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Turkish Press Review, 01-05-07
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning
07.05.2001
CONTENTS
[01] AGREEMENT REACHED ON TURK TELEKOM
[02] TWO TOUGH DAYS FOR DERVIS
[03] CENTRAL BANK LAW GOES INTO EFFECT
[04] PRISON REFORM, BANKING LAW AMENDMENT TOP PARLIAMENT AGENDA
[05] ECHR DELEGATION IN TURKEY
[06] EU SPECIAL ENVOY MORATINOS TO ARRIVE IN TURKEY TODAY
[07] BRITAIN SUPPORTS TURKEY AT ESDP
[08] TANTAN TO VISIT IRAN
[09] BARZANI VISITS TURKEY
[10] GREECE TAKES STEPS TO IMPROVE RIGHTS OF TURKISH MINORITY
[11] DEMIREL RETURNS TO TURKEY
[12] VIRTUE PARTY AWAITS COURT REPORT ON CLOSURE
[13] TEN-MONTH STATE BOND OFFER
[14] BRIDGES TO BE BUILT BY THE BUILD-OPERATE-TRANSFER SYSTEM
[15] EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS TO GET HOUSING
[16] NEW LABOR SECURITY BILL READY
[17] POLISH-TURKISH COOPERATION IN CONSTRUCTION
[18] AYCELL JOINS GSM SCENE AFTER ARIA
[19] SYKES OPENS 'SOLUTION CENTER' IN ISTANBUL
[20] MOBILE ELECTRICITY POWER PLANT FOR TRNC
[21] MINISTER OF CULTURE TALAY PRAISES 'SULTANS OF THE DANCE'
[22] TURKISH CULTURE AT INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIRS
[23] THE SUCCESS OF TURKISH DOCUMENTARY
[24] TOURISTS IN CAPPADOCIA
[25] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
[26] VISIT TO THE LAST FISHERY IN THE BOSPHORUS BY FERAI TINC (HURRIYET)
[01] AGREEMENT REACHED ON TURK TELEKOM
Meeting under the auspices of Transportation Minister Enis Oksuz,
high-ranking bureaucrats from relevant ministries and organizations
hammered out a bill on the privatization of Turk Telekom over the
weekend thus ending weeks of controversy over the matter. Announcing
the result Oksuz told reporters later that this whole issue should now
cease to be a matter of curiosity. Officials from the Transportation
Ministry, the Undersecretariat for the Treasury, and the Privatization
Administration got together on Saturday morning in the Prime Ministry
and worked out the final draft of the bill that will enable
privatization of Turk Telekom. Oksuz explained that the issues that are
sensitive for the Chief of the General Staff's office, as well as his
own ministry, had been fully addressed in the draft bill. According to
the deal hammered out, 95 percent of Turk Telekom will be sold. But
foreigners will only be allowed to buy 45 percent of this and will be
prevented from gaining a strategic decision on making position. The
remaining five percent of Turk Telekom will be reserved for the small
investor, and will first be offered to PTT and Telekom and Telekom
workers. /Turkish News/
[02] TWO TOUGH DAYS FOR DERVIS
Representatives from labor and economy bureaucrats will meet today to
discuss new proposals concerning collective bargaining accords. Turk-Is
Chairman Bayram Meral and members of the executive council, Ministers
of State Kemal Dervis, Mehmet Kececiler and Finance Minister Sumer Oral
will meet today to reach a consensus on the collective bargaining
accords. Meanwhile employers are expected to meet with Dervis tomorrow.
Turkish Employers Unions Confederation (TISK) will present a report
titled "Economic Program and Our Working Life: Observations and
Proposals" to Dervis tomorrow. Th Confederation is expected to demand
an immediate solution to the high interest rates problem. /Cumhuriyet/
$15 BILLION ON MAY 15 State Minister Kemal Dervis said that the IMF
Executive Board would discuss Turkey's program on May 15 and make its
decision. Dervis held a press conference at the Treasury
Undersecretariat yesterday. Dervis recalled that the Executive Board of
the World Bank had already decided to accept a policy in line with the
IMF Executive Board's decisions. Dervis stated that the proposal to be
presented to the IMF Executive Board envisaged the entry of nearly $15
billion from IMF and World Bank sources for the next nine months of the
year. Dervis noted that Turkey presented the letter of intent to the
IMF last Friday and added that the financial assistance was based on
the enactment of the laws. He said that the Banking and Telecom Laws
were very important in this regard. /Turkiye/
[03] CENTRAL BANK LAW GOES INTO EFFECT
The law which foresees amendments to the Central Bank law went into
effect after it was published on the Official Gazette on Saturday. No
government authority will be able to give orders to the Central Bank,
and a Money Market Committee will be set up within the body of the
Central Bank. The preamble of the law, comprised of a total of 17
articles, said the need to make amendments to the law arose within the
framework of international developments, especially European Union
norms, regarding economic conditions and central banking since 1970,
when the Central Bank Law originally took effect. The preamble said
that the law pointed out that the principle target of the Central Bank
was to provide price stability, and that the bank was the only
authorized unit responsible for the determination and implementation of
monetary policy for the bank. /Turkish News/
[04] PRISON REFORM, BANKING LAW AMENDMENT TOP PARLIAMENT AGENDA
The agenda of the Turkish Parliament is expected to be dominated this
week with two crucially important drafts. The Speakership Council is
expected to decide to offer to parliamentary debate with priority the
drafts amending laws on the execution of penalties and administration
of prisons. The government will present the draft amending the Banking
Law. If debates at the Planning and Budget Commission on the draft are
completed by midweek, parliamentary debate over the draft is expected
to be held on Thursday or Friday. The Parliamentary Justice Commission
will continue debating the draft amending the Civil Code. /Turkish
Daily News/
[05] ECHR DELEGATION IN TURKEY
A European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) delegation of four, chaired by
the ECHR Chairman Luzius Wildhaber, arrived in Turkey to hold meetings.
The delegation, which will meet with the members of the High Court of
Appeals and Constitutional Court, also includes Turkish judge Riza
Tulmen. /Cumhuriyet/
[06] EU SPECIAL ENVOY MORATINOS TO ARRIVE IN TURKEY TODAY
EU Special Envoy for the Middle Eastern Peace Process, Miguel
Moratinos, will arrive in Ankara today. Moratinos, who will discuss
Jordanian Egyptian peace plan with the Turkish officials, will be
received by Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and Foreign Ministry's Deputy
Undersecretary, Ambassador Ugur Ziyal. The EU and Turkey are trying to
fill the gap which was opened due to the decrease in the US interest in
the Middle Eastern Peace Process after the election of the Bush
Administration. /Cumhuriyet/
[07] BRITAIN SUPPORTS TURKEY AT ESDP
The National Program Turkey prepared for EU membership has been debated
at the House of Lords in Britain. Some of the Lords who participated in
the debate called on the British government to strengthen relations
with Turkey and support Ankara in its bid for EU membership. Responding
to questions on Turkey, the parliamentary spokeswoman responsible for
international relations Baroness Scotland of Asthal indicated that the
British government had welcomed the National Program but added that
they expected more information on the process of reforms. Answering a
question on Turkey's place in European Security and Defence Policy
(ESDP), she said they supported Turkey's position on the issue.
/Turkish Daily News/
[08] TANTAN TO VISIT IRAN
Interior Minister Sadettin Tantan will travel to Iran on the invitation
of his counterpart, Abdulvahit Mousavi Lari. Tantan will reiterate his
request for cooperation in the fight against terrorism. This will be
the first visit of its kind since 1994. Gendarmerie Chief of
Information, Gen. Ali Aksoz and Head of the Security Department, Emin
Aslan, Head of Information Department, Muzaffer Erkan, and the Head of
the Foreigners Department Mustafa Ilhan will accompany Tantan. Tantan
will also be received by Iranian President Muhammed Hatemi and relay
the goodwill messages of President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. /Milliyet/
[09] BARZANI VISITS TURKEY
Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party Leader Mesud Barzani will arrive in
Turkey tonight. Barzani will be received by Foreign Minister Ismail Cem
and Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit tomorrow. He is expected to discuss
security issues such as the fight against the PKK terrorist
organization and recent developments in Northern Iraq with the Turkish
officials. Additionally, Washington Agreement is among the issues to be
discussed during the meetings. /Cumhuriyet/
[10] GREECE TAKES STEPS TO IMPROVE RIGHTS OF TURKISH MINORITY
The Greek government has decided to take certain important steps in
improving the rights of the Turkish minority living there particularly
in Western Thrace. The steps include plans to increase quotas in Greek
universities for Turkish students, to give more autonomy to Turkish
foundation administrations, provide more state aid to Turkish
minority's schools and to re-accept citizenship for those who formerly
lost their citizenship within the scope of these new steps. /Turkish
Daily News/
[11] DEMIREL RETURNS TO TURKEY
Former Turkish President, Suleyman Demirel, who is the member of Middle
East Fact-finding Commission, completed his work in New York and
returned to Turkey yesterday. The final report prepared by the members
of the commission was presented to US Secretary of State Colin Powell
by commission chairman George Mitchell. Speaking after his arrival,
Demirel held a press conference in Istanbul saying that people who want
peace in the Middle East should be patient and have good intentions.
/Turkish Daily News/
[12] VIRTUE PARTY AWAITS COURT REPORT ON CLOSURE
Sabih Kanadoglu, the Chief Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals,
will make his verbal statement about the additional indictment in the
closure case against the Virtue Party(FP) on Tuesday. The
Constitutional Court has invited Kanadoglu to present his verbal
statement following the FP's submission of its last defense on April
24. After the submission of the verbal statements of the chief
prosecutor to the FP, FP officials will make their verbal defense on
May 15. The reporter of the case, Mehmet Turhan, will prepare a report
about the additional indictment if the court considers it necessary.
Later, the case will be heard on its own merits, at a date to be
determined by Chief Judge Mustafa Bumin. /Turkish News/
[13] TEN-MONTH STATE BOND OFFER
The Treasury will repay $137.4 million in foreign debts. This week the
Treasury will also issue ten-month state bonds worth $600 million this
week. Single price system will be implemented at the offer. Bond
repayment will be carried out on March 6, 2002. /Milliyet/ 13 MILLION
EURO GRANTED FOR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT The European Union granted 13
million Euro for projects to improve the quality infrastructure. The
Quality Association(Kalder) and the Treasury Under-Secretariat will
supervise the grant. The fund will contribute to the improvement of
standards, competitive power and efficiency for achieving a stronger
economy. /Hurriyet/
[14] BRIDGES TO BE BUILT BY THE BUILD-OPERATE-TRANSFER SYSTEM
Three important Bosphorus passage projects and Izmit Gulf Passage
project will be built by the build-operate-transfer system. The
projects are expected to cost about $5.3 billion. They will be operated
by the related firm group for a while and then will be transferred to
Directorate-General of Highways. /Cumhuriyet/
[15] EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS TO GET HOUSING
A total of 80 percent of all permanent housing units in Kocaeli, Duzce
and Sakarya have been completed with the help of World Bank credits,
Prime Ministry Project Management Unit Izmir Regional Director Ahmet
Ericdem said on Saturday. "Some 7,476 housing units in Kocaeli, 2,608
in Sakarya, and 1,004 in Duzce are being built with a $240 million
World Bank credit. The foundation for these housing units was laid on
August 15 last year. The high-tech methods and concrete used in the
construction render these buildings resistant to high-magnitude
earthquakes. /Turkish News/
[16] NEW LABOR SECURITY BILL READY
The Commission consisting of nine lecturers who convened for the
preparation of the labor security bill has completed its studies.
According to the bill based on the ILO Convention No 158, the employers
will not be able to dismiss any employees due to unjust reasons. The
bill has been presented to Labor Minister Yasar Okuyan. /Turkiye/
[17] POLISH-TURKISH COOPERATION IN CONSTRUCTION
Turkish contractors will come together with the representatives of the
Polish construction sector which has an annual volume of $18 billion.
With the joint initiatives of the Foreign Trade Undersecretariat (DTM)
and the Polish Economy Ministry's Foreign Capital Agency (PAIZ),
Turkish contractors will meet with the representatives of the Polish
construction sector. The representatives of the both sides will attend
the seminars to be held on May 7 in Ankara and on May 9 in Istanbul.
/Turkiye/
[18] AYCELL JOINS GSM SCENE AFTER ARIA
GSM operator Aycell will start cell phone services on the GSM 1800 band
all over the world before the end of May. Aycell is currently working
to establish representative offices, and will start signing up
customers within the month. /Turkish News/
[19] SYKES OPENS 'SOLUTION CENTER' IN ISTANBUL
US based company Sykes, which acts as an "information technologies
solution partner" for companies all over the world, has opened a
"solution center" in Istanbul. Sykes provides services from 62 centers
in 15 countries with 17,000 employees and a $603 million annual
revenue. Sykes Executive Board Chairman John Sykes, who came to Turkey
to visit the Sykes center in Istanbul, held a press conference
yesterday. He said that they opened the center in Istanbul to show
their confidence in Turkey and its strategic location. /Turkish Daily
News/
[20] MOBILE ELECTRICITY POWER PLANT FOR TRNC
A mobile electricity power plant will be installed in the Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus(TRNC) to supply electricity demands there
to avoid dependency on foreign sources. The Turkish Electricity
Corporation(TEAS) and the Cyprus Electric Corporation(TEK) will
cooperate in the project. The mobile power plant is rated at a 30
megawatt production capacity, and will be managed by Cyprus TEK for the
first five years. The complete energy production project, costing
nearly $5 million, includes transportation and transformer systems that
will carry electricity from the plant to consumers. /Turkish News/
TURKISH TRAIN IN BAGHDAD TRAIN STATION AFTER 19 YEARS Turkish train
which departed from the Nusaybin Train Station arrived in Baghdad Train
Station. Foreign Trade Undersecretary Kursat Tuzmen and Iraqi
authorities welcomed the train which carried State Railways (TCDD)
Director General Vedat Bilgin and other authorities in the Baghdad
Train Station. Speaking to the press, Bilgin said trade volume between
the two countries before 1982 was great and added their current aim was
to reach that level again. Stating Turkey was trying to improve her
commercial relations with Iraq, Tuzmen said, "Our policy is completely
aimed at improving our foreign trade especially with our neighbors.
Certain products, which are permitted to be carried to Iraq by the UN,
will be transported by train between Turkey and Iraq which started
operating after 19 years again. /Cumhuriyet/
[21] MINISTER OF CULTURE TALAY PRAISES 'SULTANS OF THE DANCE'
Minister of Culture, Istemihan Talay, said the dance show named
'Sultans of the Dance' should also be performed abroad. Replying to the
questions of the press after watching the show in Mydonose Showland two
days ago, Talay said, "This performance is not just a show. It is a
ritual, a kind of worship and a prayer. This an extraordinarily
successful work of art." 90 dancers perform Anatolian music, rhythm,
folk dances and dances in a modern style in the 'Sultans of the Dance'.
The show will be performed in the Broadway next season. /Cumhuriyet/
[22] TURKISH CULTURE AT INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIRS
The Culture Ministry will participate in international book fairs to
take place in Warsaw, Prague, and Jerusalem, a Culture Ministry
statement said on Sunday. According to the statement, the Jerusalem
book fair will take place between May 7-11, the Prague book fair will
be held between May 16-20. At these fairs, the Culture Ministry will
display Turkish Linguistic Association (TDK) publications, Is Bank
publications, and its own publications about Turkish language, culture,
art, history, and tourism and Ataturk. /Turkish News/ TUBITAK GATHERS
200 CHILD INVENTORS The Scientific and Technical Research Council of
Turkey (TUBITAK) will hold an "Invention Festival" in TUBITAK's Feza
Gursey Hall on May 11-12 in Ankara. The festival, to which 200 child
inventors applied thus far, is encouraging creativity not only in
adults, but also in children. /Turkish News/
[23] THE SUCCESS OF TURKISH DOCUMENTARY
The Turkish documentary, "Anatolia's Light" by Nedret Cagatay was
elected as the best documentary by UNESCO, reflecting the tolerance in
Anatolia. The documentary focuses on religions in Anatolia lived
throughout centuries. The Asian Broadcasters Union(ABU) offered to
telecast the documentary in 13 Asian countries. "Anatolia's Light" will
also participate in 12th International Archaeological Science Festival
in Italy. /Milliyet/
[24] TOURISTS IN CAPPADOCIA
The famous touristic site Cappadocia has seen a 100 percent increase in
the number of tourists coming into the area in the first four months of
the year when compared to the same period last year, the Anatolia News
Agency reported yesterday. /Turkish Daily News/
[25] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
[26] VISIT TO THE LAST FISHERY IN THE BOSPHORUS BY FERAI TINC
(HURRIYET)
Columnist Ferai Tinc comments on the pollution in the Bosphorus due to
the the passage of oil-tankers and extinction of fish species in the
Straits. A summary of her column is as follows: "Yesterday we went
fishing in the last remaining fishery in the Bosphorus. From an old
fisherman in the Bosphorus who came from a family of fishers for two
centuries, we learnt that at the beginning of the century the number of
fisheries in the Bosphorus, where nets were cast, was 52. At the moment
there is only one such fishery left. That is the Beykoz Dalyan. It is
on the verge of closure too. Due to the pollution and maritime traffic
in the Bosphorus the fishers are close to calling quits. One of the
seamen said that the increase in maritime traffic was so high that no
fish was left in the Bosphorus. He added that most of the
responsibility lay with the oil tankers. These tankers left their bile
waters and when the fishers woke up early in the morning they saw that
their nets were covered with tar. Even if there was fish in the net
under the tar, it was of no use and they were returned to sea. The
species seen not too long ago are no more caught in the Bosphorus. The
organizer of this visit, Chairman of Turkish Sea Research Foundation
Prof. Bayram Ozturk showed the jelly-fish in the muddy waters and said
that they ate all the fish and larvae. These jelly-fish entered the
Bosphorus with the ballast-waters of the oil tankers in 1987. The ships
passing through the Marmara Sea and the Bosphorus are leaving 40 tons
of toxic dyes. Today the amount of toxic dyes left only in the Istanbul
Strait is close to three tons a year. What about tomorrow? Does anyone
calculate the damage the increasing traffic will incur when the Kazakh
oil coming to Russian Novorississk port incur on the Bosphorus? The
fight for survival of the last fishery in Istanbul may be considered
the fight of Istanbul for survival. How long can Turkey stand on her
own feet with Istanbul fighting for survival?"
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