, 
the Sirnak office of DEHAP's follow-on party, Democratic Society 
Party (DTP in Turkish), told AMCON Adana officers about the 
bombing in Hakkari province's Semdinli township allegedly 
perpetrated by government security forces.  The GOT has since 
promised an investigation into the incident (reftel). 
Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir told us that he was discouraged 
by events in the region, and feared the situation was turning 
into a clash between local inhabitants and security forces.  A 
Hakkari-based human rights lawyer said that the situation in the 
region was out of control and that many people were continuing 
to suffer from the subsequent unrest. A former Semdinli Mayor 
said that nearly 50 thousand people attended the peaceful 
funeral ceremonies of three people killed in a recent Yuksekova 
demonstration against security forces involvement in the 
incident. With the large number of pro-government Kurdish 
village guards personnel losing their lives in recent local 
clashes, village guards in the area have expressed their intent 
to return their arms to the security forces, and local families 
are considering not sending their sons for compulsory military 
service.  End Summary. 
 
Sirnak DTP Reports Semdinli Incident 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
2. (SBU) A representative of the Sirnak branch of the newly 
created DTP told us on November 9 of reports from colleagues in 
Semdinli that a bombing had occurred in that town.  He said 
that, in a possible reprisal for the (Comment: probable 
PKK-orchestrated End Note.) November 2 bombing in the same town, 
one person was killed and the Semdinli Mayor was injured when a 
person threw a bomb into a ceremony marking the opening of a 
bookstore where the mayor was making a congratulatory 
appearance.  (Note: The November 2 bombing reportedly involved a 
very large-over 100 Kg-explosive in a car, a tactic not seen in 
SE Turkey for over a decade.  End Note.)  After the explosion, 
people in the crowd managed to catch one of the three 
perpetrators and, after inspecting his identity documents, found 
that he was a member of the local Jandarma and turned him over 
to local authorities, the DTP representative said. 
 
Diyarbakir Mayor: Situation Very Discouraging 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
 
3. (SBU) Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir told us in a November 
16 telcon that the Semdinli incident was very grave, and that he 
believed it was a repetition of events experienced in the past. 
Baydemir, having just returned from a fact-finding trip with a 
DTP delegation to Semdinli and Yuksekova, told us that the 
situation in those areas was very discouraging and was gradually 
turning into a "street fight" between the local inhabitants and 
the security forces.  He added that he was also discouraged by 
the PKK's call for uprisings in other major towns and townships 
in the region.  Baydemir believed that demonstrations would 
continue until the perpetrators were brought to justice.  The 
Mayor said that he supported PM Tayyip Erdogan's statements, but 
felt there was a "deep gorge between his words and deeds." 
 
Hakkari Lawyer: Situation Out of Control 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
4. (SBU) Hakkari-based human rights attorney Rojbin Tugan told 
us in a November 17 telcon that the situation in Semdinli, 
Hakkari and Yuksekova was out of control, and worried that 
tensions will continue to escalate if the state does not 
demonstrate its determination to bring the perpetrators to 
justice.  She said that people in the region do not have 
confidence that the GOT is sincere in its investigation of the 
incident, especially since the local security forces released 
two of the three suspected perpetrators caught after the 
bombing.  .  She said that during local demonstrations after the 
incident, security forces in Yuksekova drove armored personnel 
carriers (APC) into shopping malls and other commercial areas, 
causing considerable property damage to businesses. 
 
Former Semdinli Mayor:  Village Guards want to Give Up their Guns 
--------------------------------------------- -------------- 
------------------------- 
 
5. (SBU) Former Semdinli Mayor Selahattin Ciftci told us in a 
November 17 telcon that 40,000 to 50,000 people attended the 
November 17 funeral ceremonies of three people killed in 
demonstrations in Yuksekova after the Semdinli incident. He said 
the funeral ceremonies were completed peaceful.  Ciftci stated 
that it was clear to him and to people in the region that the 
bombing was perpetrated by the jandarma intelligence.  He added 
that the anti-government mood in the area had increased to the 
point where local village guards were expressing their intention 
to resign from their positions and return their arms to the 
security forces.  He said that since so many Kurdish soldiers 
and members of the security forces had lost their lives in local 
clashes, many local families were considering not sending their 
sons for compulsory military service. 
 
Comment 
------------ 
 
6. (SBU) Revelations of security forces' involvement are 
alarming and will  continue to fan anti-government flames in the 
region.  However, such allegations are not particularly new; 
they are similar to state-sponsored "mystery killings" in the 
region during the 1990s, a practice that had all but ended.  In 
the last 3-4 weeks Hakkari has been the scene of approximately 
20 small bombings.  There is much local controversy about who is 
behind them, and considerable conspiratorial speculation 
pointing at government security forces similar to the November 9 
incident, and corresponding counter-speculation by GOT actors of 
PKK involvement.  At the same time, probable PKK-related 
incidents throughout the southeast continue.  A rough survey of 
press reports over the past two weeks shows that approximately 
20 violent, PKK-related incidents occurred in Bingol, Siirt, 
Diyarbakir, Agri, Mersin, Van, Batman, Sirnak, Silopi, Mardin, 
Midyat and Nusaybin.  If the regional public believes the GOT is 
mismanaging the Semdinli investigation, the possibility for 
further civil unrest is high, as is the possibility if a 
heavy-handed government response that could have implications 
for Turkey's EU candidacy. 
REID