Kurdish TV on air, but more needed

Turkish Daily News
Thursday, March 23, 2006

ANKARA - TDN with wire services

Two private regional television channels and a radio station will start limited Kurdish-language broadcasts for the first time in Turkey today.

"After many bureaucratic setbacks, we have finally won the right to broadcast in Kurdish," said Cemal Doğan, the head of Gün TV, one of the channels that will air programs in Kurdish.

The start of the broadcasts is seen by most Kurds as a first step toward paving the way for more comprehensive reforms on the Kurdish issue.

The leading pro-Kurdish party, the Democratic Society Party (DTP), wants a general amnesty, more cultural rights and autonomy for the Kurds and a lowering of the 10 percent threshold required to win seats in the Turkish Parliament.