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The Grand Turk
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan eyes united front against PKK
2011-10-22
[Hurriyet Daily News] Unity between political parties, NGOs and the public against terrorism is the solution to the ongoing conflict in Turkey, says PM Erdoğan
The call for anti-Israelism clearly not being enough to unite the Turks behind their Leader, another is being sought.
All of Turkey's parties and nongovernmental organizations should unite against terrorism just like Spain did against ETA, which declared an end to a half-century of armed struggle for a separate Basque state on Oct. 21, Turkey's prime minister has said.

"My dear friend Spanish Prime Minister [Jose Luis Rodrigues] Zapatero said in his statement that this was an achievement made possible by the joint stance of the ruling and opposition parties," Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told the Hak-İş Trade Union Confederation's annual convention on Oct. 21, in reference to the outlawed Basque Homeland and Freedom (ETA) group. "Therefore I call on all our political parties and nongovernmental organizations: Let's take steps together to produce a common mind to solve this problem.
"I know! Let's put on a play in the old barn!" is about what that feels like, but perhaps I'm missing the subtleties.
If we fail to do so, this process could last longer."

Erdoğan's call came on the second day of the military's cross-border incursion into northern Iraq in retaliation for an Oct. 19 raid by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party's (PKK) that killed 24 troops and injured 18 in the eastern province of Hakkari. The attack was one of the deadliest launched by the group in close to two decades.

Despite massive calls from the public and the media, political parties are still failing to find the common ground needed to end Turkey's terror problem, Erdoğan said, noting that they instead continue to criticize each other's policies in the strongest possible terms.

A delegation from 13 different NGOs and professional organizations, including the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), paid visits to party leaders, including Erdoğan and President Abdullah Gül, to both express support and make a call for unity. "It's the day to act in unity for a strong and peaceful Turkey," TOBB's head Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu told news hounds Oct. 21.
Posted by:Fred

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