FED: Kurdish group vows protests will continue

AAP General News (Australia)
02-17-1999
FED: Kurdish group vows protests will continue

SYDNEY, Feb 17 AAP - Australian protests against the arrest of Kurdish rebel leader
Abdullah Ocalan would continue until he was released, the Australian Kurdish Association (AKA)
said today.

AKA spokesman Aytac Ulutas said the majority of the world's 40 million Kurds recognised
Ocalan, handed over by Greek officials to authorities in Kenya yesterday, as their leader.

Mr Ulutas' comments follows violent demonstrations at Greek consulate-general buildings in
Sydney and Melbourne earlier today.

"As long as the international community is ignorant towards the situation we will do
everything in our rights and everything in our power to let them know about our struggle and
what we are fighting for," he told ABC-TV news.

"There is a Kurdish problem that exists on this earth and there's 40 million people without
a country, without their right to speak their own language who are fighting for their own
human rights."

He said Ocalan had been taken to Turkey, where he is regarded as a traitor and terrorist,
and now faced execution by the Turkish government.

"Until he is released by the Turkish government these demonstrations will definitely go
on," he said.

AAP shm/tsm pa

KEYWORD: OCALAN AUST KURDS

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