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Majority Backs Turkish President Gül’s Plans For Solution To Kurdish Question
26 June 2009
A considerable portion of the Turkish nation backs President Abdullah Gül's views on the solution to the long-standing Kurdish question, which has caused great misery for both Kurds and Turks in the country since it turned violent with the rise of a terrorist organization, the latest results of a monthly opinion poll have shown. The Ankara-based MetroPOLL Strategic and Social Research Center conducted a survey on the new direction of Turkish internal politics. The lead question of the survey was on the stance of President Gül on solutions to the Kurdish issue. During an official visit to Damascus in May, Gül appealed to opposition parties and the country's intellectuals to make positive contributions to the process of resolving the Kurdish question. He subsequently said it might be too late to resolve the issue if Turkey continues to waste time. Almost 50 percent of participants in the survey said they found Gül's stance on the Kurdish issue positive. Thirty percent called the stance of the president negative and around 20 percent said they had no opinion. Gül's statement was interpreted by analysts and intellectuals as a pioneering step towards completing a previously failed attempt by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) to resolve the Kurdish problem, which turned violent in 1984 with attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). More than 40,000 people have so far been killed in clashes between Turkish security forces and separatist terrorists. Respondents were also asked about Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's refusal to hold a meeting with members of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP). Fifty-one percent said they appreciated Erdogan for refusing to meet with DTP members. Thirty-seven percent said they found Erdogan's position wrong. Earlier this month, the prime minister complained that when he was ready to meet with the DTP, news arrived that several soldiers had been killed. “We are calling on them to label the PKK a terrorist organization, but they defend terrorists. They are making it even more difficult,” he stated. Asked whether the DTP should define the PKK as a terrorist organization to help with the solution to the Kurdish question, more than 61 percent replied “yes,” while only 32.5 percent replied “no.” Another important question directed at participants concerned a controversial ruling by an Ankara court, which said Gül should stand trial in a decade-old fraud case. Nearly 60 percent said it was an incorrect ruling while 31.8 percent backed it. Participants of the survey were, however, divided into two camps over a highly debated bill on clearing land mines along the Syrian border that passed earlier this month. The bill sparked heated discussions, as it may allow foreign companies to demine the country's border with Syria. While 45 percent said they backed the bill, 44.9 percent said they did not. The remaining 10.1 percent declined to comment. Asked whether Hüsamettin Cindoruk, who was elected as the new Democrat Party (DP) leader in May, would contribute to an increase in his party's share of votes, 66.5 percent replied “no,” while 20.3 percent replied “yes.” Participants were also asked whether the DP and the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN) should merge. Around 40 percent said the two parties should merge, and 37.3 percent said they should not. Questioned about US President Barack Obama's credibility in his messages of peace, 56.6 percent said they didn't find him credible, while only 34.4 percent said they found him credible. Fifty-two percent said relations between the United States and Muslim world would improve following the election of Obama as the new US leader. Thirty-two percent said they didn't expect a change in relations, while 9 percent said relations would further deteriorate. The poll was conducted from June 12-20 by telephone among a random national sampling of 1,282 adults residing in cities, towns and villages. The margin of error for the overall poll was 2.75 percentage points, with a 95 percent confidence level
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