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Turkish Press Review, 02-10-31Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: 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> <map name="FPMap1"> </map> <map name="FPMap1"></map> Press & Information Turkish Press Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning31.10.2002FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS...CONTENTS
[01] BUSH SENDS MESSAGE TO SEZER TO HONOR REPUBLIC DAYUS President George W. Bush on Tuesday sent a congratulatory message to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer to mark Oct. 29, the 79th anniversary of the foundation of the Republic of Turkey. Remarking that bilateral relations between Turkey and the US were based on a years-long foundation of mutual understanding and respect, Bush stated that Turkey was one of his country’s closest allies in many fields such as security, energy and commerce. “The US will continue to support Turkey’s efforts aimed at sustaining peace and stability in its region,” wrote Bush. “The US is grateful to Turkey for its support in the fight against international terrorism and will do its utmost to promote Turkey’s EU membership bid in the international community. I deeply appreciate Turkey’s recent efforts to improve its democracy and advance human rights. We will always support such efforts aimed at promoting peace and further democratization.” /Cumhuriyet/[02] US DEFENSE SECRETARY RUMSFELD ATTENDS REPUBLIC DAY RECEPTION AT EMBASSYUS Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz on Tuesday attended a reception at the Turkish Embassy in Washington to celebrate Oct. 29, Turkey’s Republic Day. According to diplomatic circles, their attendance is being seen as a clear sign of US support for Turkey ahead of a possible military operation in Iraq. /Star/[03] UN SPECIAL ENVOY DE SOTO TO VISIT TURKEYUnited Nations Special Cyprus Envoy Alvaro de Soto is due to visit Ankara today to hold a series of meetings with Turkish Foreign Ministry officials, including Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal. He is expected to discuss with Ziyal UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s recent proposal for a permanent solution on Cyprus. /Cumhuriyet/[04] ERDOGAN COUNTERS SEZER’S STATEMENT ON ROLE OF PRESIDENTPresident Ahmet Necdet Sezer’s statement on Tuesday regarding whose duty it was to name a new prime minister after elections drew a sharp rebuttal yesterday. Sezer had said that the person entrusted with this function was the president, not a “party chairman unable to become a deputy,” in an apparent reference to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the leader of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) who has been ruled ineligible to stand for Parliament. Addressing a campaign rally in the central Anatolian city of Yozgat yesterday, Erdogan had this to say: “The Constitution has set out the mission of every institution. Handling down a mandate is among the president’s powers, but naming the person [who will be prime minister] is a function belonging to either the AKP or whatever party has enough votes in Parliament to get a vote of confidence.” The AKP is widely considered the frontrunner in next Sunday’s elections. /Turkiye/[05] ECEVIT: “I HAVE NEVER BEFORE SEEN SUCH AN ELECTION”Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit yesterday met with Ankara Chamber of Commerce (ATO) Chairman Sinan Aygun. During their meeting, Ecevit and Aygun reportedly exchanged views on the upcoming elections and Turkey’s economy. Regarding recent debates about the role of the president in appointing a prime minister, Ecevit reportedly said, “During my entire political career, I have never seen such an election. We are entering a period in which who will become prime minister is unclear.” /Turkiye/[06] PARTY LEADERS SEEK VOTES IN CLOSING DAYS OF CAMPAIGNAs the clock ticks down towards next Sunday’s parliamentary elections, the leaders of Turkey’s political parties yesterday continued their campaigning in various provinces of Anatolia. True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller addressed crowds in Erzurum and Malatya, Nationalist Action Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli did the same in Elazig and Malatya, and Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal hit the campaign trail in Zonguldak and Bursa. Meanwhile, New Turkey Party (YTP) leader Ismail Cem toured various districts of Istanbul. /All Papers/[07] SATICI: “THE POLITICAL PARTY LEADERS SHOULD WATCH THEIR PROMISES”Turkish Exporters Union (TIM) Chairman Oguz Satici said yesterday that the leaders of Turkey’s political parties should be very careful about what they say on the campaign trail because the nation viewed their public declarations as commitments. “All of them are making promises to the nation before next Sunday’s elections,” said Satici. “What’s more important, however, is that they actually keep their promises after the polls close.” /Milliyet/[08] DERVIS: “THE AKP LACKS A COHERENT ECONOMIC POLICIES”Former Economy Minister and current Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy candidate Kemal Dervis yesterday charged that Justice and Development Party (AKP) officials were making conflicting statements on their party’s economic policy depending on whether they were campaigning at home or speaking abroad. “The AKP knows what foreign investors want to hear, and so they say such things,” said Dervis. “But they lack a coherent economic policy.” Dervis added that he thought the AKP didn’t know what to do should it come to power in the elections just four days away. /Milliyet/[09] RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR ACCUSES TURKISH MEDIA OF DOUBLE STANDARDS OVER CHECHNYARussian Ambassador to Ankara Alexander Lebedev yesterday accused certain segments of the Turkish media of having double standards in their coverage of the recent Chechen terrorist attack in Moscow. Claiming that certain Turkish media outlets had initiated an anti-Russian campaign in the wake of the attack, Lebedev stated that such attempts were very harmful to Turkish- Russian relations. Lebedev also suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin might consider postponing a planned visit to Turkey. /Cumhuriyet/[10] TUSIAD RECEIVES PORTUGUESE SUPPORT FOR TURKEY’S EU MEMBERSHIP BIDA delegation from the Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (TUSIAD), in the midst of a tour of European capitals, is currently lobbying for Turkey’s EU membership bid in Lisbon, Portugal, in the leadup to the EU’s Copenhagen summit in December. Following a meeting last Friday with the Association for Portuguese Industry (AIP), the TUSIAD delegation yesterday met with Portuguese Prime Minister José Manuel Durao Barrosso. After their meeting, TUSIAD Chairman Tuncay Ozilhan told reporters that Portugal fully supported Turkey’s EU membership. “Portuguese authorities believe that Turkey’s accession to the EU has gone past the point of no return, and that Turkey’s membership would strengthen the EU’s Mediterranean extension,” said Ozilhan. /Hurriyet/[11] IMF PREDICTS DIRE ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES FROM IRAQ OPERATIONThe International Monetary Fund yesterday released a report on the effects on Turkey of a possible United States operation against Iraq. The report predicted that such an operation would cause Turkey’s tourism revenues to fall and interest rates and oil prices to rise. The report added that the operation would also make it difficult to roll over the country’s debts and could trigger capital flight. IMF officials began preparing the report in May after the second review of Turkey’s economic program. Evaluating the economy’s performance, it said that Turkey’s debts would fall to a great extent this year. /Milliyet/[12] FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS...[13] INSTEAD OF OPPOSING EACH OTHER BY FIKRET BILA (MILLIYET)Columnist Fikret Bila comments on the situation of Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan. A summary of his column is as follows:“President Ahmet Necdet Sezer this week asserted that he had the authority to appoint the prime minister. Speaking to journalists at a reception for Republic Day on Tuesday, Sezer said that he wasn’t obligated to appoint to a new government the names suggested by the parties. During the same reception, Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan rejoined that the president had to appoint the name determined by his party’s official organs, should the AKP win. The question itself arose from Erdogan’s situation, namely that he won’t be able to be elected a deputy. Article 109 of Turkey’s Constitution specifies that the prime minister is appointed by the president from among the members of Parliament. Under this article, the authority of the president on this matter is indisputable. So don’t we have an established democratic practice concerning this? In fact, yes, we do. Although the Constitution gives the president the right to select the prime minister among any deputy that he wants, in practice, presidents have appointed the leader of the party that comes out on top in the elections. This is the established practice in Turkey. So, if the AKP comes first on Sunday, it would be normal behavior under the established practice for the president to appoint the leader of this party to the post of prime minister. However, as the AKP leader cannot become a deputy, he cannot become prime minister either. How can this problem be resolved? Erdogan, whose case at the Constitutional Court concerning his leadership is currently underway, hasn’t stepped down from his party leader post. His name also appears on the ballot. Some even claim that this situation might result in a legal challenge to the outcome of the elections. Erdogan is continuing to resist. He might be considering this stance as a policy which will boost his party’s support. However, after the elections are held and its results tabulated, the AKP can solve this problem. Before the president appoints the prime minister, the AKP can elect the person whom it wants him to become prime minister as its leader in an extraordinary general assembly. In this situation, it would conform with the established practice for the president to appoint the leader of the winning party as prime minister. Insisting, ‘You will appoint this person as prime minister, he’s the one whom we elected as the prime minister’ isn’t a method that Sezer can respect. Until the legal issues are resolved, AKP leader Erdogan can select the person whom his party wants to become prime minister as its leader. Any other solution would only be a source of opposition and tension.” [14] THE CURRENT SITUATION IN IRAQ BY YILMAZ OZTUNA (TURKIYE)Columnist Yilmaz Oztuna comments on the current situation concerning the Iraq issue. A summary of his column is as follows:“A possible US attack on Iraq has dominated headlines worldwide for some time. Now, however, it seems the attack may be delayed for another couple of months, and the possibility even exists, albeit slightly, that the attack may never come. The US has to deal with the Iraq issue as the most crucial stepping stone towards its ‘Pax Americana’ before turning its eyes to other countries, most probably to Iran. Otherwise, the US’ very designs for the 21st century will inevitably fail. This is what President Bush and his inner circle have in mind. Now everyone knows very well that the US’ basic issue with Iraq is not Saddam Hussein himself, but rather the US bid for the country’s vast oil resources. Washington is in a desperate quest to gain control of the distribution of oil extracted in the Middle East, in the process taking the reins in dealing with world’s most developed industrial nations. Yet, the US faces strong opposition, the firmest of which comes from Germany. By fulfilling Japanese demands in the Pacific, and making concessions to France and Russia, the US is trying to counter Germany. China, however, has its own oil resources, and so would not resist the US on the Iraq issue, unlike France and Russia. Moreover, the US has substantial investments in China. In a bid to convince Russian authorities of the need for immediate action on Iraq, the US is arguing that the terrorists who attacked a theater in Moscow last week were affiliated with Iraq. However, persuading France will prove far more difficult. The US, unable to confront France directly, is trying to take French support for granted by giving concessions in the oil business. Turkey’s demand from the US for concrete, substantial guarantees to compensate its losses in a possible Iraq war have also played a key role in the US’ change of heart. Nevertheless, the US will definitely carry through its designs on Iraq so as to maintain its superiority in the Gulf region.” ARCHIVE <script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="http:/_www.byegm.gov.tr_statistic/countcode.js"> </script> Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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