 The investigation began after road signs with Turkish place names and their Kurdish equivalents in parentheses were erected on some southeastern highways. DHA photo |
Prosecutors in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır have chosen not to proceed with charges into a series of bilingual road signs erected by the local municipality, Doğan news agency, or DHA, reported Thursday.
Posting road signs in both Turkish and Kurdish does not contravene a law governing the usage of Turkish lettering, prosecutors said after examining a criminal complaint filed by the Diyarbakır Governor’s Office.
“Instead of the Arabic letters previously used for writing Turkish, Latin letters shall be used,” the relevant law states, according to the agency.
Thus, while the law bans the use of the Arabic script on road signs, the prosecutor’s office said erecting signs with Kurdish lettering in Latin script did not constitute a contravention of regulations. A fine can only be imposed for irregularities in the billboards’ posting, the office added.
The investigation was begun after the road signs with Turkish place names and their Kurdish equivalents in parentheses below were erected along the Diyarbakır-Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır-Mardin and Diyarbakır-Elazığ highways. The governing Peace and Democracy, or BDP, had put up the bilingual signs, saying they did not contravene the law on lettering.
Afterward, the Diyarbakır Governor’s Office filed a criminal complaint with the Diyarkabır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, saying the right to use both Turkish and Kurdish languages on road signs was solely the prerogative of the provincial administration, not the municipality.
Trilingual calendar in Mersin
Meanwhile, Akdeniz Municipality in the Mediterranean province of Mersin has published a 2011 calendar printed in Turkish, Kurdish and Arabic, Anatolia news agency reported Thursday.
The calendar, sent to officials and distributed to citizens, also includes pictures of artifacts symbolizing the city. While the month and day names were written in Turkish, Kurdish and Arabic, the pages also contain the slogan “Equal Service to Everybody and Every Section” in Turkish and Kurdish.
“Because we represent Turkish, Kurdish and Arab citizens living here, we naturally used three of the languages common to our community while preparing the calendar. If in the area where we serve there were five or seven more ethnic groups, we would have increased the number of languages in our calendar,” said BDP Deputy Mayor Hüseyin Gür.
Noting that they had yet to receive any negative feedback on the calendar from people living in the area, Gür said the endeavor had made people happy since those from different ethnic backgrounds felt acknowledged by municipal officials.
“As an ethnic Turkish person, I don’t feel any discomfort [in having a calendar that includes other local languages]. Our work has received especially positive remarks from our Arab-heritage citizens,” said Gür. The calendar will be distributed in the next few days.
Posting road signs in both Turkish and Kurdish does not contravene a law governing the usage of Turkish lettering, prosecutors said after examining a criminal complaint filed by the Diyarbakır Governor’s Office.
“Instead of the Arabic letters previously used for writing Turkish, Latin letters shall be used,” the relevant law states, according to the agency.
Thus, while the law bans the use of the Arabic script on road signs, the prosecutor’s office said erecting signs with Kurdish lettering in Latin script did not constitute a contravention of regulations. A fine can only be imposed for irregularities in the billboards’ posting, the office added.
The investigation was begun after the road signs with Turkish place names and their Kurdish equivalents in parentheses below were erected along the Diyarbakır-Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır-Mardin and Diyarbakır-Elazığ highways. The governing Peace and Democracy, or BDP, had put up the bilingual signs, saying they did not contravene the law on lettering.
Afterward, the Diyarbakır Governor’s Office filed a criminal complaint with the Diyarkabır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, saying the right to use both Turkish and Kurdish languages on road signs was solely the prerogative of the provincial administration, not the municipality.
Trilingual calendar in Mersin
Meanwhile, Akdeniz Municipality in the Mediterranean province of Mersin has published a 2011 calendar printed in Turkish, Kurdish and Arabic, Anatolia news agency reported Thursday.
The calendar, sent to officials and distributed to citizens, also includes pictures of artifacts symbolizing the city. While the month and day names were written in Turkish, Kurdish and Arabic, the pages also contain the slogan “Equal Service to Everybody and Every Section” in Turkish and Kurdish.
“Because we represent Turkish, Kurdish and Arab citizens living here, we naturally used three of the languages common to our community while preparing the calendar. If in the area where we serve there were five or seven more ethnic groups, we would have increased the number of languages in our calendar,” said BDP Deputy Mayor Hüseyin Gür.
Noting that they had yet to receive any negative feedback on the calendar from people living in the area, Gür said the endeavor had made people happy since those from different ethnic backgrounds felt acknowledged by municipal officials.
“As an ethnic Turkish person, I don’t feel any discomfort [in having a calendar that includes other local languages]. Our work has received especially positive remarks from our Arab-heritage citizens,” said Gür. The calendar will be distributed in the next few days.
No comments:
Post a Comment