Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 15-01-22

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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] Eroglu : "I am still at the table, but the Greek Cypriot side is not"

[02] Siber met with the Azeri Speaker at the PUOICM meeting in Istanbul

[03] Eroglu met with an Azerbaijani delegation

[04] More on the water transferred from Turkey

[05] The breakaway regime among the ten "countries" who buy property in Turkey

[06] Ankara will reportedly sent back to Brussels the EP's Resolution on press freedom in Turkey, together with a diplomatic note

[07] Erdogan urged the Muslim countries to warn Western counrties against Islamophobia

[08] "AKP fails to keep unity over corruption vote"

[A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS

[01] Eroglu : "I am still at the table, but the Greek Cypriot side is not"

Reminding of the allegations during the "election campaign in 2010" that if he would be elected "president", the negotiation process would end, Eroglu said that he is still at the table and added that it is the "Greek Cypriot President", as he called the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades who left the talks.

Accusing the Greek Cypriot side for saying lies to their public during the past 40 years, Eroglu pointed out that it is the Greek Cypriot side who left the negotiations despite the fact, as he said ,that he was blamed for being "non-negotiable".

Eroglu continued and accused the Greek Cypriot side that it does not want to share the wealth of the sea with the Turkish Cypriots and claimed that Anastasiades is the one insistent on sovereignty.

[02] Siber met with the Azeri Speaker at the PUOICM meeting in Istanbul

Siber attended yesterday a breakfast meeting with the Turkish Speaker of the Parliament Cemil Cicek and the Azerbaijani Speaker Oktay Askerov.

Evaluating her contacts at the PUOICM, Siber said that she hopes with their efforts the "TRNC" will be able to get an observer status in such kinds of international platforms until the Cyprus settlement. Claiming that they cannot attend unfortunately the international platforms and meetings with their own identity due to the unsolved Cyprus problem, Siber said that it is very important for them to be represented at the PUOICM meeting with the observer status. She added that they may not have the right of vote, they can deliver a speech and at the same time they can meet with many Assembly Speakers of many other countries.

Meanwhile, according to illegal Bayrak television (online, 21.01.15), Siber, speaking at the occupied airport of Tymbou before her departure, said that the "TRNC parliamentary delegation" which had attended the PUOICM conference in Tehran, Iran last year was looking forward to this year's meeting in Istanbul.

Underlining the importance of the conference for the "TRNC", Siber claimed: "Unfortunately, we are experiencing difficulties voicing ourselves at international platforms. We have been regularly attending OIC meetings as an observer since after the 2004 Annan Plan".

[03] Eroglu met with an Azerbaijani delegation

Speaking during the visit, the president of the association Alekbarov referred to the similarities between the Cyprus problem and the situation in Azerbaijan.

He further said that they were bringing up the Cyprus problem at every opportunity during their contacts abroad.

Explaining that Azerbaijan's sovereign territory is under Armenian occupation, Alekbarov said: "For us the Armenians are what the Greek Cypriots are to you. The Turkish Cypriots were subjected to similar massacres and genocide. We want the world to know about what we have experienced but unfortunately we are subjected to double standards because we are Muslims and Turks."

For his part, Eroglu drew attention to the close ties between Azerbaijan and the "TRNC".

Eroglu expressed regret over the fact that Azerbaijan's Nagorno Karabakh region is under Armenian occupation. "I hope that one day soon these areas will once again be free of occupation", he said.

Pointing out that the "TRNC" was experiencing difficulties being only recognized by Turkey; Eroglu said that the development of ties with brother "countries" such as Azerbaijan is extremely important.

Meanwhile, according to Turkish Cypriot daily Gunes (22.01.14) Alekbarov said during his meeting with Eroglu that the Armenian's occupation and the fact that the "TRNC" is not recognized, causes uneasiness and a painful situation.

AK

[04] More on the water transferred from Turkey

When the "local council team" went to the site, the company officials involved in the structure told them that "neither the council nor anyone from the government could stop them". A quarrel occurred after the incident and the structure has since been sealed.

Reporting on the issue, Halkin Sesi (22.01.15) reports that "prime minister" Ozkan Yorgancioglu stated that everyone must obey the rules of the "country". Yorgancioglu stated that every "municipality" has regulations that must be followed by any firm undertaking projects in the breakaway regime, despite how big the projects are.

In addition, Kibris Postasi newspaper (22.01.15) reports that the self-styled minister of environment and natural resources Hasan Dincyurek stated that the Alakopru Dam will be tested on Sunday to see if it can hold water. The dam is being used for the water project.

[05] The breakaway regime among the ten "countries" who buy property in Turkey

According to the paper, the breakaway regime comes 7th since its "citizens" bought a land of 196.268 square m of land in Turkey in 2014. First comes Saudi Arabia, following by the UK, Germany, Kuwait, Russian Federation, United Arab Emirates, the breakaway regime, USA, Holland and Iraq.

The paper writes that this is the first time the breakaway regime enters the list and notes that the majority of the Turkish Cypriots who buy property in Turkey does not come from the occupied area of Cyprus but from the UK.

[06] Ankara will reportedly sent back to Brussels the EP's Resolution on press freedom in Turkey, together with a diplomatic note

According to a report from the Hurriyet daily published on Wednesday, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government doesn't find it appropriate that the detailed Resolution be delivered to Ankara.

"You don't need to send the EP's resolution when you receive it. Return it with a [diplomatic] note even before opening its cover in a way that is suitable for diplomatic practices," Ankara reportedly told its diplomats in Brussels.

Last week, in a strongly-worded resolution unanimously voted on by political parties, the EP condemned the Turkish government's December 14 attempt to silence critical media by launching raids on media institutions and detaining journalists, saying the steps taken by the Turkish government against the media, raises questions about the rule of law and freedom of the media in the country.

The Resolution, seen as a harsh warning to Turkey in terms of press freedom, was approved with 551 votes for it, 11 against it and 31 abstentions in Strasbourg.

The government-backed operation against independent media outlets, which resulted in the detention of dozens of individuals including Zaman Editor-in-Chief Ekrem Dumanl?, Samanyolu TV network top executive Hidayet Karaca, script writers, producers and directors, caught the attention of the European Union. The detentions sparked reaction across the world, from Canada to France. Foreign government officials and human rights watchdogs defined the media crackdown as another blow to freedoms in the country and called on Turkey to respect media freedom.

[07] Erdogan urged the Muslim countries to warn Western counrties against Islamophobia

Addressing the 10th session of the Parliamentary Union of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul (OIC) in Istanbul, Erdogan said: "We want our friends in the West to see that Islamophobia has become a serious problem. We also expect Islamic countries to sincerely warn the West over this issue".

Erdogan said that the only way to overcome the crisis in the Islamic world is unity, solidarity and alliance.

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Erdogan lashed out at Islamic State and the Levant (ISIL) jihadists who have captured large swathes of Iraq and Syria right up to the Turkish border which he said was "killing Muslims on the pretext of Islam." "We must first check and question ourselves. Foreigners are coming, bombing and killing. Why are we leaving problems to others to deal with instead of solving them among ourselves?"

Erdogan also criticized the U.N. Security Council for making decisions on issues that concern the Muslim world, without having a Muslim member among its permanent members. "Is there any single Muslim country among the five" permanent members of the U.N. Security Council? "Is the entire world surrendered to the five members? Can justice be there?" he asked.

"We are 56 countries. Won't we question what our function is? Islamic countries make up almost one-third of the United Nations," he told the OIC.

"When Israel killed more than 2,500 people, including women and children last year, no Western country or the U.N. condemned Israel for its terrorist deeds as they condemned the French attacks," he said.

"There are also several attacks in Nigeria, Libya and in Iraq; why does the West not react against all these terrorist deeds equally?" he asked.

"If the West only condemns the killings targeting artists or journalists, then what about the journalists killed by Israel in Palestine in the past years?" Erdogan said.

"Terrorists and terrorist groups can never be representatives of Muslims or the Islamic world ? to incite Western countries against Muslims is really dangerous. The deeds of the terrorists and the terrorist groups are not the concern of Muslims," he said.

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[08] "AKP fails to keep unity over corruption vote"

"A historic vote at the Turkish Parliament that acquitted four former ministers over corruption claims has revealed a fissure within the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), after dozens of its lawmakers broke the party line to send the accused Ministers to the top court.

The division over the corruption vote has been interpreted as particularly significant for the AKP, which is known for its strict party discipline, months after Ahmet Davutoglu took the helm as party chairman from Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is now the President.

The AKP, with 312 Deputies at parliament, failed to secure 276 votes - the simple majority required for a vote of confidence - in the votes carried out for former Ministers Egemen Bag?s, Zafer Caglayan, and Muammer Guler. The exception was former Environment Minister Erdogan Bayraktar, who secured 288 supporting votes.

A similar division was observed in 2003, when Parliament voted on whether to take part in the United States' invasion of Iraq and open its territories to U.S. troops.

The Erdogan effect: The vote was made necessary after a parliamentary panel tasked to probe the graft claims decided not to send any of the four former Ministers to the Supreme Council. President Erdogan and his right-hand men played a significant role during the panel's vote, amid concerns that some of the AKP's members of the panel would vote in favor of sending at least one of the Ministers to the court. That is why the vote was postponed from Dec. 22 to Jan. 5, during which time there was an intense campaign orchestrated by the AKP urging that the vote was a plot against the party. Erdogan exercised his full power on the party during this campaign, as Prime Minister Davutoglu has drawn a slightly different line on this issue, calling on the Ministers to volunteer to go to the court themselves.

Davutoglu's absence: AKP Chairman and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was in London on January 20, so was absent at the vote along with five other Ministers, including Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek. Although Davutoglu could have postponed his trip to London or departed after the vote, he instead chose not to attend it. There is no proof that the number of dissidents would have been lower if Davutoglu had been present at Parliament, but he obviously did not prefer to witness this scene, allowing Deputy Prime Minister Yalc?n Akdogan to vote for him.

The "three-term rule" effect: Many of those who voted against the former Ministers are thought to be Deputies who will not be able to run for Parliament in the upcoming elections because of the AKP's strict three-term limit. This may be the most important reason for such a high number of lawmakers breaching Erdogan's line.

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