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| Turkey's PKK peace plan delayed | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Opposition parties in Turkey have delayed the government's announcement of its plan to end a conflict in the mainly Kurdish south-east. | |
| Interior Minister Besir Atalay ran out of time to present the measures in parliament as nationalist MPs jeered. | |
| The plans are thought to include some Kurdish language education, restoring Kurdish place names and more freedom to use Kurdish in election campaigns. | |
| The announcement is now expected on Thursday. | |
| Some 40,000 people have been killed in the 25-year Kurdish fight for autonomy. | Some 40,000 people have been killed in the 25-year Kurdish fight for autonomy. |
| The government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently been seeking opposition support for a negotiated settlement to end the insurgency by the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK). | The government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently been seeking opposition support for a negotiated settlement to end the insurgency by the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK). |
| It first announced the plan three months ago but has yet to publicise details. | It first announced the plan three months ago but has yet to publicise details. |
| Nationalist sentiment | Nationalist sentiment |
| The issue is very sensitive in Turkey, says the BBC's Jonathan Head in Istanbul. The PKK has been vilified as a terrorist organisation, so making peace is a delicate task for the government. | The issue is very sensitive in Turkey, says the BBC's Jonathan Head in Istanbul. The PKK has been vilified as a terrorist organisation, so making peace is a delicate task for the government. |
| Nationalist sentiment is so strong in Turkey that until recently there was no official recognition of a separate Kurdish identity, our correspondent says, despite the fact that as much as 20% of the population is made up of ethnic Kurds, many of whom speak Kurdish as their first language. | |
| Last month Turkey's government was caught off guard when a group of PKK fighters crossed the border from Iraq and announced they wanted to lay down their arms. | Last month Turkey's government was caught off guard when a group of PKK fighters crossed the border from Iraq and announced they wanted to lay down their arms. |
| They were not prosecuted as previous returnees have been, but the euphoric welcome they received from thousands of local Kurds provoked a nationalist backlash. | They were not prosecuted as previous returnees have been, but the euphoric welcome they received from thousands of local Kurds provoked a nationalist backlash. |
| While the government package is expected to allow much greater freedom to use the Kurdish language, the government is almost certain to refuse the request for a general amnesty made by the PKK and its supporters, our correspondent says. | While the government package is expected to allow much greater freedom to use the Kurdish language, the government is almost certain to refuse the request for a general amnesty made by the PKK and its supporters, our correspondent says. |
| Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK leader, has been in jail since 1999. | Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK leader, has been in jail since 1999. |
| In recent years, Turkish warplanes have launched numerous attacks on rebel hideouts in the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region, from where Ankara says some 2,000 PKK guerrillas stage hit-and-run attacks on Turkish territory. | In recent years, Turkish warplanes have launched numerous attacks on rebel hideouts in the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region, from where Ankara says some 2,000 PKK guerrillas stage hit-and-run attacks on Turkish territory. |