Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 10-09-08

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

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT PRESS

[01] Eroglu briefed Turkish Cypriot political parties on the property issue

[02] Sparring in the TDP over the coalition government with UBP

[03] So-called labour minister: There are 33,000 Turkish workers with preliminary work permit

[04] The population in the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus has increased

[05] Businessman accused of having relations with a suspect for drug trafficking, files lawsuit against Afrika and Yeni Volkan

[06] 4,000-year-old tomb discovered in the occupied areas

[B] TURKISH PRESS

[07] Turkish columnist says that international conference on Cyprus in the forthcoming period is considered to be certain

[08] Davutoglu to attend informal meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers

[09] Turkish Prime Minister and Qatari Amir meet in Istanbul

[10] International finance summit to take place in Istanbul

[11] Nearly 49.5 million people to vote on September 12

[12] EU officials on Turkeys September 12 referendum regarding constitution

[13] Highlights

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT PRESS

[01] Eroglu briefed Turkish Cypriot political parties on the property issue

Meanwhile, the paper reports that as the Cyprus negotiations process is entering a critical phase, the Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu held a 3-hour meeting yesterday with the leaders and representatives of the Turkish Cypriot political parties in order to inform them about the latest developments in the negotiations talks, ahead of this weeks all day talks.

In his statements after the meeting, self-styled prime minister and leader of National Unity Party (UBP) Irsen Kucuk said that they discussed with the representatives of the other political parties their views on the property issue. Referring to the all day talks to be held between the two leaders today and tomorrow, Kucuk said the fact that proposals have been submitted indicates that there is some progress. He also expressed both his governments and his partys support to the Turkish Cypriot leaders efforts at the negotiating table.

The general secretary of the main opposition Republican Turkish Party-United Forces (CTP-BG), Kutlay Erk, described the meeting as useful. However, he said it would have been more useful if the meeting had been held before submission of the proposals. Expressing discomfort with the fact that the negotiation process has become an image building process, Erk said that the CTP wants a solution to be found by the end of the year, adding that it is not right to say, If no solution is found by the end of the year, then everybody will go with their own way. Though, he said, the property issue is complicated, it is not as difficult as the chapter of governance and power sharing. The criteria for property are known. The Greek side should make a good evaluation and contribute to the process, he said.

For his part, Mehmet Cakici, leader of the Social Democratic Party (TDP) said that it is an opening for the Turkish Cypriot side to discuss the property issue (return, exchange and compensation). He added that the negotiation process is very slowly and stressed the need for the sides to spend more time on the property issue.

Serdar Denktas, Democratic Party (DP) leader, stated that yesterdays meeting was more informative and productive than previous ones and added that a more detailed statement will be made the following days.

Turgay Avci, Freedom and Reform Party (ORP) leader, expressed regret that their partys views were not considered during preparation of the proposals and added that statements will be made when the proposals are examined. He said that ORP has always supported the efforts for a comprehensive solution, and that it will continue to do so.

Halkin Sesi newspaper covers the issue under the title Mini summit at the presidential palace.

(AK)

[02] Sparring in the TDP over the coalition government with UBP

On the same issue, the paper reports that there was a three-hour meeting last night between TDP and UBP. No statements were made after the meeting, which Varoglu did not attend.

According to a commentary by Sami Ozuslu writing in Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Duzen (08.09.10), Huseyin Angolemli who is the elected deputy of TDP, is among those who oppose a coalition with UBP. Mustafa Akinci, former TDP leader, also declared his opposition to a partnership with UBP, on local radio channel SIM FM.

Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris (08.09.10) reports that Cakici said during a programme on local KIBRIS TV yesterday that TDP majority gives him the authority to establish a coalition government. Noting that they have discussed several times whether there is a common ground with so-called prime minister Irsen Kucuk, Cakici said that UBP approaches positively the issues that TDP is sensitive about. He added: Our programme, our principles are there, the waters have been tested. From now on, we should discuss the details in the meetings. The issue will be cleared in three or five days.

(DPs)

[03] So-called labour minister: There are 33,000 Turkish workers with preliminary work permit

Moreover, he added that the state of the TRNC, the government and parliament exist thanks to the Republic of Turkey and if the cooperation continues the TRNCs economy will improve and all difficulties will be surpassed.

[04] The population in the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus has increased

[05] Businessman accused of having relations with a suspect for drug trafficking, files lawsuit against Afrika and Yeni Volkan

Cangar said that everything published in the newspapers was untrue except the fact that he visited a person in prison named Ismet Felek. Felek was tried in Istanbul for heroin trafficking and in prison in the occupied areas of Cyprus for a while. Cangar said that he knew this person because the latter had bought 6-7 cars from his company. He noted that he did not know the reason for which Felek was in prison and added that Felek did not threaten him.

Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Duzen (08.09.10) gives extensive coverage to the issue and calls on the police to speak. The paper reports that the allegations regarding Ismet Felek and his relations with Cyprus have reached a serious point.

The paper publishes an interview with Sener Levent, Afrikas editor-in-chief, who was the author of the articles questioning the relations between the government and mafia in the occupied areas of Cyprus and putting forward allegations regarding some businessmen. Levent reiterates that, according to information acquired by the paper, Cangar visited Felek in prison after the latter threatened him asking for one million pounds sterling. He noted that the paper did not write that Cangar was a drug dealer and that it only questioned his relation with the above-mentioned person.

Levent said the paper published pictures of Ismet Felek in the presidential palace of Dervis Eroglu. Levent noted that Dervis Eroglu, Ismet Felek and Umit Dogay Arinc (Turkish State Minister Bulent Arincs brother) were also in the pictures and noted that this incident could be described as the Susurluk of the occupied areas of Cyprus.

Moreover, Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika (08.09.10) refers to the issue on its front page and reports that at the press conference Cangar accused the paper of being in the service of the Greek Cypriots and that their mission is to lead the economy of the occupied areas of Cyprus bankruptcy.

Finally, Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Volkan (08.09.10) calls on Cangar to disclose information on his wealth and the property of his first-degree relatives. It also asks him to reveal his profits within the last ten years, the amount of taxes paid, the credit he gave to municipalities with state warranties and how he acquired so much property enabling him to give loans to the state and municipalities.

(I/Ts.)

[06] 4,000-year-old tomb discovered in the occupied areas

The so-called director of the department of antiquities and museums, responsible for the Famagusta area, Hasan Tekel, said that at the end of the 3-week excavations they found remains of eight human skeletons, scattered within the burial chamber. Tekel also said that they found a necklace with 105 beads and a copper dagger, which reflects the metal processing of that age.

[B] TURKISH PRESS

[07] Turkish columnist says that international conference on Cyprus in the forthcoming period is considered certain

Noting that Ban Ki-moon will visit the island for the second time within the forthcoming period, Lule refers to two scenarios: a) The problem is declared as unsolvable and b) A new negotiating framework is determined because current efforts have not given the desirable result. According to Lule, the possibilities for the first scenario are low and therefore the convening of an international conference within the forthcoming period for the solution of the Cyprus problem is considered to be certain. The columnist writes that alternative arrangements might be proposed. He gives as example the direct trade of the Turkish Cypriots with the EU, the return of the occupied closed city of Varosha and the simultaneous opening of the chapters on which Turkey cannot carry out negotiations with the EU because of the problem of the ports.

If this proposal is submitted to the table, Turkey will demand the opening of Ercan [illegal Tymvou] airport, writes Lule.

Referring to the war of tactics between the sides, Lule recalls statements made by the Turkish side which refer to a solution by the end of the year and adds that if a solution could not be reached by the end of the year, everyone will go their own way.

Describing the property issue as the bleeding wound of the Cyprus problem, Lule says that the UN has proposed a system of three stages for the settlement of this issue providing for return, compensation and exchange of property.

Lule says that the next couple of months will be the period during which the Cyprus problem will be discussed the most and points out that this problem, which led Turkeys accession negotiations with the EU into an impasse and a standstill will directly influence relations between Turkey and the EU. Particularly, the EU Summit in December will be locked up with the Cyprus problem, he points out and notes that the Turkish foreign policy will be very busy with the positive or negative developments on this issue in these two months during which pressure is expected from the international community.

(I/Ts.)

[08] Davutoglu to attend informal meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers

[09] Turkish Prime Minister and Qatari Amir meet in Istanbul

[10] International finance summit to take place in Istanbul

Speaking at a press conference, the IFSs Consultative Committee chairman, Associate Professor Murat Yulek, told reporters that up to 300 scholars both from Turkey and abroad are expected to attend summit. It is expected that the summit will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and will also be attended by Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan, Minister of Finance Mehmet Simsek, Central Bank Governor Durmus Yilmaz, Capital Markets Board (SPK) Chairman Vedat Akgiray, Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) Chairman Tevfik Bilgin and Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB) President Huseyin Erkan, who will address the conference. Other speakers include the Islamic Development Bank President Ahmed Muhammed Ali Al-Madani, Bank of Mexico President Augustin Carstens, the Central Bank of Brazil Vice President Luiz Awazu Pereira Da Silva and Central Bank of India Deputy Governor Subir Vithal Gokarn.

[11] Nearly 49.5 million people to vote on September 12

Constitutional amendments include changes in the structure of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), as well as the Constitutional Court, the country's top judiciary body.

Turkey's Constitutional Court has annulled parts of the package in July, rejecting to overturn the entire package in a move to upset countrys main opposition party, Republican Peoples Party (CHP), which had appealed to the top court to scrape-off the package as a whole.

Opposition parties CHP and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) accuse the government of attempting to politicize the judiciary and have it subordinated to the executive branch. The Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) announced that it would boycott the referendum. However, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) denies accusations and argues that the law aims at making Turkey more democratic in line with EU standards.

The package abolishes the provisional article 15 of the constitution, which does not allow trial of the members of the National Security Council formed after the military coup in 1980. Moreover, it abolishes the ban on the right to general strike and paves the way for citizens to become members of more than one labour union and for civil servants and other public officials right to collective bargaining. It also paves the way for parliament speakers, chiefs of general staff, and senior commanders to be brought before the High Tribunal on charges of crimes related to their positions.

[12] EU official on Turkeys September 12 referendum regarding constitution

The [European] Commission would suggest that the discussions about the constitutional reform package remain focused on the substance, as these reforms concern the future of Turkey and of the Turkish people, Filote said. The Commission reiterated its well-known position, namely that this reform package is a step in the right direction: establishing an ombudsman institution, restricting the authority of military courts, introducing positive discrimination for vulnerable groups [and] extending the rights of civil servants, the spokeswoman said.

[13] Highlights

a) Referendum on Constitutional amendments

Chief editorial in Hurriyet Daily News cites Economy Minister Ali Babacan as saying that a 'no' vote in the referendum could produce a traumatic outcome for Turkey's national economy and criticizes him for acting with the logic of a hostage-taker and using a threatening argument.

According to a report in Hurriyet, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu who attended the editorial meeting in Hurriyet (6.9.10) noted that a 'yes' vote in the referendum will strengthen Turkey hand in its EU membership talks. Also arguing that the package further guarantees the independence of the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), the report cites Davutoglu as saying that the deficiencies in the package will be resolved.

In a commentary in Radikal, Cengiz Candar says that if the no votes are in the majority, the front that has turned the referendum into confidence vote for Tayyip Erdogan will view the result as the "end of the Justice and Development Party's (AKP) legitimacy" and it will launch a campaign for general elections. If the majority of the votes are in favour of the package, this will trigger the requirement for a new democratic, and civilian constitution, notes Candar and argues that under such circumstances the AKP will make a new constitution a priority item in its election campaign and the other parties will follow in its footsteps. Moreover, Candar says that a 'no' vote will serve the interests of the pro-status quo circles while a yes vote will be good for the dynamics of change in Turkey and will therefore serve the interests of both the country and the Kurds.

In an article in Vatan, Okay Gonensin argues that if the constitutional amendment package is accepted by a narrow margin, the opposition will primarily accuse the ruling party of fraud. Under such circumstances, he adds, the opposition will use all its means to keep the country tense for the next 10 month, until the general elections. The acceptance of the package by a narrow margin will make it difficult for Erdogan to make new overtures in its policies to end terrorism and to take action for a new and comprehensive constitution, stresses Gonensin.

Taraf's Yasemin Congar, says that Turkey should allow propaganda in favour of demands such as autonomy, federation and independence noting notes that it will be possible to reach this point as Turkey gradually destroys the tutelage regime with opportunities such as the 12 September referendum. Pointing out that those who put forth demands for autonomy and independence will have to engage in legal politics on the basis of universal conditions, Congar underlines that within this framework these circles will have to cut off their organic ties with violence.

Yeni Safak carries a front-page report which asserts that the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has been thrown into disarray over a referendum poster that "insults women wearing headscarves" by comparing them to nuns. According to the report, the "scandalous" poster, prepared by the CHP-ruled Avcilar municipality in Istanbul, has already led to resignations within the CHP's provincial administration in Istanbul.

Vakit runs a front-page report under the headline, "Idealists [Core MHP Supporters] Rise up in Arms Against MHP", which highlights a declaration issued by the "founders" of the Nationalist Action Party (MHP) expressing support for the constitutional reforms to be submitted to referendum on 12 September and accusing the MHP administration of "siding with putschists" in campaigning against the reform package.

b) "Are you a leader or a figurehead?"

Under the above headline, an article in Vakit by editor-in-chief Hasan Karakaya asserts that CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu has been exposed as a "puppet" and "figurehead" controlled by the CHP's "politburo" as a result of the disclosure that local CHP authorities in Istanbul prepared and disseminated a poster comparing veiled Muslim women to nuns, regardless of Kilicdaroglu's recent announcement of a plan to address the headscarf issue. He also claims that Kilicdaroglu has failed to honour any of his promises since he "entered the bridal chamber with Baykal's videocassette" [i.e. since he became CHP leader thanks to a sex scandal that caused Deniz Baykal to resign as chairman of the CHP].

c) Interview with BDP co-chairman Demirtas

In the second and last instalment of the interview (first part-review 170/10, 7.9.10) conducted by Milliyet's Devrim Sevimay, BDP co-chairman Selahattin Demirtas argues that the democratic autonomy is the administrative model of the democratic republic, and adds: "We should divide Turkey into autonomous regions and each region should have a democratic administration. This way, it will be possible to resolve the language problem locally."

d) Illegal wiretapping

Milliyet's Melih Isik recalls that the representatives of Ulusal Kanal and Aydinlik had been sentenced to prison terms for featuring an illegally obtained recording of a conversation between prime minister Erdogan and Mehmet Ali Talat last year, and, referring to the wiretapping in the Association of Judges and Prosecutors (YARSAV), he says: "Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has begun to use these illegal recordings in the rally grounds. Meanwhile a recording allegedly belonging to Deputy Chief of Staff General Aslan Guner has been featured in Taraf. AKP ministers have given instructions for an immediately investigation into the allegations. No one has found, however, the tapping of the members of the Supreme Court of Appeals odd. No one has questioned the source of this recording. We are living in an order where illegal tapping and plots on behalf of the government are viewed as legal."

Commenting in Milliyet on this issue, Can Dundar criticizes Erdogan for using illegally collected information in the rally grounds and says: "Regardless of its contents a leader who believes in the state of law is charged with the duty of finding, putting on trial, and punishing those who collect information through illegal means, rather than using this information. If we do not want this country to turn into a fear republic where everyone, starting with the president, lives with the fear of being tapped,(...) we should condemn the wiretappings and we should defend everyone's right to privacy."

Zaman runs a front-page report under the headline "Did the Supreme Court intercept the phone conversations of its own members?" which highlights the findings of an investigation into claims that the private conversations of Supreme Court of Appeals and Council of State justices are being illegally intercepted. The investigation has not verified the allegations but discovered that one of the switchboards recently purchased by the Supreme Court is equipped with phone recording features, possibly suggesting that the top court administration has been intercepting the conversations of its own members, the report says.

e) General Michael Mullen's press conference

Radikal columnist Deniz Zeyrek refers to General Mullen's remarks that "they did not ask for permission for the withdrawal of the weapons equipment through Turkey and wonders whether Mullen is telling the truth or whether the Turkish side is trying to create the impression that the United States is conducting bargains with Turkey in order to show that the United States is dependent on Turkey. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio

/AC

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