Hopes for a lasting peace have been on the rise since Ocalan called on his guerrillas to end their armed struggle, dropped his demands for Kurdish autonomy and independence, and pledged to work with Turkish authorities. While Turkish officials have ruled out negotiations with Ocalan, stringent security measures in the predominately Kurdish provinces have been relaxed considerably in the wake of Ocalan's calls, and clashes between the army and remaining rebels have all but ceased. Turkey's recent inclusion in the list of countries with which the European Union agreed to open membership negotiations has given further impetus to Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's efforts to raise his country's democracy to European standards. The government has agreed to postpone Ocalan's execution pending a European Court review of his appeal, a process that could take up to two years. Nevertheless, Turkish officials remain suspicious of attempts by the PKK and Hadep to lobby Western countries to support their bid for greater cultural and political rights.
Government officials say such tactics are aimed at the eventual establishment of a Kurdish state.
The saboteurs are at work. Some diplomats here see a link between today's arrests and last week's visit by Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh. Sweden has been among the harshest critics of Turkey's human rights record, and Lindh made a point of meeting with numerous rights activists and Kurdish politicians, including Celik. After lunching with Celik, Lindh repeated Swedish calls for eased bans on broadcasting and education in the Kurdish language.