The Democratic People's Party (DEHAP) held a "Yes to disparity, no to separatism!" rally in Diyarbak?r yesterday dominated by the themes of "Democracy for Turkey and Freedom for the Kurds" and "Yes to the European Union."

Approximately 50,000 people from the surrounding area gathered in Station Square in Diyarbak?r to take part in the rally. While the rally was held in support of the European Union and democracy, some groups shouted slogans in favor of jailed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader, Abdullah ?calan.

Placards reading, "Long Live the Diyarbak?r-Ankara-Brussels Brotherhood" and "Long Live Peace," were displayed at the event. Former Democracy Party (DEP) deputy Hatip Dicle, DEHAP leader Tuncer Bak?rhan, former DEHAP leader Ahmet Turan Demir and Enlightenment for Peace Movement representative Ak?n Birdal spoke at the rally. Birdal said the purpose of the rally was to cause both Ankara and Brussels to take note of developments in the region on the eve of the December 17th talks in Brussels that will determine whether or not Turkey's accession negotiations with the European Union will now begin. He said they wanted to show that arms needed to be silenced and that the Kurdish issue should be resolved by democratic means. "I hope people will hear our voices, because the start of the negotiation process will only have meaning if there is no longer any fighting. If not, it will be of no use."

Birdal said he was told 150,000 to 200,000 people had attended the rally. The rally was held at the same time as an advertisement in the International Herald Tribune and Le Monde, calling for extended rights for Turkey's Kurds, which continues to spark a negative reaction from Ankara. "This advertisement is indicative of an approach that completely changes past rhetoric and is a huge misfortune," State Minister Mehmet Ali ?ahin told reporters on Friday.

Some 200 Turkish Kurds, including former lawmaker Leyla Zana and a number of other Kurdish politicians, added their names to an advertisement titled, "What the Kurds Want in Turkey," which appeared in the two newspapers on Thursday. It stated that Turkey should grant Kurds the same rights that Ankara claims for the Turkish Cypriots, which implied Kurdish autonomy and a federalist system for Turkey.

In a written statement, Zana and three former lawmakers complained that a quotation concerning Cyprus in the advertisement was, "used to spark a debate that should never have emerged and that could only harm Turkish-European Union relations." They accused anti-EU forces both in Turkey and abroad of attempting to prevent the start of accession talks between the EU and Turkey and achieving its goal of full membership.