Turkish Actress Investigated for 'Hate Crime'

From ANSAmed:

Famous Turkish entertainer Hulya Avsar is being investigated by an Istanbul prosecutor's office for "inciting hate" with her comments about the government's Kurdish initiative, as daily Hurriet reports. If charged and found guilty by court, Avsar will face up to four and a half years in jail. Avsar, in an interview with daily Milliyet in August, was cautious about the government's efforts to address the grievances of Kurds through more democracy. She had said once the process started, there would be no turning back and that this fact scared her. Avsar, whose father is Kurdish and mother Turkish, said she saw herself as a Turk and noted that Turks naturally did not want their country divided. "However, this shouldn't mean ethnic pressure on Kurds," she had said. She also said that members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, would not return by choice once the Kurdish initiative began. When asked if she supported the government's plans, she said: "I have no idea what it is." When asked by Hurriyet to comment on the investigation, Avsar said she had never felt so insulted. "I thought we lived in a democratic country when I made those remarks," she said as she showed the invitation by the prosecutor's office for questioning. If the reaction to her comments was an investigation, how could the Kurdish initiative make any headway, she asked.