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Turkish Press Review, 06-04-06

Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>

<LINK href="http://www.byegm.gov.tr_yayinlarimiz_chr_pics_css/tpr.css" rel=STYLESHEET type=text/css> <style type="text_css"> <!-- .baslik { margin-right:0cm; margin-left:0cm; margin-top:1cm; font-size:12.0pt; color:#000099; text-align: justify; } --> <_style> e-mail : newspot@byegm.gov.tr <caption> <_caption> Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning

06.04.2006

SEZER PRAISES FRIENDLY RELATIONS, SOLIDARITY BETWEEN TURKEY AND AZERBAIJAN ERDOGAN ADDRESSES CONTRACTORS’ UNION, APPEARS ON TELEVISION CICEK TOUTS PLANNED CHANGES TO ELECTION LAW AND NEW ETHICS COMMISSION TAN: “WE EXPECT MORE CONCRETE STEPS FROM THE US” US STATE DEPT’S BRYZA LENDS SUPPORT TO TURKEY ON CYPRUS ISSUE KURDISH ISSUE SPARKS DEBATE AT EP RATO: “AFTER TAX CUTS, ANKARA HAS TAKEN STEPS TO MAKE THINGS BETTER” IRANIAN ENVOY: “WE SUPPORT TURKEY’S ANTI-PKK EFFORTS” MEPS’ LETTER THREATENS TO HALT TURKEY’S NEGOTIATIONS GREEK FM AGAIN DISMISSES ANNAN PLAN FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS IMPLEMENTING LAWS CORRECTLY BY ULUC GURKAN (STAR)

CONTENTS

  • [01] SEZER PRAISES FRIENDLY RELATIONS, SOLIDARITY BETWEEN TURKEY AND AZERBAIJAN
  • [02] ERDOGAN ADDRESSES CONTRACTORS’ UNION, APPEARS ON TELEVISION
  • [03] CICEK TOUTS PLANNED CHANGES TO ELECTION LAW AND NEW ETHICS COMMISSION
  • [04] TAN: “WE EXPECT MORE CONCRETE STEPS FROM THE US”
  • [05] US STATE DEPT’S BRYZA LENDS SUPPORT TO TURKEY ON CYPRUS ISSUE
  • [06] KURDISH ISSUE SPARKS DEBATE AT EP
  • [07] RATO: “AFTER TAX CUTS, ANKARA HAS TAKEN STEPS TO MAKE THINGS BETTER”
  • [08] IRANIAN ENVOY: “WE SUPPORT TURKEY’S ANTI-PKK EFFORTS”
  • [09] MEPS’ LETTER THREATENS TO HALT TURKEY’S NEGOTIATIONS
  • [10] GREEK FM AGAIN DISMISSES ANNAN PLAN
  • [11] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS
  • [12] IMPLEMENTING LAWS CORRECTLY BY ULUC GURKAN (STAR)

  • [01] SEZER PRAISES FRIENDLY RELATIONS, SOLIDARITY BETWEEN TURKEY AND AZERBAIJAN

    President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, currently in Baku to pay an official visit, yesterday attended a dinner hosted by his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev. Addressing the gathering, Sezer praised friendly relations and solidarity between Turkey and Azerbaijan, saying that these relations should be further strengthened. Sezer stated that bilateral cooperation aimed to contribute to peace, security, and stability in the region, adding that the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Oil Pipeline would also serve this goal. For his part, Aliyev characterized relations between the two countries as “very important,” adding that their ties were developing. Sezer returned to Turkey yesterday after completing his contacts. /Turkiye/

    [02] ERDOGAN ADDRESSES CONTRACTORS’ UNION, APPEARS ON TELEVISION

    Speaking to the General Assembly of the Contractors’ Union yesterday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he knew that contractors had problems, but that the government would take necessary steps in legislation and work to overcome these problems. “However, we’re unable to take steps in the judiciary,” he said. Later, appearing on television, Erdogan commented on the controversy over the appointment of a new Central Bank governor and criticized President Ahmet Necdet Sezer vetoing his first choice, saying that the government should have the right to determine who will head the CB. /Milliyet/

    [03] CICEK TOUTS PLANNED CHANGES TO ELECTION LAW AND NEW ETHICS COMMISSION

    Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Justice Minister Cemil Cicek briefed reporters on two bills proposing changes to the current Election Law as well as a new political ethics commission. Cicek stated that the first there was a need to regulate political finances and make the assets of politicians transparent, adding, “The goal is to make it easier for the nation to get information about politicians. Most of the work has been discussed, but we haven’t taken concrete steps yet. Political finances is one of the issues. We want to clean up politics in Turkey.” Later, Cicek visited Motherland Party (ANAVATAN) leader Erkan Mumcu to seek his support on the issue. During their meeting, Mumcu asked Cicek about work to make changes to the Anti-Terror Law, and Cicek stated that preparations were continuing. /Aksam/

    [04] TAN: “WE EXPECT MORE CONCRETE STEPS FROM THE US”

    Foreign Ministry spokesman Namik Tan said yesterday that Turkey expected more concrete steps from the US to eliminate the PKK presence in northern Iraq. Speaking to reporters at a weekly press conference, Tan said that US authorities shared the same views on the issue but had failed to move actively. Pointing to the current political vacuum in Iraq and unsuccessful attempts to establish a government after elections, Tan said that that situation was encouraging terrorists. He added that the Foreign Ministry was continuing its contacts with Danish authorities to stop broadcasts of the PKK’s Roj-TV. Concerning the Cyprus issue, Tan said that the Greeks were trying to discuss the issue on the European Union platform, but added that a solution could be found under the auspices of the United Nations. /Turkiye/

    [05] US STATE DEPT’S BRYZA LENDS SUPPORT TO TURKEY ON CYPRUS ISSUE

    US State Department Undersecretary for Europe and Eurasia Matt Bryza, visiting Turkey, yesterday met with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul. During their meeting, Byrza said that Turkish Cypriots had showed that they favored a settlement on the island, even though the world just now seems to be recognizing this. He stressed that the Greek Cypriots should convince United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan that they were ready to resume talks for a resolution. In related news, while addressing the US House of Representatives, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that Annan’s Cyprus plan was the best foundation for a compromise for both sides on the island. /Turkiye/

    [06] KURDISH ISSUE SPARKS DEBATE AT EP

    European parliamentarians’ attempt to introduce debate of the Kurdish issue during a meeting slated for May in Ankara drew a strong reaction from Turkish lawmakers. The Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee convened on Tuesday in Strasbourg to determine the agenda of its upcoming meeting in Ankara. Turkish parliamentarians said they were against the inclusion at the coming meeting of an agenda item on developments in southeastern Turkey and Kurds’ rights. “If you insist on this item, we want to open to debate on the rights of Turks in Europe, especially in Germany,” said the Turkish parliamentarians, including Onur Oymen and Sukru Elekdag from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and Aydin Dumanlioglu from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). /Turkish Daily News/

    [07] RATO: “AFTER TAX CUTS, ANKARA HAS TAKEN STEPS TO MAKE THINGS BETTER”

    International Monetary Fund Managing Director Rodrigo Rato said yesterday that in the wake of criticism over value-added tax (VAT) cuts in the textile sector, Ankara had taken steps to make things better. Speaking to British daily The Financial Times, Rato stated that he was concerned about recent economic developments in Turkey adding, however, that there were no signs of deviance from the IMF-supported economic program. The IMF criticized the government after it cut the VAT from 18% to 8%, putting an additional $2 billion burden on the budget. In related news, last week Deputy Prime Minister Abdullatif Sener said that the government would discuss tax cut requests from other sectors. /Hurriyet/

    [08] IRANIAN ENVOY: “WE SUPPORT TURKEY’S ANTI-PKK EFFORTS”

    Iranian Parliament speaker’s Special Envoy Seyed Ali Akbar Mohtashami on Tuesday visited Parliament’s Turkey-Palestine Friendship Group head Huseyin Tanriverdi and invited him to the International Conference on Support for the Palestinian People set for next week. During the meeting, Mohtashami spoke about the terrorist PKK and the US. Mohtashami said that there was a security cooperation agreement between Turkey and Iran and that Iran recognizes that the PKK is a terrorist group and supports Turkey on this issue. Mohtashami charged that the US and European Union countries don’t give their full support to Turkey against the terrorist PKK. In related news, ambassadors and diplomats experienced on Iraq yesterday discussed Iran with the participation of Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul. The meeting, where critical issues such as Iraq, the European Union and Cyprus were discussed, will also continue today. /Star/

    [09] MEPS’ LETTER THREATENS TO HALT TURKEY’S NEGOTIATIONS

    A group of member of the European Parliament yesterday sent a hostile letter to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The letter, which blames Turkey’s state and military for the recent unrest, threatens to suspend Turkey’s negotiations with the European Union. The letter said: “We state solemnly that there’s no military solution to the ‘Kurdish question’ and that the search for a political, nonviolent and negotiated solution to the problems of the region is necessary; bear in mind that for us, the recognition of the Kurdish population’s right to exercise their fundamental rights is a condition for the accession of Turkey to the EU.” /Cumhuriyet/

    [10] GREEK FM AGAIN DISMISSES ANNAN PLAN

    Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis, currently visiting Greek Cyprus, yesterday reiterated her view that the Annan plan is history and a new plan or a proposal is needed in order to reach a solution on the island. At a joint press conference with her Greek Cypriot counterpart George Iacovou, Bakoyanis said, “I said the Annan plan is history, because this plan was put to a vote by the Cypriot people,” adding, “We can’t reopen discussion on a plan which was put to a vote. We have to work on another plan or proposal. And this new suggestion should respect the EU acquis (as Greek Cyprus is a member of the bloc) and United Nations Security Council resolutions. It should also be acceptable to both sides on Cyprus.” In referendum in April 2004, Greek Cypriots rejected the Annan plan while Turkish Cypriots accepted it. /Cumhuriyet/

    [11] FROM THE COLUMNS… FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS

    [12] IMPLEMENTING LAWS CORRECTLY BY ULUC GURKAN (STAR)

    Columnist Uluc Gurkan comments on implementing the laws correctly and fighting terrorism. A summary of his column is as follows:

    “Both the police and the military have been complaining for a long time that the fight against terrorism has been weakened by Turkey’s harmonization to the European Union and that the security forces’ hands are tied. However, the government didn’t care about this and only said that the solution was possible with more democracy. We can see that recent incidents influenced the government as well. The Anti-Terror Law will be changed and the powers of security forces will be expanded in light of current needs. Security forces should use initiatives similar to those of European countries and make immediate interventions with the effective use of force against the threat of terrorism. Otherwise, public order could be ruined, as it has been in Turkey for the last year. However, security forces should be very careful in using both initiative and force. They should avoid using excessive force. Therefore, when the Anti-Terror Law is being amended, a tendency towards tougher measures isn’t a must. Instead of this, meaningless formalities which limit security forces’ intervention in incidents and restrict their ability to move at the moment of intervention should be reconsidered. Besides the changes to the law, implementing the current law as required is important, as this would be able to solve many problems.

    There are serious problems in implementing the law in Turkey. Laws sometimes aren’t implemented or they are used as a threat against human rights with an unacceptable toughness. We saw in newspapers that terrorists wearing masks on the streets of Istanbul were going to organize protests and carrying bags full of Molotov cocktails. Some photojournalists took photos of this terrible scene, but the security forces didn’t take action to prevent the terrorists. We also read in newspapers that certain officials tried to explain this as follows: ‘The police can’t use great force at demonstrations in cities, because they push the women and children to the protest frontlines.’ The photos showing them carrying Molotov cocktails in bags doesn’t justify this excuse. On the contrary, it proves that the laws and public authority were suspended during these incidents. This incident shows that we should understand that laws exist in order not to be ignored. They should be implemented as required.”

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