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Anger Turns to Protest Against Erdogan's Visit to France
By Fiona Guitard on November 1, 2014
Special for the Armenian Weekly
PARIS (A.W.)-French President François Hollande received Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Oct. 31. Erdogan decided to fly to
Paris after Hollande's decision to support the Kurds in the ISIS
attack on Kobani was made clear.
Around 40 people congregated near the exit of the "Invalides" subway
stop at 2 p.m. Some protesters held signs, others spoke to
journalists. Proud, angry, they all shouted slogans such as "Political
solutions for Kurdistan," "Erdogan, murderer," and "Stop fascism in
Turkey." The crowd grew by mid-afternoon, while voices became louder.
Proud, angry, they all shouted slogans such as 'Political solutions
for Kurdistan,' 'Erdogan, murderer,' and 'Stop fascism in Turkey.'
(Photo by Fiona Guitard)
Still, for Sergul, 48, it was disappointing that more people had not
joined the protest. "We are not many today, but we are used to it. We
won't give up. We are here, in Paris. But for a few of us, our
families are in Kurdistan, and some have family members in Kobani. We
can't believe that the French President is welcoming Erdogan. He is a
murderer. He allows these attacks on Kobani and worse, he supports
Daesh [ISIS]. The world can't turn a blind eye anymore to that man and
the politics he runs," said Sergul.
Sylvie Jan from the association France-Kurdistan just came back from
Turkey, where she witnessed from a hill what was taking place on the
Kobani border. "There are Turkish military tanks and Turkish
servicemen with arms crossed. It is obvious that France and the world
have to take a position. The refugee situation is precarious. We are
here to tell François Hollande, 'Do not give up in front of the
Turkish government who chose to support Daesh. You should not put the
Kurdish people on the discussion table, and second to your economic
policy. Do not choose money over human beings. Send a sign of dignity
to the world,'" she said.
'I came here today to show you the support of the Armenian community
of France. [The Armenian community] feels strongly about the Kurdish
struggle, and their right to exist.' (Photo by Fiona Guitard)
For Ara Toranian, from Nouvelles d'Armenie, it is important that the
Kurds know that they are not alone in the struggle, and that they have
the support of the Armenian community. "I came here today to show you
the support of the Armenian community of France. We feel strongly
about the Kurdish struggle, and their right to exist. We want to
express our disgust at Erdogan's visit. He is received with all the
honors by the French government. He still has a denialist policy
toward the Armenian Genocide. Erdogan just watches people be
massacred. We are here to tell Hollande to be careful of the duplicity
of the Turkish authorities, who specialize in blackmail and lies on
the international scene," said Toranian.
In their call to demonstrate, the Democratic Council of Kurds in
France said it was inadmissible that France listens to "a criminal
state that supports Daesh and that prevented--until recently--the
transiting of humanitarian and military aid to Kobani, with the aim of
suffocating the resistance." With this demonstration, they also hope
that France will provide weapons and humanitarian assistance to
Kobani.
A scene from the protest (photo by Fiona Guitard)
It has been more than a month that the Kurds and their allies stage
demonstrations all around Europe to denounce the massacres in Kobani,
to alert to the need of weapons to fight Daesh, and for medical
support for the refugees. During their meeting, Erdogan told Hollande
that he blames the international coalition for concentrating its
attacks on Kobani, saying that other cities are also facing the
Islamic State. He also said that there was almost no one left in
Kobani except fighters, redirecting Hollande's attention to Aleppo.
Hollande reportedly responded, "Mister Erdogan is right. There are
other cities which are also threatened by Daesh. The most important
city is Aleppo." Hollande also confirmed his trust in Turkey to
Erdogan, saying, "Even if there is no population left in Kobani, it is
very important to bring to the city the necessary reinforcements, and
we trust Turkey to do it."
Fiona Guitard filed this report from Paris for the Armenian Weekly.
http://armenianweekly.com/2014/11/01/protest-erdogan-france/
By Fiona Guitard on November 1, 2014
Special for the Armenian Weekly
PARIS (A.W.)-French President François Hollande received Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Oct. 31. Erdogan decided to fly to
Paris after Hollande's decision to support the Kurds in the ISIS
attack on Kobani was made clear.
Around 40 people congregated near the exit of the "Invalides" subway
stop at 2 p.m. Some protesters held signs, others spoke to
journalists. Proud, angry, they all shouted slogans such as "Political
solutions for Kurdistan," "Erdogan, murderer," and "Stop fascism in
Turkey." The crowd grew by mid-afternoon, while voices became louder.
Proud, angry, they all shouted slogans such as 'Political solutions
for Kurdistan,' 'Erdogan, murderer,' and 'Stop fascism in Turkey.'
(Photo by Fiona Guitard)
Still, for Sergul, 48, it was disappointing that more people had not
joined the protest. "We are not many today, but we are used to it. We
won't give up. We are here, in Paris. But for a few of us, our
families are in Kurdistan, and some have family members in Kobani. We
can't believe that the French President is welcoming Erdogan. He is a
murderer. He allows these attacks on Kobani and worse, he supports
Daesh [ISIS]. The world can't turn a blind eye anymore to that man and
the politics he runs," said Sergul.
Sylvie Jan from the association France-Kurdistan just came back from
Turkey, where she witnessed from a hill what was taking place on the
Kobani border. "There are Turkish military tanks and Turkish
servicemen with arms crossed. It is obvious that France and the world
have to take a position. The refugee situation is precarious. We are
here to tell François Hollande, 'Do not give up in front of the
Turkish government who chose to support Daesh. You should not put the
Kurdish people on the discussion table, and second to your economic
policy. Do not choose money over human beings. Send a sign of dignity
to the world,'" she said.
'I came here today to show you the support of the Armenian community
of France. [The Armenian community] feels strongly about the Kurdish
struggle, and their right to exist.' (Photo by Fiona Guitard)
For Ara Toranian, from Nouvelles d'Armenie, it is important that the
Kurds know that they are not alone in the struggle, and that they have
the support of the Armenian community. "I came here today to show you
the support of the Armenian community of France. We feel strongly
about the Kurdish struggle, and their right to exist. We want to
express our disgust at Erdogan's visit. He is received with all the
honors by the French government. He still has a denialist policy
toward the Armenian Genocide. Erdogan just watches people be
massacred. We are here to tell Hollande to be careful of the duplicity
of the Turkish authorities, who specialize in blackmail and lies on
the international scene," said Toranian.
In their call to demonstrate, the Democratic Council of Kurds in
France said it was inadmissible that France listens to "a criminal
state that supports Daesh and that prevented--until recently--the
transiting of humanitarian and military aid to Kobani, with the aim of
suffocating the resistance." With this demonstration, they also hope
that France will provide weapons and humanitarian assistance to
Kobani.
A scene from the protest (photo by Fiona Guitard)
It has been more than a month that the Kurds and their allies stage
demonstrations all around Europe to denounce the massacres in Kobani,
to alert to the need of weapons to fight Daesh, and for medical
support for the refugees. During their meeting, Erdogan told Hollande
that he blames the international coalition for concentrating its
attacks on Kobani, saying that other cities are also facing the
Islamic State. He also said that there was almost no one left in
Kobani except fighters, redirecting Hollande's attention to Aleppo.
Hollande reportedly responded, "Mister Erdogan is right. There are
other cities which are also threatened by Daesh. The most important
city is Aleppo." Hollande also confirmed his trust in Turkey to
Erdogan, saying, "Even if there is no population left in Kobani, it is
very important to bring to the city the necessary reinforcements, and
we trust Turkey to do it."
Fiona Guitard filed this report from Paris for the Armenian Weekly.
http://armenianweekly.com/2014/11/01/protest-erdogan-france/