Political Intolerance in Turkey

The new troubles revolve around a June gathering of the People's Democracy Party, a legal Kurdish party that advocates a political solution to the conflict and attracted 1.2 million votes in the last elections. During the party convention in Ankara, an un identified man wearing a burnoose cut down the Turkish flag and raised the flag of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or P.K.K., the Kurdish guerrilla group outlawed by the Government.

The flag substitution set off a furor around the country as Turkish television repeatedly replayed the incident. People's Democracy Party officials expressed regret, but the damage was done. The morning after, 49 party officials were detained and later th at day the police began raids on various party offices, where according to the Government, they found P.K.K. propaganda. Three party members traveling home from the convention were ambushed and killed. The man who yanked down the flag has not been caught.

On June 26, Sirri Sakik, a Kurdish Politician who walked out of the conference to protest the incident, was arrested for allegedly saying, "People who desire that a certain respect be paid to their own flags should also be respectful of others' flags." Th e Government claims that Mr. Sakik's statement implies the Turkish Flag is not his flag, which would be a violation of Turkey's anti-terrorism laws. Several detained officials have been released, but the remaining 28, including Mr. Sakik, await trial.

It seem unlikely that the People's Democracy Party would disrupt its own convention and in doing so commit political suicide. Kurdish officials know they must step lightly, as 89 members of Kurdish parties have been killed since 1990 and the Government ha s frequently banned Kurdish political organizations.

Even if a People's Democracy Party member were responsible for removing the flag, the Government's reaction would be disproportionate. But no one knows who disrupted the convention. Nor is the alleged possession of P.K.K. literature a reason for a crackdo wn on a legal party and its members in a democratic country.

The People's Democracy Party representatives should be released. The repression of peaceful advocates of the Kurdish cause tramples on civil liberties and polarized Turkish politics. If the People's Democracy Party is dissolved, it will fuel both sides in this bitter war. The Government will have closed an organization hard-liners accuse of working for the P.K.K. The P.K.K. will have scored a propaganda victory and lost its competitor for Kurdish support.