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Turkish Press Review, 06-04-11
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
11.04.2006
FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS
CONTENTS
[01] SEZER VISITS BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA
[02] “THE MOTHERLAND CAN’T BE DIVIDED,” CHANT THOUSANDS
[04] GUL MEETS WITH CONGRESSMAN AND TURKISH-AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP GROUP CO-CHAIR
[05] OZKOK: “NO TERRORIST GROUP CAN DIVIDE TURKEY OR CHANGE THE REGIME”
[06] PACE TO CONDEMN TERRORIST PKK
[07] CABINET TO SEND ANTI-TERROR LAW TO PARLIAMENT
[08] AMID TENSION, NO CONCESSIONS TO THE EU
[09] FOUR SOLDIERS KILLED IN HELICOPTER CRASH
[10] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS
[11] ONCE MORE, HEADSCARVES BY OKTAY EKSI (HURRIYET)
[01] SEZER VISITS BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer yesterday traveled to Bosnia-Herzegovina to
pay a two-day visit. On the first day of his stay, Sezer met with
Presidential Council head Suleyman Tihic and other council members.
Speaking to the press after the gathering, the two leaders pointed to the
strong ties between their nations and vowed to boost cooperation in all
areas. /Turkiye/
[02] “THE MOTHERLAND CAN’T BE DIVIDED,” CHANT THOUSANDS
Thousands of
people, along with top political leaders and senior commanders, yesterday
attended a funeral in Ankara of an officer killed in a mine attack in the
southeastern province of Elazig over the weekend. Among those present at
the funeral of Lt. Col. Alim Yilmaz were Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc,
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul,
Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal, other political party
leaders, Cabinet ministers, commanders, and soldiers as well as
representatives from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and many
ordinary people. Furthermore, Pvt. Sinan Gumustas, who was killed along
with Yilmaz, was also buried after a military funeral held in Istanbul
yesterday. During the funerals, thousands of mourners chanted slogans
cursing terrorism and shouted, “The motherland cannot be divided.” /All
Papers/ [03] ERDOGAN, ARINC ATTEND CEREMONY MARKING BIRTHDAY OF THE PROPHET
MUHAMMED
Addressing a ceremony to mark the anniversary of the birth of the Prophet
Muhammed, Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc yesterday proposed that Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan present roses to all political party leaders
to honor the occasion. Present at the ceremony were Erdogan, Cabinet
ministers, deputies, and several bureaucrats. /Aksam/
[04] GUL MEETS WITH CONGRESSMAN AND TURKISH-AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP GROUP CO-
CHAIR
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul yesterday met with visiting US Congressman
Robert Wexler, a Democrat and co-chair of the Turkish-American Friendship
Group, to discuss a number of issues, including the recent Hamas visit to
Turkey. During the meeting, Gul stated that the visit could be
misunderstood, but there was no need to further discuss the issue. For his
part, Wexler said that the US was aware of Turkey’s key role in Afghanistan,
Iraq, and the Middle East. Gul also commented on terrorism, saying that
concrete steps needed to be taken to counter terrorists targeting Turkey.
Wexler replied that measures on intelligence and financial resources were
being taken, but that time was needed for them to yield results. /Aksam/
[05] OZKOK: “NO TERRORIST GROUP CAN DIVIDE TURKEY OR CHANGE THE REGIME”
Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok yesterday visited Diyarbakir
Governor Efkan Ala to discuss recent incidents in the province. He was
accompanied by Land Forces Commander Gen. Yasar Buyukanit and other
commanders. Speaking after the meeting, Ozkok said that Turkey had recently
faced a number of incidents due to provocations, adding that no terrorist
group could divide Turkey or change the regime. “These incidents don’t
represent the citizens, and people of the province don’t approve of the
incidents,” he said. “We love the locals and we serve them all. The people
instigating these incidents are blind to both the past and the future, and
they did the greatest harm to people here.” /Milliyet/
[06] PACE TO CONDEMN TERRORIST PKK
Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE) will call
on the terrorist PKK to end its terrorist attacks. “We condemn and reject
the violent activities of the PKK_Kongra-Gel terrorist organization which
has recently escalated its criminal activities which resulted in loss of
life and material damage in Turkey,” says the statement signed by over 100
deputies, set to be released today. The statement prepared by Turkish
parliamentarians says that terrorism poses one of the greatest threats to
international peace and security, as well as to democratic institutions.
“We ask the PKK_Kongra-Gel to stop its terrorist activities immediately and
unconditionally and lay down arms. All political demands and aspirations
must be channeled through the democratic process,” says the statement.
/Cumhuriyet/
[07] CABINET TO SEND ANTI-TERROR LAW TO PARLIAMENT
The Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday
discussed the Anti-Terrorism Law. The Cabinet will sign the revised law and
send it Parliament very soon, said Justice Minister and Government
spokesman Cemil Cicek. Speaking after a four-hour Cabinet meeting, Cicek
said, “Terrorism can’t be stopped by laws alone. The struggle against
terrorism isn’t a passing matter. It requires international cooperation,”
adding that the revised law strikes a balance between democracy and
security. /Star/
[08] AMID TENSION, NO CONCESSIONS TO THE EU
After experiencing their biggest gain in 41 years, Turkish-European Union
relations have entered a strained period due to political problems in the
membership negotiations screening process. The EU’s insistence on opening
Turkish harbors to Greek Cypriot airplanes and ships during the screening
process started five months ago, and this plus Turkey seeking to have the
embargo lifted from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) have led
to tension between Ankara and Brussels. The chill in relations has
intensified since EU organs blamed the government for the recent events in
the southeast. Escalating tension due to the EU’s trying to drive Turkey
into a corner and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statement, “We’re
not eager to enter the EU” is being debated at Turkish Cabinet meetings.
After evaluating the developments, the government will determine a new
strategy related to the EU, which was put on the back burner after EU talks
started last fall. /Star/
[09] FOUR SOLDIERS KILLED IN HELICOPTER CRASH
A military helicopter crashed into the roof of a factory in the western
province of Kocaeli yesterday morning, killing four soldiers and injuring
two factory workers. The cause of the crash was not immediately clear.
/Sabah/
[10] FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS
[11] ONCE MORE, HEADSCARVES BY OKTAY EKSI (HURRIYET)
Columnist Oktay Eksi comments on the headscarf issue in Turkey. A summary
of his column is as follows:
“I think the final ruling made by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)
about Leyla Sahin, who was expelled by Istanbul University for wearing an
Islamic headscarf, wasn’t instructive enough. According to reporter Nur
Batur, the United Nations’ Commission on Discrimination against Women made
a decision in the same direction. Batur stated that the commission decided
that a petition from Rahime Kayhan, who lost her position at school because
of her headscarf, wasn’t acceptable. Actually, in Turkey, Kayhan went to
all the appropriate offices to seek her rights before making this
application, and all of them indicated that she couldn’t go to school with
this headscarf and teach. They added that this wasn’t a matter of freedom
of religion or conscience, but that she was aiming to put pressure on
others’ freedom of religion and conscience. However, maybe, the wish to
force the society to harmonize with her own rules dominated, instead of
complying with the rules of the democratic society in which she lives.
When the doors were closed in Turkey, she applied to the United Nations’
Commission on Discrimination against Women. However, her gamble failed.
Actually, this time, the rejection was given based on procedural matters,
because in her application, Kayhan claimed that the Turkish state was
interfering in her freedom of religion and conscience. However, as the
commission only deals with complaints of discrimination against women, it
told her that her issue was outside its mandate. If you go to a court which
deals with such issues as burglary and ask it to resolve a commercial
dispute, they would send you away. However, the issue here seems to be
different from this in essence. This is the struggle of an imposing
mentality to make others accept that her act is legal. She says that her
act is right and those who suspect it are wrong and that therefore they
should change. Even if the opposite was true, they would respect the
principle of the rule of law. However, as you remember, when the Sahin
trial was rejected by the ECHR, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
couldn’t help saying, ‘I’m surprised with these rulings. I will comply with
it, but I won’t consider it right in terms of rights and freedoms. The ECHR
says that belief can never trump the law. The court has no right to say
something about the issue. You should ask an authority of that religion. Is
there a dictate for this in the religion? If there is, you must obey this.’
I don’t know if he read what was written and said about these words.
However, even if he did, I would swear that nothing has changed.”
ARCHIVE
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