Atatürkist Thought Association decries Kurdish-language TV

The ADD, headed by retired Gen. Şener Eruygur, a suspect in the Ergenekon trial who was released pending trial for health reasons, has released a written statement saying that the organization is not comfortable with the broadcasting on TRT 6. Released in the name of the ADD’s executive board, the statement reads: “[The ADD] strongly condemns the move by the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation [TRT], an official institution of the Turkish Republic, in establishing a separate channel called TRT to broadcast in Kurdish, and calls for authorities to immediately end the broadcasting.” The statement notes that the official language of the republic is Turkish and says the tie between citizens and the state stems from everyone being a Turk.

Referring to the words of the founder of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, wherein he said, “The people who founded the Turkish Republic are called the Turkish people,” the statement continues: “Learning Turkish, speaking Turkish and being educated in Turkish is a citizen’s responsibility. With the Kurdish broadcast channel, the TRT will play into the hands of those domestic and international powers who want to divide and ruin our country. We invite our people and administrators to see that Kurdish broadcasting, Kurdish language and literature departments, the Kurdish Institute, an autonomous region, a federation and an independent Kurdish state are all phases of a game. We strongly decry attempts by the [Higher Education Board] YÖK to establish Kurdish language and literature departments even as there are serious higher education problems in our country. The ADD will forever remain bound to the secular, democratic, social republic that the great leader Atatürk established, the unitary structure of the state and its indivisible entirety, and we will continue the ideological battle for this purpose. How happy is he who calls himself a Turk.”

The ADD is not alone in its opposition to TRT 6 broadcasting, with the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) continuing negative propaganda about the channel and opposition parties the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) also expressing negativity.