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Turkish Press Review, 04-09-27Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr><LINK href="http://www.byegm.gov.tr_yayinlarimiz_chr_pics_css/tpr.css" rel=STYLESHEET type=text/css> e-mail : newspot@byegm.gov.tr <caption> <_caption> Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning27.09.2004FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNSCONTENTS
[01] PARLIAMENT PASSES SWEEPING NEW TCK WITHOUT ADULTERY BANIn an extraordinary session, Parliament yesterday swiftly completed work on the last two remaining articles of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) before approving the entire bill, not including a controversial proposed adultery ban. The sweeping new TCK, which previously had been withdrawn due to a government push to outlaw adultery, is due to take effect next April, and is considered a major step forward in Turkey’s European Union membership bid. /All papers/[02] IN OSMANIYE, ERDOGAN ATTENDS GROUND-BREAKING OF NEW INDUSTRIAL PARKPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday attended the ground-breaking of a new 80-factory industrial park in the Osmaniye Organized Industrial Region. Speaking at the ceremony, Erdogan hailed the park as a major step towards creating new jobs and solving the region’s unemployment woes. Touching on Turkey’s European Union membership bid, Erdogan admitted that Ankara still had shortcomings in the implementation of EU reforms, adding that it would need to work very hard if its Union accession talks begin following the December EU summit. /Aksam/[03] GUL: “TURKISH AMERICANS SHOULD MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD”Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, who is currently visiting the US, yesterday met with a large group of Turkish Americans at the Turkish House in New York City. Addressing the gathering, Gul called on Turks living in the US to obtain citizenship and to take more active part in their adopted country’s political life. He also urged them to become organized and volunteer to help the promotion of Turkey’s just causes abroad. /Turkiye/[04] ANKARA PLANS TO ESTABLISH EU MINISTRYThe government is planning to establish a new European Union Ministry to deal with Turkey’s EU membership bid. A proposal from a group chaired by EU Secretary-General Murat Sungar proposes the establishment of a ministry which will conduct Ankara’s projected EU accession talks. The proposal states that other EU candidate countries had carried out their negotiations through directorate generals, but that given Turkey’s large size, a special ministry was needed for the task. The proposal is expected to be discussed at a Cabinet meeting after Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul returns to Ankara following his contacts in the US. /Turkiye/[05] KHATAMI VISIT POSTPONEDIranian government spokesman Abdullah Ramazanzade said yesterday that President Mohammed Khatami’s official visit to Turkey scheduled for this week had been postponed after the Parliament passed a law that will cause two Turkish companies to delay doing business in Iran. “The government decided to postpone Khatami’s visit to Turkey due to Sunday’s approval in Parliament, and in light of the importance of ties with our friend Turkey, and in the interest of building confidence on finalizing bilateral agreements,” added the spokesman. /Cumhuriyet/[06] NY TIMES: “IF AMERICAN FORCES WITHDRAW, TURKEY WOULD BE DRAWN INTO IRAQ”Iraq could descend into all-out civil war and be split into three pieces – one Kurdish, one Shiite, and one predominantly Sunni – should United States forces withdraw from the country, wrote Roger Cohen in a news analysis published in yesterday’s New York Times. “Neighboring states, particularly Iran and Turkey, would be drawn in,” argued Cohen. “A failed state – or the vestiges of one – would draw terrorists as surely as a honey-pot draws bees.” Cohen also quoted Philip Gordon of the Brookings Institution as predicting direly, “Iraq would be worse than post-Soviet Afghanistan. Its oil and geostrategic importance ensures that. The Lebanese civil war dragged in Syria, and just as surely the civil war that would result from an American withdrawal would drag in Iran and Turkey. You'd see ethnic strife that would make Kosovo look like a picnic.” /Hurriyet/[07] SYRIA TAKES 26 TURKISH DRIVERS INTO CUSTODYAfter transferring goods to Iraq, 26 Turkish drivers en route to home were reportedly detained in Syria over the weekend. Syrian officials stated that drivers were seized carrying a large amount of fuel oil and would be brought before a court today. /Turkiye/[08] ANNAN SET TO LAUNCH NEW CYPRUS INITIATIVEUnited Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is reportedly planning to start a new initiative for Cyprus. According to a report over the weekend in Greek Cypriot daily Fileleftheros, Annan is set to send his assistant, Kieran Pendergast, to Ankara, Athens and Lefkosa to lay the groundwork for a fresh period of seeking a settlement to the Cyprus issue. /Turkiye/[09] IMF’S KRUEGER: “ANKARA HAS PLEDGED FURTHER REFORMS”Ankara has pledged to make further reforms towards bringing the government’s public spending down to a sustainable level, said Anne O. Krueger, first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, in an address at Britain’s Nottingham University over the weekend. “However, the cost of the new reforms will be higher than previous ones,” she added. “As the Turkish government is currently loyal to its reform program, the country’s growth rate is rising significantly.” Recalling how Turkey’s economy suffered from serious crises when previous governments failed to complete their reform programs, particularly in the 1980s, Krueger underlined the importance of full commitment to the economic program. /Hurriyet/[10] TUZMEN MEETS MOROCCO’S FOREIGN TRADE MINISTERState Minister Kursad Tuzmen, who is currently paying an official visit to Morocco to attend the Fourth Turkish Exports Fair, over the weekend met with Moroccan Foreign Trade Minister Mustapha Mechahouri at a meeting of the General Confederation of Moroccan Entrepreneurs. Noting that Turkey’s foreign trade volume is expected to reach $150 billion in the years to come, Tuzmen said that Turkey and Morocco should improve their commercial ties. For his part, Mechahouri urged Turkish entrepreneurs to invest in his country, especially in the privatization of the telecommunications and marine transportation sectors. /Sabah/[11] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS[12] HOW WILL WE BE READY FOR THE EU? BY CUNEYT ULSEVER (HURRIYET)Columnist Cuneyt Ulsever comments on Turkey’s European Union membership bid. A summary of his column is as follows:“Thank God for those who tried to include adultery in the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). This effort reminded us of many things: Firstly, that we are not all Europeans, secondly that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is not a truly unitary party but a coalition, thirdly that the EU’s will is stronger than AKP’s, and fourthly, that the AKP’s resistance in disagreements with the European Union lacks staying power. However the AKP doesn’t want to learn from its weak points. Some issues like the discussions centering around the Board of Higher Education began with resistance and ended in acquiescence. We also have to face up to the following facts: Even if we’re ready in other areas, we’re not yet ready for the EU mentally speaking. The adultery debate showed this to the whole world. Now the EU will harbor permanent doubts about the AKP: ‘What if the AKP pulls another surprise?’ We will continue our way, such issues notwithstanding. The EU needs us as an ‘antidote’ to Islamic resistance, and we need it to take our place in the 21st century. Therefore, even if we’re not ready mentally, there are still some who want us in the EU politically as long as we meet its requirements. What should the AKP do under these conditions? There should be an immediate Cabinet reshuffle. There are ministers there now who would resist the changes during the coming process. A ministry for EU affairs should be established, and I think Mehmet Aydin could head it. A committee should also be established to deal with the accession talks. This committee should be a joint body of the ruling and opposition parties and should establish advisory commissions. The government has to establish a model which includes every level of society. We either enter the EU united, or we will all be left outside. Turkey’s EU membership is an issue upon which all the people of Turkey agree. The government has to develop a model in which it coordinates action that calls on all levels of society to take an active role. I’m asking AKP deputies to devote more thought to this issue than to any other.” [13] NOT MARRIED, BUT ENGAGED BY SEMIH IDIZ (AKSAM)Columnist Semih Idiz comments on Turkish-EU relations. A summary of his column is as follows:“I’m not sure if this is a guarantee that we’ll get a date for European Union membership talks in December. However, Turkey is now on Europe’s radar, and vice versa. There’s a new situation between the two parties. In other words, it’s clear from the meeting between Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and EU Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter Verheugen that we’re now ‘engaged’ to Europe. German daily Bild wrote ‘Welcome Turkey’ on the front of its Turkish section and a similar atmosphere can be seen in other European papers. We’ll see what this means for various sectors. However, a great many things will surely happen before we tie the knot. There will be debates, quarrels, and then peace. However, Turkey and Europe have started to understand each other. They both see that they can’t ignore the other. So, instead of walking towards the future separately, the advantages of walking together will be better understood. Meanwhile, Erdogan changed greatly following the recent adultery ban crisis. He made a final move in the name of ‘conservatism,’ but then saw that it was impossible to be an effective leader from such a narrow point of view. What sort of lessons might he have learned from the recent issue? Will he be able to make his place in history from these lessons? We’ll see. Actually last week I would have called it impossible, but now the situation has changed. In addition, there are certain people in Europe who reflect the expectations of a different age. They continue to show that they’re seeking a sort of Roman Empire. However, as former French Prime Minister Michel Rocard said, it’s high time for Europe to wake up and smell reality. Now there could be a Europe of rules and principles. For this reason, if Turkey fulfills the conditions, there’s no reason for it not to be included in the Union.” ARCHIVE <script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js"> </script> Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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