FIFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE EU TURKEY AND THE KURDS

FIFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE EU, TURKEY AND THE KURDS
Leyla Zana
Leyla Zana is a Turkish politician of Kurdish origin. She was the first Kurdish woman
to win a seat in the Turkish parliament in 1991. She was imprisoned for speaking
Kurdish in the Turkish Parliament after taking her parliamentary oath and for her
political actions which were considered against the unity of Turkey.
Although her parliamentary immunity protected her, after she joined the Democracy
Party, that party was banned and her immunity was stripped. In December
1994, along with four other Democracy Party MPs (Hatip Dicle, Selim Sadak and
Orhan Dogan), she was arrested and charged with treason and membership in the
armed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The treason charges were not put before the
court, and Zana denied PKK affiliation; but with the prosecution relying on witness
statements allegedly obtained under torture, Zana and the others were sentenced to
15 years in prison. She was recognized as a “Prisoner of Conscience” by Amnesty
International. In 1994 she was awarded the Rafto Prize, and in 1995, was awarded
the Sakharov Prize by the European parliament. She also won the Bruno Kreisky
Award. In 1998 her sentence was extended because of a letter she had written that
was published in a Kurdish newspaper, which allegedly expressed banned pro-separatist
views. While in prison she published a book titled Writings from Prison. She
was released from prison in 2004. Zana is currently active in human rights issues and
politics in Turkey.
Yasar Kemal
Yasar Kemal was born in 1923 in the village of Hemite belonging to the city of Osmaniye.
After being forced to leave school towards the end of his secondary education
he worked as a labourer, water boy on a rice field and other jobs including a
librarian. His first poems were published in magazines such as Ulke, Kovan, Millet
and Bespinar. He moves to Istanbul in the year of 1951. He started to write jokes and
interviews for Cumhuriyet newspaper. His first novel, Ince Memed, was published
in 1955. Between the years of 1955 to 1984 he has 33 published books consisting of
novels, tales, interviews and compositions. He is seen worthy of the globally renown
Del Duca award in 1982 and receives a diploma from France’s Legion D’Honneur. In
29 years he becomes well known for his work.
Luisa Morgantini
Studied industrial sociology and economics at Ruskin College, Oxford (1967-1968).
Clerical worker (1954-1958); INCA-CGIL social worker (1958-1964); teacher of
adults at la Società Umanitaria (1969-1970).Trade union leader of the FLM (mechanical
engineering workers’ union) for Fim-Cisl. Official responsible for training
(1971-1974); member of the secretariat in Milan dealing with the telecommunications
and press sector (1974-1985). National official responsible for international re-
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