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Turkish Press Review, 99-03-05Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>05.03.99Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morningCONTENTS
[01] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS....[02] GREECE ISOLATES PKKThe Simitis government in Greece, which has been in a difficult situation since the capture of the PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, is becoming ready to isolate the PKK terrorist organization. According to an article in the 'Vradini' newspaper, the Simitis government is preparing two important packages concerning the PKK issue. It is reported that these packages, prepared following pressures by the West, in particular from the US and Turkey, will be announced in the upcoming days. According to the article, quoting those close to the Government, the Simitis government will initially close the ERNK office in Athens. Secondly, the Government will deport accused PKK terrorists. On this issue, the basic criteria of the European Union (EU) will be taken up. Another issue in the package is to freeze political asylum rights granted to PKK terrorists. The Greek government has recently granted asylum rights to female PKK terrorists who were taken from Nairobi to Athens.Currently, many PKK terrorists are active in Greece under political refugee status. The greatest financial assistance to these terrorists is being provided by the UNHCR (UN High Commission for Refugees) and hidden sources in the Government. /Cumhuriyet/ [03] FEMALE TERRORIST IN SUICIDE BOMBINGMembers of the PKK terrorist organization have started suicide bombings following the capture of the PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan by Turkey. In the Cumhuriyet Square, one of the most crowded areas in Batman, a female terrorist aged 25 who was carrying a bomb strapped to herself made the bomb explode 10 metres away from the Central Police Station. During the explosion, the terrorist died and three people were wounded. /Sabah/[04] OCALAN WANTS, LAWYER REFUSESThe PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned on Imrali Island since February 16, wanted lawyer Selim Okcuoglu to plead for him. However, when Selim Okcuoglu refused Ocalan's proposal, Ahmet Zeki Okcuoglu announced that he would defend Ocalan instead. Ocalan also wanted lawyer Hasip Kaplan to plead for him in addition to Ahmet Zeki Okcuoglu. Ocalan's demand was conveyed by Mudanya Republican Prosecutor Ayhan Koksal to the Mudanya Chief Notary Hacibey Erdogan. It is reported that Erdogan will go to Imrali Island to learn whether Ocalan has given power of attorney to his lawyers. /sabah/[05] OCALAN'S INDICTMENT TO BE TRANSLATEDAn indictment to be prepared by Ankara State Security Court (DGM) against Abdullah Ocalan will be translated into English, French and German and distributed to all countries. The indictment to be prepared using a diplomatic language will point out that the PKK is not a political group but a bloody terrorist organization, claims substantiated by photographs, video cassettes and other documents. /Sabah/[06] 25 PKK TERRORISTS SURRENDERCalls made by Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit to terrorists to surrender themselves have begun to yield results. Since the PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan has been captured on February 16, 25 PKK members have surrendered. It is reported that nearly 150 terrorists who have managed to escape from the PKK have been sheltering with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) led by Barzani and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) led by Talabani. 23 PKK members, captured while they running away from the PKK, were executed by the organization and seven terrorists suicided. /Sabah/[07] D'ALEMA: GO, OTHERWISE THE GOVERNMENT WILL BE TOPPLEDIt is reported that within the evidence given by the Greek Secret Service (EYP) agent, Savas Kalenderidis, to the Prosecutor's Office in Athens, it has been claimed that Italian Prime Minister D'Alema pressurized the PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan to leave the country. The 'Elefterotipiya' newspaper, published in Athens, remarked that Kalenderidis said in his evidence that Ocalan was an undesirable in Greece and that D'Alema also told Ocalan "Go, otherwise the Italian government will be toppled and the Mafia will kill you". The newspaper stated that Kalendiridis had described the departure of Ocalan from Italy as a strategic failure. The newspaper added that Ocalan escaped from Russia following a tip-off from the Secret Service. /Sabah/[08] 16 YEARS IMPRISONMENT FOR SIX PKK MEMBERSA French court has imprisoned six members of the PKK terrorist organization who extorted money from Turkish tradesmen living in the south of France. The Paris Court decided to imprison Orhan Yilmaz for four years for being a member of a terrorist organization and extorting money and prevented him from entering the country for 10 years. Mehmet Akansu has been imprisoned for three years while Kamber Akyol has been imprisoned for two years. Other terrorists, called Ozcan Erdogan, Sabahattin Soner and Nihat Tas, have been imprisoned for two years, two years and three years respectively. /Sabah/[09] CETIN'S MEETINGS IN IRELANDTurkish Parliament Speaker Hikmet Cetin, who has gone to Dublin, Ireland, on a four-day official visit, met Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern yesterday. During the meeting, Irish-Turkish relations were discussed. Cetin also met the former Leader of the Irish Labour Party, Dick Spring. During the meeting, in addition to their bilateral relations, Turco-EU relations and important developments in the world were deliberated. Cetin said that during the EU Summit to be held in the upcoming days, Turkey should be accorded the same status as other nominees. /Cumhuriyet/[10] ECEVIT: WE WILL RANK FIRST IN ELECTIONSThe Chairman of the Democratic Left Party (DSP) and Prime Minister, Bulent Ecevit, said that the DSP would rank first during the General Elections to be held on April 18, 1999, and added: "We will be stronger when we come into power following the Elections. We will bring an administration into being in Turkey which upholds the values of Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey. This is very important for prosperity and the secular democratic regime in Turkey". Meanwhile, Dogan Tasdelen, a DSP candidate running for the Ankara Mayorship, announced his plans during a ceremony attended by Ecevit and some Ministers. /Cumhuriyet/[11] `CONTRACT FOR TURKEY' FROM YILMAZMesut Yilmaz, the leader of the Motherland Party (ANAP), announced the backbone of his party's election campaign, the `Contract for Turkey' during a press conference yesterday. The Contract, which is assumed to be endorsed by Mesut Yilmaz and his voters, sets down ANAP's liabilities if it is be able to govern the country for the next five years, either alone or within a strong coalition government following the April Elections. Accordingly, ANAP promises to accomplish the following goals: 1. 3.5 million unemployed will be provided with jobs. 2. Inflation will be lowered to 5% in two years. 3. Modern education will be provided for every child. 4. Health insurance will be available to every citizen. 5. Housing will be made available to every family. 6. Agricultural products will be insured. 7. Local administrations will be reformed. 8. The government will be transparent, fair and libertarian. /Milliyet/[12] KIRKUK-YUMURTALIK STARS TO RUNKirkuk-Yumurtalik oil pipeline was again in operation yesterday after ceasing operations for three days; Iraq cut the route after the US bombing. Officials announced that one million barrels of oil were pumped through the pipeline the night before. They said that the energy capacity of the communication stations near Musul was strengthened and the one near Syria was by-passed. After the station in Syria was be repaired, they would increase the amount of oil flow. /Aksam/[13] GREEK-CYPRIOTS: "PKK IS A LEGAL ORGANIZATION"Although the world has accepted that the PKK is "a most brutal terrorist organization", Greek-Cypriots continue to support it. The Spokesman for the Greek-Cypriot Administration, Hristos Stilyanides, claimed that the PKK was not a terrorist organization according to their laws. /Aksam/[14] EUROPEAN REPRESENTATIVES MEETS OCALANMembers of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, among whom there were a psychiatrist and a specialist doctor, met Ocalan on Imrali. The Committee said after the meeting that they were allowed to meet Ocalan freely and without any hinderence. It was reported that the European representatives also visited some Headquarters in Istanbul and Izmir. Before leaving Turkey yesterday, they said that they had not encountered any negative atmosphere either on I mrali or at the Headquarters in Izmir and Istanbul. /Aksam/[15] ULUGBAY: "MARKETS ARE BEING REACTIVATED"The State Minister responsible for the Economy, Hikmet Ulugbay, said that markets were being re-activated and this would positively reflect on the economy. Ulugbay, attending his party conference meeting in Ankara, said yesterday that, according to the State Statistics Institution, inflation had been decreasing. He added that foreign rating institutions were very positive in their attitude towards the Turkish economy.Meanwhile, it was announced that Hikmet Ulugbay will go to Washington at the weekend to meet the representatives of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). [16] SABANCI: "WE ARE DISCUSSING NEW PROJECTS FOR THE EAST"The Chairman of the Sabanci Conglomerate's Executive Board; Sakip Sabanci, said that they had been discussing new investment projects for Southeastern Anatolia. Sabanci noted that the recent eceonomic measures concerning the improvement of the Southeastern region ought to be sustainable. In addition, he added, the Turkish private sector should invest in the region. /Aksam/[17] `ANKARA'S DOVE'Issuing some notable statements concerning US operations against Iraq and the Turco-Greek strain due to the Ocalan issue during his visit to Washington, the Turkish Minister of Defence, Hikmet Sami Turk, roused attention by his soft and calm attitude despite Ankara's heated diplomatic attacks. Turk's different style was so apparent that most US diplomatic and military officials described him as `the only dove of Ankara'. Turk defined the US operations against Iraq as necessary for `self-defence' during essentially `peaceful' military manoeuvres. Turk also critized Greek support for the terrorist PKK organization by remarking that "Two neighbouring allies should not support terrorism against each other", thus avoiding the use of threatening language. /Milliyet/[18] KURDISH PARTIES IN NORTHERN IRAQ ARE AGAINST THE PKKThe US President, Bill Clinton, declared that the Washington Administration is pleased with the anti-PKK attitude of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). In a letter addressed to the Speakers of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Clinton said, "We are pleased with the KDP's and PUK's promises claiming that they will not provide shelter for the PKK, they will eliminate PKK bases in the region, and they will protect the Turkish border." /Milliyet/[19] ALBANIAN PRIME MINISTER VISITS GENERAL KIVRIKOGLUThe Albanian Prime Minister, Pandeli Majko, who has been in Turkey for one week, paid a visit to General Kivrikoglu, the Chief of General Staff, yesterday. It is reported that Majko and Kivrikoglu had discussed several issues, while no official statements were given concerning the content of the meeting. /Milliyet/[20] TURKEY SEEKS MILITARY COOPERATION WITH EGYPTTurkey has launched initiatives in order to improve her military cooperation with Egypt, which is one of the most important countries in Turkey's Middle Eastern policy. To this end, the Deputy Chief of General Staff, General Hilmi Ozkok, recently visited Egypt, discussing with his counterparts the facilities for developing military cooperation. Meanwhile, Ozkok also paid a visit to Jordan, during which it was decided that Turkey and Jordan will perform a joint exercise in May. /Milliyet/[21] CILLER GOES TO GERMANYTansu Ciller, the leader of the True Path Party (DYP), will go to Germany in March 21 in order to celebrate the Nevruz Festival together with those Turkish citizens living in Germany. It is reported that Ciller will listen to the problems of Turkish citizens abroad, and try to persuade them to vote for the DYP. Turkish citizens living abroad will begin to cast their votes at Customs posts after March 25. /Turkiye/[22] 12 TRILLION TL TO TRADESMENState Minister Husamettin Ozkan declared that they have recently offered 12 trillion TL worth of loans to tradesmen and craftsmen; the total of loans provided to them in 1999 has reached 31 trillion TL. /Turkiye/[23] IKV WARNS EU ABOUT GREECEThe Economic Development Foundation (IKV), which organizes relations between the Turkish private sector and the European Union (EU), complained about Greece to the EU in a letter concerning Greek support to PKK. The letter recalled that since Greece had become the EU member on 1 January 1981, it had prevented Turkey from improving its relations with the EU. The letter said that after Ocalan's capture in Kenya, Greek support for the PKK, which aims to disintegrate Turkey, was all too obvious. It was alleged that Greece's attitude was against both the principles of international law and of human rights. It continued, "European Union countries ought to consider how it was that such a country was a member of this organization, whose basic principles are peace, democracy and human rights". Finally, it stressed that the Ocalan trial would not be a test for Turkey; however, it would be one for the EU to prove the loyalty of the organization to the principles of human rights and international law. /Hurriyet/[24] ANKARA ATTRACTS THE ATTENTION OF ATHENSTurkey announced that the Cyprus issue would not be solved unless Greece and Southern Cyprus cut their support to terrorism. The Deputy Speaker of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sermet Atacanli, said yesterday that the solution of the Cyprus issue was closely related to a positive change in the Greek and Greek-Cypriot attitude. He noted that these countries should cancel their support for terrorism as soon as possible. Atacanli said: "There is no excuse for terrorism; no country should support terrorist activities. Because of this belief, Turkey is determined to make countries which support terrorism an international concern". In addition, he added, Turkey would continue her efforts to exhibit Greek attitude towards terrorism to the international community. /Hurriyet/[25] ISRAEL-TURKEY-THE US MILITARY EXERCISES IN 1999The second round of Naval Military Exercises between Turkey, Israel and the US will be held in October or November 1999 in Turkey. The Second Reliant Mermaid Naval Exercises will be organized including the contribution of the Air Forces.Meanwhile, the Undersecretary of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Eitan Ben-Tsur, and an accompanying delegation started round of meetings yesterday in Ankara. It was reported that the Israeli delegation exchanged views with their Turkish counterparts on bilateral relations and regional developments. It was noted that Ben-Tsur assured his Turkish counterpart, Ambassador Korkmaz Haktanir, that the Chairman of the Kurdish Parliament-in-exile would not be invited to Israel. It is also expected that Parliament Speaker Hikmet Cetin will go to Israel on 8 March. /Hurriyet/ [26] DAMASCUS INSISTS ON HATAYSyria, which has given shelter to the chief of the terrorist organization PKK, Abdullah Ocalan, for many years and finally deported him in October 1998, has not changed her policy on Hatay. Syrian television shows Hatay as being Syrian territory on the weather forecaster's map. It is reported that although Turkey has drawn the issue to the attention of the Syrian administration at various times, Syria seems determined to continue her insistence on sovereignty over Hatay. /Hurriyet/[27] DGM: "WE ARE CONSTITUTIONAL AND INDEPENDENT"Ankara's No.1 State Security Court (DGM) formed a resolution yesterday in Ankara which rejected claims that DGM courts were not independent and objective because they used military judges. The decision stressed that DGMs were constitutional courts established by Law, they were independent and objective and they never took orders or instructions from anyone.The declaration read: "The DGMs are established by Law No.2845, in line with the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey; they are fully independent." Hurriyet_ [28] FOREIGN DEBT PAYMENTSTurkey paid off $765.75 million of her foreign debts in February. According to Central Bank data, foreign debt payments since the beginning of this year totalled $1.339 billion, the Anatolia news agency reports.[29] HILLARY CLINTON PRAISES TURKEYThe wife of the US President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, while delivering a speech to the UN on the occasion of International Women's Day, praised Turkey. Hillary Clinton listed Turkey among the countries which promulgated a draft law denouncing violence against women as a crime, among her examples of reforms achieved in the field of human rights. /Sabah/[30] SO-CALLED ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IN SENATEA draft law concerning the so-called Armenian genocide is again on the French agenda. The French Senate has prepared a draft law to be discussed next Tuesday; it has been signed by 52 Socialist and 14 Communist senators. The draft law will initially be in the form of a report to the Senate Foreign Relations Commission and the Defence and Armed Forces Commission and then be presented to the Senate General Council. The Socialist Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin, had earlier announced that he was against the draft law as it would damage Turco-French relations. /Sabah/[31] DEMIREL OPENS GAP PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITIONA photography exhibition organized by the Prime Ministry's Regional Development Administration and Ankara Photographers' Association (AFSAD) was opened by President Suleyman Demirel yesterday. The exhibition explains the influences of the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) on the region and its people. Demirel later signed the Visitors' Book. /Sabah/[32] AN INVENTION BY TURKISH DOCTORSTurkish doctors working at the Methodist Hospital in the US, Kutluk Oktay, Bulent Aydin and Guvenc Karlikaya, have taken an ovary from a women who has cancer. The Turkish doctors froze her ovary last year and later re-implanted it again to her. This method will enable those women whose ovaries have been taken and are going through the menopause to menstruate again. /Sabah/[33] CELEBRATIONS FOR THE 700TH ANNIVERSARY OF OTTOMAN EMPIREAn opening ceremony to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the foundation of the Ottoman Empire was held yesterday, attended by President Suleyman Demirel. Delivering an opening speech during the ceremony, Culture Minister Istemihan Talay said that they aimed to transfer the heritage of Ottoman art and culture to future generations through these celebrations. /Cumhuriyet/[34] TURKS IN GERMANY SEEK DUAL PASSPORTSAccording to a survey carried out by the Turkish Research Centre in Germany, only 18 % of Turks living in Germany are thinking about returning to Turkey while 73.7 % of them do not want to return to Turkey and want to receive dual passports. /Cumhuriyet/[35] WORLD WOMEN'S DAY TO BE CELEBRATED IN THE SOUTHEASTAnakultur Cooperative, which is a non-profit-making organization supporting Turkish women in their efforts to participate more in social life during the country's development, decided to celebrate "8 March World Woman's Day" in Southeastern Anatolia. The Chairwoman of Anakulture Cooperative, Ceylan Onur, announced that they would visit Eruh a town in the province of Siirt on 6 March, Siirt city centre on 7 March, Batman on 8 March, Adiyaman on 9 March and Hamurkesen a town in the province of Urfa on 10 March. Onur stressed that the mission statement of their cooperative was "love and to share love within our culture". She added that they would organize open-air fairs in the region which regional women could attend with their husbands and children. With the fairs, Onurr noted, women who stay at home had the chance to attend an activity with their families. /Hurriyet/[36] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT SPEAKER IN ANKARABulgarian Parliament Speaker Yordan Solkolov met Hasan Korkmazcan, the Acting Speaker of the Turkish Parliament, in Ankara's Esenboga Airport on his way to Armenia where he is going for an official visit. During their talks, Korkmazcan stated that Turkey insists on Bulgaria's and Romania's membership to the NATO and puts this as a condition for the NATO expansion, the Anatolia news agency reports.[37] EFES IN THE QUARTER FINALSEfes Pilsen smashed CSKA Moscow by 105-98 in the European Basketball League Third Round and made it to the Quarter Finals. Efes Pilsen will meet Lithuanian Zalgiris Kaunas for in the Quarter Finals in order to compete in the Final Four. /Milliyet/[38] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS....[39] THE MOST EXPENSIVE BRIGAND -BY RAUF TAMER (SABAH)Rauf Tamer, a columnist in the 'Sabah' daily newspaper, says the following in his article today: "We sent a private plane to bring him to Turkey..and we brought him. We have settled him on Imrali Island. Is it easy? We made Mudanya a base; we deployed many police and soldiers there. If we add up these expenses, are you aware of the high cost to the nation? We evacuated Imrali; we sent the prisoners already on the Island to other prisons. We moved animals to other places; we created a new place. Every day, food supplies are being carried by Special Services members to the Island for the staff there. We even established a clinic there whose state-of-the-art medical equipment is in service 24 hours a day.Tomorrow, the hearings will begin. Everything will be electronic in the courtroom for security reasons. Transport will be provided for those who will arrive to participate in the trials. Have you ever seen such an expensive brigand? We have spent billions of dollars on this war; the outlaw brigand has been captured, however the cost is still rising. The PKK leader, Abdullah Ocalan, has a lot of money; he declared this himself. He has $.5 million which left in Syria; this money ought to be sent to Turkey rather than being left in Syria. The expenses of the trial ought to be paid by the accused". /Sabah/ [40] CHP'S ODDS - BY DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)Derya Sazak, a columnist in the `Milliyet' daily, reflects on the odds of the Republican People's Party (CHP) in the forthcoming April Elections due to an expected rise in the vote for the Democratic Left Party (DSP). Sazak writes:"In what ways will the Ecevit whirlwind, thanks to the Ocalan operation, affect the CHP's odds in the Elections? Will the party of Ataturk, which laid the foundations of the modern Turkish Republic, be unable to exceed the 10% vote requirement and lose its chance to be represented in Parliament, as has been argued in some surveys? We discussed these questions with the CHP leader, Deniz Baykal. The CHP is beginning a comprehensive election campaign. He says, `Interestingly, none of the parties currently competing in the elections press for determined policies to be pursued after the elections in order to solve the economic and political problems in Turkey or the Southeastern question. Who will pay the price of the recent irregularities? Evereybody is trying to mould the power relations of the post-election period. They try to exclude the CHP from Parliament in order to perpetuate the ever-present regime. You will see, we will spoil their game.' The CHP leader tacitly implies that they will run against non-party rivals in the elections as well. But if Baykal is so self-confident concerning the CHP's voters, why does he speak of the possibility of being excluded from Parliament? Is it mere propaganda? He says, `No. What they are trying to do is shape the new coalition with regard to the polls. They will not be able to succeed in that. Yet why should we be disturbed if the DSP is gaining popularity among the voters due to the Ocalan issue? We would be pleased with any rise in the total number of votes for the Left. Will a CHP-DSP coalition be bad? Baykal will run in the elections under the slogan, `The solution is social democracy' and tell the people that the CHP is the guarantee of a clean society and secular-democratic Republic. Thus, the CHP will try to break the Motherland Party (ANAP) - Democratic Left Party (DSP) bloc established against the Virtue Party (FP). Baykal will tend to increase its votes through revealing the `deficiencies' of his `once-tried' rivals. If the CHP fails to enter Parliament, Baykal will not be able to maintain his position as a `non-Parliamentery Opposition leader'. Mr. Baykal is preparing for the test of his life; we hope he succeeds, for there is a need for a leftist party in Parliament, which has been gradually shifting to the Right in recent years." 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