A non-government information service on Turkey
Un service d'information non-gouvernemental sur la Turquie

18th Year - N°205 November 1993
38 rue des Eburons - 1000 Bruxelles Tél: (32-2) 215 35 76 - Fax: (32-2) 215 58 60  Rédacteur en chef: Dogan Özgüden - Editrice responsable: Inci Tugsavul  

    The civil war in Turkey has gained greater dimensions in October and November with a series of bloody assaults of the military and new repressive measures taken by the government on the one hand and with the bans on political parties and daily press imposed by the PKK in Turkish Kurdistan. In a further move, the Turkish Government decided to extend repressive operations to European countries by sending there death squads.
    In last three months,80 Kurdish villages have been destroyed and their surviving inhabitants forced to move westward. So the number of the Kurdish villages destroyed or depopulated since 1984 has reached to 850.
    The most spectacular and dramatic one of the military offensive against Kurdish towns and villages in lst two monthswas no doubt the Guernica-style assault of the armed forces onto the Lice township on October 22. After the occult assassination of Diyarbakir gendarmerie commander, General Bahtiyar Aydin, in a military zone by unidentified sharp-shooters, the military units launched a destruction operation against this township, by using heavy artillery and flame-throwers.
    According to the Turkish Daily News of November 2, "Lice was not subject to a security operation of a simple order but was literally punished. This town, populated by 9,000 and rebuilt after a major earthquake, has been hit by another tremor. For years, the people of Lice have been accused by local security officials of supporting terrorism and providing logistic supplies to the PKK.  Hürriyet of November 1 quoted a police officer saying: 'Everything has to be paid for. Now Lice has had to pay for what it has been doing.' Those who know the story of how Sirnak was destroyed in August 1991, know what realities also lie behind Lice."
    Daily Özgür Gündem of October 25  claimed that 380 people were killed and hundreds of others were hospitalised when government troops used chemical weapons. The governor said that a total of 398 houses and 242 shops suffered damage during incidents.
    The destruction was so terrible that security forces prevented even Premier Ciller from going to Lice in ruins.
    As for the pretext of this operation, it was practically impossible to shoot dead a military commander in a military zone from a long distance. Later on, it was revealed. The hypothesis that General Aydin was assassinated either for an accounting within the army or for justifying the well-planned destruction operation against Lice seems more convincing than the claim of a PKK murder. In fact, just after the murder, the PKK immediately denied any responsibility in the affair.

PKK'S DEMONSTRATION OF FORCE

    The Lice operation may be interpreted as a retaliation of the security forces to the PKK's recent demonstration of force in Turkish Kurdistan.
    First, on October 17, the PKK leadership issued an order to Turkey's mass circulation dailies to close their offices in Diyarbakir, charging them with remaining silent as regards the repression in Kurdish provinces and to the oppression targeting the socialist press and with acting so as the spokesman of the government.
    The PKK's ban on the Turkish press followed a ruthless clandestine campaign against Kurdish journalists in the region that has left 14 newsmen assassinated.
The local representatives of the banned papers too confirmed that their reports on the repression have systematically been thrown to paper baskets.
    In a second move, the PKK also banned the activities of the political parties in Turkish Kurdistan and ordered them to close down their local offices.
    In fact, the PKK had already imposed its authority in many Kurdish provinces. According to the daily Hürriyet of October 26:
    - In many areas, the citizen does not refer his case to a state court. Cases are deliberated by local PKK committees.
    - People do not pay their electric, telephone or water bills.
    - The PKK collects taxes from small businesses.
    - Shops close earlier. In many areas, a PKK ban on alcoholic drinks and smoking is in force.
    - Railway transportation has nearly stopped.
    - Social activities have ceased. Wedding ceremonies are held in the mornings.
    - State investments have come to a halt, because contractors have fled the region.
    - Banks refuse to give loans to local people. When they do give loans, they ask people to mortgage real estate in the western parts of the country, if possible.
    - Insurance agencies usually refuse to insure property and real estate in the region.
    - Educational activity in the region has become almost impossible because of the closure of schools and lack of teachers.
    Reuter reports on November 9 that the cost of the anti-PKK campaign in the south-east rises to more than TL 100 trillion ($ 7.5 billion) this year.

CILLER-GÜRES TANDEM'S THREATS

    Instead of seeking a political solution to the current regime, Prime Minister Tansu Ciller and Chief of Staff General Dogan Güres continue to reinforce state terrorism. The following are the recent declarations by the two principal responsibles of the state of war:
    Güres:
    "We call all PKK militants to surrender or die. All leaders of this separatist organization are to be killed. Turkey will not give up or leave the South-eastern region." (October 27, 1993).
    Ciller:
    "We will retaliate with hit-and-run tactics. I am sending special envoys to Iran, Iraq and Syria to ask them to close down PKK camps." (October 31, 1993)
    "We have no tolerance for the PKK in Parliament. I will vote for the lifting of the immunity of DEP deputies." (November 14, 1993).
    Following the Ciller-Güres tandem's directives, the Turkish Parliament, on November 9, extended again for four months the emergency rule  in the provinces of Sirnak, Batman, Diyarbakir, Bingöl, Bitlis, Tunceli, Van, Hakkari, Mardin and Siirt. The emergency rule, a diluted version of martial law, has been in force since 1987 and empowers provincial governors to impose curfews, ban meetings and rallies, halt strikes and issue search warrants. In practice, the governors put in force all measures imposed by the military at the National Security Council.
    Despite its promise during electoral campaign, the social democrat SHP, partner of the coalition, too voted for the extension of emergency rule.
    Beside the extension of emergency rule, the National Security Council, at its meeting on October 26, asked the government to modify the Anti-Terror Law in a view to increase jail terms and fines on terrorism crimes and to create a fund to combat terrorism.
    Accordingly, a bill that was submitted to Parliament on November 10 foresees the establishment of a fund based on income from cuts in various sectors. This anti-terrorism fund worth billions of dollars will be freely used by the security authorities.
    The fund's income will consist of:
    - annual allocations to the budget of the Interior Ministry,
    - three percent of the annual profit of all public enterprises,
    - five percent of all income from commercial licence plates,
    - transfers from other funds upon proposal by the Interior Minister,
    - ten percent of all traffic fines,
    - ten percent of all license fees to carry weapons, to obtain driver's licenses, passports, residence documents and registration documents,
    - ten percent of all income from imported weapons,
    - five percent of all revenues from sports tournaments and horse races,
    - five percent of national lottery incomes,
    - interest rate incomes.
    Moreover, all donations made to the fund by individuals or corporations will be exempted from every kind of tax and fees and deducted from corporate and income taxes.
    In another move, on October 31, the government demanded that all death sentences of which the execution has been suspended since 1984 be carried out as a deterrent step against terrorism. There are currently 11 death sentences that have been passed by courts, but which are awaiting parliamentary approval.
    Until 1984, during the four-year military power, 50 death sentences had been executed. Since then, the executions have been suspended as a sign of "democratisation" in the country.

TURKISH DEATH SQUADS IN EUROPE

    Ciller-Güres tandem has also decided to extend state terrorism to foreign countries where exist Kurdish organizations and opposition groups.
    The daily Aydinlik reported on November 16, 1993, that death squads attached to the Turkish Chief of Staff office have gone to Europe in the past month to assassinate Kurdish activists there.
    According to the newspaper, at least 100 officers of the Special War Department, which Turkey renamed the Special Forces Command, have left for five  European countries.
    A large number of the assassins, said the paper, headed for Germany and France, where senior leaders of the PKK are located, while others travelled to Holland, Switzerland and Britain.
    Aydinlik noted that the officers were selected among those who speak several foreign languages and are specially trained for the job. The decision was made after the National Security Council in October to eliminate all leaders of the PKK in Turkey and abroad.
    The paper further claimed that aside from the assassinations, the teams would focus on activities aiming to alienate the people of Europe from the PKK.

ANTI-KURDISH OPERATIONS IN EUROPE

    As the Kurdish organizations in Europe were staging various demonstrations against the climbing state terrorism in Turkey, at the end of  November 1993, French and German authorities, yielding to the Turkish Government's pressure, started a repressive campaign against Kurdish activists in Europe.
    First, French police carried out a countrywide operation and took into custody more than 100 alleged members of the PKK.  On November 22, French prosecutors charged 21 detainees with membership of a "terrorist organization", gathering money for a terrorist organization by violent means involving the use of weapons, staging politically motivated attacks, and extortion.
    French Interior Minister Charles Pasqua, renown for his anti-migrant and xenophobic policies, said that certain organizations were trying to transform France into a support base for terrorism.
    The French operation has led to protests among 60,000 Kurds living in France.
    While the Turkish Government was applauding the French operation, M. Daniel Jacoby, chairman of the International Federation of Leagues for Human Rights, said: "The aim is to please the Turkish Government which does not respect human rights. The charges are extremely fragile and the case is fabricated artificially."
    In fact, French Government's anti-PKK campaign came just after a new profitable deal with the Turkish military. On October 8, a $253 million contract had been signed between the Turkish Defence Industry Under secretariat (SSM) and Eurocopter, a French company for the direct purchase of 20 general purpose helicopters for the Turkish Armed Forces.
    The AS 532 UL "Congar" type helicopters are to be used by the Turkish land forces, mainly for troop deployment and search-and-rescue operations.
    Defence Minister Nevzat Ayaz said the purchase was an indicator of Turkey's closer ties with Europe.
    The French operation was followed by the German decision to ban the PKK and 35 affiliated groups. German Interior Minister Manfred  Kanther said on November 26 that the PKK was an organization that killed people and that Germany's doors would remain closed to the terrorists.
    The German decision came three weeks after co-ordinated assaults on Turkish offices in which a Turkish man died when a Wiesbaden restaurant was fire-bombed. Although Turkish and German authorities blamed the assaults on the PKK, the latter denied involvement in the attacks. Since Ankara has reportedly sent abroad provocateur agents and death squads, it is possible that many acts of violence be provoked or carried out by them in order to discredit the PKK in Europe.
    Currently, there are more than 400,000 Kurds living in Germany. In many German cities, Kurdish groups objected to the closure of their organizations and occupied again their locals despite the ban. Women and children waving Kurdish banners crowded at the windows while supporters shouted messages of support outside.
    The Kurdistan National Liberation Front (ERNK), the PKK's political wing, said in a statement that the crackdown would fuel anger against Germany and German interests.
    The French and German decisions have created an atmosphere of victory in Ankara. Not only government officials but also the big media warmly welcomed these decisions and announced it as a success for the Turkish Government's shuttle diplomacy seeking international isolation of the PKK as a "terrorist" organization.
    According to the daily Cumhuriyet of November 29, in turn for the steps they are taking, Western countries will be asking the Turkish government to "facilitate" the extension of the Poised Hammer -officially known as Provide Comfort- force's mandate.
    Whatsoever be the apparent reason of the ban on PKK in Germany, the Turkish authorities had been blackmailing Germany with the menace of putting it in the Black List of the Turkish War Industry. (See: Info-Türk, N°203, September 1993).
    Encouraged by the French and German decisions, Turkish Foreign Minister Hikmet Cetin said: "Other European countries too should follow the German example. Those European countries who fail to ban the PKK will see their own countries turn into hotbeds of terrorism. "
    Evidently the Turkish intelligence teams charged abroad  will not delay to stage some provocative actions in European centres to obtain an extension of bans on Kurdish organizations to other European countries.

CHRISTIAN VILLAGE DEPOPULATED

    State paid village guards  have driven 200 Christians from the village of Hassana in Mardin province on November 20, 1993. A Syriac Christian witness in the nearby town of Midyat said:
    "An order came through Silopi security headquarters last month, telling them to evacuate Hassana. It happened because a local tribal leader said on television that it was an Armenian village. Then immediately they were told to get out. Most of the entire 200-strong population of the village has been moved to homes in Oyunduk village next door, some to Midyat and some to Mardin."
    In a separate  incident at the end of November, village guards investigating an arson attack on electricity station in Alagöz village in Mardin province seized seven Syriac shepherds, using molten plastic to brand one of their victims with a cross.

BRITISH UNIONISTS DETAINED

    Ten British trade unionists, a French and a Danish national were detained by the military in south-east Turkey on November 26 as carrying out an investigation on the state terrorism at the Kurdish village of Birlik .
    After having being held  overnight at an army station in a neighbouring village, the group was driven in the morning to a police station in Diyarbakir. Twenty-seven hours after their detention they were given back their passports and told they could leave.
    Nine of the British trade unionists, after their return to London on November 28, accused the Turkish authorities of persecuting the region's Kurdish community.
    Sarah Dally of the British Health Workers' Union and Brenda Nixon of the National Union of Mineworkers said at the Heathrow airport:
    "Immediately we got the Birlik village we could see that the houses were still burning. There was just decimation. We all got out and started taking photographs when a Kurdish woman started screaming 'Go away! The soldiers will shoot you. You'll be murdered!' A group of soldiers surrounded us and marched us out of the village and into a field."

TURKEY CONDEMNED BY THE UNO FOR TORTURE

    On November 18, 1993, the United Nations Committee Against Torture issued a report condemning the government of Turkey for "widespread, habitual, deliberate" and "systematic" torture. The committee's decision was taken unanimously.
    The Committee Against Torture (CAT) was created in 1988 to monitor the implementation of the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment, which was adopted in 1984 and went into effect in 1987. Turkey ratified the convention on August 2, 1988, and is bound by its provisions.
    The CAT, made up of ten experts selected by states that have signed and ratified the convention, has been monitoring torture in Turkey since 1990. Its findings were based on information received from non-governmental organizations and on its own 1992 mission to Turkey. Over the objection of the Turkish Government, the CAT decided to release publicly a summary of its findings.`
    The Committee concluded that "even though only a small number of torture cases can be proved with absolute certainty, the copious testimony gathered is so consistent in its description of torture techniques and the places and circumstances in which torture is perpetrated that the existence of systematic torture in Turkey cannot be denied... [Torture is] seen to be habitual, widespread and deliberate in at least a considerable part of the territory of the country in question."
    The committee went on to condemn acts of violence perpetrated by armed groups against security forces in Turkey, but emphasised that "under article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, no exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture."
    The committee stated that certain measures must be taken immediately:
    - The use of a blindfold during questioning should be expressly prohibited;
    - legal assistance should be provided for any person held in police custody;
    - access for lawyers should be made easier; and
    - all solitary confinement cells known as "coffins", in which inmates can only stand or crouch, must be demolished.
    The committee stated that at the maximum time limit of thirty days for police custody for detainees suspected of crimes against the state connected with terrorism, firearms or drugs is "excessive" and "may leave room for acts of torture by the security forces."
    Moreover, the committee recommended that forensic examinations of persons in police custody "should be completely separate from the police," that detainees should be permitted to be examined by doctors of their own choice, and that any resulting certificate should be admitted into evidence before a court.
    The committee recommended that prosecutor acts "promptly and effectively" to investigate claims of torture, and that "torturers should not feel that they are in a position of virtual immunity from the law."
    In December 1992, the other international body responsible for investigating torture, the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT), issued a public statement sharply criticising the government of Turkey:
    "In the light of all the information at its disposal, the CPT can only conclude that the practice of torture and other forms of severe ill-treatment of persons in police custody remains widespread in Turkey and that such methods are applied to both ordinary criminal suspects and persons held under anti-terrorism provisions."
    The reports by the UN and European committees substantiate Helsinki Watch findings Broken Promises: Torture and Killings Continue in Turkey (December 1992).
    A full copy of the 14-page UN report as well as other reports mentioned above can be obtained from Helsinki Watch  - 485 Fifth Avenue - New York, N.Y. 10017-6104 - USA, Phone: (202) 371-6592, Fax: (202) 371-0124

APPEAL BY AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

    Amnesty International, in its new report issued on October 20, put in evidence that since 1991 Turkey's security forces have engaged in a campaign of extra judicial executions and killed a number of civilians by firing indiscriminately on demonstrators and residential areas.
    The report entitled "Turkey: Responses to an emerging pattern of extra judicial killings"  said: "Governments such as those of Iraq and Myanmar make no attempt to hide their brutality. Others, for example India or Turkey, pay lip-service to human rights on the one hand but kill on the other, relying on cover-ups or blatant lies. While the prosecution service appears to regard combating separatism as its primary task, movement is slow on cases of mysterious deaths of alleged separatists. Some killings in the [south-east] region could have been carried out by any of the security force units, such as plainclothes members of the Anti-Terror Branch, the Special Teams, the village guards, or a combination of elements from the three, acting on their own initiative but with passive or active collusion of other parts of the law and order system."
    In another document, Amnesty also noted that the PKK in Turkey, like the Communist Party of Peru (Shining Path) and the Sudan People's Liberation Army had committed gross atrocities and claimed thousands of lives."
    Although the Amnesty reports were embargoed, the official Anatolia Agency ran an early story quoting only Amnesty's criticism of the PKK, implying the report merely carried condemnation of that organization, and failed to mention the 12-page criticism on the stance of the Turkish government and its security forces.
    In its report, Amnesty made the following appeals:
    "The situation calls for the establishment of an independent expert commission of inquiry as laid down in the UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extralegal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, adopted by the UN Economic and Social Council in 1989.
    "To turn back the tide of killings, the Turkish government must ensure that all levels in the judiciary, local government and the military clearly understand that extra judicial execution is illegal and must not be used as a tool in the conflict with the PKK."
   
2-MONTH STATE TERRORISM

    1.10, in Istanbul, a woman named Sibel Yildiz, 18, says that she was tortured and raped by a policeman and a gendarmerie sergeant during 10 days after her arrest on July 7.
    1.10, tradesman Salim Sarikan (24) in Silvan, Sakir Savas (23) and Selim Koyuncu (29) in Batman are shot dead by unidentified gunmen.
    2.10, farmer Abdülselam Ayabag was shot dead by unknown persons in Batman.
    3.10, a high school student named Nihal Zogurlu is reportedly subjected to torture after her arrest in Diyarbakir on September 30.
    4.10, in Midyat, 26 persons, of whom 9 children and 5 women, fall victims of a mine explosion as they are travelling in a minibus.
    4.10, photographer Muzaffer Tekin (20) is shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Diyarbakir. Same day, the dead body of Sirin Akbas (30) is found assassinated in Hizan (Bitlis).
    4.10, security forces arrest about 200 people in the centre and districts of Batman. Among the detainees are also the SHP Chairman of Kozluk, Abdurrahman Baltas, and the former mayor of the same city, Burhan Ayhan.
    5.10, in Cizre, a goldsmith named Haci Sansak (56) dies in a police centre after being detained on October 3.
    5.10, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Suat Sutsurup, Omer Han, Hasan Altinkaya and Hanefi Yildiz in Silvan, Hayrettin Dal and Mahmut Akay in Batman.
    6.10, an Istanbul court begins to deal with a legal proceeding in which the prosecutor asks closing down of the Istanbul Section of the Human Rights Association (IHD) for separatist propaganda.
    6.10, security forces arrest more than 250 people during a one-week operation in Batman and its districts.
    7.10, in Halfetli (Urfa), security forces raiding a house shoot dead three alleged PKK sympathisers.
    7.10, a member of the Silvan Municipal Council, Mahsun Güvenc (44) is shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Diyarbakir. Same day, a municipal worker, Ali Isik too is assassinated by unidentified gunmen in the same city.
    7.10, an official of the IHD, lawyer Yildiz Koluacik is aggressed by unidentified assailants raiding his house.
    8.10, a young woman, Nilüfer Koc, who was the translator of a German delegation during their visit to the emergency law region claims that she was detained in Sirnak on September 29 and subjected to torture for six days at the interrogation centre.
    8.10, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Esref Sengül, Halit Güzel and Ihsan Kiran in Silvan, Yasar Karakutlu in Mersin.
    9.10, in one day, four persons, Zeki Murat Yildirim, Süreyya Gün, Aysun Gün and Sahabettin Kartal, are assassinated by unidentified gunmen.
    10.10, in Diyarbakir, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Yalcin Yasa; Lokman Zugurlu and Zana Zugurlu who were kidnapped a day ago are found assassinated. In Midyat, village headman Ali Akal falls victim of a political murder.
    11.10, in Cizre, Süleyman Dansiz is assassinated by unidentified gunmen.
    11.10, in Istanbul, a young woman named  Cigdem Olgun is shot dead by a policeman.
    11.10, a 24-year old taxi driver, Bilen Cifci is found dead at the Ankara Police Headquarters after being taken into custody. Though police authorities claim that Cifci committed suicide by throwing himself from the window of the fourth floor, the relatives of the victim accuse the police of having assassinated Cifci.
    13.10, the mayor of Kozluk (Batman), Abdullah Kaya is placed under arrest by the Istanbul SSC for an interview he gave to Özgür Gündem in protest against the assassination of DEP deputy Mehmet Sincar.
    13.10, in Nusaybin, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Hasan Dündar and Hasan Yagizsoy. Same day, Yilmaz Acun and Nurettin Akkurt fall victims of political assassination in Siverek.
    14.10, the prosecutor of the Ankara SSC starts a legal proceeding against 14 Kurdish mayors who recently adhered to the DEP for their joint declaration. Accused of separatist propaganda, Sukru Calli (Hakkari), Abdullah Kaya (Kozluk), Muslim Yildirim (Nusaybin), Cemil Akgul (Kurtalan), Taladdin Uzum (Gökcebag), Nazmi Balkas (Lice), Necdet Buldan (Yüksekova), Süleyman Aydogmus (Akarsu), Yusuf Bayram (Agacli), Fadil Kilic (Onbirnisan), Mahsun Agaoglu (Senyurt), Numan Demir (Uzundere) and Baki Duygu (Altinova) each face a prison term of up to five years.
    14.10, in Diyarbakir, unidentified gunmen shoot dead tradesman Baki Karakoc (32).
    14.10, the chairman of the Association for Democratic Rights (DHD), Hasan Erdem is detained by police.
    15.10, in Silvan, municipal worker Ihsan Günesli and worker Selim Demirkan are shot dead by unidentified gunmen.
    15.10, the chairman of the Anti-War Association, Arif Hikmet Iyidogan is detained by police in Istanbul.
    18.10, in Istanbul, security forces take into custody eight people for carrying out some activities for an underground religious organization.
    18.10, in Diyarbakir, Bayram Demir (17) is assassinated by unidentified gunmen and Ramazan Zengin (48) is found beheaded.
    18.10, in Izmir, two officials of the Association for Rights and Freedoms (Özgür-Der),  Hasan Aktas and Bekir Ercan Ilhan were detained by police.
    19.10, Özgür-Der official Cihan Arkan is detained in Ankara by police raiding his house.
    19.10, in Midyat, Resul Alpsoy is assassinated by unidentified people.
    21.10, the trial of 124 people accused of the massacre of Sivas begins at the Ankara SSC. The tribunal bans the presence in the court-room of the lawyers representing the families of the victims. A group protesting against this ban in front of the court-room is dispersed by police force. Ankara SHP deputy Salman Kaya and some demonstrators are wounded by police.
    22.10, unidentified gunmen shoot dead a 16-year old student in Batman and worker Sedat Sümer in Diyarbakir.
    22.10, the Istanbul SSC begins to try 11 Islamists for illegal activities. The prosecutor demands capital punishment for each defendant.
    23.10, new victims of political murders: Sabri Kaplan, Ramazan Yildirim, Cetin Gidici, Abdulmenaf Akto, Mustafa Kilic and Abdulsemat Imrak in Batman; Ibrahim Karakuyu in Pazarcik.
    23.10, a group of cadets of a military school in Balikesir raid some night clubs and beat the clients on pretext that "they were amusing themselves as the country was suffering from separatist terror."
    23.10, political refugee Sarp Kuray is taken into custody at the Istanbul Airport when he returned from his self-exile in Paris.
    24.10, tradesman Ramazan Celik is assassinated by unidentified gunmen in Batman.
    25.10, security forces raiding a house in Ankara shoot dead two alleged Dev-Sol militants, Tayyar Suna Sayar and Yasar Yilmaz..
    26.10, in Mersin, security forces detain DEP official Fatma Savas and nine other people.
    29.10, new victims of political violence: Hayati Eren, Mazhar Celik and Muhittin Karaaslan in Diyarbakir, Hanifi Yaprak in Silvan.
    29.10, Tajdin Mendil, Haci Kayasiz, Nusret Selimoglu and Serbest Sala are found assassinated on the road of Silopi-Cizre.
    31.10, in Diyarbakir, farmer Fahri Coskun and worker Abdulkadir Ozcan are assassinated by unidentified gunmen.
    31.10, in Diyarbakir, security forces raiding the village of Cavusoglu in the night destroys by burning 45 out of 65 houses and detained 11 people.
    1.11, in Gaziantep, four detainees, Abidin Demir, Ali Cengiz Demir, Hüseyin Solak and Bülent Türkmen claim to be tortured during seven days.
    1.11, in Ankara, high school student Rahsan Esen claims to be tortured during his 3-day detention by police.
    2.11, a meeting to commemorate the victims of the Sivas Massacre organized by the students of the Middle East Technical University in Ankara is banned by the governor's order.
    2.11, in Eskisehir, a police operation results in the arrest of more than 30 university students.
    2.11, security forces raiding a house in Tarsus shoot dead an alleged PKK militant, Sevinc Celik.
    3.11, in Tarsus a 4-month pregnant woman, Leyla Ine claims to be tortured during her 3-day police detention.
    4.11, five IHD officials, Günseli Kaya, Dervis Altun, Enver Basaraner, Salih Basaraner and Ramiz Saglam are detained  by police in Izmir.
    5.11, new victims of political terror: pharmacist and DEP member Eyup Gökoglu in Urfa, tradesman Can Sezgin in Batman.
    6.11, in Cizre, three children, Mehmet Cevik, Hakan Isik and Selim Uyanmaz are killed by the explosion of a mine laid by security forces.
    6.11, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Hatip Acar in Kozluk (Batman).
    8.11, the trial of 14 DEP officials begins at the Ankara SSC. Accused of separatist propaganda in a communiqué they published on September 1, DEP Chairman Yasar Kaya and his comrades face prison terms of up to ten years and fines of up to TL 200 Million ($ 13,793).
    8.11, Mehmet Emin Bingöl, Yakup Tetik, Mehmet Acal, Ali Can Öner and three other unidentified persons are found assassinated under torture in Mus.
    8.11, the Anti-War Association is closed down by a tribunal in Izmir for its anti-militarist activities.
    9.11, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Abdulkadir Selcuk in Diyarbakir and Huseyin Ardic in Sirnak.
    9.11, five officials of the Trade Union of Finance Employees (Maliye Sen) are tried at a penal court of Eskisehir for unauthorised meeting.
    10.11, the female political detainees at the Sakarya Prison have reportedly been on hunger-strike in protest against inhuman prison conditions.
    11.11, in Adana, 75-year old Hüseyin Kahraman claims having been tortured by police after his arrest on October 7. He is still in prison.
    11.11, the Diyarbakir Martial Law Court, in a trial against PKK continuing for 13 years, sentences 15 defendants to capital punishment, 14 to life-prison and 54 others to prison terms of up to 24 years.
    11.11, in Batman, Mehmet Aritürk is assassinated by unidentified gunmen.
    12.11, in Patnos (Agri), 14 out of 30 people detained in October are placed under arrest by a tribunal.
    13.11, in Hakkari, the local DEP is destroyed by a bomb explosion.
    14.11, in Diyarbakir, 27-year old Kemal Canpolat is found dead at the Police Headquarters where he has been under custody. Medical experts certified many traces of torture on his body.
    14.11, unidentified gunmen assassinate Hüseyin Yagmur in Diyarbakir and Ekrem Oner in Batman.
    15.11, in Istanbul, an alleged member of the Islamic Movement, Ekrem Baytap claims to have been tortured for 11 days after his detention.
    15.11, DEP official Kemal Bilget is taken into custody when he goes to the Police Department for receiving his passport.
    15.11, new victims of political killings: Bayram Inci in Adana, Abdullah Uzunbas in Diyarbakir and Hüseyin Alkis in Urfa.
    16.11, the prosecutor of the Ankara SSC indicts 25 alleged militants of the People's Revolutionary Party (TDHP). Two defendants face capital punishment and others heavy prison terms of up to 30 years.
    16.11, the Malatya SSC sentences a PKK defendant to 20 years in prison and another one to six years.
    16.11, in Eskisehir, 15 alleged Dev-Sol members are placed under arrest by a tribunal.
    16.11, Cemal Süslü falls victim of a political murder in Diyarbakir.
    17.11, it is for the first time since 1984 that the Justice Committee of the National Assembly approves the execution of a death sentence. Seyfettin Uzundiz was sentenced last year by a criminal court to capital punishment for murder and armed robbery.
    17.11, in Diyarbakir, Kurdish lawyers Meral Bestas Danis, Mesut Bestas, Sebahattin Acar, Baki Demirhan, Hüsniye Ölmez, Sinasi Tur, Nevzat Kaya, Vedat Erten and Arif Altunkalem are taken into police custody on charges of aiding to the PKK and giving shelters to PKK militants.
    17.11, the Izmir SSC sentences seven PKK militants to prison terms of up to 12 years and 6 months.
    17.11, in Mersin, security forces detain Municipal Council member Ali Bozkurt and 19 other people for sheltering PKK militants.
    17.11, the Istanbul SSC sentences three youths to imprisonment of up to four months for having distributed May Day tracts.
    18.11, in Diyarbakir, Esref Pervari falls victim of a political murder.
    18.11, in Istanbul, police disperse by force a group of municipal workers holding a protest action and wounds of the protesters.
    19.11, raiding a house in Istanbul, police shoot dead a young woman, Sevtap Macit Kolukirik, and wounds three persons.
    19.11, the Istanbul SSC sentences three persons to 15-year imprisonment and another to 4 yeas and 2 months for having carried out activities in favour of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Turkey (TDKP) in Bursa.
    19.11, the Ankara SSC sentences two alleged Dev-Sol militants to 15-year imprisonment each and another to 12 years and six months.
    19.11, unidentified gunmen shoot dead Mustafa Yildirim in Batman.
    21.11, a solidarity festival that the Democratic Women's Association (UDKD) organised is forbidden by the Istanbul Governor. Same day, in Diyarbakir, a meeting of trade unions, associations and professional organizations is banned by the governor.
    22.11, raiding a house in Diyarbakir, police shoot dead a person inside.
    22.11, police announce the arrest of 36 alleged PKK militants during recent operations in Izmir.
    22.11, new victims of political murders: Süleyman Tezcan in Midyat, Batil Simsek, Ahmet Halic, Mehmet Sevinc, Salih Eser and Ubeydullah Can in Diyarbakir.
    22.11, in Kiziltepe, police shoot dead Mahsun Kaymaz and a 12-year old boy, Turgut Berzan Kahraman.
    23.11, the Izmir SSC sentences a PKK member, Kasim Karatas, to capital punishment and five others to imprisonments of up to 22 years and 6 months.
    23.11, the Constitutional Court decides to close down the Freedom and Democracy Party (ÖZDEP) on charges of adopting a separatist programme.
    24.11, the Istanbul SSC places under arrest 18 people for PKK activities.
    24.11, political murders: Mehmet Dogru, Aydin Tirmak and Mahmut Kavut in Diyarbakir; Ramazan Budak, Abdurrahman Budak and Selim Rüzgar in Batman.
    24.11, in connection with the detention of nine lawyers in Diyarbakir, lawyer Niyazi Cem too is taken into custody in Istanbul.
    24.11, the Istanbul SSC sentences three alleged PKK militants to 12 years and 6 months in prison, two others to three years and nine months each.
    24.11, in Edirne, 16 university students are taken to police custody during a home raid.  In Adana, the number of the people taken into custody in relation with PKK reaches 200.
    25.11, a meeting for defending the women against violence in Ankara is banned by the governor.
    25.11, the Izmir SSC sentences three alleged PKK militants to 12 years and 6 months in prison and a minor defendant to 8 years and 4 months.
    25.11, in Diyarbakir, university student Sertip Bilek falls victim of political murder.
    26.11, in Istanbul, security forces raiding a house shoot dead an 18-year old high school student, Selma Dogan, and another unidentified youth.
    26.11, in Tatvan, local DEP Chairman Sevket Epözdemir who had been kidnapped a few days ago is found assassinated in Güroymak.
    26.11, security forces detain DEP Chairman Veysi Karagül and IHD official Mehmet Gokalp together with eight other people in Derik. Three people too are detained in Kusadasi.
    26.11, the Izmir SSC sentences two alleged members of the Union of Revolutionary Communists of Turkey (TIKB) to 12 years and 6 months in prison and five other defendants to 3 years and 9 months.
    26.11, the Malatya SSC sentences four alleged PKK members to 12 years and 6 months in prison each.
    26.11, the house of lawyer Eyüp Duman, Chairman of the Agri Bar Association, is destroyed with bomb by unidentified people. Ten shops in the quarter are damaged as well.
    26.11, new victims of political murder: Nuri Coban and Sahin Elikci in Batman.
    27.11, two more victims in Batman: Mehmet Gökmen and Raci Degirmenci.
    29.11, university student Ulas Culduz claims during a press conference at the Human Rights' Association (IHD) in Ankara that he was tortured for three days after his detention.
    29.11, in Istanbul, police raiding some associations supporting the periodical Taraf detain six people.
    30.11, the Constitutional Court decides to close down the Socialist Turkey Party (STP) for adopting a separatist programme.
    30.11, security forces detain 93 alleged PKK members in Antalya and eight in Gaziantep.

2-MONTH PERSECUTION OF THE MEDIA

    1.10, the former editor of the daily Özgür Gündem, Isik Yurtcu, is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 10 months in prison and LT 83,333,000 ($5,952) in fine for separatist propaganda in an article. The owner of the paper, Yasar Kaya too is sentenced for the same article to TL 832 Million ($ 55,466).
    1.10, the Istanbul SSC confiscates the daily Aydinlik and the second edition of a book entitled  The Revolution of Turkey by virtue of the Anti-Terror Law.
    1.10, the editor of the political review Odak, Hidir Ates, is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 10 months in prison and TL 83 Million ($5,928) in fine for having praised an outlawed organization.
    2.10, the fortnightly Özgür Gelecek N° 13 and the monthly Direnis N°22 are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for having praised outlawed organizations.
    4.10, the Istanbul SSC issues an arrest warrant for Kurdish writer Recep Marasli and DEP official Cabbar Gezici for an interview they gave to a private TV on June 6. Marasli was one of the victims of the 12 September regime and Amnesty International adopted him as a prisoner of conscience.
    5.10, former editor of the monthly Partizan, Kemal Boztas, is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to a two-year imprisonment for having instigated the people to revolt in an article he published in 1992.
    5.10, The Court of Cassation approves a 20-month imprisonment and a fine of TL 42 Million ($3,000) for sociologist Ismail Besikci for his book entitled Some Reflections on the PKK. He was earlier sentenced by the Istanbul SSC in virtue of the ATL.
    6.10, the Istanbul SSC confiscates the daily Aydinlik of Oct 5, 1993 in virtue of the ATL.
    6.10, the Adiyaman correspondent of Özgür Gündem, Ercan Aslan who was taken into custody 15 days ago is arrested by a local court for aiding the PKK.
    7.10, the Prosecutor of the Ankara SSC opens a legal proceeding against Yasar Kaya, Chairman of the DEP and owner of the daily Özgür Gündem, for having made separatist propaganda in a speech he gave at the Congress of the Democratic Party of Kurdistan in Iraq. He faces a prison term of up to five years and TL 100 Million ($ 7,142) in fine. He was already arrested on September 15.
    7.10, journalist-author Günay Aslan is arrested as he was trying to leave Turkey for Greece. He was sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 55 Million ($3,929) in fine for his book entitled 33 Bullets. The tribunal also banned him to leave the country.
    7.10, the former editor of the Islamist review Taraf, Esma Turan is tried by the Istanbul SSC for having made propaganda in favour of an outlawed organization.
    7.10, six university students who were detained as they were distributing the tracts of a new review, Alinteri, alleged that they were tortured during their 4-day detention.
    9.10, the Court of Cassation approves the condemnation of four intellectuals for some articles in the defunct monthly Demokrat. Writer Ömer Agir and lawyer Ahmet Zeki Okcuoglu were sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 20 months in prison and TL 42 Million ($3,000) each for their interviews to the review. The editor of the review, Engin Güney was sentenced to six months in prison and TL 50 Million ($3,571) in Fine and the owner, Hikmet Kocak, to TL 100 Million ($7,143) in fine.
    9.10, a 28-year old vendor of the daily Özgür Gündem, Adil Baskan is shot dead in Mardin by unidentified gunmen in Nusaybin. A 16-year old vendor of the same journal, Recep Demirtas, is stabbed in Diyarbakir.
    11.10, a writer of the review Medya Günesi, Osman Aytar is sentenced  by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 50 Million ($3,571) in fine for separatist propaganda. The editor of the review, Salih Bal is sentenced to six months in prison and TL 50 Million ($3,571) in fine and the owner Cemal Özcelik to TL 100 Million ($7,143) in fine.
    12.10, two PKK defendants, Fevzi Yetkin and Mehmet Tanboga, are sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 50 Million ($3,571) in fine for a book containing their defence in the same tribunal.
    12.10, the Diyarbakir correspondent of the daily Aydinlik, Zeynel Karak is taken into custody by police raiding his house. He is accused of having a gun that he was carrying to defend himself.
    12.10, the Mus correspondent of Özgür Gündem, Samet Yakti who has been under police detention for ten days is placed under arrest by a local tribunal.
    13.10, the recent issue of the daily Aydinlik and the monthly Devrimci Proleter Genclik N° 6 are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC respectively for making propaganda of an outlawed organization and for instigating the people to revolt.
    14.10, the editor of the review Odak, Hidir Ates is sentenced by a criminal court of Istanbul to 10 years in prison for having insulted the Parliament in an article.
    14.10, the owner of Umut Publishing House and the review Özgür Gelecek, Nergiz Gulmez is arrested by the Istanbul SSC for a book she published.
    15.10, the recent issues of the daily Aydinlik and the periodicals Yeni Demokrat Genclik and Devrimci Cözüm are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC by virtue of the ATL.
    15.10, a former editor of the daily Özgür Gündem, Isik Yurtcu is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to TL 48 Million ($3,429) for a news about the PKK. The owner of the daily, Yasar Kaya too is sentenced to TL 96 Million ($ 6,857) for the same accusation.
    16.10, the recent issues of Aydinlik and the monthly Birikim are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC by virtue of the ATL.
    17.10, a meeting organized in Istanbul by the periodical Mücadele is banned by the governor.
    18.10, writer Yalcin Küçük is sentenced by the Kayseri SSC to two years in prison and TL 250 Million ($17,857) for a speech he made at a meeting of the defunct HEP. At the same trial, DEP Kirsehir Chairman Esref Odabasi too is sentenced to same punishments.
    18.10, the Istanbul SSC issues arrest warrants for the editor of Özgür Gündem, Bulent Balta) and the editor of the weekly Azadi, Zana Sezen, for separatist propaganda. Same day, the owner of Azadi, Ikramettin Oguz, and a distributor of Özgür Gündem, Fesih Sackar, are taken into custody respectively in Istanbul and Adana.
    18.10, the Istanbul SSC orders the confiscation of the recent issues of the daily Aydinlik, the periodicals Gencligin Sesi, Iscinin Yolu and Azadi.
    19.10, the editor of the weekly Azadi, Zana Sezen, is arrested on the warrant of the Istanbul SSC
    19.10, the prosecutor of the Ankara SSC issues a new arrest warrant for Yasar Kaya, chairman of DEP and owner of Özgür Gündem.
    20.10, DEP Chairman Yasar Kaya is sentenced by the Ankara SSC to two years in prison and TL 50 Million ($3,571) for a speech he delivered at the HEP Congress in December 1991. Two HEP officials, Muhsin Melik and Selahattin Cicek, too are sentenced to same punishments.
    21.10, the former editor of Özgür Gündem, Isik Yurtcu is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 11 months in prison and TL 92 Million ($ 6,571) in fine for two articles he published in 1992. At the same trial, the daily's owner Yasar Kaya too is sentenced to TL 192 Million ($ 13,714) in fine.
    21.10, the recent issue of Aydinlik is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for a reportage with TIKKO militants.
    22.10, the responsible editor of Özgür Gündem, Gülay Celik is arrested by the Istanbul SSC in virtue of the ATL.
    22.10, the recent issue of Aydinlik is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC. The number of confiscated Aydinlik Issues last 21 days rises to 10. Besides, the weekly Gercek N°29 and the periodical Özgür Gelecek N°14 too are confiscated for propaganda of some outlawed organization.
    22.10, the owner and editor of the local newspaper Mezopotamya in Kiziltepe (Mardin), Cemil Aydogan is detained by police.
    24.10, police raids and searches the house of the Cizre correspondent of Özgür Gündem, Salih Tekin, who has been in custody for month.
    25.10, the editor of Aydinlik, Hale Soysü is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 135 Million ($ 9,643) in fine for some articles she published in the defunct weekly 2000e Dogru two years ago. The owner of the weekly, Mehmet Sabuncu too is sentenced in the same trial to a fine of TL 342 Million ($ 24,429) for same articles.
    26.10, the Moscow correspondent of Aydinlik, Özkan Güçtekin is detained at the Istanbul airport as he is returning to Russia after his holidays in Turkey.
    27.10, the Istanbul SSC confiscates the recent issues of Aydinlik and the weekly Gercek for separatist propaganda.
    27.10, a former editor of Özgür Gündem, Kamil Celikten is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to a fine of TL 3 Million for two articles he published.
    28.10, a former editor of the periodical Özgür Gelecek, Kemal Boztas is sentenced to a total of 12 months in prison and TL 150 Million ($ 10,714) in fine for praising some outlawed organizations. The tribunal also decides to ban the publication of the review for 15 days.
    1.11, the weekly Azadi N°77 is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    2.11, the first issue of a new periodical, Alinteri, is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    3.11, the former responsible editor of the periodical Partizan, Kemal Boztas is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 75 Million ($ 5,172) for separatist propaganda.
    4.11, the prosecutor of the Istanbul SSC opens a legal proceeding against IHD Chairman Ercan Kanar and the responsible editor of the IHD's newsletter Insan Haklari Bulteni, Izzet Eray, for separatist propaganda.
    4.11, the responsible editor of the periodical Devrimci Cözüm, Hatice Onaran is arrested for four different articles considered separatist propaganda.
    7.11, the recent issue of the daily Aydinlik, the weekly Azadi N°78 and the periodical Devrimci Cözüm are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    9.11, the responsible editor of the periodical Mücadele, Namik Kemal Cibaroglu is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to six months in prison and TL 375 Million ($ 25,862) in fine, the owner of the review, Gulten Sesen, to TL 750 Million ($ 51,724) for a news concerning Dev-Sol. The tribunal also decides to ban the review's publication for three days.
    9.11, IHD Kütahya chairman Ruset Aydin is indicted for an interview published in the local newspaper Ilk Haber. He faces imprisonment of up to five years for separatist propaganda. The editor of the newspaper, Arslan Aric too will be published for having published the interview.
    9.11, the owner of t local newspaper Mezopotamya in Mardin, Cemil Aydogan is placed under arrest together with two DEP officials by a tribunal. Aydogan was detained by police on October 22.
    10.11, the Court of Cassation approved the punishment to sociologist Ismail Besikci for his book The Republican People Party 1931 - The Kurdish Question. He was sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 20 months in prison and TL 42 Million ($ 2,897) in fine for separatist propaganda.
    10.11, the periodical Iscinin Yolu N° 17 is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    10.11, the editor of the local newspaper Sabah in Gaziantep, Nurgül Balcioglu is wounded  by unidentified persons at her in her house.
    11.12, the Adana section of the Mesopotamian Cultural Centre is searched by police and six persons inside detained.
    12.11, Tokat correspondent of Özgür Gündem is arrested for a news concerning Grey Wolves aggressions in Amasya.
    12.11, the office of the Zagros Publishing House in Istanbul is searched by police and an employee detained.
    12.11, sociologist Ismail Besikci is taken into custody in Iskilip for serving his 30-month imprisonment to which he was sentenced for his two books.
    14.11, the Istanbul SSC confiscates the weekly Azadi N°79 and the monthly Newroz Atesi N°13 for separatist propaganda.
    14.11, singer Fevzi Kurtulus is detained by police during his concert in Istanbul and placed under arrest by the Istanbul SSC for having sung Kurdish ballads.
    15.11, the Court of Cassation approves the punishment of two journalists from the periodical Newroz. Chief editor Celal Albayrak was sentenced by  the Istanbul SSC to five months in prison and TL 41 Million ($ 2,828) in fine, and publisher Hüseyin Alatas to TL 83 Million ($ 5,724) in fine.
    15.11, the daily Özgür Gündem announces that 134 out of its 198 issues published between April 26 and November 11, 1993 have been confiscated. Besides, prosecutors opened 119 legal proceedings against Özgür Gündem journalists in 1993.
    16.11, the Istanbul SSC confiscates journalist Oral Calislar's book entitled The Kurdish Question and the periodical Hevdem N°2 for separatist propaganda.
    16.11, the Adana Section of the Mesopotamian Cultural Centre is searched again by police and five people inside taken into custody. After their release, the detainees say to have been tortured for 24 hours.
    17.11, the Istanbul SSC confiscates the monthly Hedef N°25 for separatist propaganda.
    18.11, the owner of the Pele Sor Publishing House, Abidin Kizilyaprak is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to six months in prisons and TL 50 Million ($ 3,448) in fine for a book entitled How did we fight against the Kurdish People - A Soldier's Memoirs.
    18.11, the prosecutor of the Istanbul SSC starts a legal proceeding against popular Kurdish singer Ibrahim Tatlises and businessman Besim Tibuk by virtue of the ATL. Tatlises is accused of having claimed that he might act as a mediator for the solution of the Kurdish Question and Tibuk for having said that a Kurdish State might be founded in toe South-Eastern Turkey.
    18.11, the Cizre correspondent of Özgür Gündem, Salih Tekin is released at his first trial by the Diyarbakir SSC. He was detained on August 19 for separatist propaganda. However, his trial will be carried on and he faces imprisonment of up to five years.
    19.11, in Urfa, newspaper vendor Kadir Ipeksümer who was wounded by hatchet two weeks ago dies in hospital.
    19.11, the responsible editor of the periodical Emegin Bayragi, Bülent Genc is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 250 Million ($ 17,241) in fine. The tribunal also decides to close down the review for three days.
    19.11, the former editor of the periodical Yeni Demokrat Genclik, Kemal Boztas is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to one year in prison and TL 100 Million ($ 6,896) in fine.
    19.11, the fortnightly Medya Günesi N°38 is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for instigating the people to crime.
    22.11, two weeklies, Azadi N°80 and Deng N°25, are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    23.11, a former responsible editor of the daily Özgür Gündem, Özgür Aslan is placed under arrest by the Istanbul SSC for having published some separatist articles.
    23.11, the owner of the Yurt Publishing House, Ünsal Öztürk is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to one year in prison and TL 100 Million ($ 6,897) in fine for Abdullah Öcalan's book entitled The 12 March Fascism and the PKK Resistance.
    23.11, the first issue of the first periodical in Laz, a language of the Black Sea region, Ogni is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC on charges of separatism.
    24.11, a former editor of the periodical Iscinin Yolu, Süleyman  Bas is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to TL 3.7 Million ($ 255) in fine. The tribunal also decides to close down the review for 15 days.
    24.11, the editor of the periodical Newroz Atesi, Nedime Tunc is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to six months in prison and TL 50 Million ($ 3,448) in fine.
    24.11, the responsible editor of Özgür Gündem, Erkan Aydin is placed under arrest by the Istanbul SSC for some articles he published between November 9 and 23. He is accused of nine different proceedings by virtue of the ATL.
    25.11, the last issue of the daily Tercüman and the monthly Alternatif are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    25.11, a former editor of Özgür Gündem, Isik Yurtcu is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 75 Million ($ 5,172) in fine. The owner of the journal, Yasar Kaya too is sentenced to TL 150 Million ($ 10,344). In another trial at the same tribunal, Isikci is sentenced to TL 20 Million ($1,379) and Kaya to TL 41 Million ($ 2,828).
    26.11, the editor of the periodical Isciler ve Politika, Ferro Firat is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 20 months in prison and TL 50 Million ($ 3,448) in fine. The journal's owner, Muteber Yildirim too is sentenced to TL 100 Million ($ 6,896). The tribunal also decides to close down the periodical for one month.
    26.11, the former editor of the periodical Genc Kurtulus, Erdal Cinar is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and TL 250 Million ($ 17,241) in fine. The tribunal also decides to close down the periodical for one month.
    26.11, the former editor of the weekly Azadi, Sedat Karakas is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 18 months in prison and TL 230 Million ($ 6,896) in fine. The review's owner, Ikramettin Ogus too is sentenced to TL 250 Million ($ 17,241) in fine. The tribunal also decides to close down the weekly for 15 days.
    26.11, the editor of the monthly Kurtulus is placed under arrest by the Istanbul SSC.
    26.11, Kurdish author Recep Marasli is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to two years in prison and 100 Million ($ 6,896) for having published his defence text he read at the Diyarbakir Martial Law Court. He had been sentenced after the 1980 Coup and remained in prison for years. Marasli who had been adopted as a prison of opinion by Amnesty International again  found himself in prison. In the same trial, the Istanbul SSC also sentences the owner of Komal Publishing House that  printed Marasli's book to 100 Million ($ 6,896).
    26.11, the Istanbul SSC confiscated the weekly Panorama N°33 and the periodical Yeni Demokrat Genclik N°14 for separatist propaganda.
    27.11, in Van, Özgür Gündem's local distributor Adnan Isik is shot dead by unidentified gunmen.
    27.11, author Numan Bektas is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 20 months in prison and TL 208 Million ($ 14,345) in fine for his book entitled The Law of Resistance and Renewal in which he describes inhuman conditions of the Diyarbakir Prison.
    27.11, the fortnightly Emegin Bayragi N°103 and the periodical Gencligin Sesi N°6 are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    28.11, the weekly Azadi N°81 and the monthly Devrimci Cözüm are confiscated by the Istanbul SSC by virtue of the ATL.
    30.11 the responsible editor of the defunct weekly 2000e Dogru, Adnan Akfirat is sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to  TL 25 Million ($ 1,724) in fine. The weekly's owner, Mehmet Sabuncu too is sentenced to TL 50 Million ($ 3,448).
    30.11, the periodical Devrimci Proleter Genclik N°7 is confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.

SCANDAL OF FICTITIOUS EXPORTS

    A 399-page report issued on December 30 by the Parliamentary Commission on Fictitious Exports lists 256 firms involved in fraudulent operation in exports. According to the report, the unjustified incentives received by such firms total TL 45 trillion ($ 3 billion), based on 1993 prices, this comes to one-third of the year's proposed budget deficit. Between January 1, 1984, and December 31, 1990, the report says 48 percent of the incentives granted to export merchants were paid to firms engaged in fictitious exports. These firms collectively received incentives 43 times more than their total capital.


TURKISH BANKS IN EUROPE

    Hürriyet of December 27 reports that seven Turkish banks are expanding their banking activities in the European Union countries. The major attraction for Turkish banks in the German financial market is apparently the 2 million Turkish residents in the country. At the moment, there are five Turkish joint-venture banks in Germany: Deutsche-Schweizerische Bank of Ahmet Özal (son of the late President Turgut Özal), Is Bankasi GMBH of Türkiye Is Bankasi, Deutsch Turkische Bank of the state-run Ziraat Bankasi, Kreiss Bank of Cukurova Holding and Express Trade Bank of Yasar Holding's  Tütünbank.
    Kentbank, Demirbank, Alternatifbank, Esbank, Egebank, Halkbank and Bankekspres too have been seeking opportunities to establish joint-venture banks in Germany.