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Turkish Press Review, 06-02-07
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
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Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
07.02.2006
FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…
CONTENTS
[01] PM ERDOGAN: “MUHAMMED CARTOONS LED TO OUTRAGE IN THE MUSLIM WORLD JUST WHEN WE’RE TRYING TO FORGE AN ALLIANCE OF CIVILIZATIONS”
[02] ERDOGAN, SPANISH PM ZAPATERO ISSUE CALL FOR COMMON SENSE
[03] CABINET URGES CALM, CIVILIZED REACTION TO CARTOONS
[04] GUL DECRIES MUHAMMED CARTOONS AS “IRRESPONSIBLE AND DISRESPECTFUL”
[05] US EMBASSY: “WE CONSIDER CARTOONS OF PROPHET MUHAMMED OFFENSIVE AND MORALLY REPUGNANT”
[06] DANISH CONSUL: “THOUGH MANY MIDEAST COUNTRIES BOYCOTTED OUR PRODUCTS, REACTIONS IN TURKEY HAVE BEEN LIMITED TO PROTESTS”
[07] CHP SUBMITS CENSURE MOTION ON UNAKITAN
[08] RENOWNED TURKISH HISTORIAN KUTAY PASSES AWAY
[09] INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS START EU SCREENING
[10] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…
[11] DANISH FIRESTORM BY DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)
[01] PM ERDOGAN: “MUHAMMED CARTOONS LED TO OUTRAGE IN THE MUSLIM WORLD JUST
WHEN WE’RE TRYING TO FORGE AN ALLIANCE OF CIVILIZATIONS”
Speaking after yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan spoke on the recent controversy over cartoons of the Prophet
Muhammed in European newspapers, lamenting how the cartoons had led to
outrage in the Muslim world amid efforts to forge an alliance of
civilizations. “We can’t tolerate such an immoral assault on our prophet,”
said Erdogan. “Protest is normal, but we never approve of violence. We also
respect other [religions’] prophets.” Also commenting on the murder last
weekend of Andrea Santore, the Italian priest of the Santa Maria Catholic
Church in Trabzon, Erdogan said that the case was being investigated and
that the perpetrator would be caught as soon as possible. /Turkiye/
[02] ERDOGAN, SPANISH PM ZAPATERO ISSUE CALL FOR COMMON SENSE
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Spanish Prime Minister Luis
Rodriguez Zapatero, two leaders of the UN Alliance of Civilizations
initiative, released a letter yesterday to calm the tension caused by
cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammed. The letter, which was published in
European newspapers including the International Herald Tribune, called for
common sense and mutual respect on all sides. “With growing concern, we are
witnessing the escalation in disturbing tensions provoked by the
publication, in European newspapers, of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad
that Muslims consider deeply offensive,” it said. “We shall all be the
losers if we fail to immediately defuse this situation, which can only
leave a trail of mistrust and misunderstanding between both sides in its
wake. Therefore, it is necessary to make an appeal for respect and calm,
and let the voice of reason be heard.” In related news, Ursula Plassnik,
foreign minister of European Union Term President Austria, told Austria’s
ambassadors in Islamic countries that they should ask local officials to
take measures to ensure the safety of life and property of European
citizens. She also called on 19 countries, including Turkey, to ensure the
life and property of diplomats under the Vienna Convention. The Austrian
Foreign Ministry declared these 19 countries, including Turkey, “high-risk
regions” and warned its citizens not to travel there. /Hurriyet/
[03] CABINET URGES CALM, CIVILIZED REACTION TO CARTOONS
During yesterday’s Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan, outrage over cartoons of Muhammed published in European newspapers
as well as the murder of an Italian priest in Trabzon were discussed. At a
press conference after the meeting, Government spokesman Cemil Cicek called
on citizens to act calmly and voice their disapproval in a civilized
manner. Turkey will take an initiative to defuse the tension, said Cicek,
and a commission of Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, State Minister Mehmet
Aydin and Cicek himself is to look into steps to be taken on the issue.
Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu also said that trying to link the
priest’s murder and the cartoon crisis would be misleading. /Milliyet/
[04] GUL DECRIES MUHAMMED CARTOONS AS “IRRESPONSIBLE AND DISRESPECTFUL”
Delivering the opening speech at a conference on public diplomacy yesterday,
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul spoke on the recent controversy over cartoons
of the Prophet Muhammed published in European newspapers, saying that
Ankara had warned Denmark when the cartoons were first published that
controversy could ensue. Gul called their publication “irresponsible and
disrespectful,” and stressed that freedom of the press didn’t mean that
anyone could do whatever they want. Also commenting on violence in Syria
and Lebanon over the cartoons, Gul said that he didn’t approve of such
incidents. “These issues should be solved through diplomacy,” he said. “The
publication can be protested through legal means.” Gul stressed that
incidents were spiraling out of control, adding that Ankara was working
with the European Union, the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC),
and the UN to halt these. “These incidents can sow hatred between societies,
so they should be brought to an end immediately.” /Star/
[05] US EMBASSY: “WE CONSIDER CARTOONS OF PROPHET MUHAMMED OFFENSIVE AND
MORALLY REPUGNANT”
The US Embassy in Ankara yesterday condemned the recent publication of
cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed in European newspapers, saying that the US
administration considered these cartoons “offensive and morally repugnant.”
In a written statement on the issue, the embassy said that cartoons
depicting the Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist have generated passionate
controversy and debate. “It is important to communicate clearly the views
of US on this critical issue,” said the embassy. “Muslims around the world
have expressed the fact that they are outraged and that they take great
offense at the images that were printed in a Danish newspaper as well as in
other newspapers around the world. We share the offense that Muslims have
taken at these images. The US considers these cartoons as offensive and
morally repugnant. Anti-Muslim images are as unacceptable as anti-Semitic
images and anti-Christian images.” /Hurriyet/
[06] DANISH CONSUL: “THOUGH MANY MIDEAST COUNTRIES BOYCOTTED OUR PRODUCTS,
REACTIONS IN TURKEY HAVE BEEN LIMITED TO PROTESTS”
Danish Consul General in Istanbul Lars Rafn yesterday spoke about the
recent controversy over cartoons of Prophet Muhammed published originally
in Denmark, stating that though Danish products had been boycotted in many
Middle Eastern countries, in Turkey reactions have been limited to
protests. “Views in Turkey aren’t as radical as in other countries,” he
said. “Owing to the education level of its people, Turkey can evaluate
events from a different point of view.” Rafn stated that he had received
many e-mails, faxes, and phone calls about the issue, but no threatening
ones. “People are saying that they expect an apology,” he added. /Milliyet/
[07] CHP SUBMITS CENSURE MOTION ON UNAKITAN
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) yesterday submitted a
censure motion on Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan, claiming that he abused
his office in the Galataport tender and in a declaration of his assets,
rigged a competitive bidding process, violated commercial and banking
secrecy rules, and abused his public authority. /Star/
[08] RENOWNED TURKISH HISTORIAN KUTAY PASSES AWAY
Cemal Kutay, historian and author, died in Istanbul on Sunday night. He
passed away at the Marmara University Foundation’s Teaching Hospital, where
he was being treated for illnesses related to old age, at 9:17 p.m.,
according to a written statement issued by the hospital. The date for his
funeral will be announced by members of his family today. /The New
Anatolian/
[09] INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS START EU SCREENING
Officials from Turkey and the European Commission held an exploratory
session yesterday in Brussels for the screening of Turkish legislation on
intellectual property rights. The session is set to end today. Officials
from the Culture and Tourism Ministry and the Turkish Patent Institute
represented the Turkish delegation during the session. /Turkish Daily News/
[10] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…
[11] DANISH FIRESTORM BY DERYA SAZAK (MILLIYET)
Columnist Derya Sazak comments on recent violent outrage over cartoons
published in Denmark linking the Prophet Muhammad with terrorism. A summary
of his column is as follows:
“Following the publication in a Danish newspaper of a cartoon depicting the
Prophet Muhammad as a terrorist, tension and violence between the Islamic
world and the West has climbed. Danish diplomatic representations were set
on fire in Beirut, after Damascus. This situation made everybody remember
the adverse memories of the Sept. 11 syndrome on the West, and the East’s
reactions turned from anger to outrage. However, people with common sense
who find the cartoons derogatory and who want to protect humanity from new
wars of religion are the majority in the worlds of both Islam and
Christianity. Turkey has a special place between the East and West as a
country which recently started membership talks with the European Union.
The Turkish public has been trying to keep the rise of political Islam away
from violence and undemocratic stances since the 1990s. While criticizing
the cartoon which denigrates Muhammed, Turkey should avoid being on the
Middle East’s side. An angry crowd which burned Danish Prime Minister
Anders Fogh Rasmussen in effigy and women wearing clothes covering them
from head to foot were shown on European television channels as Istanbul,
after Damascus and Beirut. The truly unfortunate incident was the murder of
Andrea Santore, the Italian priest of the Santa Maria Catholic Church in
Trabzon, last weekend.
The police are worried about a provocation in relation to the cartoons.
It’s uncertain if fundamentalist intentions or something like the July 2003
Sulaimaniyah incident would lie at the basis of this. If Mehmet Ali Agca
was welcomed with praise when he left prison, we shouldn’t be surprised
that those in a similar state of mind might have chosen a priest as a
target. It’s more serious that the attack might be connected to the Danish
firestorm. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s warning was appropriate.
He said that he considered the cartoons disrespectful to freedom and also
found the violence wrong. He added that there was certainly no reason to
approve shooting a clergyman in a church. Turning the Middle East into a
firestorm lays a basis for the US’ strategy of intervention in Syria and
Iran, doesn’t it? Isn’t there a connection between the nuclear crisis in
Iran and the cartoon? Is Trabzon boiling due to its closeness to the
Iranian border? We should wait for the fire to go out before falling into
new traps.”
ARCHIVE
The news and articles issued in the Turkish Press Review
may be quoted from provided due acknowledgement is made.
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