Turkish Kurd MP to publish poems in Kurdish after language reform 

 ANKARA, Sept 28 (AFP)  A Kurdish-origin deputy in the Turkish parliament was
 preparing to publish his poems in Kurdish once lawmakers adopt a series of constitutional
 reforms which could allow Kurdish to be used in broadcasting and publication, a Turkish
 newspaper reported Friday.

 Sebgetullah Seydaoglu from the centre-right Motherland Party told the mass-circulation Hurriyet
 daily that the book of poems, "The Euphrates and the Tigris," had already been published in
 Turkish two weeks ago.

 The MP from Diyarbakir, the regional capital of the mainly Kurdish southeast, added that 10,000
 copies of the book in Kurdish had been printed ready to be published after the language reform.

 "I decided to delay the publication because putting a book of Kurdish-language poems on the
 market without the reform could have caused trouble," Seydaoglu, 46, told Hurriyet.

 He said that he was also writing a book entitled "Mesopotamia" about the Kurdish conflict in
 Turkey's southeast and would publish it in both Turkish and Kurdish.

 Legally, the Kurdish language is banned in Turkey, but lawmakers on Tuesday adopted a
 constitutional amendment which could allow Kurds to use their mother tongue in the media.

 The article -- part of a reform package to help Turkey catch up with EU norms -- lifts a ban on
 using forbidden languages in the expression and dissemination of thought, but nonetheless
 introduces some restrictions.

 It stipulates that the right to use any language can be restricted in order to "protect national
 security, public order and safety, the fundamental principles of the Republic, and the indivisible
 unity of the state and nation."

 The article will come into force when legislators approve the entire refom package in a final vote.
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