Cyprus PIO: Turkish Press and Other Media, 07-08-01

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

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] The issue of extending electricity supply from Rizokarpasso to the Cape of Apostolos Andreas entered into the agenda of the EU; More reactions

[02] Statements by the self-styled governmental spokesperson during his weekly press conference

[03] A delegation of the occupation army pays courtesy visits to governmental officials

[04] The so-called Turkish Cypriot football Federation is visiting Ankara today

[05] Turkey complains to the UN over the Republic of Cyprus exercising its rights stemming from international law

[06] Cyprus, Iraq and Iran appear to be hanging like a nightmare for Turkey after the July 22nd general elections

[07] Details on the process of the new Assembly formation and the presidency election in Turkey

[08] Referendum on Constitutional Amendment Package to be held October 21

[09] Retired Attorney General on Guls candidacy for President

[B] Commentaries, Editorials and Analysis

[10] Turkish Cypriot columnist challenges General Buyukanit for his statement on the occupation army

[11] MILLIYET newspaper argues that votes of the DTP were lost to AKP in the Kurdish strongholds

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] The issue of extending electricity supply from Rizokarpasso to the Cape of Apostolos Andreas entered into the agenda of the EU; More reactions

Mr Sahir said that some EU officials, whom they met after they have placed black wreath in front of some ministries and the office of the EU in the occupied part of Lefkosia, told them that they will work on the issue of Karpass Peninsula being aware of their responsibilities and in their reports they will refer to the issue pointing out how urgent and important it is.

They said that they will add the issue into the EU policies and they will come back to us this week, noted Sahir. Referring to the behaviour of the breakaway regime and Turkey on the issue he said:

If work has begun in our country for the EU, but we do not behave as Europeans while the TRNC is going towards the EU, then we cannot be persuasive and if the foreigners begin to believe us, like our people, then our international policy will be harmed. When it is seen from one point of view, Turkey could be harmed as well. It will be faced with questions such as why Turkey does not do here the work which it is doing in its own country. It will be in a serious trouble on the issue of using up this place. We know that the financial resources for conveying electricity to Kaprass will come from Turkey. If Turkey is asked why it gives money for this damage, it will be in trouble.

KIBRIS reports also that commenting on the issue of the drawing of energy lines to convey electricity from occupied Rizokarpasso village to the Cape of Apostolos Andreas, the Communal Democracy Party (TDP) has noted that in spite of all the activities against the drawing of the lines, the target of the government has not changed.

In a written statement issued yesterday by Arman Anik, member of the administrative council of the party and responsible for the development and the environment, the TDP points out that the insistence for conveying electric energy that could be sufficient for 15.000 persons to the area between Rizokarpaso and Aposotlos Andreas Cape, which is and should be closed for the settlement of people, is tantamount to establishing the infrastructure for building constructions in the area.

KIBRIS reports also that the so-called municipality of Rizokarpasso and the heads of other villages in the area stated that the protests of the Sustainable Environment Platform against the conveying of electricity to the area are wrong. They said that the project is an investment for the future of the people living in Karpass and added that they want it to be put into practice.

(I/Ts.)

[02] Statements by the self-styled governmental spokesperson during his weekly press conference

The Presidential Spokesperson Hasan Ercakica has said the Turkish Cypriot Side is ready to set a date for a meeting between President Mehmet Ali Talat and the Greek Cypriot Leader Tassos Papadopoulos.

The spokesperson said that the Turkish Cypriot Side wants the meeting to be held as a part of the efforts aimed at turning the 8-July process into a full-fledged negotiations process.

Speaking during his weekly press conference, Mr Ercakica underlined the need for all parties-concerned to contribute to the process in order to turn the meeting between the two leaders into a productive one.

Stressing that there is no obligation to be fulfilled by the Turkish Cypriot Side about the meeting to be held between President Talat and Mr Papadopoulos, he said we are ready to set a date for the leaders meeting.

Asked to comment on Greek Cypriot press reports that the UN Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Cyprus Chief of Mission Michael Moller has been waiting for a call from the Presidential Undersecretary Resit Pertev on the continuation of the talks between him and Tassos Tzionis an aide to the Greek Cypriot leader-, he said: If Mr Moller does hold such an expectation, Mr Pertev has the right to learn this before the Greek Cypriot press.

Everyone can easily get in contact with Mr Pertev as all phones are functioning, he said.

Referring to the statements issued by Greek and Greek Cypriot leaders during Greek President Karolos Papoulias visit to South Cyprus, he said that these statements revealed the fact that the Greek Cypriot Administration and Athens are waiting for the EU member countries to put pressure on Turkey to bring about a solution to the Cyprus problem.

In their statements, Greek and Greek Cypriot leaders said that their European partners should sooner or later be interested in the Cyprus issue, reflecting the fact that they are expecting the Cyprus issue to be raised during Turkeys EU membership process to impose their own solution plans on the Turkish Cypriot people, he said.

Mr Ercakica noted that the aim of all these attempts is not to bring a solution to the Cyprus issue but to kill the UN peace plan.

He also announced that the Turkish Cypriot Side gave its approval to the use of 4-million Euros worth of EU aid which will be financed from the 259-million Euros of EU Aid package with the aim of finalizing the de-mining of the buffer zone in Cyprus.

He said this is a good will gesture proving the importance being attached to security by the Turkish Cypriot Side.

Responding to a question, he said that in spite of the fact that the EU Financial Aid was allocated for the development of the Turkish Cypriot Economy, the money will be provided to make it possible to complete the removal of all land mines from the buffer zone.

[03] A delegation of the occupation army pays courtesy visits to governmental officials

As a part of the 1st of August communal resistance day celebrations, the Commander of the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces, Major General Mehmet Eroz, paid courtesy visits today to President Mehmet Ali Talat, the acting Speaker of the Republics Assembly Mehmet Bayram and Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer.

Speaking during the visit, President Mehmet Ali Talat said that the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces has assumed a very important duty of providing the Turkish Cypriot People with security.

Expressing the Turkish Cypriot Peoples heartfelt love to the Security Forces, President Talat said that the Security Forces command has also been successful in introducing and employing new technologies while performing its duties.

The President thanked the commander on behalf of the Turkish Cypriot people for the successful command carried out by the Security Forces.

For his part, the commander of the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces, Major General Mehmet Eroz, highlighted the importance of the 1st of August Communal Resistance day in the history of the Turkish Cypriot peoples struggle for existence adding that the date was a turning point in history.

He said that the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces remained committed to protecting the Turkish Cypriot people from all kinds of threats and to maintain the prevailing environment of peace and prosperity.

Also receiving Major General Mehmet Eroz today, Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer said that the Turkish Cypriot people had waged a long and courageous struggle in order to achieve peace and freedom, never abandoning its communal identity and political existence in the process.

The Prime Minister also spoke highly of the generous support provided by Turkey in all fields and praised the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces of doing an outstanding job of maintaining peace and security in the TRNC, despite the limited means and resources at hand.

As part of its courtesy visits to state and government officials, the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces Delegation also paid a visit to the acting speaker of parliament Mehmet Bayram today.

On the same issue, Turkish Cypriot KIBRIS newspaper (01.08.07) reports that the 31st anniversary of the establishment of the Security Forces (GKK), the 49th anniversary of the establishment of the Turkish Resistance Organization (TMT) and the 436th anniversary of the conquest of Cyprus by the Ottomans will be celebrated today in the occupied areas of the island.

Furthermore, Turkish Cypriot AFRIKA newspaper (01.08.07) reports that the Turkish Cypriot leader, Mehmet Ali Talat met yesterday with a delegation from the Security Forces on the occasion of the 1st August celebrations and reiterated his commitment and faith in the so-called security forces. He said he believes that the above-mentioned forces will continue to provide security to the Turkish Cypriots and be a deterrent for those who look at the Turkish Cypriots in a wrong manner and approach them with enmity. Talat claimed that the army commanders taught the Turkish Cypriots how to defend their country. In his statements the commander of the GKK, major general Mehmet Eroz said that their aim is to have more powerful, more trained and better equipped armed units and to train them so as to have the deterrent force to provide security to the friends and fear to the enemy. Furthermore, the self-styled prime minister, Ferdi Sabit Soyer stated that the Turkish Cypriots, during the procedure for their existence, established the TMT and the GKK and by creating the TRNC they entered into a preparation that fulfils all the functions of the state.

[04] The so-called Turkish Cypriot football Federation is visiting Ankara today

(I/Ts.)

[05] Turkey complains to the UN over the Republic of Cyprus exercising its rights stemming from international law

Ankara has stepped up its efforts toward the international community as the deadline for offshore oil and gas exploration licensing in the waters around divided Cyprus, launched by the Greek Cypriot administration on behalf of the whole island, rapidly approaches.

Turkeys permanent representative to the UN, Ambassador Baki Ilkin, sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last Thursday, diplomatic sources told Todays Zaman on yesterday.

Ambassador Ilkin drew Mr. Secretary-Generals attention to the fact that the Greek Cypriot administration claims to be representing the entire island through its insistence on moving ahead with this tender, despite all warnings by the Turkish Cypriot side as well as from Ankara, diplomatic sources, speaking under condition of anonymity, said.

The present Greek Cypriot licensing round involves major oil companies purchasing seismic data and two-dimensional templates of the Mediterranean seabed. The date for application submissions has been postponed by one month, from July 16 to August 16.

Greek Cyprus signed accords with Egypt in 2005 and with Lebanon this year, delineating the sea boundaries between them and the limits of its continental shelf. At present, two exploration blocks on the Lebanon side are not included in the licensing round.

Nevertheless, Ankara opposes both agreements since according to international law, the sea boundaries between the countries and the limits of the continental shelf of each country need to be delineated via a consensus among all coastal and neighboring countries when the issue is a semi-closed sea like the East Mediterranean. Greek Cyprus is trying to create fait accompli in the region, Ilkin said in his letter while stressing, Turkey is determined to protect its rights and interests in the East Mediterranean.

The issue was subject to a statement by the influential National Security Council (MGK) earlier this summer. Late in June, describing the Greek Cypriot government as an element of instability in the region, the MGK warned that the Greek Cypriots unilateral move concerning the region could stoke tensions in the region. The MGK also noted than that its attempts to take steps on behalf of the entire island were invalid.

At the time, the response to the MGK statement came from the Greek capital via a statement by a Foreign Ministry spokesperson. The fundamental factor for stability in our wider region is the European Union, of which the Republic of Cyprus is a member state, exercising its sovereignty and sovereign rights with full respect for international law, Greek Foreign Ministry spokesperson George Koumoutsakos said.

[06] Cyprus, Iraq and Iran appear to be hanging like a nightmare for Turkey after the July 22nd general elections

Mr Unal referred to the recent remarks made by EU official Olli Rehn signaling that the AKP could be preparing to pass the EU Adaptation Package, "the Barzani-Talabani duo" taking steps to "seize" Kirkuk through a token referendum in November or December, and possible preparations being made to conduct an air campaign against Iran, to justify his argument.

[07] Details on the process of the new Assembly formation and the presidency election in Turkey

The new parliament (23rd term parliament) will convene in its first session on Saturday (August 4th). MPs will take oath in this session and formally take office.

The MPs will later elect the parliament speaker and the 11th president and will attend a vote of confidence for the 60th government.

83-year-old Sukru Elekdag, an MP from the Republican People's Party (CHP), will chair the first session as he is the oldest member of the parliament.

Parliamentarians can run their candidacies for Parliament Speaker's Office within five days following their oath-taking ceremony. The parliament speaker election will take place within the five days following this process.

The new parliament speaker will be elected through secret ballot. A candidate has to win votes of two-thirds of the MPs in order to become the new parliament speaker of Turkey in the first two rounds of vote. In the third round of voting, absolute majority (276) will be sought.

If absolute majority is not ensured in the third round, two candidates who win the highest votes in this round will compete in the fourth round, and whoever gets the highest number of votes in the fourth round is elected as new parliament speaker.

Following the formation of Parliament's Chairmanship Council, two processes will start in the parliament. Election process of the 11th President, the program, and vote of confidence of the 60th government.

After the MPs take oath on August 4th, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer will designate Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to form the 60th government. Erdogan will submit the list of the Council of Ministers to the Parliament at least a week later.

Program of the 60th government will be read out after the formation of the government and will be submitted to the vote of confidence.

Meanwhile, election process of the 11th President will begin. Applications will be made within the 10 days that will be made public by Parliamentary Chairmanship Council. Election will be concluded within 20 days.

[08] Referendum on Constitutional Amendment Package to be held October 21

A referendum on constitutional reforms including electing the president by popular vote will take place on October 21, Turkeys Supreme Election Board (YSK) announced on Tuesday.

The referendum will not affect the election of outgoing President Ahmet Necdet Sezers successor, expected to be elected by Parliament in August as the current law requires.

The reforms were initiated by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) following political turmoil that blocked the election of its candidate, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, as head of state.

Insisting that Gul is not truly committed to Turkeys secular system, the opposition boycotted two parliamentary sessions in April and May, robbing the house of the quorum required to hold a presidential vote.

Tensions increased with a warning by the army that it is ready to defend the secular order amid mass anti-government demonstrations.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was forced to call early general elections on July 22, in which his party won a landslide victory.

The new Parliament is scheduled to open Saturday with an oath-taking ceremony.

It is expected by the end of August to elect a successor to Sezer, who has stayed on as acting head of state since his seven-year term expired in May.

The reforms also call for a once-renewable, five-year presidential mandate instead of the current single, seven-year term, and general elections every four years instead of five.

The government originally planned to hold the referendum simultaneously with the July 22 elections, but legal hurdles delayed the approval of the amendments package.

On the same issue, Ankara ANATOLIA news agency (31.07.07) reports the following from Ankara:

Turkey will hold a referendum on October 21st, 2007, the fifth referendum in its history, regarding the constitutional amendment package including election of the president with popular vote.

The first referendum in Turkey was held for the 1961 Constitution, prepared after the military intervention of May 27th, 1960. The referendum was held on July 9th, 1961, while the 1961 Constitution was adopted by 61.7 percent votes against 38.3 votes.

The second time Turkey called for a referendum was on November 7th, 1982. This time, Turkish people voted for and against the 1982 Constitution, prepared after the military intervention of 1980. 18.8 million electors joined the referendum, while 17.2 million (91.37 percent) voted in favor of the new constitution, and 1.6 million (8.63 percent) voted against it. Thus, the 1982 Constitution entered into force on November 9th, 1982.

The third referendum was held on October 6th, 1987, and the Turkish nation voted on whether or not to lift the ten-year and five-year political ban of some politicians which was imposed by the temporary article four of the 1982 Constitution. 24.4 million people joined the referendum, while 23.3 million of the votes were qualified as valid. 11.7 million voted for in the referendum, 11.6 million voted against. Thus, the temporary article was annulled.

Turkey's fourth referendum was on whether or not to hold local elections a year earlier than scheduled. 65 percent of the electors voted against it, and 35 percent voted in favor in the referendum that took place on September 25th, 1988. Thus, the proposal was not adopted and early local elections, scheduled for November 13th, 1988, could not be held.

[09] Retired Attorney General on Guls candidacy for President

The Supreme Court retired Attorney General Sabih Kanadoglu, stated the following: The presidents can be tried on account of personal offences and Gul, in case he is elected, can be brought in front of a court because of opened law suits against him. Sabih Kanadoglu clarified that he investigated thoroughly this issue in his article The Presidents criminal responsibility, published on the 25th of April. In his article Sabih Kanadoglu wrote, inter alia, that because there is no regulation in the constitution, a procedure can be followed against the president, as against any citizen or as in the case of deputies the immunity of whose is lifted.

(CS)

[B] COMMENTARIES, EDITORIALS AND ANALYSIS

[10] Turkish Cypriot columnist challenges General Buyukanit for his statement on the occupation army

KIBRIS reports that Buyukanit claimed that the Turkish Armed Forces are responsible only for the security of the TRNC, breakaway regime in the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus.

AFRIKA refers to the issue on its front page noting that general Buyukanit condemned those who brand the Turkish army in Cyprus as occupation forces.

Commenting on the statement by the chief if the Turkish General Staff, General Yasar Buyukanit, who during a reception in Ankara on the occasion of the establishment of the Security Forces in the occupied areas alleged that Turkish armed forces in Cyprus is not an occupation army, Niyazi Okten, writes, inter alia, the following in his column in AFRIKA (01.08.07) under the title If it is not occupation, then what is it?:

Demagogy does not suit the Chief of the General Staff of the great Republic of Turkey. Because when we opened our books and read the Treaty of Establishment of the Republic of Cyprus we have learned other things as well. These things have not escaped from our attention. It seems that according to the agreements, the commitment of the guarantor powers is limited only to the restoration of the constitutional order. The army came to the island with the aim of restoring the constitutional order, which had been violated. But it is still here. The constitutional order was not established.

After 1974, in Geneva, the Greek Cypriot neighbour submitted a proposal to you saying come and let us help you, let us secure together the functioning of the constitution. You rejected it. You prevented the Turkish Cypriots from demanding their partnership rights in the Republic of Cyprus and from returning to their posts in the Republic. And you are still preventing them from doing so. And the worst of all is that you established a shadow state.

You have looted the immovable properties of two hundred thousands Greek Cypriots who migrated from the north. You plundered them with the population you have brought. You have distributed the land of Cyprus to the population you brought by issuing false title deeds. Even the Turkish Cypriots who migrated from the south could not be saved from your fury, from your dissatisfaction. You usurped their properties in the south by forcing them to sign waivers. You have robbed the Cyprus people of everything they got. Yes honourable general. You give a name to these practices. If it is not occupation, then what is it? If there is another definition, tell us so that we may know it.

(I/Ts.)

[11] MILLIYET newspaper argues that votes of the DTP were lost to AKP in the Kurdish strongholds

The DTP [Democratic Society Party], which lost 20 percent of its votes, suffered disappointment in places where it was strong, and particularly in Diyarbakir.

The DTP, which was unable to meet its expectations in the election which it entered with independent candidates, experienced disappointment even in its own strongholds. Approximately 500,000 votes that had gone to the DTP in the 3 November 2002 elections shifted to the AKP [Justice and Development Party]. The DTP suffered a 20-percent loss in the regions in which it entered the elections, which it went into with 3.9 percent support in Turkey as a whole.

While the vote percentages of the DTP, which experienced great vote losses in the Eastern and Southeastern regions, and especially Diyarbakir, created great unhappiness in its rank-and-file, they had a shock effect in the party leadership.

The DTP, which ran 62 independent candidates from 45 provinces, received 1,334,518 votes. The loss of votes of the DTP, which in the 3 November 2002 election had received almost 2 million votes, was felt most in the election regions that were portrayed as its "strongholds."

In Agri, where the DTP had received 52,000 votes in the 2002 elections, it ran two independent candidates in the most recent elections, and was able to garner a total of 37,000 votes, but was unable to win any seats. Its greatest rival, the AKP, increased its votes from 26,000 to 103,000.

The DTP was likewise unable to win any seats in Adiyaman, where the 25,666 votes it had received in the previous election fell in this election to 14,350. The AKP's votes, meanwhile, rose from 88,000 to 157,000.

The DTP, which in 2002 had been the first party in Kars, with 23,659 votes, dropped to only 16,000 votes in this election, and was thus unable to win a parliamentary seat. The AKP increased its share of the vote in the province from 20,000 to 51,000 and thereby took the first-place position from the DTP.

In Mus, where the DTP had been the first party with 49,000 votes, 47,000 votes were garnered this time by its two independent candidates. The AKP, which had been the second party in this city with 21,000 votes, increased its total to 51,000.

In Diyarbakir as well, which is the DTP's major stronghold in the region, its votes also decreased. The DTP, which had won 236,689 votes in the previous election, garnered only 211,529 in the latest election. The inability of the DTP to increase its vote, despite the increase in young voters in the city, was noteworthy.

As for the AKP, which had won 67,000 votes in the previous election, it increased its votes to 190,000. This result has given rise to concern that it could impact the local elections in 2009, and that the DTP could lose the municipality to the AKP.

The fall in the DTP's share of the vote in the East and Southeast also made itself felt in the large cities of the West, such as Ankara and Istanbul. DEHAP [Democratic People's Party] had won 52,709 votes in Ankara in the previous election. In the latest election, the two candidates supported by the DTP were able to garner only 14,640 votes.

The DTP was also unable to get the percentage of the vote that it had expected from the three electoral districts in Istanbul. In the 2002 elections, DEHAP had won 287,953 votes. This time, the three candidates run by the DTP fell to 214,000 votes. The DTP, which also suffered a great decline in Izmir, fell from 97,000 to 58,993 votes there.

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