Tweet
Deutsche Welle, Germany
March 17, 2012 Saturday 9:07 AM EST
Turkish premier cancels German awards ceremony visit
Organizers of a controversial award ceremony honoring Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the German city of Bochum say he has
called off his visit to receive the award.
Organizers in the German city of Bochum, who had faced hefty criticism
over a social advancement award intended for Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday, cited Friday's Turkish helicopter
crash in Afghanistan as the reason for the cancellation.
Police in Bochum had been mobilizing for an anticipated 20,000
protestors opposed to Erdogan receiving the citation, including
minorities such as Kurds, Armenians and the Alevis religious community
critical of Turkey's recent human rights record.
The so-called Steiger Award intended for Erdogan had also drawn
condemnation from Germany's governing conservatives, the opposition
Greens and the German journalists' trade union, the DJV.
Friday's crash of a Turkish Sikorsky helicopter near Kabul killed 12
Turkish soldiers and four Afghan civilians. It was by far the
deadliest incident involving Turkish troops in Afghanistan, where they
have been assigned a noncombat role with US-led NATO forces.
Award with coal-mining ethos
The Steiger Award, reminiscent of Ruhr District's coal mining
tradition and the leadership role of pit foreman known in German as
"steiger," stems from a private initiative and honors personalities
for perceived tolerance, humanity and record of social advancement.
Award organizer Sachsa Hellen told DW on Saturday that Erdogan had
called off his trip to Germany because of the Turkish helicopter crash
in Afghanistan. The rest of the ceremony for 10 other recipients was
expected to proceed as intended. Initiated in 2005, the Steiger Award
has gone previously to Queen Silvia of Sweden, the fashion designer
Wolfgang Joop and Germany's ex-president Horst Köhler.
Organizers said they had picked Erdogan to mark 50 years of
German-Turkish friendship that began in the early 1960s with the
recruitment of what Germany then called Turkish "guest workers." Some
three million people of Turkish origin now live in Germany.
Bizarre, says Bavarian CSU
On Friday, Alexander Dobrindt, the General Secretary of Bavaria's
governing conservative Christian Social Union (CSU) - a partner in
Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition - had described the Steiger
invitation to Erdogan as "tasteless" and "bizarre."
"The gross opposite of tolerance prevails in Erdogan's country, namely
repression of religious and ethnic minorities, insufficient press
freedom and an absence of equal opportunities for women," Dobrindt
said.
A statement released by the Alevis Community in Germany said the prize
planned for Erdogan would be a "slap in the face for all minorities in
Turkey."
The Greens' spokesman on migratory issues in the German Bundestag
parliament, Memet Kilic, said that, despite Turkey's quest for EU
membership, Erdogan neither promoted improved ties with Europe "nor
tolerance and religious freedoms."
Since the mid-1980s, a struggle between Turkish authorities and
Kurdish separatists has resulted in some 40,000 deaths. In recent
years, Erdogan's government has promulgated reforms, such as allowing
Kurdish language broadcasting.
On Women's Day, 8 March, Turkey's parliament passed laws aimed at
protecting women from domestic abuse while women's rights activists
highlighted patriarchal outrages, including "honor killings."
On Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan admitted that Turkey's
slow legal system often left suspects jailed for years without a
conviction. Several thousand Turkish complainants have cases pending
with the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
ipj/rc (dpa, AFP, AP, Reuters)
March 17, 2012 Saturday 9:07 AM EST
Turkish premier cancels German awards ceremony visit
Organizers of a controversial award ceremony honoring Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the German city of Bochum say he has
called off his visit to receive the award.
Organizers in the German city of Bochum, who had faced hefty criticism
over a social advancement award intended for Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday, cited Friday's Turkish helicopter
crash in Afghanistan as the reason for the cancellation.
Police in Bochum had been mobilizing for an anticipated 20,000
protestors opposed to Erdogan receiving the citation, including
minorities such as Kurds, Armenians and the Alevis religious community
critical of Turkey's recent human rights record.
The so-called Steiger Award intended for Erdogan had also drawn
condemnation from Germany's governing conservatives, the opposition
Greens and the German journalists' trade union, the DJV.
Friday's crash of a Turkish Sikorsky helicopter near Kabul killed 12
Turkish soldiers and four Afghan civilians. It was by far the
deadliest incident involving Turkish troops in Afghanistan, where they
have been assigned a noncombat role with US-led NATO forces.
Award with coal-mining ethos
The Steiger Award, reminiscent of Ruhr District's coal mining
tradition and the leadership role of pit foreman known in German as
"steiger," stems from a private initiative and honors personalities
for perceived tolerance, humanity and record of social advancement.
Award organizer Sachsa Hellen told DW on Saturday that Erdogan had
called off his trip to Germany because of the Turkish helicopter crash
in Afghanistan. The rest of the ceremony for 10 other recipients was
expected to proceed as intended. Initiated in 2005, the Steiger Award
has gone previously to Queen Silvia of Sweden, the fashion designer
Wolfgang Joop and Germany's ex-president Horst Köhler.
Organizers said they had picked Erdogan to mark 50 years of
German-Turkish friendship that began in the early 1960s with the
recruitment of what Germany then called Turkish "guest workers." Some
three million people of Turkish origin now live in Germany.
Bizarre, says Bavarian CSU
On Friday, Alexander Dobrindt, the General Secretary of Bavaria's
governing conservative Christian Social Union (CSU) - a partner in
Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition - had described the Steiger
invitation to Erdogan as "tasteless" and "bizarre."
"The gross opposite of tolerance prevails in Erdogan's country, namely
repression of religious and ethnic minorities, insufficient press
freedom and an absence of equal opportunities for women," Dobrindt
said.
A statement released by the Alevis Community in Germany said the prize
planned for Erdogan would be a "slap in the face for all minorities in
Turkey."
The Greens' spokesman on migratory issues in the German Bundestag
parliament, Memet Kilic, said that, despite Turkey's quest for EU
membership, Erdogan neither promoted improved ties with Europe "nor
tolerance and religious freedoms."
Since the mid-1980s, a struggle between Turkish authorities and
Kurdish separatists has resulted in some 40,000 deaths. In recent
years, Erdogan's government has promulgated reforms, such as allowing
Kurdish language broadcasting.
On Women's Day, 8 March, Turkey's parliament passed laws aimed at
protecting women from domestic abuse while women's rights activists
highlighted patriarchal outrages, including "honor killings."
On Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan admitted that Turkey's
slow legal system often left suspects jailed for years without a
conviction. Several thousand Turkish complainants have cases pending
with the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
ipj/rc (dpa, AFP, AP, Reuters)