Walk the talk Erdoğan!

"The recent speeches of Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan were playing in my head, haunting me; it’s shameful just how hypocritical a head of a state can be. He travels around the world, preaching and encouraging the recent uprisings in the Middle East against dictatorial leaders; he speaks harshly against Israel for its mistreatment of the Palestinians, yet he “forgets” the oppression of Kurds. Hasn’t he recently stated on a number of occasions, “My fits of anger over the deaths of children were ‘nondiscriminative’ when it comes to race or religion; if a child is killed, I would fiercely stand against the murderers”. - Luqman Barwari, Kurdish Media News 26/3/2011

"Perhaps, Mr. Erdogan, you could do something about your own state before going around the world and preaching to other states about how they should treat their citizens. There are many questions that you, Mr. Erdogan, must answer.

What about the uncovering of mass graves in the Kurdish region on a daily basis?

What about the recent closure of the democratically-elected Democratic Society Party (DTP) and subsequent jailing of more than 1800 Kurdish politicians, and human rights activists since April 2009?

What about the detention of more than 3,000 Kurdish children under 18 years of age? 

As far as I know, Mr. Prime Minister, their only crime was to attend peaceful gatherings and marches, much like I witnessed yesterday. How can they defend themselves against a brutal and vicious police force? Yes, the only weapon that I witnessed those kids using against the heavily armed Turkish police force were pieces of concrete from the sidewalks; the police were equipped with machine guns, armored gear, shields, gas masks, water cannons, and helicopters, from which they showered the marchers with tear gas bullets.

I urge you, Mr. Prime Minister, to stop going around the world trying to tell other states how to practice democracy. Although it maybe difficult to create a democracy any time soon in your own state, you’d better start with your own state before preaching to others.

You cannot hide your state apparatus’ crimes against defenseless Kurdish people, not with today’s mass media outlets."

Read the entire article here:

I celebrated Newroz in Diyarbakir with teary eyes! | KurdishMedia.com | Luqman Barwari 26/03/2011