ISTANBUL - Iraqi Turkmens Culture and Solidarity Association Chairman Kemal Beyatli on Wednesday gave the U.S. Consulate General in Istanbul a letter that was prepared by the Turkmen associations and federations, asking it to convey the letter to U.S. President George W. Bush, demanding ''review of the interim constitution for Iraq''.
A group of nearly sixty people who came in front of the U.S. Consulate building with buses and cars unfurled Iraqi and blue Turkmen flags and chanted slogans saying, ''Long Live Turkmens'' and ''Kirkuk is Turkmen and it will remain so''.
Speaking on behalf of the group, Beyatli said, ''the interim constitution which was approved by the Iraqi interim governing council on March 8 reflects the mentality of former dictatorial regime instead of being democracy and freedom prospects.''
Noting that articles of the constitution included contradictions and human rights violations, Beyatli said, ''rights of Turkmens who are the third essential factor of Iraq were usurped to a larger extent. Although we expressed on a number of occasions that Turkmens are not represented in the interim governing council at proper rate, now they have attempted to destroy Turkmens in the constitution.''
''Turkmens are a part of a whole in Iraq. We never accept to be a part of a part. Turkmens who have a three million population refuse this constitution and want it to be reviewed again and we want Turkmens to be registered in interim and permanent constitution as Iraq's third essential factor,'' he said.
Later, Beyatli gave the letter signed by eight Turkmen associations and federations to the U.S. Consulate General officials and asked them to convey it to the U.S. President.
The letter which points to ''contradictions in interim constitution for Iraq'' says, ''Turkmens ask the U.S. government and President to help them solve their problems and request their support to their being treated equally in terms of law in accordance with the principle of equality and assurance for their representation together with Iraq's main ethnic communities.
(MS-AÖ) 17.03.2004