ANKARA (Armenpress)–Turkish police clashed with pro-Kurdish demonstrators Sunday in the city of Diyarbakir in southeastern Turkey. The demonstrators were protesting against a move by Turkish authorities to close down the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP).
"At this rally, we say enough is enough. Enough of denying the Kurds; Enough of trying to solve problems through (military) operations," DTP Member of Parliament Selahattin Demirtas told the Reuters news agency.
Prosecutors allege the party, which has 20 seats in the parliament, is linked to the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The DTP denies any such claim. Police used water cannon and tear gas to disperse thousands of protesters.
Some of the demonstrators threw stones at police and set tires on fire after being prevented from marching through the center of Diyarbakir.
Protesters also reportedly chanted pro-PKK slogans and carried pictures of the jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan. At least ten of the demonstrators were reported to have been detained by riot police.
The rally was triggered by a decision by Turkey’s Constitutional Court on Friday to consider a request from state prosecutors to outlaw the DTP.
The party, which won 20 seats in the 550-member parliament in July, recently called for autonomy for Kurds living in the Turkey’s southeast. It has refused Ankara’s demand that it condemn the PKK as terrorists.
