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Turkish Authorities Searching for Protestors with Anti-Armenian Banners
03.07.2012 11:10 epress.am
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an has said anti-Armenian
banners unfurled during an Ä°stanbul rally held on Feb. 26 to mark the
20th anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre reflect the feeling of some
`raving racists' and not those of the Turkish people, Today's Zaman
reports.
`These banners do not reflect the feelings of Turkey but those of a
few raving racists. ¦ Necessary [legal] action has already been taken.
But it is unjust to overshadow the rally marking the massacre by a few
worthless banners. Nobody has the right to damage the image of Turkey
based on these exceptional scenes,' ErdoÄ?an said.
A group of protesters held banners and chanted racist slogans against
Armenians during the rally, which organizers said cast a shadow over
the peaceful nature of the event. The slogans caused much outrage
among the Turkish public.
A statement released by the Turkish Interior Ministry on Wednesday
said it is impossible to justify `some slogans and banners' during the
rally, referring to the offensive banners. The statement added that
legal proceedings have been launched to find these people and groups,
adding that the Ä°stanbul Governor's Office is working to identify
these people.
From: A. Papazian
03.07.2012 11:10 epress.am
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an has said anti-Armenian
banners unfurled during an Ä°stanbul rally held on Feb. 26 to mark the
20th anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre reflect the feeling of some
`raving racists' and not those of the Turkish people, Today's Zaman
reports.
`These banners do not reflect the feelings of Turkey but those of a
few raving racists. ¦ Necessary [legal] action has already been taken.
But it is unjust to overshadow the rally marking the massacre by a few
worthless banners. Nobody has the right to damage the image of Turkey
based on these exceptional scenes,' ErdoÄ?an said.
A group of protesters held banners and chanted racist slogans against
Armenians during the rally, which organizers said cast a shadow over
the peaceful nature of the event. The slogans caused much outrage
among the Turkish public.
A statement released by the Turkish Interior Ministry on Wednesday
said it is impossible to justify `some slogans and banners' during the
rally, referring to the offensive banners. The statement added that
legal proceedings have been launched to find these people and groups,
adding that the Ä°stanbul Governor's Office is working to identify
these people.
From: A. Papazian