Anadolu Agency: News in English, 01-01-01

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ANADOLU AGENCY

NEWS

01 JANUARY

2001 Monday

CONTENTS

[01] TURKEY-PRESS SCAN

[01] TURKEY-PRESS SCAN

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)

NO HEATING PROBLEM IN F TYPE PRISON
Huseyin Akgul, the Chairman of Parliamentary Human Rights Commission, and Mehmet Bekaroglu, the member of the commission, visited F type prisons on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters following the visit which lasted for 3,5 hours, Akgul said, ''we saw that there is betterment in the prisons. There is no heating or illumination problem in the prisons.''

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)

Nihat Kurtic, the Deputy General Director responsible for traffic, pointed out that despite winter conditions, number of accidents decreased this holiday when compared to the previous years.

SCHOOLS TO RECESS ON JANUARY 26
The first term of the 2000-2001 education year will end on January 26, 2001. A total of 13.500 million students and nearly 500,000 teachers will go on a holiday.

The students and the teachers will have 16 days holiday. The second term will start on February 12, 2001. The second term will end on June 15.

SABAH (LIBERAL)

FULL SUPPORT CONTINUES TO ECONOMIC PROGRAM
Gazi Ercel, the Central Bank Governor, said 23 of the 30 international banks supported the economic program, adding that, ''figures of January and February will show that inflation reduced.''

Ercel said the financial crisis which was experienced at the end of the year 2000 would be overcome, adding that inflation would be reduced to single digit numbers.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)

The dialogue process, which was started by the Turkish and Greek Foreign Ministers, was improved with the agreements signed in tourism and culture. However, essential issues like security were not discussed yet.

ATTACK TO TURKEY'S EMBASSY IN NORWAY
Supporters of illegal organization attacked Turkish Embassy in Oslo early on Saturday morning. Embassy officials said windows of the building were broken and slogans were written on the walls of the Embassy building.

Norwegian news agency NTB, basing on the eye witnesses, said four assailants in masks, attacked the Embassy at 03:00 local time.

The agency said a group that is against the ''operations on prisons in Turkey,'' claimed responsibility for the attack.

RADIKAL (LEFT)

DEATH FAST ON THE 74TH DAY
The hunger strikes and death fasts, which started on October 20, 2000 to protest the F type prisons, entered to the 74th day. It was reported that 35 people are in serious health condition. It was also reported that 35 people are on death fast in Usak Prison.

YENI BINYIL (LIBERAL)

Osman Demirag, the TPAO General Director, told A.A correspondent that two important fields in Libya were allocated to TPAO. Libyan government opened 12 fields in 1995 for activities to search oil.

Demirag said Libya's National Oil Company (NOC) and TPAO signed an agreement a while ago, adding that TPAO opened its office within the framework of the agreement.

Demirag said they would have 30 million U.S. dollars investment in the fields within the framework of the agreement.

TURKIYE (RIGHT)

SOUTHEAST SHAKEN AGAIN
A total of six slight earthquakes occurred in Malatya, Van, and Bitlis provinces. The biggest quake was measuring 3.7 on the Richter scale. There are no reported casualties or financial damage in the quakes.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)

Bulgarian Customs General Directorate said the heroin was found in a Turkish passenger bus belonging to ''Tempo'' tourism agency. The bus was going from Turkey to Kosovo.

The heroin was hidden in the bus in packages.

Three drivers of the bus were taken into custody in connection with the incident.

-POLICE DEFUSE A BOMB IN FATIH DISTRICT
ISTANBUL- Police defused a bomb which was found in a package which was left in front of a shopping center on Sunday.

Shoppers alerted police when they saw the package. Expert teams defused the bomb after taking tight security measures around the district.

Police said the bomb was a homemade pipe bomb.

-GEORGIAN-FLAGGED CARGO SHIP SINKS IN KEMER
TOWNSHIP KILLING FOUR PEOPLE
ANTALYA- A Georgian-flagged cargo ship sank on Monday after slamming into rocks off shores Kiris region in Kemer township in southern Antalya province.

Police said four dead bodies were found so far, and noted that 32 people were rescued.

Nazmi Gunlu, the Head Official of Kemer, told A.A correspondent that the Georgian-flagged Pati sank when it hit rocks in a storm early on Monday morning.

Officials said rescue efforts continued.

-PARLIAMENTARY HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION IN SINCAN F TYPE PRISON
ANKARA- Huseyin Akgul, the Parliamentary Human Rights Commission Chairman and Mehmet Bekaroglu, the commission member, visited Sincan F type Prison on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters following the visit which lasted for 3,5 hours, Akgul recalled their statements that they would visit the prisons following the interventions launched on the prisons, and noted that they visited Sincan F type prison in this respect.

Akgul said, ''we see that there is a gradual betterment in the prison. There is not any heating or illumination problem.''

Akgul said currently 131 inmates were on ''death fast,'' and 131 others were on ''hunger strike,'' in Sincan Prison.

Akgul said three inmates who were on death fast were hospitalized on Sunday.

-HEAVY RAIN IN SOUTHERN ANTALYA PROVINCE
ANTALYA - Nearly 200 houses and business places were inundated because of the heavy rain in southern Antalya province.

Fire brigades continue efforts to empty water.

-STATE MINISTER GAYDALI: ''WE WILL IMPROVE RELATIONS WITH ALL
NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES, MAINLY WITH IRAQ''
GAZIANTEP - Edip Safter Gaydali, the State Minister, said on Monday that Turkey would improve relations with all the neighboring countries, mainly with Iraq.

Speaking to A.A correspondent, Gaydali said the government exerted efforts to solve many problems which could not be solved before, adding that, ''the government entered to the prisons which could not be entered for 10 years, and worked hard to put economy on the right track.''

Gaydali also said anti-inflationist program would continue this year, and noted that Turkey would reach the targeted figure this time.

Pointing out that the trade volume between Turkey and Iraq was more than three billion U.S. dollars in 1990's, Gaydali said, ''however, the trade volume decreased to the lowest level in the recent 5-6 years. Last year, upon our initiatives, trade volume increased to one billion U.S. dollars. We want to get the biggest share in 15-million U.S. dollars trade that would be made within the framework of the U.N. resolutions. I believe that the year 2001 will be more positive. We aim at increasing trade volume with all the neighboring countries.''

-SHIP ACCIDENT IN KEMER
-GUNLU, KEMER HEAD OFFICIAL:
''WE LEARNED THERE WERE NEARLY 80 PASSENGERS IN THE CARGO SHIP''
ANTALYA- Nazmi Gunlu, the Head Official of Kemer township, said on Monday that there were nearly 80 passengers on the Georgian-flagged cargo ship according to the testimonies of those rescued. The Georgian-flagged cargo ship sank after slamming into rocks off shores Kiris region in Kemer township in southern Antalya province.

Gunlu said dead bodies of four people were had been pulled from the water, adding that search and rescue operation was continuing.

A total of 32 people were rescued..

It was reported that most of the passengers were Indians and Pakistanis who were trying to go to Greece through illegal ways.

-GREAT INTEREST TO ATATURK DAM
SANLIURFA- A total of 24,000 people visited Ataturk Dam last year. Ataturk Dam is one of the biggest investments of the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP).

Muzaffer Dilek, the Governor of Sanlurfa, told A.A correspondent that GAP, which is the biggest and multi-sectoral integrated project of Turkey, attracted great attention.

Pointing out that delegations from Turkey and from the World came to the region to see the giant project which worths 32 billion U.S. dollars, Dilek said Ataturk Dam and Hyroelectric Power Plant (HES) was a source of interest.

Dilek said he believed that more people would visit Ataturk Dam in 2001 adding that this was very important for tourism.

-WEATHER TO BE RAINLY IN THE FIRST
DAYS OF THE NEW YEAR
ANKARA- There will be precipitation throughout the country in the first days of the new year.

State Meteorology Affairs General Directorate said Marmara, Aegean, Western Mediterranean, Central Anatolia, and the Black Sea regions will be rainy, and the other regions will be partly cloudy.

There will be snow in eastern and northern parts of Eastern Anatolia.

Temperatures will increase slightly in western regions, and other regions will not change.

-269.339 TRILLION LIRA COLLECTED IN
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE FUND
ANKARA - A total of 269.339 trillion lira was collected in ''Unemployment Insurance Fund,'' since June 1, 2000.

The share of employers and employee in the fund is 181.924 trillion lira, the state contribution is 72.766 trillion lira, the interest incomes are 14.648 trillion lira.

The first payment will be made starting as of March 1, 2002.

-SHIP ACCIDENT IN KEMER
-KURUM, CHAIRMAN OF KEMER HARBOUR:
''DEATH TOLL RISES TO SIX''
ANTALYA - Death toll rose to six in ship accident which happened off shores of Kiris region in Kemer township in southern Antalya province.

Oktay Kurum, the Chairman of Kemer Habour, told A.A correspondent that death toll rose to six. Kurum said Georgian-flagged cargo ship suffered a mechanical failure in the early hours of Monday and sent out an SOS call. Kurum said efforts exerted to rescue the ship but it slammed into the rocks and sank.

Kurum said Greek Polizois Galanis, the captain of the ship, was rescued.

Meanwhile, Ertugrul Dokuzoglu, the Antalya Governor, said there were still 51 missing people in the ship accident.

Dokuzoglu said six people died in the accident and that 32 others were rescued from the ship.

Dokuzoglu said those who were rescued said that including the crew there were 83 people in the ship.

Captain Can Karaca, the Commander of the Antalya Coast Guard Group, who organized the rescue efforts, said rescue operations were hampered by strong winds and high seas.

-NEARLY 3.5 MILLION TURKISH CITIZENS LIVE IN 37 COUNTRIES
ISTANBUL - Nearly 3.5 million Turkish citizens are living in 37 countries of the world. Turkish citizens are living in countries like Australia, South Africa, the U.S., Canada, Japan, Jordan, and in almost every western Europe countries. Approximately 1.2 million of the Turkish citizens work as workers in those countries.

According to the data of Labour and Social Security Ministry, 3.457.158 Turkish citizens are living in 37 countries including Germany, France, the Netherlands, Britain, Norway, Australia, the U.S., South Africa, Japan, Canada, Turkish Republics, Central Asia and Northern Africa.

Those are the countries which Turkish citizens live.

. number of number of number of

NAME citizens workers unemployed

----------- ----------- --------- --------
Germany 2.107.426 741.647 191.433

France 274.747 94.224 28.426

Netherlands 284.902 56.000 23.000

Austria 142.231 48.221 8.217

Belgium 78.532 27.118 10.473

Sweden 35.724 6.500 1.700

Britain 61.300 35.680 2.600

Denmark 36.835 12.722 4.776

Italya 8.500 -

Finland 2.000 -

Spain 904 -

Luxembourg 220 60

Switzerland 79.556 33.883 7.593

Norway 10.000 6.000

Lichtenstein 743 306

Azerbaijan 5.000 2.000

Turkmenistan 10.000 8.000

Uzbekistan 3.300 1.881

Kazakhstan 5.500 -

Kyrgzstan 2.200 1.500

Tajikistan 300 -

Saudi Arabia 120.000 115.000

Libya 6.080 5.570

Kuwait 3.300 3.100

Jordan 1.600 200

Qatar 400 400

Russia 13.000 10.514

Belarus 70 4

Georgia 1.200 500

Ukraine 800 350

Moldova 200 -

Israel 5.000 -

Japan 1.729 1.729

U.S. 85.505 -
Canada 18.130 -

Australia 49.724 16.950 4.659

South Africa 500 250

TOTAL 3.457.158 1.190.120 282.877
-GERMANY RANKS THE FIRST BY SENDING 2.051 MILLION
TOURISTS TO TURKEY IN JANUARY-OCTOBER PERIOD
ANKARA- Germany, Britain, and Russia are the leading countries which sent the highest number of tourists to Turkey in the first ten months of the year 2000.

State Statistics Institute (DIE) said Germany sent 2.051 million tourists to Turkey in January-October period. Britain followed Germany with 871,882 people and Russia sent 620,739 people.

The U.S. sent 462.388 tourists, France sent 413,471 tourists, the Netherlands sent 411.295 tourists, Iran sent 334.467 tourists, Bulgaria sent 312.268 tourists, Austria sent 302.267 tourists, and Israel sent 291.622 tourists.

-172 PEOPLE KILLED IN TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS
ANKARA- A total of 172 people died and 322 others were injured in traffic accidents which occurred throughout Turkey in the recent nine days.

Security General Directorate Traffic Services Chairmanship said 129 accidents were recorded in December 23 and 31, and that 172 people died and 322 others were injured in the accidents.

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