B3-0341/94

Resolution on the situation of Christians in Kurdistan

The European Parliament,

A.alarmed at the increasing number of acts of violence committed against the Christian minority both by the Turkish security forces fighting the PKK in Turkish Kurdistan and the PKK itself and by Kurdish Muslim fundamentalists in northern Iraq,

B.stressing that the UN-supervised safe haven in northern Iraq is intended to ensure the survival of Kurds and Christians alike,

C.noting that an estimated 180 000 Christians still live in the border area between Syria, Iran, Iraq and Turkey but that in south-east Turkey alone their numbers have fallen from 200 000 to 3 000,

D.having regard to the particularly difficult situation of Christians in Kurdistan, who are exposed to two-fold discrimination, on the one hand as Kurds and on the other as the Christian minority,

E.whereas many Kurds in Kurdistan who are open to dialogue are distancing themselves from the radical PKK Party,

1.Condemns the acts of violence committed against the Christian minority remaining in Kurdistan, including assassination attempts against priests, attacks on churches and religious schools and the expulsion of whole communities from their traditional settlement areas;

2.Condemns the violent attitude adopted by fanatical Muslim forces in Kurdistan and by the militant radical marxist-orientated PKK towards the Christian minority;

3.Calls on Turkey to refrain from using paramilitary units backed by the Turkish army to threaten Christian Kurds;

4.Calls on Iraqi Kurdish leaders to respect human rights and to ensure the protection of persons with other religious faiths;

5.Considers that such protection is particularly urgent since the situation of the Christians is likely to deteriorate following the transfer of the PKK headquarters to northern Iraq later this year;

6.Calls on all the governments of the Member States of the European Union, and in particular the Federal Republic of Germany, to grant the necessary entry permits to the Christians from Kurdistan wishing to escape persecution and seeking asylum in the Union;

7.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Foreign Ministers of the EU, the Government of Turkey and the National Assembly of Kurdistan (in Northern Iraq).