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Kurds march in London for Ocalan and Peace

Peter Marshall | 18.02.2008 12:38 | Repression | London | World

Roughly a thousand Kurds took part in a march in North London on Friday 15th Feb, calling for the release of Abdullah Ocalan and for peace in Kurdistan. The march marked the 9th anniversary of his illegal kidnapping in Kenya.
Pictures are copyright: (C) Peter Marshall - all rights reserved.

Police at the head of the march
Police at the head of the march

Marchers with placards
Marchers with placards


Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the PKK, (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan - the Kurdish Workers Party) was kidnapped in Nairobi on 15 Feb 1999 in an operation involving the CIA, the Turkish intelligence agency (and possibly the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad,) and flown back to Turkey where he was sentenced to death (later commuted to life imprisonment) in a military trial.

Since then he has been in solitary confinement, the only prisoner on Imrali, an island in the Sea of Marmara, guarded by over a thousand soldiers.

Although the PKK is listed by many countries as a terrorist organisation, and over 37,000 are thought to have died in the conflict between them and the Turkish authorities, since his arrest Ocalan has called for an end to terrorist operations by the PKK and a peaceful solution to the Kurdish problem.

As one of the banners from the FED-BiR (Kurdish Federation) put it: "Abdullah Ocalan is the Political Will of the Kurdish People." Many of the demonstrators wore T-shirts with his picture and the message "Free Ocalan - Peace in Kurdistan" and some carried banners and flags with his image on them and one man a large framed portrait of him.

The march went through areas of north London with a strong Turkish presence and the police were obviously worried at the possibility of conflict, providing a strong presence. I only went with them for the first mile or so of the march from Dalston to a rally in Wood Green, and although some Turks on the street stopped to watch I heard no comments. Last November there was a large march in Central London by the Turkish community calling for an end to support for the PKK from groups aided by the British govenernment. ( see  http://mylondondiary.co.uk/2007/11/nov.htm#pkkout )

More pictures of Friday's march at:
 http://mylondondiary.co.uk/2008/02/feb.htm#kurds

Peter Marshall
- e-mail: petermarshall@cix.co.uk
- Homepage: http://mylondondiary.co.uk/2008/02/feb.htm#kurds

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KRG Launches New Publication "The Kurdistan Region: Invest in the Future"

18.02.2008 15:02

The Kurdistan Region - Invest in the Future (PDF file) - application/pdf 4.8M


“The Kurdistan Region is open and ready for business” was the theme outlined by speakers before hundreds of potential investors at the launch of The Kurdistan Region: Invest in the Future publication at the headquarters of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

The 194-page publication provides a detailed, sweeping guide to the politics, culture and investment opportunities available in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and includes a directory that contains a useful series of economic data, travel tips as well as contact information for organizations interested in operating in the region.

“Today in Kurdistan, there are a multitude of paths to investment and prosperity. Opportunity lies in many different sectors of our new economy and I urge you all to take a good look at what our publication outlines,” Qubad Talabani, the Washington based representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government, told the attendees. “Kurdistan is the safest place in Iraq and is undergoing an economic boom because of its stability.”

Officials from the Chamber joined with those from the U.S. Department of Commerce and experts and scholars on Iraq and Kurdistan to hail the new publication and tout the investment opportunities now available in what they called the new economic engine of the region.

“This region of Iraq is a shining example of how commerce breeds peace, prosperity, and opportunity” said LTG (Ret) Daniel W. Christman, senior vice president for international affairs at the Chamber of Commerce. “This new publication shows everyone—from investors to tourists to friends around the world—how they can participate in strengthening the Kurdistan Region’s democracy.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is a strong supporter of, and driving force behind, the U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue sponsored by the Department of Commerce. It has worked on developing a roadmap on how to strengthen the economic and commercial relationship between the United States and Iraq. The Chamber has pledged to continue to champion efforts to improve the visa process so that Iraqi business people can come to the U.S. to meet with their counterparts, highlight credible business opportunities in Iraq, and continue to support the efforts of the U.S.-Iraq Business Dialogue.

Talabani was joined by Dr. Brendan O’Leary, International Constitutional expert and director of the Solomon Asch Center at the University of Pennsylvania; Gen. Jay Garner (Ret.), former director, Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance for Iraq, and Gabriel Pellathy, Chief of Staff, U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service, Commerce Department.

Copies of the publication are available by through the KRG Washington office and online at: www.krg.org/s/?s=13

Contact:
Tom Squitieri, +1.202.637.2496/ +1.202.257.7984.
Tom.Squitieri(at)krg.org

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