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In a conversation in Iraqi Kurdistan, Bese Hozat repeatedly decries Turkish 'fascism,' but Ankara notes it's facing a group considered a terror organization by the U.S. and EU as well

It was a calm and quiet dawn on the snowy peaks of Iraqs Qandil Mountains after several days of heavy airstrikes by Turkish fighter jets attacks that didnt even respect the dead. The guesthouse of the Kurdistan Workers Partys martyrs cemetery was left a mound of rubble, amid photographs and charred memories after the planes targeted a Kurdish rebel stronghold.

It was nothing unusual. Turkish airstrikes on this mountain range in northern Iraq have been a fixture since the Kurdistan Workers Party, the PKK which is considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union set up bases here in the early 2000s after leaving Syria. The airstrikes are so regular that Kurdish militants and local civilians have gotten used to looking up at the sky.

Apart from the constant threat of an air raid, theres now the strong possibility of a Turkish ground operation against the PKK in Iraqi Kurdistan.

There is such a possibility because an operation against Qandil has been on the agenda for a long time, said Bese Hozat, the co-chief of the Executive Council of the Kurdistan Communities Union, the umbrella group to which the PKK belongs.

Hozat was born in Turkeys Tunceli province in 1978 and joined the Kurdish guerrillas in the late 90s after losing several relatives in fighting against the Turkish army.

Hozat, who spoke to Haaretz in a wooded valley following an exhaustive security protocol, mentioned the AKP President Recep Tayyip Erdogans Justice and Development Party and the MHP, Turkeys far-right Nationalist Movement Party.

There is now a process for a constitutional referendum, and the AKP and MHP fascist groups want to conduct a cross-border operation in order to take the nationalist Turkish votes, Hozat said.

On Sunday, Turks will decide in a referendum whether to maintain the current parliamentary system or switch to an executive presidency, which both Erdogans party and the Nationalist Movement Party support.

While Erdogans government promises that a yes victory in the referendum will bring stability and the end of terrorism to Turkey, the PKK calls the plebiscite a trick to legalize and legitimize the dictatorship of the Islamist president.

The PKK and pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party have called on the Kurds to vote no, a position supported by the main opposition force, the Republican Peoples Party.

The AKP-MHP coalition wants to formalize a one-man dictatorship through this referendum, Hozat said. The Kurds will say no to this dictatorship regime.

Speaking to the local NTV and Star networks last week, Erdogan said the situation was worse in Iraqs Sinjar region, adding that the region was about to become the second Qandil for the PKK, referring to the PKKs stronghold in the Qandil Mountains.

There are around 2,500 PKK terrorists in the efforts to create this second Qandil, Erdogan said.

But as Hozar put it, Ankara has already invaded South Kurdistan [Iraqi Kurdistan], an invasion that has economic, politic and military aspects.

The PKK has always denounced political and military collaboration between Erdogan and Masoud Barzani, the head of Iraqi Kurdistan. We are ready to carry out a very strong defense against the invasive policies of the Turkish government, Hozat said.

Failed diplomacy

In July 2015, a month after the presidential election where Erdogan did not win an absolute majority, a two-year cease-fire between Ankara and the PKK collapsed after a bombing in the town of Suruc killed 32 people, mostly Kurdish activists. Since then thousands have died in the fighting.

According to the UN Human Rights Office, between July 2015 and December 2016, some 2,000 people were reportedly killed in the context of security operations in South-East Turkey.

Based on information received by the United Nations, this would include nearly 800 members of the security forces, and around 1,200 local people, of which an unspecified number may have been involved in violent or nonviolent actions against the state.

Hozat said the reconciliation process in Turkey failed because Abdullah Ocalans democratic proposals were rejected by the Turkish government, referring to the PKK leader now in a Turkish prison.

She said Turkey wanted the PKK to lay down its arms without giving the Kurds anything following a policy of elimination against the Kurdish freedom movement under the name of a solution. When the PKK rejected such an elimination project, fighting continued.

Hozat added: Against all these practices the PKK has been waging a legitimate self-defense armed struggle.

According to the Turkish government, the PKK had conducted a number of attacks that killed and wounded members of the Turkish security forces and other people.

According to Ankara, the Kurdish militants have also taken part in kidnappings, including of children; dug trenches and placed roadblocks in cities and towns; and blocked the provision of emergency health services.

The fascism of the AKP-MHP coalition is waging genocide against the Kurds, Hozat said. They have destroyed many Kurdish cities and killed a lot of Kurds.

According to a UN report, the number of displaced persons in southeastern Turkey is estimated at between 355,000 and 500,000 people, mainly Kurds. These people have reportedly moved to neighboring suburbs, towns and villages, or to other regions in Turkey.

In an attempt to change the demographic map of the Kurdish cities, they are evacuating the Kurdish people and they are replacing them with the families that have an ISIS mentality, Hozat said.

Political and womens rights

According to Turkeys Interior Ministry, 47,155 people remain in custody following massive sweeps by the authorities in the wake of the failed 2016 military coup.

Ankara has also arrested 13 Kurdish opposition politicians, including the co-leaders of the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party, Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag. It has also taken over 82 councils controlled by the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party, according to Human Rights Watch.

Europe is responsible for the rise of fascism in Turkey because this silence and indifference are indirect support for Turkish policies, Hozat said.

Ankara accuses the PKK of using suicide attacks to kill civilians, but Hozat denies this. We have not committed any suicide attack against the Turkish cities, she said. Those attacks have been carried out by patriotic youth and people who reacted desperately against the practices of the AKP administration.

Meanwhile, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has made a raft of recommendations to Ankara to address gender inequality and remove obstacles for women and girls regarding education, employment, justice and reproductive health.

Some nongovernmental organizations have also claimed that womens rights are worsening in Turkey under Erdogan. With the rise of the AKP, male domination of culture and political life has increased sharply, Hozat said.

As the society grows more conservative, the level of crime against women increases. We can observe that in the high level of rape, harassment and also suicides. The AKP government is trying to form a fundamentalist and religious society based on enmity towards women.

Regarding the situation in Syria, Turkey said last week it had successfully ended its seven-month Euphrates Shield offensive in the north of the country. Turkey launched the campaign in August to push Islamic State militants away from its border and prevent the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units from gaining more ground in northern Syria.

Turkey has been pressing NATO and Russia to stop supporting the Kurds and to consider the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units a terrorist organization like the PKK.

Turkey is doing its politics and diplomacy based on enmity towards Rojava, Hozat said, referring to the de facto autonomous region in northern Syria. Ankara defines [the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units] as a terrorist organization, and they want this attitude adopted by the entire world.

She said the world knows that the Kurdish Peoples Protection Unions and the Womens Protection Units are very strong forces that are defending human values, but its always possible that some hypocrite and two-faced states may try to adopt the policies of Turkey against Rojava and the Kurds.

As Hozat put it, if those countries are sincerely against ISIS, they should give full support to the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units and Womens Protection Units and invite Kurds to the next peace talks.

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Kurd Leader to Haaretz: Erdogan and Allies Seek Dictatorship via Turkish Referendum - Haaretz

NEW YORK, April 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday, April 6, Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO) raised $4.93 million at the SEO Annual Awards Dinner. The marquee event saw nearly 1,000 guests at the American Museum of Natural History, and honored three outstanding leaders in business and philanthropy: Joe Plumeri; Robert F. Smith; and Cesar Conde.

Funds raised at the event will support SEO's three programs which provide educational and career opportunities to underserved and underrepresented young people. SEO's flagship program, SEO Scholars, is a free eight-year academic program that gets underserved public high school students to and through college with a 90% college graduation rate. The programservesmore than 1,500 students in New York City and San Francisco, with a goal of serving over 2,000 by 2021.

The SEO Annual Awards Dinner was held in the Hall of Ocean Life, and the evening was led by Emcee, Gayle King, of CBS This Morning and editor-at-large for O, the Oprah Magazine. Michael L. Corbat, Chief Executive Officer, Citi, served as Dinner Chairman.

Henry R. Kravis, SEO Board Chairman,and William Goodloe, SEO president and CEO,welcomed the crowd. Six SEO Scholars, current high school and college students from New York City and San Francisco, took the stage to share their stories of overcoming adversity in their personal lives, and how SEO has helped them succeed on their journey to and through college.

"These students are bright, and they are looking for one thingand that's an opportunity," said Henry R. Kravis, SEO Board Chairman and founding partner of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. "Our job is not just to get these students to college, it's to get them through college and make sure they graduate. And SEO provides the opportunities that these young people need."

Citi CEO Michael Corbat said, "Citi is proud of its nearly 40-year history with SEO and its alumni, and this outstanding fundraising achievement speaks to the importance of its mission as well as the value of diversity, inclusion and career readiness for young people today."

This year's honorees are business leaders who have demonstrated their commitment to educational and career opportunities for young people from underrepresented backgrounds: Joe Plumeri, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, First Data Corporation, and SEO Board Member; Robert F. Smith, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Vista Equity Partners; and Cesar Conde, Chairman, NBCUniversal International Group and NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, and SEO Career Alumnus '94.

"SEO was thrilled to recognize the extraordinary business achievements of our honorees, and to highlight how they each exemplify SEO's core value of using their gift of success to create opportunities for others," said William Goodloe, president and CEO of SEO. "The funds raised are helping SEO to serve hundreds more students in our Scholars Program over the next few years."

In addition to SEO Scholars, SEO is comprised of two other distinct programs SEO Career and SEO Alternative Investments. Both help corporate partners achieve greater diversity and inclusion in their workforce by recruiting/training talented young people who have been traditionally underrepresentedin high-level business sectors.

"There is one common thread that runs through all our programs," says Mr. Goodloe. "That is helping underserved and underrepresented young people meet and surpass the existing standards, whether for admission and graduation from top tier colleges, or entry into some of the most coveted industries. SEO provides opportunities that benefit young people, their families, and our society."

Since 1963, SEO has provided educational and career opportunities to over 11,000 young people from underserved and underrepresented communities, breaking barriers both in higher education and the corporate world.

About Sponsors for Educational Opportunity

SEO was founded in 1963 with a mission to provide talented and motivated young people from underserved and underrepresented communities with access to superior educational and career opportunities. Today, SEO runs three programs: SEO Scholars is a free, eight-year academic program that gets low-income public high school students to and through collegewith a 90% college graduation rate; SEO Career is a summer internship and professional development program targeting talented Black, Hispanic, and Native American undergrads and pre-law school candidateswith 80% of 2015 and 2016 interns receiving full-time job offers at SEO partner companies; SEO Alternative Investments provides education, exposure, training and mentoring opportunities to talented professionals traditionally underrepresented in the alternative investments sector. Nearly 90% of AI Fellows have secured jobs in the alternative investments sector. For more information, visit http://www.seo-usa.org.

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Sponsors for Educational Opportunity Raises $4.93 Million at SEO Annual Awards Dinner - Yahoo Finance

How does a Marine go from infantry rifleman to digital mastermind? The same way most of us do, by learning at every step of the journey.

Founder of Spartan Media, Jeremy Knauff, knows what it means to learn from mistakes and drive results for his clients. With his ability to drive direct and measurable ROI from SEO and website redesign, Knauff is a leader in the digital industry.

Growing up in Spring Hill, Fla., Knauff moved out on his own at 16 and joined the Marines at 18. He started as a rifleman in an infantry platoon and was quickly given billet of company RTO because of his skills, knowledge, and capabilities. At that time, he also served as company training NCO and promoted to sergeant in three years. While completing his time in the service, he decided he wanted to start his company specializing in web design and development.

I read every book I could find and studied the hell out of everything. I wanted to know all I could about web design and development said Knauff about his time preparing to launch his first company in the early 2000s. Unfortunately, Knauffs first company went under as a result of being in a small town and many companies not understanding the need for a website at that time.

Rather than feeling sorry for himself he picked himself up and found himself in an interview for a position, at least on paper, for which he was not qualified. As the interview started, he was told that they had likely already found the candidate they would choose for the position, but if he wanted to, they would still take a look at his portfolio. He obliged, and they began to review his work.

They asked me questions about composition and design choices on some of the pieces. I couldnt figure out why at first, said Knauff.

He was hired on the spot. His answers were better than those that most people with a degree in art and design had given. This was why they continued to ask deep questions about his design choices. He continued to work and learn at that agency until he decided he was almost ready to branch out on his own again.

Before he felt confident enough to start a business for the second time, he wanted to brush up on his sales. He took a few sales positions and things went bad for him again. Knauff then decided that he needed to get back to web design, SEO, and the things he was best at.

Finding a partner whose company was floundering and desperately in need of help was a turning point for Knauff. He looked at their website, which was designed by a big named NYC agency and had cost upwards of $70K, and found many development and design issues that were costing the company sales. Within weeks of the redesign, the company began seeing a dramatic increase in sales, and in less than one year, made a deal with Hilton to place their products in all of the Hilton Garden Inns worldwide. He helped that company get back on their feet and achieve massive success. This is the reason that Knauff is passionate about his company. He sees that many agencies out there simply turn out a product that isnt fully completed and functional. It works, but not as well as it could, and the clients dont know the difference.

Knauffs success at that company springboarded Spartan Media and laid the groundwork for the web design, SEO, social media, and content development company. More recently, Spartan was able to help a local architect land $26K in new business within two weeks of a website revamp and helped to update a 10 year old website for a home products eCommerce site that improved its conversion rate by 270% after the update.

He has recently set his sights on the construction industry for a unique reason.

My father was a firefighter, and because they arent paid very much, most of those guys had a second joband that was usually in construction, said Knauff. As a child, I spent many weekends on construction sites with my father, so Ive done almost every type of construction project you can imagine and I really enjoyed it. Although I didnt pursue it as a career path, Im fortunate to have several clients in the construction industry with Spartan Media. After the last real estate collapse, I saw a lot of hard working people lose everything. People who work in the trades are the backbone of America. I believe we must do better for them.

Of things to come, he says, Were seeing signs that the construction industry is about to enjoy another boom, which will inevitably be followed by another correction. This time around, I want to help these people leverage that boom to grow and increase their market share, and perhaps more importantly, build a stronger, more defensible market position that will help them survive the next correction.

Spartan is poised to grow in 2017 and is looking to hire veterans as part of its growth plan. Knauff said, I know the work ethic of the veteran community. Hiring fellow veterans is always going to be part of Spartans growth plan, but in 2017 we are looking to spearhead this growth.

___________________________

Landmark Life Coachings (www.landmarklifecoaching.com) Mission is to honorably and respectfully serve courageous groundbreakers and transitioning veterans to persevere in defining and executing their future by providing an atmosphere of comradery and trust that honors their dedication and commitment. This will empower our clients to feel whole, honored, respected and fulfilled in defining and living their life purpose.

Charlie Mike Podcast (www.charliemikepodcast.com) is where our Nations Combat Veteranpreneurs talk about how they transformed their combat experience into a groundbreaking entrepreneurial success. We will discuss their experience in relation to what I have defined as their VisualReality; their personal vision of building a successful business leveraging their combat experience to bring the core strengths of a combat veteran into the entrepreneurial realm.

Dwayne Paro - Veterans Coach/Podcaster/Speaker/Writer

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Marine Veteran Uses SEO and Superior Design to Drive ROI for Clients - Huffington Post

Financial Post

Ryerson's DMZ incubator creates Playbook, a sales accelerator program for startups Financial Post Peter J. Thompson / National PostLiveGauge, co-founded by COO Sam Seo (left), CEO Nathaniel Bagnell and Sales Director Kate Bogomolny, is one of six startups in the pilot version of the Playbook Program, Ryerson's DMZ in Toronto with their device ... and more »

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Ryerson's DMZ incubator creates Playbook, a sales accelerator program for startups - Financial Post

Participants at a workshop held to examine the use of social marketing in messaging to targeted audiences TRAFFIC Shanghai, China, 13th April 2017around 40 wildlife conservation and law enforcement officers, together with NGO representatives, met this week to examine the use of social media in awareness raising and promoting messaging encouraging changes towards consumption of illegal wildlife products.

The New communications approaches to reduce demand for threatened wildlife and enhance public awareness workshop was co-hosted by the Shanghai Wildlife Conservation Association, Shanghai Zoo and TRAFFIC.

Social marketing is rapidly gaining momentum in China as a means to raise awareness of particular issues and for encouraging behaviour change initiatives for social good. Messaging can be highly targeted, encouraging actionable solutions by certain groups using audience segmentation and insight learning.

In 2015, Moving targets: Tracking online sales of illegal wildlife products in China, a study released by TRAFFIC, highlighted the migration of wildlife cybercrime from e-commerce platforms to social media networks, where communications and financial transactions are easier to conceal.

Faced with this challenge, enforcement officers are seeking ways to interact through social media outlets. The workshop featured ways to utilize social media to change the behaviour of consumers, raise public awareness and motivate responsible action by industries along trade chains.

Social media, typically mobile internet applications, such as Wechat (an interpersonal messaging app) and Weibo (Chinas equivalent to Twitter) have now become the major information sharing and social communication platforms in ChinaWechat had more than 700 million users by 2016.

Social media is therefore a pivotal battleground in tackling wildlife trafficking and also in reaching out to potential consumers to reduce demand for certain products.

Thanks to this workshop, our wildlife conservation and enforcement officers have been brought up to date with the latest social media tools and techniques to mobilize public support for wildlife conservation, said Wan Ziming, Deputy Director of the Shanghai branch of Chinas Management Authority for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES MA).

Wan Ziming, Deputy Director of the Shanghai branch of Chinas CITES Management Authority addresses delegates TRAFFIC The new Wildlife Protection Law has put the onus onto internet companies to prevent illegal wildlife trade advertisements appearing online. It is a critical time for law enforcement departments to be talking to internet providers and users through social media and new communication approaches, said Tu Rongxiu, Deputy Director of the Shanghai Wildlife Conservation Association.

Participants discussed the development of effective communications strategies and practiced using the social marketing tools learnt during the workshop to formulate possible creative solutions to overcome challenges. They also examined case studies on raising public awareness about conservation of Shanghais wildlife and TRAFFICs campaigns targeting specific consumer segments, such as handicraft collectors and Chinese citizens visiting Africa.

There has been a huge growth and development in social marketing since we first held this meeting in 2015, said Zhou Fei, Head of TRAFFICs China Office. During that time we have gathered and compiled relevant case studies and training resources to share with our government and NGO partners and we encourage participants to replicate successful approaches in their own work.

TRAFFICs work on addressing illegal wildlife trade was generously supported by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the German Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB).

For more information, please contact: Sammi Li, Senior Communications Officer, TRAFFIC, China Office Email: xiaojia.li@traffic.org

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Shanghai workshop promotes use of social marketing to change illegal wildlife consumption - TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News