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In this mailing:
by Uzay Bulut
• October 18, 2015 at 5:00 am
- Just after the
bombing attack in Ankara, Turkish authorities said that the Islamic
State (ISIS) was responsible. But in response, Turkish jets did not
bomb ISIS; they bombed the Kurdish PKK, who are fighting ISIS.
- Where were the
special forces and the police, so quick to shoot Kurds but not
protect them? The police delayed medical help, and instead attacked
with tear gas the people that were helping the wounded, in an effort
to disperse them.
- "The PKK
ceasefire means nothing for us. The operations will continue without
a break." -- Senior Turkish security official.
- "Ankara is
the capital of Turkey. If a bird flies here, the state knows about
it. ... There was a rally of 100,000 people but no security
precautions were taken. Look at their own rallies: the security
precautions start 10 streets away." -- Selahattin Demirtas,
co-chairman of the Kurdish HDP Party.
- Many massacres
have been carried out against the Kurds. None of the perpetrators
has ever been punished -- in those massacres, the planners were the
state authorities themselves.
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At least 105 people were killed and more than 400
wounded in the Oct. 10 Ankara suicide bombings. For a long time after
the explosions, neither police nor ambulances came to the scene --
victims were left to fend for themselves. When police arrived, they
fired tear gas at the wounded and those helping them.
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On October 10, the Kurds in Turkey were exposed to yet another
massacre – this time a double suicide bombing in Ankara, the capital of
Turkey, in the center of town.
This time, two explosions ripped through a peaceful crowd that had
gathered outside the entrance to Ankara's central railway station to
proclaim an end to violence in a "Labor, Peace and Democracy"
rally.
Together with the Kurds were officials from the pro-Kurdish Peoples'
Democratic Party (HDP); supporters of left-wing parties, and members of trade
unions in Turkey -- all calling for peace and democracy.[1]
At least 105 people were killed, according to the Turkish Medical
Association, and more than 400 injured.[2]
One victim, Meryem Bulut, was a 70-year-old member of the
"Saturday Mothers" group, who have protested about their
missing sons and daughters since the 1990s. Her grandchild died last year
fighting against ISIS in the Yazidi town of Sinjar, Iraq.
by George Phillips
• October 18, 2015 at 4:00 am
- Berta Soler and
the other "Ladies in White" have been ignored by the Obama
Administration -- bypassed year after year. These and countless
other brave women who are also human rights leaders -- often falsely
accused of crimes, and who are currently suffering in Iranian
prisons -- should be recognized as Women of Courage, but remain
sidelined by the U.S. government, the media, and most notably by
women's groups.
- Why are we not
only failing to help them, but instead washing our hands of them?
- Disingenuously,
Obama keeps repeating that his deal will "prevent" Iran
from acquiring nuclear weapons -- when the deal clearly empowers
Iran to get them.
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After 75 human rights activists and journalists were
sent to prison by the Cuban government in 2003, Berta Soler (left)
formed "Ladies in White" with the female relatives of the
political prisoners. At right: Cuban dissident Digna Rodriquez Ibañez,
a member of Ladies in White, was pelted with tar by agents of the Cuban
regime, in February 2015.
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Pope Francis, on his recent trip to Cuba, failed to embrace publicly
the world famous "Ladies in White" ("Damas de
Blanco") -- the wives and relatives of Cuba's jailed dissidents.
"Ladies in White" was formed by Berta Soler in 2003 after
75 human rights activists and journalists were sent to prison by the
Cuban government. The men in their family had been jailed for being
activists. The "Ladies in White" were peacefully calling for
their release.
This year, for twenty straight Sundays between April and August,
members of the "Ladies in White" were arrested as well -- for
leading protests against the Castro regime for having imprisoned their
family members and for suppressing human rights.
These women have also been routinely harassed and beaten during
their peaceful efforts to stand for freedom.
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