1) Crisis Talks After Refugee Murder - Evening Times (Glasgow) 2) Race murder ignites anger on the streets - Glasgow Herald ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1) Crisis talks after refugee murder ======================== By Martin Murray - Evening Times (Glasgow) - 6 August 2001 ASYLUM seekers were meeting council leaders and police today amid pleas for calm after the weekend murder of a Turk. It was quiet today in the streets of Sighthill but there was tension between local residents and asylum seekers after a series of clashes yesterday. A heavy police presence remained on the streets. Refugee leaders were meeting Glasgow City Council officials in the wake of disturbances after the murder of Firsat Yildiz, who had been been in Scotland only two weeks. The refugees were staging a vigil for Firsat in George Square today. Around 250 refugees were involved in clashes with the police and locals in Sighthill after the 22-year-old was stabbed to death early yesterday as he returned home from a night out in the city centre. Firsat and a 16-year-old friend crossed a footbridge over the M8 and had just entered Fountainwell Park in Sighthill when the attackers struck. The victim - a Turkish Kurd who fellow asylum seekers claimed was a member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) who escaped from a Turkish prison - staggered towards his home at Fountainwell Place. But he collapsed and died later in hospital. His friend was unhurt. Firsat's attackers were both described as aged about 28. One was of strong build with short hair, wearing a white sleeveless top and cream trousers. The other man was 5ft 11in, slim and wearing a red and yellow jacket, with the hood up, and black trousers. The killing brought hundreds of refugees in Sighthill - where there have been 70 racist attacks in the last 14 months - on to the streets, where they clashed with police and locals. They marched to George Square chanting the victim's name and demanding to speak to senior council members. There were negotiations between refugee spokesmen, police and a council representative and the crowd dispersed after being promised a meeting with the council today Detective Superintendent Alex McAllister said the attack appeared to have been "completely unprovoked". He added: "Our priority is to arrest the person or persons involved but I want to reassure the entire community in Sighthill that we are doing everything possible and I am confident that with their help we can do that. "This incident comes at a time when things have been improving in Sighthill, but we will now increase our presence." Police cars lined Fountainwell Road yesterday and a police helicopter hovered above. Locals claimed they were being made scapegoats for the murder and marched on nearby Baird Street police office to vent their fury. One man, who didn't want to be named, said: "We're all getting the blame for this guy's death but it wasn't even anything to do with his race. "He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time." Race campaigner Aamer Anwar criticised Glasgow City Council and the Government for insufficient funding to tackle racial tension in Sighthill. He said: "Enough is enough. It's time the city woke up and realised what we're doing to these people. "People predicted this would happen. So what's the council going to do about it?" Brian O'Hara, head of Glasgow City Council's asylum support team, defended the council's work on integration. He said: "There has been a considerable amount of work done so I'm surprised that people are feeling that way." A police spokeswoman said there were a small number of arrests for minor offences yesterday. Asylum seekers in Sighthill said today that Firsat was in the PKK and had escaped from a prison in Turkey. PKK commander Abdullah Ocalan was abducted by the Turkish government in 1999 and sentenced to death but has been given a stay of execution while lawyers appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. 2) Race murder ignites anger on the streets ============================= Glasgow Herald WILLIAM TINNING, VICKY COLLINS, VALERIE HANNAH and KEITH SINCLAIR THE murder of an asylum-seeker sparked angry demonstrations on the streets of Glasgow yesterday as serious racial tension erupted in Scotland for the first time. A Turkish Kurd refugee who had been in the city for only a fortnight was stabbed to death by two white men early yesterday, in what police said was a completely unprovoked attack. The victim, named by friends as Firsat Yildiz, 22, became the first asylum-seeker to be murdered in Scotland since the government introduced its dispersal policy of sending refugees to different areas of Britain. His killing provoked a mass demonstration yesterday afternoon by hundreds of Turkish, Iraqi, and Syrian asylum-seekers in the Sighthill area, where most of Glasgow's refugees are housed. Squads of police, some in riot gear, and the force helicopter were sent to deal with confrontations between the protesters and local residents. The protesters then marched on the City Chambers and demanded urgent action by the council to protect them. Senior officers were forced to summon council officials to meet leaders of the demonstrators. Talks were arranged for later today, and the police arranged for buses to take the protesters home. A mass vigil has been called for 3pm in Glasgow's George Square to coincide with the meeting. A violent scuffle broke out in Fountainwell Road just after 7pm last night, as about 50 local residents blocking the road were moved on by police. Later, about 70 local people were allowed to march down the road, near the murder site, under police escort. The crowds later dispersed. Extra teams of police were patrolling Sighthill last night in case of further unrest. Police said there had been five arrests for minor offences throughout the day. The murder follows a cycle of racial violence in northern England - the worst since the early 1980s - which started with an isolated incident in a pub in Bradford in mid-April, and was followed by disturbances in Oldham, Leeds, and Burnley. Earlier, police admitted the murder could have been racially motivated, but a spokesman for the 1500 asylum-seekers housed in Sighthill was in no doubt. Mohammed Narveen Asif said: "This murder was a deliberate racial attack on an asylum-seeker and that is fearfully tragic. The whole refugee community is now in state of real fear." A police spokeswoman said the victim, who has not officially been named, was attacked by two white men shortly after midnight while returning home with a 16-year-old friend after eating a meal in the city centre. They had crossed a footbridge spanning the M8 before entering park land near Fountainwell Road, where the 22-year-old was attacked. He tried to get back to his flat in Fountainwell Place, but collapsed before an ambulance arrived to take him to Glasgow Royal Infirmary, where he died. Police are hunting two men, both aged about 28. One was of strong build with short hair and wearing a white sleeveless top and cream trousers. The other man was about 5ft 11in, slim, and wearing a yellow jacket and black trousers. Detective Superintendent Alex McAllister said that the attack appeared to have been "completely unprovoked". He added: "I want to reassure the entire community in Sighthill that we are doing everything possible. Unfortunately, this tragic incident comes at a time when attacks and assaults on asylum seekers have reduced significantly, when the entire community has been getting closer and closer together. It's important that all of this good work is not undone." Race campaigner Aamer Anwar, speaking at the demonstration outside the City Chambers, criticised Glasgow City Council and the government for insufficient funding to tackle racial tension in Sighthill. Nick Griffin, chairman of the British National Party, which recently distributed anti-immigration leaflets in the Sighthill and Pollok areas, last night denied that the party's action could have fuelled tensions. Mr Griffin said: "If this was a racially motivated attack, then we would condemn it outright. However, when a white person is attacked by non-natives, the police are extraordinarily reluctant to say that that was a racist attack, because they want to appear politically correct and non-racist themselves. "That causes a lot of tension and resentment." Councillor Bashir Maan, a high-profile Asian community leader and convener of Strathclyde joint police board, called for calm. He said: "This is a tragic incident. I thought things were getting better until now. I do not think local people in general are intolerant of the asylum seekers, but there is an element who are racist and ill-informed." Mohammed Sarwar MP said: "This is very, very sad news for all of us - not just blacks and Asians. It is a sad day for all Glaswegians and all the people of Scotland."
