Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 17-11-01

Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

CONTENTS

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Disagreements were expressed yesterday during a meeting at the so-called presidential palace on the date of the "early elections"

[02] The "We are not accepting platform" protested against the "proposal" of the 19 "deputies" for the abolition of federation as a solution

[03] Commentary: "A new hope for Northern Cyprus: Ozersay and the People's Party"

[04] "Immovable Property Commission": The ECHR rejected a Greek Cypriot lawsuit because local remedies had not been exhausted

[05] A minefield in occupied Yerolakkos area was demined

[06] YOK's chairman to carry out "contacts" in the occupied area of Cyprus

[07] Cobanoglu is the new chairman of the "executive board" of illegal Bayrak

[08] The first Turkish-made assault rifle MPT-76 is being exported to Turkey's allies; The "TRNC" has ordered 2,500 rifles

[09] Yildirim to meet with Pence during US visit

[10] Kilicdaroglu: "Turkey is governed by mafia-like methods"

[11] MHP leader blasts Good Party as 'political cemetery'

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Disagreements were expressed yesterday during a meeting at the so-called presidential palace on the date of the "early elections"

During the meeting, an exchange of views was made on the new "election and referendum law" and the "early elections". Akinci discussed the "new election law" with the party officials but he did not make any proposal concerning the date of the "early elections".

Speaking after the meeting, Siber explained that Akinci wanted to make a "consultation meeting" with all the "involved parties" before proceeding to the "signing" of the "new election law". He further added that Akinci will "sign the law" which will be then published in the "official gazette" and "set into force".

Stating that all political parties agree on the "early elections" that will take place, Siber, however, explained that there is a disagreement on the date of the "elections". She said that on the one hand the UBP and CTP insist on the 7th of January, on the other hand the chairman of the DP, Denktas and all the other political parties proposed the "elections" to take place in another day. The paper writes further that Denktas proposed the "elections" to take place on February, providing as an "excuse" the "budget discussions".

(AK)

[02] The "We are not accepting platform" protested against the "proposal" of the 19 "deputies" for the abolition of federation as a solution

Speaking on behalf of the platform, Arslan Bicakli, the chairman of the TURK-SEN Trade Union, said that a break is taking place on the Cyprus negotiations due to the Presidential Election to "south Cyprus". He added that with a 65%, the Turkish Cypriots stressed in the past their demand to be connected with the world.

He also said that the 19 "deputies" are trying to divide the Turkish Cypriot community into "nationalists" and non "nationalists", that the "proposal" is still at the "assembly" and that this kind of actions are against the will of the Cypriots to live together and against the efforts for reaching a solution.

In addition, the chairman of the KTOEOS Trade Union Selma Eylem stated that the "dangerous proposal" submitted by the 19 "deputies" took place for "election reasons".

(CS)

[03] Commentary: "A new hope for Northern Cyprus: Ozersay and the People's Party"

"The most critical parliamentary elections in the history of the TRNC (editor's note: the breakaway regime in the occupied area of Cyprus) are going to take place at the start of January next year.

The elections are not only going to determine whether or not the current government, the rottenest one that the island has ever known, will stay on. They will also determine whether or not the political order that feeds this rot is going to continue.

The people have two choices before them:

The first is to vote for the established parties that have governed the north of the island on a rotational basis ever since the TRNC was founded and which have brought standards down in almost every field.

In other words to give a green light for the continuation of the bribery and corruption, lawlessness and lack of authority and vision that have been in place for the past 34 years.

The second option is to bring to power the party run by a young academician who is new to politics and who is running in the elections for the first time.

Even though public surveys the honesty and integrity of which are questionable cannot confirm this; there are many signs that the majority of the people are going to turn to this party.

The greatest of indicators here is the discontentedness felt with respect to the mainstream parties.

The climate in the TRNC resembles that which brought the AKP [Justice and Development Party] to power in 2002. Back then the electorate in Turkey was fed up with the old parties and by bringing the AKP to power the parties founded by Bulent Ecevit, Suleyman Demirel and Turgut Ozal were all swept off the political stage.

While the outcome in the TRNC might not be as dramatic it will not be a surprise to see an untried liberal party given a chance.

This party's name is the People's Party. Its leader is Kudret Ozersay. Ozersay (44) is as a leader the likes of whom have not been seen on the island's political stage until now. He is honest, sincere, intellectual, impressive and dislikes demagogy, crudeness and lies. He is respected in Turkey and in foreign countries.

He has original ideas concerning how to fix the Cyprus problem other than the current platforms.

Ozersay has 12 years of negotiations experience in international talks. He has sat at the table with three Turkish Cypriot and four Greek Cypriot leaders as well as two separate UNSGs.

Ozersay ventured into politics by starting the 'We are pulling ourselves together' popular movement underpinned by 'a future based on a clean society, clean politics and our own will'.

He took part in the 'presidential elections' in 2015 and secured 20% of the vote despite having no political party affiliations or outside financial support. He founded the People's Party in 2016.

Ozersay has realistic solution options that will change the model that has brought the Turkish Cypriots from 1974 to where they are today.

This bankrupt model created unreciprocated monetary aid from Turkey and the plunder of the fortune that the Greek Cypriots left behind in the north. The result was an economy of subsidy and plunder like no other in the world. Bribery and cronyism became the rule in the TRNC.

Some politicians became so brash that they all but published recipes for bribery in the newspapers. The hostility towards private investment is a copy of Turkey's position in the 1960s and 1970s.

For most politicians the institution of politics is a gateway to siphoning off funds or getting rich through bribes. The notion of the public good is not in circulation.

The mainstream parties have no plans for the future other than maintaining the current system. The broader popular masses have come to understand for the first time that this system promises no future.

Women, young people, academicians and businessmen all feel frustrated and are thus looking for something new.

It is this wish for change, one that offers the TRNC a new opening that created Ozersay and his People's Party."

[04] "Immovable Property Commission": The ECHR rejected a Greek Cypriot lawsuit because local remedies had not been exhausted

In a written statement issued yesterday, Ayfer Said Erkmen, "chairperson" of the "commission", noted that the application filed by Loizou on 7 October 2015 was found to be unacceptable because the local remedies had not been exhausted according to the European Convention on Human Rights. Erkmen said that the Court had in detail examined the procedure and the structure of the "commission" during the Demopoulos and others case and noted that the "commission" was found to be an effective remedy for the Greek Cypriot property claims.

(I/Ts.)

[05] A minefield in occupied Yerolakkos area was demined

A statement issued yesterday by the "security forces" recalled that the occupation regime had invited tenders and signed a quality control/ quality safety agreement with the Mines Advisory Group from Britain on 9 November 2016 and a demining agreement with Dok-ing Deminiranje from Bosnia and Herzegovina on 23 August 2017.

According to the statement, within this framework, the demining activities started on 20 September and were successfully completed on 27 October.

(I/Ts.)

[06] YOK's chairman to carry out "contacts" in the occupied area of Cyprus

According to the paper, Sarac and his accompanied delegation will also meet with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, so-called prime minister Huseyin Ozgurgun, the "minister of education" Ozdemir Berova and the "chairperson" of the "planning, evaluation, accreditation and coordination council" ("YODAK",) Prof. Dr Akile Buke. Sarac and his accompanied delegation will be discussing with the Turkish Cypriot "officials" the latest developments in the "higher education of the TRNC".

(AK)

[07] Cobanoglu is the new chairman of the "executive board" of illegal Bayrak

According to the paper the two candidates for the position are both members of the National Unity Party (UBP).

(CS)

[08] The first Turkish-made assault rifle MPT-76 is being exported to Turkey's allies; The "TRNC" has ordered 2,500 rifles

The Turkish defence industry sources, who asked not be named, told Anadolu Agency that the state-run Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation (MKEK) and the private defence companies Kalekalip and Sarsilmaz have been given orders for mass production of the rifle.

The MPT-76 rifle is currently in the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces, produced to replace the traditional German G-3 rifles and reduce dependence on foreign manufacturers.

MKEK has delivered 3,200 rifles so far, with 500 given to the Turkish Presidency. MKEK plans to deliver the rest in 2018.

A total of 450 rifles were delivered to Somalia, which is dealing with a rebellion. The "TRNC" (editor's note: the breakaway regime in the occupied area of Cyprus) has ordered 2,500 rifles to be added to its inventory.

[09] Yildirim to meet with Pence during US visit

A Turkish official told Daily Sabah Yildirim was expected to have a bilateral meeting with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.

The relations between the two countries are going through the worst period in the last decade. The presence of Gulenist Terror Group (FETO) leader Fetullah Gulen in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania remains a key problematic issue.

Moreover, columnist Murat Yetkin, writing in Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online, 01.11.17), under the title "Pence-Yildirim to work on troubled US-Turkey ties", reports the following:

"(?) Turkish official sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that planning of the visit has been "in the pipeline for a long time".

A ranking Turkish source told the Hurriyet Daily News that they have been working on this visit since the Y?ld?r?m-Pence meeting in Munich at the International Security Conference on Feb. 18.

Y?ld?r?m is expected to speak to Pence in Washington, but contacts have also been made for Yildirim and his economy team to address investors in New York and promote investment opportunities in Turkey. This prospect comes at a time when there is ongoing speculation following reports ? later denied in some cases ? that sanctions could be imposed against Turkey due to ongoing cases in the U.S. and claims about the violation of U.S. sanctions on Iran. (?)

The agenda in the Yildirim-Pence talks is expected to be heavy, with a series of accumulated problems that could be summarized as follows:

* Ankara wants the U.S.-resident Islamist preacher Fethullah Gulen who is accused of masterminding Turkey's July 15, 2016 coup attempt, to be extradited or at least be the subject of legal action. (?)

* The U.S.'s continued preference to work with the Syrian branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in the fight against the outlawed Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The PKK has been fighting for over three decades against Turkey, a NATO ally of the U.S., and the partnership in Syria has caused outrage in Turkey. As a result, Ankara has moved to cooperate more closely with Russia and Iran in the Syria theatre, despite being a partner in the anti-ISIL coalition led by the U.S.

* Trump has officially asked for the release of the Izmir-resident U.S. pastor Andrew Brunson (an Evangelist, like Pence) who is currently under arrest accused of having links with the illegal Gulenist network. Erdogan has said that it is down to "independent courts" to rule on this issue, but he has also addressed Trump by saying "Give your cleric, take our cleric," implicitly referring to Gulen and Brunson.

* Two Turkish employees of U.S. consulates in Turkey - one in Adana and the other one in Istanbul - are currently under arrest over alleged links with the PKK (the Adana employee) and the Gulen network (the Istanbul employee). The U.S. administration has strongly reacted against those arrests, halting U.S. visa proceedings for Turks at all consulates in Turkey. This move was responded to in kind by the Turkish government, which led to the current deadlock.

* There are arrest warrants against 13 Turks, including Erdogan's bodyguards, over their brawl with protesters in front of the Turkish Ambassador's residence in Washington during Erdogan's visit in May. There is also an arrest warrant against Erdogan's former Economy Minister Zafer Caglayan, whose name was involved in a corruption probe in late 2013 over allegedly taking bribes from Iranian-origin businessman Reza Zarrab. Erdogan has denounced that investigation as a Gulenist coup attempt and the cases were later dropped. The prosecutors and judges who oversaw the probe were also put on trial.

* Zarrab has been under arrest in the U.S. for nearly two years, accused of violating sanctions on Iran by organizing gold-for-oil and gas trade between Turkey and Iran. Earlier this year Hakan Atilla, deputy director of the Turkish public bank Halkbank, was also arrested in the U.S. during an official visit, accused of being involved in the same sanctions-busting trade. The Zarrab case is due to have a key hearing on Nov. 27 at court in New York.

Yildirim's upcoming visit to the U.S. and his talks with Pence are expected to have a positive effect on troubled Turkey-U.S. relations. But with such a pile-up of problems, no one has a clear idea yet about what kind of improvements can be expected."

[10] Kilicdaroglu: "Turkey is governed by mafia-like methods"

"The country has started being governed by mafia-like methods", Kilicdaroglu told his party's group in parliament on Oct. 31.

"To threaten a family is a method used by the mafia. Those holding a post within the government should not adopt such methods. If you do, you have to leave that position. You do not deserve it", Kilicdaroglu added.

His comments came after Ugur, the Mayor of the northwestern province of Bal?kesir, announced his resignation from his post and his party membership on Oct. 30, the latest in a long-running saga over a number of resignations from the AKP. In an emotional speech, Ugur said he was obliged to make this decision after he and his family were "threatened".

The CHP leader said Ugur's speech proved the way the ruling party was governing the country, accusing Erdogan of "instructing the threatening".

Speaking about a recent investigation launched into CHP spokesperson Bulent Tezcan after he called Erdogan a "fascist dictator", Kilicdaroglu said: "They [AKP] were uncomfortable with our spokesperson's comments? To harass somebody's family is the requirement of being a fascist dictator anyway."

Immediately after K?l?cdaroglu's statement at Parliament, AKP spokesperson Mahir Unal issued strongly worded response, accusing the CHP head of being a "mouthpiece of forces that are enemies of Turkey".

"You will take your place in the garbage of world history, in the garbage of the history of Turkey. You will go down as a political tool of forces that are enemies of Turkey, acting in cooperation with those forces", Unal said in a press conference in Ankara on Oct. 31.

Unal also claimed that Erdogan, as leader of the party, has the "democratic right "to instruct Mayors to resign as a part of the internal party supervisory process. "Our President and leader has used his right to call for resignations, which is his democratic right," he said.

[11] MHP leader blasts Good Party as 'political cemetery'

"The end of this is a political cemetery. The end of the Good Party will be ugly," Bahceli said in a weekly address to his MHP parliamentary group on Oct. 31.

Aksener's Good Party has currently five seats at Parliament, made up of four former MHP lawmakers and one former main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Deputy.

TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION

https://www.pio.gov.cy/moi/pio/pio2013.nsf/All/EDB254ABD6F3EAE1C225816F00425E83?OpenDocument

(DPs / ??)

Copyright (C) 2017 Press and Information Office, All rights reserved.

Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article