German politician says Ankara favors Sunnis

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

Turkey needs to adopt an equitable and coherent policy toward all its ethnic and religious groups if it wants to pursue a sound foreign policy, according to a leading German politician.

Pursing policies that favor Sunnis may cause misunderstandings, Claudia Roth, co-leader of Germany’s opposition Green Party, told reporters yesterday, citing the Turkish government’s attitude toward Turkey’s Alevi community. Given the government’s current policies regarding Alevis within Turkey, such as not officially recognizing Alevi houses of worship (or cemevis), it would not be able to behave differently in terms of foreign policy, she stated. Turkey should find a solution to its Kurdish problem first, in order to assume significant role in the region, Citing the alleged protocol between the Turkish government and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Roth called on both parties to resume talks again. “All parties should give up violence,” she said. Having visited camps for Syrian refugees in Hatay on Aug. 8, Roth met with Republican Peoples’ Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) leader Selahattin Demirtaş, and was to meet with Kurdish politician Leyla Zana after the Daily News went to press yesterday.