Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 10-09-06

Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT PRESS

[01] Eroglus statement following the meeting with Christofias

[02] Eroglu: Competition with the Greek Cypriot side is not only at the negotiating table but also on the economic level

[03] So-called minister Tatar stated that is not logical for a small country to have its own currency

[04] After his dismissal, Suicmez admits that TRNC officials cancelled his meeting with Pope Benedict XVI

[05] Akinci says construction of a mosque is a mistake

[06] Politicians of Turkish origin to establish a new party in the occupied area

[07] Tore admits that 80% of the need of the occupied areas of Cyprus for fruits and vegetables is met with imports from Turkey

[08] Halloumi registered as a Turkish Cypriot product by the Turkish Patent Institute

[B] TURKISH PRESS

[09] US and Turkish military chiefs meet

[10] Turkish and Egyptian trade chambers to set up joint trade chamber

[11] Public survey indicates 54.9% support for the Constitutional amendments

[12] Highlights

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT PRESS

[01] Eroglus statement following the meeting with Christofias

He said the sides will exchange views on their proposals to find a common ground during all day discussions to be held next week. We will discuss them in detail and search ways of reaching an understanding. We will see whether it is possible for us to reach a common point, Eroglu said.

He noted that on September 21 he will travel to New York, adding that details about his contacts are still to be finalized.

Reporting on the same issue, Turkish daily Todays Zaman (04.09.10) said that Eroglu refused to comment on whether or not there was a shift in the position of the Greek Cypriots on the issue of property, saying he did not want any comments on the newly resumed talks to derail negotiations.

[02] Eroglu: Competition with the Greek Cypriot side is not only at the negotiating table but also on the economic level

Stressing that it is impossible to achieve development without new investments and entrepreneurs, Eroglu explained that the fundamental duty of the government is to pave the way for the private sector, adding that all governments that adopt the principles of free market economy should introduce the necessary regulations.

Stressing that it is important to keep in mind that the competition with the Greek Cypriot side is not only at the negotiating table but also on the economic level, Eroglu said the money earned in the country should be spent in the country.

Also addressing the event, the so-called prime minister, Irsen Kucuk, pointed to the importance of developing the country, stating that new investments were crucial in order to achieve this goal. He added that the government will continue to support new investments in the country.

For his part, the so-called minister of finance, Ersin Tatar, said the objective of the government is to make people spend their money in the TRNC and pay their taxes.

The so-called mayor of Lefkosia, Cemal Bulutoglulari, for his part, said investments are necessary for the development of the countrys economy and pointed to the importance of paving the way for the private sector.

[03] So-called minister Tatar stated that is not logical for a small country to have its own currency

Replying on the above statements, self-styled minister of finance Ersin Tatar stated to the paper that the TRNC is a country with 250.000 population and that is not logical for countries with small population to have their own currency. Moreover, Tatar expressed the belief that in the near future they will become members of the EU adding: Finally, north Cyprus will become a member of the EU together with Turkey, and we will join the EURO zone and have common currency with the other EU countries. Tatar also said that even though they are an isolated country, they have trade ties with approximately 100 countries, besides Turkey.

(AK)

[04] After his dismissal, Suicmez admits that TRNC officials cancelled his meeting with Pope Benedict XVI

Under the title, Irregularity in tenders for mosques, Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (05.09.10) quotes Suicmez as saying that the main reason for his dismissal was irregularities and infraction of rules in tenders for mosques. Suicmez noted that the decision was a political one. He added that before the elections there was a call for construction of mosques of a total value of eight million Turkish liras. According to the contracts, the head of Religious Affairs builds the mosques, but my signature is absent from these tenders, he said.

Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis newspaper (06.09.10) reports that according to the decision of Evkafs administrative council signed by Tekin Kose, some of the reasons for Suicmezs dismissal are: The fact that Suicmez has not prepared some proposals which he should have prepared, has not informed the council on various issues, and travelled abroad without the permission of the council.

Havadis writes that Suicmez disclosed the backstage events that resulted in not meeting with Pope Benedict XVI, when the latter visited Cyprus recently. He said that the invitation addressed to him by the Vatican for a meeting with the Pope was accepted at first, but afterwards the TRNC officials cancelled the meeting. He noted that two hours before the meeting he called Vatican officials and informed them about the cancellation. According to Suicmez, the Vatican officials briefed officials in Turkey on the situation. He said he discussed the issue with Egemen Bagis, who told him that he should go to the meeting. Suicmez responded to Bagis that he could not go due to a decision by his government. Afterwards, Prime Minister Erdogan called the so-called prime minister Kucuk and was then decided that Suicmez attends the meeting. He said he was stopped at the Ledra Palace barricade by the police of the Republic of Cyprus because the so-called ministry of foreign affairs of the breakaway regime did not make the necessary arrangements and thus he was not able to see the Pope. Suicmez added that he could have met with the Pope at Larnaka Airport, but when he called the Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu the latter told him that he should not go there for security reasons.

Furthermore, Turkish Cypriot daily Vatan newspaper (06.09.10) reports that Din-Gor-Sen, trade union of employees in the religion sector, released a written statement describing the dismissal of Suicmez as a serious mistake. Moreover, the association of the Turkish settlers from the Black Sea area has also reacted against the dismissal. Ari Ozbayrak noted in a written statement that the members of the association were deeply shaken by the development, which he described as a lynching effort lacking ethics and morality.

(I/Ts.)

[05] Akinci says construction of a mosque is a mistake

Moreover, Akinci called the municipality to oppose this construction, which is contrary to town planning legislation, and not implement Justice and Development Partys (AKP) programme to create more Sunni symbols in Cyprus. He also said that over the past years more mosques than schools have been constructed in North Cyprus. Monuments, busts and flags have been erected everywhere, but the true necessities of the people, like green areas, have not been created.

He concluded saying, They spend money in national symbols with military mentality, in Sunni and religious symbols with AKP mentality and then they discuss about the economic crisis. Their detachment from reason is not unbelievable.

[06] Politicians of Turkish origin to establish a new party in the occupied area

Responding to a question of the paper, Akif Top said that the names of participants in the new party are kept secret at the moment adding that they will be announced soon.

(AK)

[07] Tore admits that 80% of the need of the occupied areas of Cyprus for fruits and vegetables is met with imports from Turkey

Tore also noted that the occupied areas of Cyprus have been exporting meat in the past, but now they are forced to import this product. He said the number of stockbreeders, which was 2.300 in the past, decreased to around 700.

(I/Ts.)

[08] Halloumi registered as a Turkish Cypriot product by the Turkish Patent Institute

As illegal BRT reported, Cirali also recalled that the Cheese Producers Union in south Cyprus applied to the Greek Cypriot Administration (as he called the Government of Cyprus) to register hellim with the EU, which will mean that only cheese produced in the south could be called hellim and placed on shelves in EU countries. He said that KTSO and the TRNC Milk and Dairy Products Exporters Union are continuing a political and legal battle in response to Greek Cypriot attempts. He noted that a dossier concerning the issue has been sent to the European Commission after failure to get a positive result from biased Greek Cypriot courts.

[B] TURKISH PRESS

[09] US and Turkish military chiefs meet

Speaking at a news conference on Saturday, Adm. Mullen said that Turkey should help ensure Iran does not gain nuclear weapons, adding that the country should extend its tour of duty in Afghanistan. The mutual goal of Iran not achieving a nuclear-weapons capability, that we completely agree on, we just need to reinforce, he said.

Mullen discussed Afghanistan and Pakistan, the formation of a new government in Iraq, the joint struggle of Turkey and the United States against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), Turkish Foreign Minister officials told HDN.

Noting that the positions of both Turkey and the U.S. regarding the nuclear-weapons issue in Iran were the same, Mullen said he did not plan to question or rebut Turkey over its no vote, but instead welcomed Turkeys stated intention to abide by United Nations sanctions. The admiral said both countries agreed Iran should not achieve nuclear weapons capability, and needed to do everything to ensure such a situation.

The admiral said NATO is discussing potential locations for a missile-defence system of radar and interceptors including Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania --although he did not specifically address the plan with Kosaner. The membership of NATO believes that having a missile-defence architecture is a very important capability that needs to be put in place and evolve over time, he said. The system will be discussed at the upcoming NATO summit in November.

Mullen praised Turkeys role in charge of international troops in the region around the Afghan capital, Kabul, which expires in October, and in providing police training and staff for reconstruction teams. We would like to see Turkey sustain all of those efforts because theyve been so important in Afghanistan and also because of the critical time in which we find ourselves in Afghanistan right now, Mullen said. A NATO official previously conveyed the demand to extend Turkish commands in Afghanistan for one more year.

Earlier, Mullen said the U.S. has no intention of pulling weapons out of Iraq across Turkish territory. Though we certainly rely on Turkeys infrastructure to move some equipment in and out of our area of operations, we do not transport weapons through Turkey, nor do we intend to in the future, the admiral said Saturday. The U.S. has moved 38,000 pieces of rolling stock and over 2 million other pieces of equipment out of Iraq quietly without incident, using very robust lines of communication, Mullen said. Certainly none of the military equipment, and none of the people, have come through Turkey, he said.

The current agreement with Iraq is to withdraw all American troops from the country by the end of 2011, Mullen said. We have withdrawn almost 100,000 troops under the current agreement; we would do the same over the next 15 or 16 months. No decisions have been made in terms of how to do that. We eagerly await the formation of a new government in Iraq to start discussions about the future strategic partnership with this country, Mullen said.

Regarding claims that arms sales to Turkey would be banned due to pressure from the pro-Israeli lobby in the U.S., the admiral said Washington had a robust military sales programme with Turkey and that programme would continue to flourish in the future.

[10] Turkish and Egyptian trade chambers to set up joint trade chamber

The agreement was signed by Rifat Hisarciklioglu, chairman of the Union of Turkish Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) and Ahmed al-Wakil, head of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, in Istanbul on Saturday in a ceremony also attended by the Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohammed Rachid.

Speaking at the ceremony, Hisarciklioglu said the cooperation between Turkey and Egypt would make important contributions to the stability and economic development in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. He said trade volume between the two countries had reached over three billion U.S. dollars from 320 million USD in 2004 after a free trade agreement was signed. We will continue to work to boost that figure even further. Our goal is to achieve 10 billion USD, he added. Hisarciklioglu said he expected Egypt to join in a free trade zone planned to be established among Turkey, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. Egypts participation in this project would make the Eastern Mediterranean a wide free trade zone, he said.

Egyptian Trade and Industry Minister Rachid Mohammed Rachid said on his part that the trade volume between the two countries had increased 10 times over the last five years, adding that the establishment of joint trade chamber would make a significant contribution to economic cooperation.

Ahmed al-Wakil, head of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, said over 200 Turkish companies had made investments in Egypt, which offered jobs to some 40.000 people.

[11] Public survey indicates 54.9% support for the Constitutional amendments

According to the poll, 7.8% of the respondents said they will not go to the ballot box on referendum day. Five percent said they had not yet decided whether or not to cast a vote. Pollmark said "yes" votes are likely to reach 56.2% if only the responses of those who have already decided to go to the ballot box are taken into consideration. Similarly, the number of decided "no" votes is likely to reach 43.8%. The highest number of "yes" votes is expected from cities in Central Anatolia while the highest number of "no" votes is expected from cities in the Marmara region.

The lowest participation rate in the referendum will come from southeastern Anatolia, according to the survey. The pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) has decided to boycott the referendum on the grounds that the constitutional amendment package does not meet the needs of Kurds for an entirely new constitution. The party is urging its supporters in the region not to go to the ballot box on referendum day.

However, the allegedly "forced" boycott will not prevent the majority of southeastern voters from casting a vote on the constitutional amendments, according to the survey. The survey found that at least 70% of voters in the region plan to go to the polls.

More than 14% of supporters of the planned changes to the Constitution said they will not cast a vote on referendum day, while 30.9% of reform package opponents said the same. The percentage of those who both support the reforms and intend to vote was put at 42.5% by the Pollmark survey, while those who oppose the package and intend to vote reached 34.9%. The undecided voters accounted for 22.6%.

Pollsters also questioned the respondents about their voting behaviour. If parliamentary elections were held today, 45.5% of those polled said they would vote for the ruling AKP. This is a figure much higher than the March 2009 local elections, in which the AKP won around 39% of the vote.

The Republican People's Party (CHP) would receive 27% of votes cast. This figure shows that the main opposition party has been unable to maintain its rising popularity among voters since the election of Kemal Kilicdaroglu as party leader. Polls conducted shortly after his election suggested that the CHP was likely to garner over 30% of the national vote in the next parliamentary elections, scheduled for July 2011. According to Pollmark, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) would receive 11.8% of the votes, while the BDP would get 5.9%.

[12] Highlights

a) Referendum on Constitutional amendments; Erdogan's speech at Diyarbakir rally

In an article in Milliyet (04.09.10) entitled "A low-profile speech," columnist Fikret Bila analyses the Turkish Prime Ministers speech at a rally in Diyarbakir (03.09.10) and argues that Erdogan preferred to avoid making comments about thorny issues such as terrorism and the Kurdish issue. Erdogan rather laid emphasis on national unity and fraternity while trying to win the hearts and minds of people by praising well-known Kurdish intellectuals and singers, he adds.

Milliyet (04.09.10) columnist Mehmet Tezkan says Erdogan did not say anything new in his speech, adding : "He spoke for 65 minutes to say nothing important (...) nothing that could have upset the western and eastern parts of the country."

Hurriyet Daily News (04.09.10) columnist Yusuf Kanli, in an article entitled "Fear mongering," criticizes the Turkish Prime Minister for trying to deceive the public by asserting that the country will plunge into chaos and the Turkish democracy will suffer a "very serious trauma" if the constitutional amendments are rejected.

Hurriyet (04.09.10) columnist Mehmet Yilmaz criticizes Erdogan's remarks about the referendum which, he argues, vindicated allegations that the government intends to control the Council of State and the Constitutional Court if the constitutional amendments are ratified in the referendum.

Star (04.09.10) columnist Mustafa Karaalioglu says that Erdogan did not fall into a trap set by those who were expecting him to make promises in order to convince Kurds to vote in favour of the constitutional amendments. Emphasizing that the amendments will be highly beneficial to Kurds, Karaalioglu concludes by saying: "This country owes democracy to Kurds who have to do their part in the democratization of the country. This fact was confirmed in Diyarbakir yesterday."

In an article in Radikal (04.09.10) entitled "Diyarbakir speech: nice but not sufficient", columnist Cengiz Candar says that Erdogan cleverly avoided saying anything at the rally that would give ammunition to his opponents planning to attack him by using nationalist rhetoric although he did not say much that would please Kurds, and adds "More importantly, the atmosphere in Diyarbakir has made the rift between the BDP and others within the Kurdish political movement ahead of the referendum even more visible. It is likely that the Kurdish political movement will undergo a metamorphosis depending on the outcome of the referendum."

Vatan (04.09.10) columnist Rusen Cakir points out that Erdogan did not say anything that could be exploited by those who were planning to launch a nationalist assault on him and adds: "This is undoubtedly a success, but only to a certain extent.

Taraf (04.09.10) columnist Ahmet Altan describes Erdogans speech as sentimental, adding that he took care to avoid minefields.

Yeni Safak (04.09.10) columnist Ali Bayramoglu says that the Prime Ministers speech can be interpreted as an indirect apology to the Kurds for a number of past practices by the state in the region, recognition of the existence of the Kurdish problem, and an emphasis on the need for democratization. Criticizing Prime Minister Erdogan for what he describes as his failure to follow up on his Diyarbakir messages, Bayramoglu asserts that the Government has refused to acknowledge the "political dimension" of the Kurdish question. He argues that the way to address this issue effectively would be to listen to what the Kurds have to say, talk and negotiate with them, grant a general amnesty [for the PKK] in order to end hostilities, revise all related legislation, change the anti-terrorist law, and redefine citizenship.

Vakit Editor-in-Chief Hasan Karakaya entitles his comment "He said the same things in Diyarbakir as he did in Ankara," and argues that if the constitutional reforms are approved, the Government can meet "certain expectations" through a more extensive constitutional amendment package it could pass in 2011 and that the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) is in no position to complain that the Government has failed to address Kurdish woes as long as it insists on blocking extensive constitutional changes in the future by boycotting the upcoming referendum.

In an article in Safak (05.09.10) entitled "Less pathos, more politics", Yeni Safak columnist Kursat Bumin criticizes Prime Minister Erdogan's rally speech in Diyarbakir earlier this week as one that was characterized by the use of rhetorical devices of persuasion like "pathos" and "ethos" and lacked actual political messages.

In an article in Vakit (05.09.10) entitled "A single flag, a single nation" columnist Ayhan Bilgin hails Erdogan's remarks in Diyarbakir objecting to "ethnic and regional nationalism" as a reaffirmation, "albeit indirectly," of his earlier emphasis on "a single flag, a single country, a single nation, and a single state."

b) Kemal Kilicdaroglu criticizes AKP for bribing EU official

In an article in Milliyet (05.09.10), Fikert Bila says that during the "What Is Happening" programme broadcast on the CNN, Turk Kilicdaroglu implied that the AKP has bribed Ria Oomen Ruijten, European Parliament Rapporteur on Turkey, with the aim of ensuring a report in favour of the constitutional amendments. Bila notes that these are serious accusations which need to be investigated.

c) US-Turkish relations / US withdrawal from Iraq

In an article in Hurriyet Daily News (04.09.10) entitled "More roller-coaster US-Turkey relations on horizon, columnist Ilhan Tanir says that serious losses that the Democrat Party is expected to suffer in the midterm elections in the United States in November will weaken the Obama Administration and this will not be to Turkey's advantage. He notes: "The weakening Obama presidency has already some and is expected to have more upshots regarding its potency to fully control the foreign affairs, including the one with Turkey."

Star (05.09.10) columnist Mahir Kaynak questions the reasons behind Admiral Michael Mullen's (US Joint Chiefs of Staff) visit to Turkey and argues that with the possibility of internal clashes in Iraq in the period ahead, the visit may be linked to the policies that Turkey is expected to pursue under those circumstances.

Milliyet (04.09.10) columnist Guneri Civaoglu analyzes developments since the start of the US-led military campaign in Iraq which, he argues, proved to be to Turkey's disadvantage. Pointing out that Kurds became the United States' strategic partner in northern Iraq while the PKK consolidated its presence in the region, Civaoglu says: "The United States' entry in Iraq turned Turkey's most important problem into an abscess. Its withdrawal will cause it to burst notwithstanding whether or not it pulls out its troops via Turkey."

A report in Cumhuriyet (04.09.10) quotes military sources in Ankara as saying that the United States plans to withdraw unarmed and unequipped military personnel via northern Iraq and Turkey, adding that negotiations about the use of Incirlik Air Base and Iskenderun Port will start if Turkey responds positively. The report also points out that there is ambiguity over whether parliamentary approval would be needed for the pullout of unarmed US military personnel.

In an article in Today's Zaman (04.09.10), under the above headline, columnist Gurkan Zengin asserts that if Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Michael Mullen's visit to Ankara is aimed at persuading the Erdogan government to let the United States place a missile defence system against Iran in Turkey, "the answer he will most likely receive is 'no'." He also calls attention to "a reality about Turkish foreign politics that many American diplomats have still not come to understand ... the 'zero problems with neighbours' approach formalized by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu."

d) Direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks

Semih Idiz in a article in Milliyet (05.09.10) argues that the "shape" of the peace talks shows that the Obama administration wants to work with Egypt and Jordan for peace in the Middle East and points out that Turkey, whose "respectability in the region is reportedly rising", has not been included in the process, and adds that "it is clearly seen that Turkey has been left out because the AKP government has sided with HAMAS.

e) "Diyarbakir prison to become torture museum"

Under the above banner headline, Yeni Safak (05.09.10) publishes a front-page report which asserts that NGO representatives in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir have urged the Government to turn the military prison in this province, "a symbol of the pains inflicted by the 12 September, 1980 coup," into a "torture museum," saying that their collective memory of what happened in this prison in the years following the coup will be erased if it is torn down. According to the report, Prime Minister Erdogan looks sympathetically on this request. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio

/EI

Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article