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Turkish Press Review, 02-08-05
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
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Press
& Information
Turkish
Press
Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
05.08.2002
ECEVIT: “TURKEY IS NOW MORE FREE AND
DEMOCRATIC”
YILMAZ TO MEET WITH EU COUNTRIES’
AMBASSADORS
BAHCELI: “THE EU HARMONIZATION LAWS HAVE
COMPROMISED TURKEY”
DERVIS: “THE EU LAWS ARE OF GREAT
IMPORTANCE TO TURKEY”
CEM: “THE YT WILL COME TO POWER IN EARLY
ELECTIONS”
TUSIAD ANNOUNCES OPPOSITION TO JOB
SECURITY BILL
CILLER: “THE DYP HAS BEEN KEY IN TURKEY’S
EU BID”
23 PARTIES TO PARTICIPATE IN NOVEMBER
ELECTIONS
ORAL: “THE ECONOMIC PROGRAM MUST BE
CARRIED OUT FULLY”
EKSI: “CHANGES TO PRESS LAW ARE IMPORTANT
BUT INSUFFICIENT”
CONSULTING FIRM TO BE NAMED FOR
AGRICULTURAL RESTRUCTURING
BIDDING OPENED FOR ISTANBUL’S NEW
“MARMARAY” SUBWAY LINE
FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS...
FROM THE COLUMNS...
POLITICS SHAPED BY THE EUROPEAN UNION BY
DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)
PAX AMERICANA BY SUKRU ELEKDAG (SABAH)
CONTENTS
[01] ECEVIT: “TURKEY IS NOW MORE FREE AND
DEMOCRATIC”
[02] YILMAZ TO MEET WITH EU COUNTRIES’ AMBASSADORS
[03] BAHCELI: “THE EU HARMONIZATION LAWS HAVE
COMPROMISED TURKEY”
[04] DERVIS: “THE EU LAWS ARE OF GREAT IMPORTANCE
TO TURKEY”
[05] CEM: “THE YT WILL COME TO POWER IN EARLY
ELECTIONS”
[06] TUSIAD ANNOUNCES OPPOSITION TO JOB SECURITY
BILL
[07] CILLER: “THE DYP HAS BEEN KEY IN TURKEY’S EU
BID”
[08] 23 PARTIES TO PARTICIPATE IN NOVEMBER
ELECTIONS
[09] ORAL: “THE ECONOMIC PROGRAM MUST BE CARRIED
OUT FULLY”
[10] EKSI: “CHANGES TO PRESS LAW ARE IMPORTANT BUT
INSUFFICIENT”
[11] CONSULTING FIRM TO BE NAMED FOR AGRICULTURAL
RESTRUCTURING
[12] BIDDING OPENED FOR ISTANBUL’S NEW “MARMARAY”
SUBWAY LINE
[13] FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM
THE COLUMNS...
[14] POLITICS SHAPED BY THE EUROPEAN UNION BY
DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)
[15] PAX AMERICANA BY SUKRU ELEKDAG (SABAH)
[01] ECEVIT: “TURKEY IS NOW MORE FREE AND
DEMOCRATIC”
Appearing on television yesterday, Prime Minister Bulent
Ecevit stated that with Friday’s historic approval in
Parliament of a European Union harmonization law package,
Turkey was now more free and democratic and was becoming more
European. Turkey is now waiting full membership from the EU,
said Ecevit. Speaking on the abolition of the death penalty
during peacetime, Ecevit added, “Terrorist criminals will
spend their entire lives in prison, and terrorists who find
shelter with EU member states could be judged in Turkey.”
Ecevit remarked that Parliament had fulfilled a historic
mission and that Turkey was now more strong and respected in
the world. Ecevit also stated that by ensuring rights and
freedoms, the nation’s unity and territorial integrity would
be protected. /All Papers/
[02] YILMAZ TO MEET WITH EU COUNTRIES’ AMBASSADORS
Deputy Prime Minister and Motherland Party (ANAP) leader
Mesut Yilmaz yesterday invited ambassadors from the European
Union member states to the Secretariat General For European
Union Affairs to lay out for them the historic steps towards
EU accession that Parliament took on Friday. Yilmaz will
reportedly tell the ambassadors that Turkey had done its part
for its EU bid and that now it was the EU’s turn to respond in
kind. /Sabah/
[03] BAHCELI: “THE EU HARMONIZATION LAWS HAVE
COMPROMISED TURKEY”
Speaking at his party’s Erciyes General Assembly over the
weekend, Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader and Deputy
Prime Minister Devlet Bahceli said that the basic principles
of the Republic of Turkey had been compromised by the laws
passed in Parliament last week. Criticizing both the EU laws
and the parties supporting them, Bahceli said, “Passing these
laws has played into the hands of minorities.” /Sabah/
[04] DERVIS: “THE EU LAWS ARE OF GREAT IMPORTANCE
TO TURKEY”
State Minister for the Economy Kemal Dervis said yesterday
that the European Union harmonization laws were of great
importance to Turkey and that it had taken an important step
forward in Parliament’s adopting the laws. Speaking after
meeting members of the Bee Movement, a pro-EU nongovernmental
organization (NGO), Dervis said that the group had worked hard
for Turkey’s EU bid and that he appreciated this. He added
that Turkey had taken a very important step by adopting the EU
harmonization law package and that now it had to work hard to
enact other required regulations. /Cumhuriyet/
[05] CEM: “THE YT WILL COME TO POWER IN EARLY
ELECTIONS”
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, New Turkey (YT)
leader Ismail Cem declared that the YT would come to power in
early elections. “If we come to power, we will give priority
to the automotive and agriculture industries,” he said. “But
the measures we will implement will take time. It is
impossible to carry them out in a week or even a month.” He
added that the YT believed that Turkey’s most important
problems were unemployment, low productivity, and income
inequality and that the YT would first try to boost the
production as a solution. Cem also said, “The government’s
structure of 38 ministers and prime minister has proven
incapable of working efficiently in this situation, and we
would decrease the number of ministries after coming to power.”
/Sabah/
[06] TUSIAD ANNOUNCES OPPOSITION TO JOB SECURITY
BILL
The Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (TUSIAD)
issued a written statement over this weekend saying that it
opposed a Job Security Bill now facing Parliament. The
statement charged that the bill would hurt Turkey’s work
environment and represented a piecemeal approach to workplace
issues. /Cumhuriyet/
[07] CILLER: “THE DYP HAS BEEN KEY IN TURKEY’S EU
BID”
True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller said yesterday
that her party had played an important role in the approval of
the European Union harmonization laws, just as it played a key
role in the 1995 Customs Union deal when she was prime
minister. Ciller also said that her party had done everything
it could in order to move Turkey’s EU membership bid forward.
“We exerted great effort to prevent Parliament from taking a
summer recess, and twice we called Parliament back for an
extraordinary session,” added Ciller. She also stated that the
DYP should be appreciated and thanked for its support of
Turkey’s EU bid. /Turkiye/
[08] 23 PARTIES TO PARTICIPATE IN NOVEMBER
ELECTIONS
The Supreme Election Board (YSK) declared yesterday that 23
parties would participate in elections which are set to be
held this Nov. 3. According to the YSK, the parties which will
take part in the elections are as follows: the Justice and
Development Party (AK), Motherland Party (ANAP), Enlightened
Turkey Party (ATP), Independent Turkey Party (BTP), Great
Unity Party (BBP), Republican People’s Party (CHP), Democratic
Party (DP), Democratic Turkey Party (DTP), Democratic People’s
Party (DHP), Democratic Left Party (DSP), True Path Party
(DYP), Labor Party (EMEP), People’s Democratic Party (HADEP),
Worker’s Party (IP), Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Nation
Party (MP), Nationalist Action Party (MHP), Freedom and
Solidarity Party (ODP), Felicity Party (SP), Communist Party
of Turkey (TKP), New Turkey (YT), Rebirth Party (YDP) and
Homeland Party (Yurt Partisi). /Turkiye/
[09] ORAL: “THE ECONOMIC PROGRAM MUST BE CARRIED
OUT FULLY”
Speaking in Izmir yesterday, Finance Minister Sumer Oral
stressed the necessity for Turkey to carry out its economic
program fully. The government is acting with sensitivity on
this priority matter, he added. Stating also that industrial
production was climbing, Oral predicted that current data
indicate a 5% growth rate this year. Oral also touched on
Parliament’s recent historic passage of an EU harmonization
law package, stating, “These laws are of the utmost importance.”
/Aksam/
[10] EKSI: “CHANGES TO PRESS LAW ARE IMPORTANT BUT
INSUFFICIENT”
Press Council Chairman Oktay Eksi said yesterday that the
changes made to the Press Law as part of Turkey’s European
Union harmonization laws were important but remained
insufficient. Emphasizing that these laws were important for
Turkey’s democratization, Eksi said that heavy fines had been
enacted to replace prison term punishments. Stating that the
new regulations aimed to achieve a freer Turkey, Eksi said,
“However, there are some sections of our laws which put people
behind bars because they have ‘violated’ the freedom of
expression. As long as our punishments go beyond the
imposition of heavy fines and the like, these steps are not
sufficient.” Eksi recalled that six journalists were currently
imprisoned and that he favored them being granted new trials.
/Aksam/
[11] CONSULTING FIRM TO BE NAMED FOR AGRICULTURAL
RESTRUCTURING
As part of a project carried out under the leadership of
Undersecretariat of the Treasury, the nation’s agricultural
cooperatives are being restructured, and a consultant firm for
the project is due to be chosen today. The restructuring
project will be carried out for five leading agricultural
cooperatives, namely Taris, Cukobirlik, Antbirlik,
Trakyabirlik and Marmarabirlik, so their productivity and
activities are boosted under the supervision of the Treasury
Undersecretariat’s Directorate General of State Economic
Enterprises (KIT). As part of the Agricultural Reform
Implementation Project (ARIP) to be carried out under the
auspices of the World Bank, the consultant firm which will
carry out the restructuring work will determine the needs for
operational and financial restructuring. It will also prepare
financial plans for steps that can be taken in areas in which
agricultural cooperatives are active. /Aksam/
[12] BIDDING OPENED FOR ISTANBUL’S NEW “MARMARAY”
SUBWAY LINE
The state officially initiated over the weekend a bidding
process for the construction of a new subway line through
Istanbul, one including an underwater Bosphorus tube passage.
The Directorate General for Railway, Harbor and Airport
Construction, attached to the Transportation Ministry, opened
the bid for the new line called “Marmaray,” which will stretch
from the suburb of Gebze to Halkali. The massive construction
project will include rails, the tube passage and stations. The
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) is helping the
financing of the nearly $2.5 billion project, and leading
international construction firms have already shown an
interest. /Milliyet/
[13] FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM
THE COLUMNS...
[14] POLITICS SHAPED BY THE EUROPEAN UNION BY
DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)
Columnist Derya Sazak writes about the new shape of in
Turkish politics in the wake of the passage of the EU
harmonization laws. A summary of his column is as follows:
“Following the adoption of the European Union reforms,
there is now a road map in front of Turkey. If Turkey manages
to get a date for the beginning of accession negotiations from
the EU at its Copenhagen summit in December then we have a
chance of becoming a full member in five to seven years. That
is two election terms. Of course factors other than the EU
itself will help to shape the Turkey’s future. A US operation
in Iraq, pressure to settle the Cyprus issue and the future of
the IMF-backed economic programme, for instance, will affect
developments coming over the next year. As the military places
great importance on institutionalization and strategic
planning, by looking at the decisions of the Supreme Military
Council we can tell what the military sees on the horizon.
Gen. Hilmi Ozkok is due to take over the post of Chief of
General Staff from Gen. Huseyin Kivrikoglu at the end of the
month and former Gendarmerie General Commander Gen. Aytac
Yalman has been appointed to be the new commander of the
Ground Forces. Gen. Yalman is an experienced header who served
in the southeast at a time when PKK terrorism was at its peak
and he knows northern Iraq very well. By appointing Gen.
Yalman, it seems that the military is preparing itself for a
US operation in Iraq. In addition to concerns over the future
of Iraq, the military is also going to be very sensitive about
issues of internal politics. The newly enacted EU laws have
given hope to the public. However, it’s unclear how the
process leading up to the Copenhagen summit will be affected
if the Justice and Development Party (AKP) emerges from the
elections having the most seats in Parliament. The EU package
almost didn’t pass as a whole, due to the AKP’s insistence on
a constitutional amendment on the death penalty. AKP leader
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his party must change their
ambivalent approach towards the EU. It looks like we’re all
going to have to wait and see if the AKP is going to come to
power and the kind of attitude it will adopt. However, clearly
no one wants to experience another ‘Erbakan incident.’ If the
AKP takes a pro-EU stance before the elections, then it will
do its best, after elections, to give Turkey a better chance
of becoming a full member. What’s more is that the Turkish
public, including the people of the southeast, does not want
politics based on ethnic and religious identity to be a source
of tension anymore. As for State Minister for the Economy
Kemal Dervis, he still has his reservations about the role
he’ll play in Turkish politics. He is trying to unite left-wing
parties to balance the power of the AKP. Let’s hope that with
his indecisiveness he doesn’t divide the left even more.”
[15] PAX AMERICANA BY SUKRU ELEKDAG (SABAH)
Columnist Sukru Elekdag writes on the shift in US foreign
policy after last September’s terrorist attacks. A summary of
his column is as follows:
“The tragedy of Sept. 11 brought about some earthshaking
changes to United States foreign policy and global strategy.
US citizens gave President Bush an extended mandate to
eradicate al-Qaida and to crush terrorist organizations all
around the globe. However, the Bush administration is forcing
this authority to its limits as well as using it for the US’
long-term strategic interests, and it is trying to establish a
‘Pax Americana’ (a global peace order dependent on US
superiority and arbitration) and taking some important steps
towards this end. Washington’s quest for a privileged legal
system for the US in the new world order is a striking example
of this, one which is altogether contradictory to
international law. Accordingly, the US, drawing on its
legitimate right to defend itself, openly declares that it has
the right to carry out pre-emptive strikes on countries –-
even if they have not attacked the US -- which possess weapons
of mass destruction and that employ terrorism as a state
policy. This is what we call ‘anticipatory self defense’ or
‘offensive deterrence.’ It is very likely that the US will
justify its possible military attack on Iraq on these legal
grounds. The settling-in of the US in Central Asia and the
Caucasus region can be viewed as the most striking development
in the post-Sept. 11 era. It is obvious that the US is there
to stay to guard its interests in oil-rich regions, and
towards this end it is solidifying its relations with Russia.
Moreover, the US has to fortify its position in the Middle
East and to create alternative means of access to oil
resources. Actually, this is the underlying reason for its
political support to the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline project. The
above picture clearly demonstrates the dramatic change in
power balance in Eurasian politics. In this new conjuncture,
Russia becomes the key country, giving the US the opportunity
to reach to a vast geography in its war against terror. This
may result in a serious erosion in the role given to Turkey in
the US’ strategy, especially after a possible strike on Iraq.
However, Turkey’s forward steps towards EU membership should
be assessed as a compensating development.”
ARCHIVE
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