It's a crime against humanity to deny a language, race: Turkish PM

Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has said that it's a crime against humanity to deny a language or a race, adding that no race is above the other.

"Who can say that a Kurd is superior to a Turk or a Laz is superior to a Circassian? Isn't it to depreciate God's creation to say that a race is superior? Isn't it disrespectfulness against our prophet who said 'I trampled on every type of racism and discrimination.' We know that it's a crime against humanity to denounce a race or a language," Yıldırım said at a rally in the eastern province of Van on April 1, as he added that "a garden is a place where all colors, all types of flowers and all shades of green exist together."

"Doesn't one ask 'Where are all the yellow ones?' if a garden only consists of the color red? Can you call a garden with a single color a garden? Everyone should know that we are Turks, Kurds, Zazas, Lazs, [the western province of] İzmir and Van. Kurdish, Turkish, Zaza language and Laz language belongs to us. We stand against those who separate the things God united. We just have to see the games being played," he also said. 

During his speech, Yıldırım said that plenty of businessmen "were forced to leave their investments and citizens were forced to migrate" due to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). 

"Don't forget; the compassionate hand, help and support of the state will always be with you. However, its iron fist will hit terrorists and those who make your lives difficult. Our security forces will chase the terrorists, who act as the hitman of foreign intelligence services, wherever they go and neutralize them whenever they find them," he also said.   

Saying that PKK harmed the people, Van and Turkey, Yıldırım noted that "while the government...