 While paying a visit to Diyarbakır, President Abdullah Gül emphasizes that Turkey's official language is Turkish. AA photo |
Traveling to the Southeast during a period of tensions over the Kurdish issue, the president reaffirmed Thursday that Turkey’s official language is Turkish, but said other languages used in the country are also “Turkey’s languages.”
“The official language of the Republic of Turkey is Turkish. This will continue in this way. The language of the state and the public offices is Turkish, too. However, we have citizens using different languages,” President Abdullah Gül told reports in Diyarbakır on Thursday. “Kurdish is used here and there are some other citizens using Arabic in other places. All these are ours, [they are] our languages.”
Gül was warmly welcomed by a large group of citizens in the Southeast Anatolian city, where he was greeted with flowers instead of protests. Visiting the office of the governor of Diyarbakır, the president said he had visited the city two times since assuming office and that he was very pleased to be back.
“Diyarbakır is one of the most important provinces in Turkey. Diyarbakır has been the center of civilization, trade and culture throughout history. I am here to see the problems of Diyarbakır,” Gül told reporters.
The president gave his political messages regarding the recent debate over “democratic autonomy” and bilingualism while in the office of Diyarbakır Mayor Osman Baydemir. Reminding that Turkish is the official language of Turkey, he also embraced other languages used in the country. “The Constitution already protects cultural heritage. We should consider the issue in a healthy way under this framework. We should work together in a constructive, positive manner in order to solidify our country,” Gül said.
“Today, Diyarbakır is of great importance. I believe the province will further develop,” he said, emphasizing that each province in Turkey has its own characteristics. “Turkey is a big country. We are a great nation,” the president added. “We are proud of the different elements in our nation. We consider those different elements as our assets.”
Baydemir gave Gül a Turkish-Kurdish dictionary as a gift, telling the president that Turkey’s biggest problem is the Kurdish issue. “Impatience on the demands and proposals of Kurdish politicians regarding the use of mother tongues and democratic autonomy is a matter of concern,” the mayor said in his presentation to Gül, according to the Anatolia news agency.
The essence of the problem is the lack of ability to use the rights deriving from being human and a part of society, Baydemir said. “Turkey’s Kurdish problem is a constitutional and administrational democracy problem,” he said, adding that it could be solved by decentralization, democratization and a new constitution.
“We should not forget that we can only restore peace by listening to and understanding each other, and by becoming free from prejudices,” Baydemir said.
When he arrived in the city, he met the locals and those people requested “food and work,” Gül said when he spoke to businessmen in the Diyarbakır industrial zone. “Talking solely on politics is unfair to Diyarbakır,” he said.
Saying that there were prejudices toward Diyarbakır, Gül said, “If you want to attract investment, the image of this city should not be harmed.”
“Diyarbakır should show off its investment potential. The potential of the western part of the country is already full. Diyarbakır could be the trade center of Mesopotamia. We should solve problems in a constructive way and take Diyarbakır back to its prosperous days,” he said.
Gül was scheduled to meet with civil-society representatives from Diyarbakır at a dinner when the Daily News went to press.
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