Turkey bars civil servants from Kurdish festival

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey, Mar 17 (Reuters) Turkish authorities today barred civil servants from taking part in next week's celebrations of the Newroz spring holiday in the mainly Kurdish southeast amid fears of increased separatist violence.

Newroz, which means ''new day'' in Kurdish, has long served as a rallying cry for Kurdish nationalism and public celebrations were illegal in Turkey until 2000, when fighting between security forces and separatist guerrillas fell sharply.

But there has been an upturn in violence in the impoverished region since the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) ended a unilateral ceasefire in 2004.

Hidir Kahveci, deputy governor of Diyarbakir, the biggest city in the southeast, said civil servants ignoring the order would face disciplinary action.

Newroz is not a public holiday in Turkey and civil servants are expected to work.

Diyarbakir governor Efkan Ala urged citizens to avoid provocative actions which could trigger violence during the March 21 festival. He said security forces had taken all necessary measures to ensure public order was preserved.

''We will not allow any repetition of mistakes made in the past,'' he said, referring to previous violent clashes between security forces and supporters of the PKK.

''We want this to be a celebration welcoming the coming of spring,'' he said.

Last year's Newroz celebrations passed off peacefully in Diyarbakir, though the Mediterranean port of Mersin, which also has a large Kurdish population, saw clashes between police and protesters. There was a handful of arrests in other cities.

Turkey blames the PKK for the deaths of more than 30,000 people since the group launched its armed campaign in 1984 for an ethnic homeland in the southeast.

Both the European Union, which Turkey aims to join, and the United States class the PKK as a terrorist organisation.

As the security situation in the southeast has eased, Ankara scrapped a ban on Kurdish language broadcasting and education as part of reforms aimed at meeting EU human rights criteria.

Newroz, or Nevruz in Turkish, is an ancient rite that is also celebrated across Central Asia and Iran.

REUTERS SHR RN2117