Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 13-10-08

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

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Ertug: the preparation stage may be ended tomorrow; Rubin met with Eroglu

[02] Akca met with settlers from Black Sea and claimed that the breakaway regime "was a true success story"

[03] KTOS trade union accused Ankara of making occupied Cyprus its colony nourishing smuggling, gambling and prostitution

[04] Yorgancioglu: We don't entirely reject the economic programme

[05] Lions Club in occupied Cyprus promoted the breakaway regime in Europe

[06] Erdogan accused US Secretary of State Kerry of "praising Assad"

[07] Dozens arrested in raids in Istanbul neighbourhoods

[08] New changes legalize headscarves for public officials in Turkey

[09] Gul says Israel's apology to Turkey 'too late'

[10] UK's new crime-fighting agency to work with Turkey

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Ertug: the preparation stage may be ended tomorrow; Rubin met with Eroglu

Downer met yesterday separately with Ertug and Mavroyiannis within the framework of preparing a joint text, with which the negotiations between the two leaders will resume. Later, Downer met with the two negotiators over a dinner.

Speaking to the paper after the dinner, Ertug said that it is too early to say whether preparations for the resumption of reunification talks will be completed tomorrow. Noting that the delay in the process arises from the different positions of the two sides, Ertug underlined the process aims to bring the two leaders together in order for reunification talks to resume. Therefore, the process will continue under their guidance.

Downer, in a short statement to the paper after the dinner, said that they look forward to tomorrow's meeting, adding that whether the process will be completed or not, it depends on what will happen in the meeting.

Meanwhile, the paper reports that Eric Rubin, Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs of the US Department of State, met yesterday afternoon with the Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu. Later, Rubin met separately with Ertug and Turkish Cypriot negotiation team for an hour. No statement was made by US or Turkish Cypriot side.

[02] Akca met with settlers from Black Sea and claimed that the breakaway regime "was a true success story"

"Today, we have an independent state in Cyprus, an administration that can stand on its own feet. The latest surveys show that the public is happy", Akca alleged and added that "it was only natural for criticisms to be made in the development of a country but added that the level reached today should not be underestimated".

Alleging that the breakaway regime will continue to grow and develop, Akca said he hoped politics in occupied Cyprus in the period ahead, will focus on raising production.

On his part, the chairman of the settlers' organization Turan Buyukyilmaz gave information about the society's activities and problems and said there were 25 thousand people of Black Sea origin living in occupied Cyprus.

[03] KTOS trade union accused Ankara of making occupied Cyprus its colony nourishing smuggling, gambling and prostitution

Elcil said that that Turkey is responsible for the state-colony situation of occupied Cyprus for the money laundry, for the gambling, for every kind of smuggling, for prostitution. He also said that it is Turkey which imposes fanaticism, obscurantism in the breakaway regime.

In addition, Afrika writes that secondary school teachers' trade union (KTOEOS), also criticized Akca's statements.

[04] Yorgancioglu: We don't entirely reject the economic programme

Arsen Angi, chairman of the GIAD, said during the meeting that they are interested whether the economic programme will be implemented or not, adding that it is correct the "government" to have an economic programme and to implement it. However, he said, it is also important the progress of the country to be safeguarded with the economic programme.

[05] Lions Club in occupied Cyprus promoted the breakaway regime in Europe

Speaking during the meeting Altug said that the Lions Clubs attended a number of events organized by international organizations in Europe with the aim of "promoting the TRNC". He stated that "TRNC was not recognized because it was not recognized by the UN".

On his part Eroglu also underlined the importance of such civil society organizations, particularly with its activities in the international arena.

[06] Erdogan accused US Secretary of State Kerry of "praising Assad"

Kerry described the start of the destruction of chemical weapons in Syria as a "good beginning" and said Washington and Moscow had agreed to press the United Nations to set a date for a Syria peace conference in November. In unusual praise for Damascus, Kerry also gave the Assad government credit for quickly complying with the UN resolution on destroying its chemical weapons arsenal.

When asked about Kerry's statement, Erdogan said he could not believe that Kerry would make such a statement, one which would contradict his former stance against the Syrian regime. "How could we praise someone who has killed 110,000 people? It does not matter if these people were killed with chemical weapons or with other weapons; in the end they were killed," he underlined.

[07] Dozens arrested in raids in Istanbul neighbourhoods

Turkish special forces, riot police and anti-terrorism units, a 1,500-member team in total, launched large-scale raids in the Gulsuyu and Gulensu neighbourhoods of the Maltepe district on the Anatolian side of Istanbul as well as the Gazi neighbourhood of the Sultangazi district on the European side. The raids, which were supported by police helicopters, resulted in the detention of 28 individuals.

During the raids, police seized six guns, one pump rifle, 150 gas masks and many documents belonging to illegal organizations. In the raids on the Gulsuyu and Gulensu Rights Association, police seized 12 Molotov bombs, two bins of oil and a gun.

The raids came days after Interior Minister Muammer Guler vowed to crack down on illegal organizations, drug gangs and urban bandits after the appearance of a group of armed people at Thursday's commemoration ceremony for a slain anti-drug protester.

[08] New changes legalize headscarves for public officials in Turkey

The government has officially lifted the ban on wearing a headscarf for public-sector workers and ended the reading of the national oath, which non-Turks have criticized for its nationalist language, in the country's schools.

Kurds and others have long been angered by much of the oath, which ends with the phrase "Ne Mutlu Turkum Diyene" (How happy is he who says "I am a Turk").

According to the publication of the resolutions in the Official Gazette late Oct. 7, public officials will be permitted to don a headscarf, with the exception of officials wearing a uniform, while the student oath, which has been read out loud every morning for the past 80 years, has been removed.

[09] Gul says Israel's apology to Turkey 'too late'

Gul, responding to a question by the Yedioth Ahronoth daily after a meeting of the Istanbul Forum last week, said: "In order to end this conflict and the difference of opinion between us, we had certain expectations of Israel. Israel responded to part of our expectations when it apologized. But this step was taken at a late stage; Israel apologized too late. Some of our expectations have not yet been met," the daily reported Gul as saying.

[10] UK's new crime-fighting agency to work with Turkey

"The NCA will work with its Turkish partners to tackle threats including drug trafficking and illegal migrants, with Turkey's location straddling both Europe and Asia presenting particular challenges," the British embassy in Ankara said in a statement released on Oct. 7. "The new agency will build on its already strong relationship between law enforcement in the U.K. and Turkey," the embassy added.

Kicking off immediately, the NCA will use more than 4,000 specialist crime fighters to tackle some of the most organized criminals, stretching across 150 countries. The agency will work with overseas partners to tackle organized crime groups in-country, share intelligence on joint threats and targets, and intercept people, property and money moving to and from the U.K.

"Tackling serious and organized crime goes way beyond the shores of the United Kingdom. Some of the biggest threats to the national security of countries around the globe come from individuals and crime groups who globally cost us billions of pounds every year and ruin lives and communities. These people must be stopped, and the NCA will lead the U.K.'s law enforcement role at an international level," Director of Border Policing Command for the NCA David Armond said.

The new agency will have a much wider remit than its predecessors, with an additional focus on cybercrime, fraud and economic crime, alongside the more familiar types of serious and organized criminal activity such as drugs, child sexual exploitation, human trafficking and firearms.

The agency estimates there are some 37,000 individuals spread across 5,500 groups involved in organized crime in Britain, with the annual cost of fraud from such gangs amounting to almost 9 billion pounds ($14.6 billion). TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION

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