Dèsîŗĕ Yèarning
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Post by Dèsîŗĕ Yèarning on Mar 20, 2011 21:40:52 GMT -5
Thousands gathered in Kazlıçeşme in Istanbul’s Zeytinburnu district Sunday to celebrate Nevruz, a festival that marks the beginning of spring, with Kurdish songs and the dance known as the halay. The area for the festivities, organized by the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party, or BDP, was draped in yellow, red and green flags and many participants chanted slogans praising Nevruz and Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Speakers addressing the crowd spoke in both Turkish and Kurdish as police kept a close eye on revelers, who included BDP co-leader Selahattin Demirtaş, BDP Istanbul deputies Ufuk Uras and Sebahat Tuncel, and the outlawed PKK leader’s brother, Mehmet Öcalan. Police were out in full force for the celebrations in Kazlıçeşme and were also on hand to prevent impromptu, unsanctioned Nevruz celebrations from breaking out around the city. Taking stringent measures before and during the celebration, officers prevented people from carrying Öcalan posters into the area cordoned off for festivities. Some conflicts took place between police and participants who did not want to be searched while entering the festival area. In his speech at the Kazlıçeşme festival, Demirtaş criticized the government for taking what he called an aggressive attitude toward the BDP. “Keeping their votes and keeping their seats comes before peace and democracy for them,” he said. “There is no slavery worse than considering oneself ‘free’ in a country where there is no freedom,” said Uras. Celebrations ahead of the March 21 Nevruz holiday, the official new year in Iran and a spring rite in many parts of the Middle East and Turkic republics, were also held in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır and the eastern province of Erzurum. The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.
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Post by nilofer on Mar 21, 2011 9:23:10 GMT -5
I don't like how Newroz has been turned into some political statement - especially among Kurds from Turkey. Newroz is the marking of Spring, as it says in the article, I don't udnerstand why anyone would bring Öcalan and PKK into it ... Anyway, happy Newroz . It really is the perfect day for the occassion . This is what I've been doing all morning - setting this traditional table up at my mother-in-law's house:
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Dèsîŗĕ Yèarning
Senior Moderator
Simarik Turkish Pwincess
Know yourself...
Posts: 3,563
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Post by Dèsîŗĕ Yèarning on Mar 21, 2011 10:18:27 GMT -5
Beautiful table. and yes its spring...
sadly in Turkey not just the PKK but almost every single political/ideological group uses unpolitical gatherings to shout their message out.
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Post by oszkarthehun on Mar 24, 2011 6:25:31 GMT -5
Beautiful table. and yes its spring... sadly in Turkey not just the PKK but almost every single political/ideological group uses unpolitical gatherings to shout their message out. Wow didnt know Nevruz was a custom of Turkey thought was an Iranian/Persian practice.
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Post by coris on Mar 24, 2011 11:27:26 GMT -5
Beautiful table. and yes its spring... sadly in Turkey not just the PKK but almost every single political/ideological group uses unpolitical gatherings to shout their message out. Wow didnt know Nevruz was a custom of Turkey thought was an Iranian/Persian practice. actually as far as I know the Turkic tribes in central asia used to celebrate nevroz waaaay before turks converted to islam. I think some people say that nevroz is the day when turks "melted to mountain ranges and freed themselves from centuries of slavery" according to a turkish legend. However I think its mostly a pagan tradition that marks the beginning of spring. Similar days can be found in many different cultures around these months.
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Dèsîŗĕ Yèarning
Senior Moderator
Simarik Turkish Pwincess
Know yourself...
Posts: 3,563
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Post by Dèsîŗĕ Yèarning on Mar 25, 2011 4:31:54 GMT -5
Nevruz is celebrated by Turks, however not as a "New Year" which I think thats how its celebrated in Iran. In Turkey and Turkic countries its celebrated as the start of spring, most probably a pagan tradition.
Its not actually as big a deal to people in Turkey as it is in Iran, but It is quite major in other central asian Turk countries.
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Post by hellboy87 on Mar 26, 2011 9:00:06 GMT -5
Hellboy the arsehole
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