Cyprus PIO: Turkish Press and Other Media, 04-10-25

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From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] The Democratic Party and its leader Serdar Denktas are seen as the "key" in efforts for a new "coalition government".

[02] The so-called Foreign Ministry on UNSC resolution extending UNFICYP term.

[03] The Turkish Cypriot Union of Mechanical Engineers stated that constructions in Greek Cypriot properties in the occupied areas of Cyprus have increased.

[04] More than seven thousand foreigners were found to work illegally in occupied Cyprus during the first eight months of 2004 - The number of the illegal workers is not clear.

[B] COMMENTARIES, EDITORIALS AND ANALYSIS

[05] Turkish columnist assesses the reasons for the resignation of Talat.

[06] Sener Levent argues that the Turkish Cypriots were used as pawns during the referendum while Talat argues that they brought about a revolution.

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] The Democratic Party and its leader Serdar Denktas are seen as the "key" in efforts for a new "coalition government".

The paper notes that according to Mr Eroglu's statements, the NUP accepts also the establishment of a "government" that will lead the citizens to early "parliamentary elections". The party organs were expected to meet today at 14.30 in order to discuss the situation.

KIBRIS notes that the Democratic Party has not yet fixed an appointment to the NUP for discussing the issue, because of the absence of its leader, Mr Serdar Denktas, who went on holiday last Friday.

The Republican Turkish Party - New Forces (RTP-NF) and the Peace and Democracy Movement (PDM) have respectively set an appointment to Mr Eroglu for Tuesday and Wednesday, but they had earlier declared that they would not participate in a "government" with the NUP. The position of the other two left-wing parties represented in the "parliament", the Communal Liberation Party (CLP) and the United Cyprus Party (UCP) seems to be the same, writes KIBRIS.

Referring to the stance of the other parties represented in the "parliament" with one "MP" the paper says that only the New Party (NP) of the Turkish settler Nuri Cevikel, who had been elected with RTP-NF, and the Free Though Party (FTP) led by Salih Cosar have opened their doors to a coalition led by NUP from the very first day and seem to prefer a four - party coalition to an early "election".

Therefore, notes KIBRIS, the reply of the DP to the proposal of Mr Eroglu is expected with great interest. The DP became the "key party" in the developments, it argues.

Meanwhile, according to Turkish Cypriot daily GUNES newspaper (25.10.04), Mr Eroglu noted that his party was not against an agreement on the Cyprus problem. Responding to KIBRIS newspaper, which had accused him of not wanting a solution, Mr Eroglu issued a written statement in which he, inter alia, argued: "As a National Unity Party we consider as our absolute target the participation of the Turkish Cypriot `people´ and their `state´ in the European Union".

Furthermore, Turkish Cypriot daily ORTAM newspaper (25.10.04) reports that the CLP leader, Huseyin Angolemli expressed the opinion that time is wasted under the name of the efforts of establishing a "government", because with the current synthesis of the pseudoparliament this will not be possible. Mr Angolemli demanded a session of the pseudoparliament in order to determine a date for early "elections" in November.

Meanwhile, KIBRIS newspaper (24.10.04) reports that Mr Mehmet Dulger, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (JDP), has argued that the allegation that Turkey forced the RTP- DP coalition "government" of Mehmet Ali Talat to resign, is definitely not true.

[02] The so-called Foreign Ministry on UNSC resolution extending UNFICYP term

A statement by the so-called Foreign Ministry recalled that the mandate of the peacekeeping force in Cyprus was extended for six more months with the UN Security Council resolution no 1,568 adopted on October 22nd, 2004.

The statement said that the report UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan released on UNFICYP on September 24th noted that the mandate of the peacekeeping force was being extended upon the request of the Government of Cyprus.

The statement was as follows: ''Referring to the Greek Cypriot administration, which has usurped the legitimate government by gun force since 1963, as the 'government' is not a definition that can be accepted by the Turkish Cypriot side. It is a reality that the Greek Cypriot administration only rules the south of the island, and doesn't represent `Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus´. Moreover, the UN delegation, who visited Cyprus, learned views of not only the Greek Cypriot administration, but also the Turkish Cypriot side, as a requirement of the Security Council resolution number 1,548. And, non-reference to this resolution is a serious deficiency."

The statement noted that there was no need to include the issue of missing persons in the Security Council resolution, and continued: ''The general background part of the resolution calls on the concerned parties to take immediate action regarding the issue of missing persons. However, the report of the UN Secretary-General doesn't include any expression that can be taken as a basis for such a call."

[03] The Turkish Cypriot Union of Mechanical Engineers stated that constructions in Greek Cypriot properties in the occupied areas of Cyprus have increased

In a written statement the deputy chairman of the Union, Mr Hasan Hacisevki, noted that the constructions in occupied Cyprus have increased lately with the Annan Plan in properties that belong to Greek Cypriots and a lot of constructions of very luxurious villas, with swimming pools and heating systems, are taking place without planning and without permission in properties that belong to Greek Cypriots.

The Union blamed the "officials" of the so-called municipalities of the occupation regime for granting permission for the building.

[04] More than seven thousand foreigners were found to work illegally in occupied Cyprus during the first eight months of 2004 - The number of

After controls which were conducted by the so-called ministry of labour and social security and the so-called ministry of interior of the occupation regime, it was registered that 7,718 foreigners have been working as illegal workers in occupied Cyprus between January and August 2004.

According to the so-called labour department of the occupation regime, from the 7,718 illegal workers, 5,686 of them applied for work permit for the first time while 2,032 of them asked for their work permit to be extended.

The paper writes that the number of the illegal workers in occupied Cyprus is not clear and that a lot of effort must be made in order for their real number to be found.

[B] COMMENTARIES, EDITORIALS AND ANALYSIS

[05] Turkish columnist assesses the reasons for the resignation of Talat

This is the plan. Whether it will work out in practice is uncertain. For in practice, that is, in the larger arena of politics, balances are much more complicated. It is especially necessary to determine the reasons why the coalition `government´ between RTP [Republican Turkish Party] leader Mehmet Ali Talat and DP leader Denktas had to resign. In the wake of the referenda held in both sides of Cyprus in April 2004, the 'TRNC administration' was, to say the least, left alone by the international powers, particularly the United States and Britain, which had pledged to ensure that the Turkish Cypriots would not regret it if they wanted a solution. Talat and Denktas found themselves in a difficult position before their voters as well as before the opposition when the Americans and the British contented themselves with diplomatic steps that had no concrete consequences in the people's lives and did not honour their promise to break the commercial embargoes against the Turkish Cypriots and even failed to carry out their decision to extend financial aid to the Turkish side owing to the intervention of the Republic of Cyprus. The Turkish government, itself tied down by the need to obtain a date for negotiations, could not make the necessary moves. As a result, Talat found himself in a position where he could not get `Parliament´ to pass his budget and ended this tempest in a teapot by resigning despite the fact that the opposition could not vote the `government´ out of office.

However, the former team's plan extending to April 2005 might not be realistic. It is not for sure that particularly Serdar Denktas will respond favourably to this alliance project, which is unlikely to introduce a new solution. Denktas is probably going to convene the central decision-making organs of his party next Tuesday to discuss whether to become allies with Eroglu again. The dominant tendency among the DP's ranks is to support an Eroglu `government´ from the outside provided an early election is held in January or to establish a minority DP `government´ similar to the formula of "a minority Ecevit government until the elections," which was implemented in Turkey between 1998-99, provided there is an early election in January.

This will probably be a more realistic solution. For serious changes could occur in the political scene after the EU summit to be held on 17 December. There is a strong possibility that on 17 December Turkey will be given a date for negotiations in 2005. Yet there is a problem that Ankara is almost certain to face at the negotiation stage if not at that summit: the recognition of the Cyprus Republic.

Ankara is still trying to produce formulas like "accepting [the Greek Cypriots] as a counterpart without recognizing them." This is somewhat like whistling in the dark for when the stage of Intergovernmental Conference arrives, the Cyprus government will be one of the 25 governments that will be sitting before Turkey. How you can conduct negotiations with a political entity you do not recognize is a question whose answer is obvious.

The questions do not end here, either. If the Cyprus Republic is recognized and is allowed to open an embassy in Ankara, what will happen to the 'TRNC Embassy´? Will this lead to the stage where Turkey will be asked to stop recognizing the 'TRNC' officially? Will Turkey be asked to withdraw all its soldiers from the island before the Turkish Cypriots have joined the EU (contrary to what is said in the Annan Plan)?. Actually this is being demanded already but will Ankara be told that if it does not do this, the negotiations will not start or, more optimistically, will not end. The next few months will be very suffocating."

[06] Sener Levent wonders whether the Turkish Cypriots were used as pawns during the referendum

Eser Karakas is a Professor at the Bahcesehir University in Turkey and a strong supporter of the EU. During the referendum he defended strongly the 'yes' vote. He praised the Annan plan and attacked Denktas. Does he regret it now? Those who went to listen to him when he delivered a lecture a few days ago in Nicosia were very surprised.

According to Karakas, what happened in Cyprus with the Annan plan in reality has nothing to do with the Turkish Cypriots but the main issue was Turkey's accession into the EU'

After telling us that, the Professor added: 'TRNC was used by everybody as a pawn´.

After six months went by it is very interesting to hear from one of those who was a strong supporter of 'yes' vote and a Turkish professor specialist on EU issues'

And what a pity'

We were used as a pawn'

At the same time, Mehmet Ali Talat from another platform said: 'Turkish Cypriots created a revolution''

Then you have to ask: What are we? Are we pawns? Are we revolutionaries?

Is it so simple to make a 'revolution'? There will be a referendum ' You will go to the ballot box'

And you will cast your vote in accordance with the demand and the order of those who occupy your country for thirty years now'

Even when they tell us directly in our face that we are 'pawns', we still believe that we are revolutionaries.

We are proud with the revolution that we have realized hand in hand with Turkey, which at present is planning to lock us in a refrigerator as a valuable hostage.

Since when in the world they branded this as revolution and those who carried it out as revolutionaries?

Is Talat aware of the fact that he is doing injustice to those who really made revolutions in history when he was saying that the Turkish Cypriots realized a revolution?

Revolution is waged against an occupying force. It is carried out against those ruling classes which oppressed the public.

Revolution is carried out to regain the usurped rights of the people. It is not a struggle hand in hand with those who usurped the rights of the people against the compatriots who live in the other half of the country.

The hegemony that the Greek Cypriots will have on the Turkish Cypriots, or vice versa, will not have any benefit on the people of Cyprus. And such a hegemony could neither be branded a victory nor a revolution. This could only be branded as tragedy.

Besides, is it not through our history that we have experienced the greatest sufferings? The Turks won and branded this a "victory". The Greeks won and branded this a "victory". No one, however, thought what the Cypriots lost in these victories. And now Talat comes and tells us, `we made a revolution' What kind of a revolution is this?

In the past the world thought that it was the Greek Cypriot side that wanted peace' The world had accepted that it is the Greek Cypriot side that wished to live together with the Turkish Cypriots in Cyprus.

The Turkish Cypriots had always been considered intransigent. This view has now changed. The world has understood that it is the Greek Cypriot side which does not wish to live with the Turkish Cypriots.

Here is the revolution that we have brought about! According to professor Karakas a pawn and for Talat a revolutionary.

It means that the Turkish intellectual knew the realities and that we are still struggling in the sea of imagination.

/SK

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