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Turkish Press Review, 02-02-08
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
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Press
& Information
Turkish
Press
Turkish
Press Review >>
Foreign
Press Guide
Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
08.02.2002
CONTENTS
[01] REFORM PACKAGE SENT TO PRESIDENT
[02] SEZER VISITS QUAKE AREA
[03] SADDAM TO ECEVIT: "I WILL ALLOW WEAPONS
INSPECTORS, BUT NO CONCESSIONS ON IRAQ'S TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY"
[04] CEM: "TURKEY ADVOCATES IRAQ'S TERRITORIAL
INTEGRITY"
[05] CHENEY MAY VISIT TURKEY TO BUILT ANTI-SADDAM
COALITION
[06] ECEVIT CALLS ON COALITION PARTNERS TO ACT IN HARMONY
[07] AUSTRIAN DOCUMENTARY, CANADIAN DIRECTOR FEEL HEAT
FROM PROTESTS
[08] DANISH FOREIGN MINISTER HOPES FOR CYPRUS SETTLEMENT
BY JULY
[09] DANISH PARLIAMENTARIAN NAMED EU LIASON TO TURKISH
PARLIAMENT
[10] YUCELEN: "POLITICIZATION WILL NOT BRING BACK THE
PKK'S VICTIMS"
[11] AKBULUT RESIGNS FROM ANAP
[12] INVESTIGATION COMMISSION DECIDES AYDIN WON'T FACE
SUPREME COURT
[13] TURKISH SCHOLAR TO HEAD UN COMMITTEE ON TRAINING
SAILORS
[14] INSPECTION UNIT ESTABLISHED WITHIN MARITIME
UNDERSECRETARIAT
[15] SYMPOSIUM TO DISCUSS PROTECTING HISTORIC CITIES
[16] CEM MEETS WITH BUSINESSMEN TO PREPARE FOR MEETING IN
US
[17] 21st INTERNATIONAL ISTANBUL BOAT SHOW OPENS TODAY
[18] FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE
COLUMNS...
[19] HOW WILL THE NEW AMENDMENDS BE ENFORCED? BY SAMI
KOHEN (MILLIYET)
[20] AS THE PKK SWITCHES IDENTITIES BY MUSTAFA BALBAY
(CUMHURIYET)
[21] ... BY ANY OTHER NAME BY GUNGOR MENGI (SABAH)
[01] REFORM PACKAGE SENT TO PRESIDENT
The Harmonization Law, which is widely known as the
mini reform package, was sent to the president yesterday for his
approval. The package, which includes nine articles and proposes
amendments to the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), Anti-terror Law, Penal
Procedural Law (CMUK) and State Security Courts (DGM) Law, was
approved on Wednesday by Parliament. The president will now approve
the bill or send it back to Parliament wholly or in part for
reconsideration within 15 days. /All Papers/
[02] SEZER VISITS QUAKE AREA
Yesterday, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer visited
Afyon and the surrounding area, which was hit by an earthquake with a
magnitute of 6.0 on the Richter scale on Sunday. Sezer was accompanied
by Chief of the General Staff Gen. Huseyin Kivrikoglu and Public Works
and Housing Minister Abdulkadir Akcan. After hearing a brief from
Afyon Governor Ahmet Ozyurt, Sezer talked to the area's citizens and
promised that the state would meet their needs. /All Papers/
[03] SADDAM TO ECEVIT: "I WILL ALLOW WEAPONS
INSPECTORS, BUT NO CONCESSIONS ON IRAQ'S TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY"
Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein responded yesterday to
a recent letter sent by Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit pledging
some cooperation but also telling Turkey that it should cease military
flights with the US. The letter was hand delivered by Iraq's
Ambassador to Ankara Tarik Hamadi to Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail
Cem. In the letter, Saddam pointedly referred to Ankara's sensitivity
to Iraq's territorial integrity and asked Turkey to stop participating
with the US in flights over Iraq's northern "no-fly" zone
made from Incirlik Airbase. Saddam also said that he was ready to
allow international weapons inspectors into his country and would
cooperate with the United Nations. However, the Iraqi leader also
stated that he would never make any concessions on his country's
territorial integrity. /Hürriyet/
[04] CEM: "TURKEY ADVOCATES IRAQ'S TERRITORIAL
INTEGRITY"
Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem yesterday met
with Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit. Speaking to
the press after the meeting, Cem fielded a number of questions about a
letter which Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein recently sent to Turkish
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit. "Turkey advocates Iraq's
territorial integrity," said Cem. "I believe that Turkey is
pursuing the right policy on the issue." /Cumhuriyet/
[05] CHENEY MAY VISIT TURKEY TO BUILT ANTI-SADDAM
COALITION
US Vice President Dick Cheney is planning a trip
this March to 11 countries in the Middle East and Europe, including
Turkey, reports said yesterday. The main purpose of Cheney's visit to
Turkey and elsewhere would reportedly be the situation in Iraq and
with that country's leader Saddam Hussein, with Cheney hoping to built
a coalition for a military strike against Iraq. The other countries on
Cheney's planned itinerary are Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates,
Egypt, Great Britain, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Amman, Jordan and
Israel. /Hürriyet/
[06] ECEVIT CALLS ON COALITION PARTNERS TO ACT IN HARMONY
Yesterday, Prime Minister and Democratic Left Party
(DSP) leader Bulent Ecevit asked coalition partners the Nationalist
Action Party (MHP) and Motherland Party (ANAP) to act in harmony in
order to avoid a deadlock in Turkish political life. Addressing his
party's parliamentary group meeting, Ecevit recalled the recent
tensions between the two other coalition parties on the controversial
mini reform package. He said that the country could not possibly bear
a deadlock in politics just at a time when the economy is beginning to
get back on to track. Speaking on the Iraq issue, Ecevit stated that
Turkey wanted a peaceful resolution to the matter without conflict in
the region. The premier also told the deputies about his recent visit
to Bulgaria. Finally, Ecevit briefed them on positive developments in
the Turkish economy. /Turkiye/
[07] AUSTRIAN DOCUMENTARY, CANADIAN DIRECTOR FEEL HEAT
FROM PROTESTS
Turkish lobbies in Austria and other European
countries have launched a protest campaign against a TV program
entitled "Kurdistan: Gods' Plateau" set to appear soon on
Austrian state TV channel ORF. The Austrian branch of the Kemalist
Thought Association has drafted letters of protest to be sent to ORF
Director-General Monika Lindner. Meanwhile, French daily Le Monde
yesterday gave prominent coverage to protests against Canadian movie
director Atom Egoyan, whose parents are Armenian and who is currently
shooting a movie entitled "Ararat" which airs allegations
about the so-called Armenian genocide. The paper stated that Turkish
lobbies were trying to prevent the release of the movie by sending
letters of protest to the distributor company. /Cumhuriyet/
[08] DANISH FOREIGN MINISTER HOPES FOR CYPRUS SETTLEMENT
BY JULY
Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller said
yesterday that he was optimistic that the Cyprus problem could be
settled by July, before his country takes over the revolving
presidency of the European Union. Moeller spoke to reporters after
separate meetings with Glafcos Clerides and Yiannakis Cassaoulides,
the president and prime minister from Greek Cyprus. "I think that
a solution is possible before we take over the presidency on July 1. I
am very optimistic," he said. /Turkish Daily News/
[09] DANISH PARLIAMENTARIAN NAMED EU LIASON TO TURKISH
PARLIAMENT
The European Union-Turkey Joint Parliamentary
Commission has selected a Danish parliamentarian to handle relations
between the Turkish Parliament and the European Union Parliament.
European Greens Party Parliamentarian Joost Lagendijk was named to the
post yesterday. /Hürriyet/
[10] YUCELEN: "POLITICIZATION WILL NOT BRING BACK THE
PKK'S VICTIMS"
Interior Minister Rustu Kazim Yucelen said
yesterday, "We all know that the PKK is making efforts towards
politicization." He added however, that such efforts could never
bring back the 35,000 people who died during the struggle against the
terrorist organization. /Cumhuriyet/
[11] AKBULUT RESIGNS FROM ANAP
Motherland Party (ANAP) Ankara Deputy Yildirim
Akbulut yesterday resigned from his party. Akbulut, a former prime
minister and presidential hopeful, is expected to join the True Path
Party (DYP). With Akbulut's defection, the number of independent
deputies in the Parliament has now increased to 15, while that of ANAP
deputies has fallen to 78. /Turkiye/
[12] INVESTIGATION COMMISSION DECIDES AYDIN WON'T FACE
SUPREME COURT
The Parliament Investigation Commission decided
yesterday that there was no need for the Supreme Court to hear charges
against former Public Works and Housing Minister Koray Aydin. The
commission took two months to reach the decision. Last September Aydin
resigned from the Ministry in the wake of allegations of corruption.
He also submitted a resignation from Parliament, which the body
declined to accept. /Turkiye/
[13] TURKISH SCHOLAR TO HEAD UN COMMITTEE ON TRAINING
SAILORS
Professor Osman Kamil Sag, the dean of the Maritime
Faculty of Istanbul Technical University, was selected chairman of the
International Maritime Organization's (IMO) Subcommittee on Seafarer
Training and Watchkeeping during the sub-committee's 33rd term meeting
held late last month. The IMO, which is based in London, is a United
Nations agency responsible for improving maritime safety and
preventing maritime pollution from ships. Sag has held positions in
many institutions such as the International Association of Maritime
Universities (IAMU) and the International Maritime Association of the
Mediterranean (IMAM). He was given the "2001 Annual IAMU Award of
Recognition" in Kobe, Japan during the IAMU's Second General
Assembly last October. /Cumhuriyet/
[14] INSPECTION UNIT ESTABLISHED WITHIN MARITIME
UNDERSECRETARIAT
A bill concerning a proposed inspection unit for
the Maritime Undersecretariat was passed in Parliament yesterday, thus
established the unit. The bill had been held up for three weeks due to
the concerns of a number of deputies, but it was finally passed
through the efforts of deputy prime ministers Devlet Bahceli and
Husamettin Ozkan. /Star/
[15] SYMPOSIUM TO DISCUSS PROTECTING HISTORIC CITIES
The Culture Ministry will hold a symposium in
Antalya this weekend on "Protecting Turkey's Historic Cities and
Bringing Them to Future." The gathering will be opened by Culture
Minister Istemihan Talay and attended by governors from 25 provinces
as well as over 100 mayors and scores of deputies. Talay said
yesterday that the symposium would hear testimony from both Turkey and
abroad about the protection of ancient cities' natural and cultural
assets. Talay further stated that the legal and administrative issues
of such protection and suggestions about protecting and preserving the
contributions of traditional Turkish architecture, both in historic
cities and in new developments, would be discussed at the symposium.
/Aksam/
[16] CEM MEETS WITH BUSINESSMEN TO PREPARE FOR MEETING IN
US
Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and representatives of
the Turkish business community met yesterday in order to make
preparations for the first meeting of the Turkish-US Economic
Cooperation Commission in the United States on Feb. 26-27. The
preparatory meeting was attended by Turkish Association of Chambers
and Stock Exchanges (TOBB) Chairman Rifat Hisarciklioglu, Turkish
Exporters Assembly Chairman (TIM) Oguz Satici, Foreign Economic
Relations Board (DEIK) Executive Board Chairman Rona Yircali and
Turkish Association of Industrialists and Businessmen (TUSIAD) Deputy
Chairman Mustafa Koc. In addition, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary
Ugur Ziyal, who will lead the Turkish delegation at the commission,
was also present at the gathering. During the meeting, Hisarciklioglu
said that the US contingent was continuing to work on getting textile
quota on Turkey lifted. /Aksam/
[17] 21st INTERNATIONAL ISTANBUL BOAT SHOW OPENS TODAY
The 21st International Istanbul Boat Show Fair will
be opened at the CNR World Trade Center today and is set to run
through Feb. 17. Over 150 companies and more than 600 products will be
on display. A massive whale skeleton stretching 14 meters, which the
Turkish Foundation brought from Adana for Maritime Research (TUDAV),
will also be exhibited at the fair. Proceeds from the fair will be
donated to the "Education Campaign for a Million Children."
/Star/
[18] FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE
COLUMNS...
[19] HOW WILL THE NEW AMENDMENDS BE ENFORCED? BY SAMI
KOHEN (MILLIYET)
Columnist Sami Kohen writes on the importance of
the ways used to enforce the just-passed amendment package. A summary
of his column is as follows: "Amendments have been made to the
Constitution. The harmonization laws regarding these amendments have
also passed. Now it is the time to see how they are enforced. This is
the stance of the EU in relation to the 'mini-democracy package'
adopted in Parliament this week. The Europeans view favorably the
recent performance of the Turkish Parliament. The discussions over the
mini-package had roused concern in Europe that Turkey could be led
astray from its reformist goals. If the package had been adopted
without any changes, there would have been problems in Turkish-EU
relations. This scenario was averted at the last moment when
Parliament acted correctly. Some of the legal changes regarding
harmonization with the EU have been carried out. This is believed to
be a positive step one bringing Turkey closer to accession
negotiations with the EU. The change in terminology from 'possibility'
to 'danger' should be reflected in the rulings of the courts. In other
words, judges should be able to demonstrate that they have understood
these changes clearly. The fact that the main goal in the amendments
to the law was to harmonize the Turkish legal system with that of EU
standards should not be forgotten. It is frequently stated that
political and economic reforms should be implemented not because
international organizations request it, but because Turkish public,
which deserves better living standards, sincerely wants it. In fact,
during discussions over the 'mini-reform package' the reactions shown
by various sectors of the society displayed how strong this desire
was. Those who defended the view that no changes were necessary argued
that similar laws also existed in EU countries. Certainly, there are
laws in EU countries aimed at protecting public order. However, these
laws don't restrict basic human rights or freedom of expression, and
neither do they impose heavy prison sentences. If the substance of
these laws is considered as a basis, then their enforcement should
constitute an example as well."
[20] AS THE PKK SWITCHES IDENTITIES BY MUSTAFA BALBAY
(CUMHURIYET)
Columnist Mustafa Balbay comments on the efforts of
the PKK terrorist organization to change its identity. A summary of
his column is as follows: "The PKK has been trying for two years
now to erase its label as a 'terrorist organization' and to achieve a
new identity. This search, which began with the capture of Abdullah
Ocalan, seems to have reached a certain stage. The summary of their
plan is to change surface form and methods; there seems to be no
change in essence, aims or policies. An interesting conflict in the
stance of the organization can be observed. It seems that the
terrorist organization will discard 'Kurdistan' in its name but try to
put 'Kurdish' at the beginning of every activity within the framework
of cultural rights. Everyone knows that all of these new policies were
drawn up in European cities. There may be those who know the issue but
prefer not to understand what is going on. It is an interesting
coincidence that the EU failed to include terrorist organizations
active in Turkey in its list of terrorist groups and the PKK has been
trying to change its name at about the same time. During the last EU
summit in Laeken, Belgium, terrorism was discussed but terrorist
organizations were not taken up. Belgian Foreign Minister and Deputy
Prime Minister Louis Michel, acting as the term president of the EU,
stated on Dec. 14, 2001 that they had defined terrorism, but that
there were problems which seemed to be impossible to solve while
preparing a list. Michel added that it was easy to determine and
denounce a terrorist action but that it was hard to define a terrorist
organization. 'It is not always to easy to distinguish between
terrorism and resistance,' he said. 'We will take this up next year
and maybe some issues can be handled in a way so as to sweep up
certain things from the past.' These words may be explained as, if the
PKK changes its name and says that it is not the same organization
anymore, the EU may turn a blind eye to its past offenses. We can
almost hear Belgium's reply to the announcement of PKK that it has
changed its name after its upcoming eight congress that it is in the
process of recognizing the new organization. It doesn't square with
human rights to accuse a 'newly founded' organization with possible
crimes to be perpetrated in the future. We have delved into the
archives more than necessary, but Cemil Bayik, a representative of the
terrorist organization in Europe, had stated in a magazine published
in the Netherlands in Turkish that it was necessary to carry out this
new strategy to achieve victory. 'In the Middle East to be strong, you
have to have arms. Our basic guarantee of survival is our power in
armed struggle... The method to achieve victory in carrying out new
strategies passes through uprising.' The Paris meeting of the
terrorist organization held on January 4-6 was entitled the 'Diplomacy
and Institutional Political Studies Coordination Council'. These
statements given and meetings set on different dates demonstrate that
the terrorist organization will form its policies in the future by
leaning on Europe. Under these circumstances, Turkey has no other
choice but to finish off terrorism completely, not allow a new terror
game on its territories, follow the changing strategies, and formulate
counter strategies in addition to reacting to them."
[21] ... BY ANY OTHER NAME BY GUNGOR MENGI (SABAH)
Columnist Gungor Mengi comments on the recent
politicization efforts of the terrorist PKK organization. A summary of
his column is as follows: "The separatist organization PKK has
recently announced that it had ended its activities in both Turkey and
EU countries. What could that mean? MED TV, the PKK's mouthpiece TV
channel, claimed that the terrorist organization would no longer hold
activities under the moniker 'PKK'. Therefore, the separatist
organization is preparing to change its name. The PKK dares to think
that it could make people forget all the murders it committed by
simply labeling itself something different. According to recent
intelligence reports, the PKK is playing its last hand. Its main goal
is preventing the EU from adding its name to their recent list of
terrorist organizations. Since it hopes to no longer be considered a
terrorist organization, the PKK figures that a new political identity
will provide it with opportunities to improve its situation and make
new efforts towards establishing an independent Kurdish state. This
will be nothing new under the sun. Unless 5,000 PKK militants abandon
their arms, there is no doubt that the terrorist organization will
carry on committing new crimes. No matter what name the PKK assumes,
this hypocritical policy will also play havoc with efforts aimed to
improve human rights and freedoms in Turkey. "Would you prefer
that we remain terrorists?" the PKK militants might say. No, we
don't. However, your betrayals can neither be forgotten nor forgiven.
Remember 30,000 people dead, ten years and $100 billion in losses! We
have to solve the Kurdish problem. However, the price Turkey pays
should not include forgiving a notorious mass murderer and a bloody
terrorist organization. Those who believe in the necessity of finding
a solution to this problem in their very hearts should display the
courage to forget PKK leader Apo's existence in prison and erasing
every single mark the PKK left on history." The happiness of this
nation depends on the improvement of our relations with the EU. When
Turkey is admitted to the EU as a full member, all of these threats
and problems will disappear. That's why 70% of the population
advocates Turkey's EU membership.
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