Cyprus PIO: Turkish Press and Other Media, 02-02-14

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From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] E-mail crisis between the EU Ankara Representative and the leader of the Labour Party with reference to Cyprus.

[02] Cem on `e-scandal/: Ugliest of modern crimes!

[03] Verheugen faces tough tasks during Turkey visit.

[04] Swedish and Belgian Foreign Ministers did not attend the EU-OIC Forum.

[05] Cyprus "Week" in Azerbaijan.

[06] British envoy meets Denktas.

[07] Protesters will not be allowed to go near "official" buildings.

[08] Mehmet Ali Talat met with the French Ambassador and a Dutch Delegation.

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] E-mail crisis between the EU Ankara Representative and the leader of the Labour Party with reference to Cyprus

"The scandal that erupted when e-mail sent by EU Turkey Representative Karen Fogg to EU Commission Turkey Desk Chief Adriaan Van der Meer was intercepted by the Labour Party [LP] and made public is growing steadily.

At a press conferences held over the past three days, IP leader Dogu Perincek and deputy leader Hasan Yalcin have made public Ms Fogg's letters about Turkey. Perincek said he had 300 of Ms Fogg's messages and he accused her of "espionage" based on their contents. He demanded that she be declared Persona Non Grata.

Ms Fogg, who holds a diplomatic status, applied to the Foreign Ministry and demanded that "all necessary legal action" be taken.

Ms Fogg said the IP's allegations were not worth arguing about and issued a statement saying: "The allegations mention the illegal interception of e-mail. The European Commission Representatation, which is afforded diplomatic status under the terms of the Vienna Convention, has informed the Foreign Ministry of the matter and expects the necessary legal action to be taken."

An argument has started over how Ms Fogg's e-mails got intercepted and given to the IP. Perincek replied to this question: "I got hold of this information the same way Ataturk got hold of British correspondence during the War of Independence." Foreign Ministry officials avoided to comment on Ms Fogg's application over Perincek's statements; they said it was "too early". Ms Fogg's personal rights have been violated. Turkey's world famous professor of criminal law Ugur Alacakaptan told Milliyet that the law was on Ms Fogg's side. Evaluating the Fogg-Perincek argument, Alacakaptan said that IP's interception and publication of Ms Fogg's correspondence was a violation of her personal rights and the right to confidentiality in correspondence. "These letters were obtained illegally. The fact that they were electronic letters does not change anything. The law has been broken in all cases," he said. Stating that the interception of mail was a crime, Alacakaptan said, "If this crime is committed via the press, the sentence is then increased."

What was written?

According to IP statements, Ms Fogg wrote:

1. The smear campaigns made against HoR (President Sezer) are the strongest I have known.

2. There are interesting efforts to polarize public opinion and to rubbish our work together. It was good for us to remain secret and "technical". If GV [Verheugen?] can be persuaded...

3. How to do away with the deep state on Cyprus?

4. Let us show our disappointment over the adaptation laws package and adopt a technical approach. Let us leave the real criticism to local sources. Let us avoid things that could create an anti-EU wave so as to ensure continuity in developments on Cyprus."

[02] Cem on 'e-scandal': Ugliest of modern crimes!

In response to a manipulative question, Cem, speaking on the issue for the first time, denounced the act of the hacking of the e-mails of Ambassador Fogg.

"We have appealed wherever necessary on the issue and we hope that the crime will be punished," Cem said.

The issue will be on the agenda during Thursday's talks to take place between EU Commissioner responsible for enlargement Gunter Verheugen and Foreign Minister Cem, EU sources stated.

Aydinlik weekly and the Labour Party (LP) -- led by Dogu Perincek -- revealed the e-mails sent by Fogg to senior EU commission officials, which included comments on the mini reforms package passed through Turkish Parliament recently.

Fogg appealed to the Foreign Ministry, demanding from Ankara to take legal action against the perpetrators.

[03] Verheugen faces tough tasks during Turkey visit

The visit came after the EU Commission expressed dissatisfaction over some of the Turkish reform steps in the human rights and democracy fields, which were high among the EU membership conditions set for candidate countries.

"Developments in Turkey's relationship with the European Union in 2001 will be reviewed, and the further implementation of Turkey's pre-accession strategy will be discussed," the representative office of the EU commission in Ankara said in a statement about the visit.

"There will also be an exchange of views on Cyprus, as part of the regular political dialogue," said the statement.

Verheugen is scheduled to meet Foreign Minister Ismail Cem today and the pair will later appear before the press. He is expected to meet other parliamentarians on a visit to Parliament House. The Commissioner is likely to meet Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit and his deputies, conservative Mesut Yilmaz and nationalist Devlet Bahceli, officials of the Commission representative office said.

On Friday, Verheugen is scheduled to address a conference on EU-Turkish relations in the Middle East Technical University (ODTU).

A package of reform bills aimed at harmonizing constitutional amendments with individual laws attracted criticism from the EU officials in Ankara last month for failing to meet European criteria. Deputy premier Bahceli was one of the fiery critics of the EU for demanding steps from Turkey beyond the country's limits.

Turkey, however, pledged to make a series of reforms, including easing limits on the freedom of expression and on Kurdish cultural rights, after winning a candidate status in 1999.

Verheugen himself has come under fire from Ankara for particularly commenting on the divided island of Cyprus. Turkey insists that no third parties should intervene in the ongoing talks between Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktas and his Greek counterpart Glafcos Clerides, that aims to end Cyprus' division before the island begins membership talks with the EU by 2004."

[04] Swedish and Belgian Foreign Ministers did not attend the EU-OIC Forum

A booklet prepared by the Swedish Institute, which included points insulting to Turkey, resulted in a diplomatic initiative taken by the Foreign Ministry, and the visit paid by three Belgian parliamentarians, again, was subject to reaction by the ministry.

The ambassadors from the two states were summoned to the Foreign Ministry and were informed of Ankara's unhappiness in no uncertain terms.

The Turkish side believes that the absences of the Belgian and Swedish foreign ministers are related to Ankara's recent reactions.

However, EU officials said that Belgian Minister Michel was seriously ill, while Swedish Minister Anna Lindh had to attend a parliamentary debate on Tuesday.

"No convenient" plane was available to fly Lindh to Istanbul on Wednesday, EU officials said.

[05] Cyprus ''Week '' in Azerbaijan

The Chairman of the Retired Officers/ Association, retired Staff colonel Halil Sadrazam, said that the so-called delegations will leave for Azerbaijan on 25.2.02 .He said that on 27.2.02 there will be various conferences and the same day there will be a TV programme on ''Comparison with the Karabagh Question and Promotion of Azerbaijan''.

[06] British envoy meets Denktas

After the meeting there was no statement.

[07] Protesters will not be allowed to go near ''official'' buildings

[08] Mehmet Ali Talat met with the French Ambassador and a Dutch Delegation

Stressing that they have reached the point of changing stage at the face-to-face talks that are continuing, Talat said that they have reached at the end of the first stage where they two sides are learning each other's positions and added: "We have reached a period that serious realignments will occur". Talat also called on the Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktas to be honest on the solution of the Cyprus problem.

Moreover, a Dutch Foreign Ministry delegation headed by the Director General for Cooperation with Europe, Th J.A.M. De Bruijin, which is carrying out contacts in the occupied areas, visited yesterday the leader of RTP Mr Talat.

Talat said that they have exchanged views on the latest developments in the Cyprus problem and Cyprus' accession to the EU.

According to ORTAM (14/2/02) the Dutch Foreign Ministry delegation visited also yesterday the leader of the Communal Liberation Party (CLP) Mr Angolemli. In a statement prior the meeting, Mr Angolemli said that the visit of the Dutch delegation is important because Holland is an EU member and that he will convey to the members of the delegation his party's thoughts for the ongoing face-to-face talks.

KV/SK

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