Anadolu Agency: News in English, 01-12-02

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From: The Anadolu Agency Home Page at <http://www.anadoluajansi.com.tr/>

ANADOLU AGENCY

NEWS

02 December 2001 Sunday

These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on December 2, 2001. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)

The Labour Platform composed of trade unions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) held demonstrations across the country and called the government to resign. Imams also took part in the demonstration held in Istanbul and Konya. A total of 800 imams attended the demonstration in central Konya province.

TURKISH SOCCER TEAM HOPEFUL ABOUT 2002 WORLD CUP

Turkish national soccer team will play with Brazil, Costa Rica and China in 2002 World Cup finals. The national team is pleased with the fixtures and thinks that it has the chance to join the first eight teams in the Championship.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)

Girls between the ages of 10 and 13 are forced to marry by their fathers who take 1.5 to 2 billion TL from the groom's family for their daughters. This was revealed when Headman of Acarlar hamlet of Aydin, Kamil Koten investigated the reason why some female students at three primary schools had a poor attendance to classes. Some of the female students who are 13 years old were pregnant while some already had children. These young girls were forced to marry with a religious marriage.

''THEY ARE COMING''

Istanbul will host another UFO congress in two weeks. The participants of the congress will stress that we are not alone in the universe and we're frequently visited by other beings from other planets. As part of the SETI project run by Berkely University in California, three million computer users all around the world are waiting for a ''intelligent signal'' from the universe. A total of 125,000 Turks also started waiting for a signal in 1992. An UFO museum will also soon be opened in Istanbul's Boyoglu district.

SABAH (LIBERAL)

People rushed to the shopping centres in big cities due to the sales which started upon the initiative of Sisli mayor Mustafa Sarýgul in Istanbul. In Carrefour shopping centre in Istanbul, women rushed to the shops where long queques were formed.

THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE PROTEST GOVERNMENT

Civil servants and workers convened in big cities in Turkey and took part in the demonstration held by the Labour Platform. A total of 20,000 people joined the public meeting which lasted for three hours in Istanbul in spite of the rain. In Ankara 35 persons were taken into custody.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)

Thousands of workers who demonstrated across Turkey shouted ''We're the real owners of this country''. Demonstrators asked the government to resign and also called for an early election. They also warned the government of a general strike. The demonstrators were not allowed to march in Ankara's Kizilay Squre while 35 of them were taken into custody when they attempted to read out a press statement on Mithatpasa Avenue. No demonstrations were allowed in Diyarbakir, Mardin, Van, Batman, Sirnak, Hakkari and Tunceli.

YOUTH AND SPORTS GENERAL DIRECTORATE TO FIGHT AGAINST

ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALISM

Youth and Sports General Directorate began a fight against Islamic fundamentalist activities in Turkish sports. The directorate made changes in six regulations in order to protect sports against fundamentalist and terrorist activities. Under the new regulations, sports clubs whose directors and members are involved in fundamentalist activities, will be shut down. Sports halls, especially the ones used for far eastern sports like karate and judo, will be scrutinized.

RADIKAL (LEFT)

Turkey will experience its toughest foreign policy bargaining of its history next week. Matters like the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP), Cyprus, military contribution to operation in Afghanistan, a possible attack against Iraq will become more clear at the end of next week. Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit was briefed by Foreign Minister Ismail Cem yesterday about the above issues.

EVERYBODY LOOKING FOR SALES

The sales campaign which started in Istanbul's Nisantasi district and then spreaded to whole Turkey reached its highest level this weekend. Consumers rushed to the stores which offer sales up to 70 percent. Sisli Mayor Mustafa Sarigul said people should shop to make the wheels of the economy turn. ''Goods standing on the shelves have no use for anyone. Factories would work when products are sold,'' he said.

TURKIYE (RIGHT)

The paper says that one of every four adults in the world will die in 2005 because of AIDS. December 1 was AIDS Day and 20 million people died because of AIDS in the world to date. According to the report of International Crisis Group, the number of AIDS patients in 2005 will exceed 100 million. In Turkey 1,246 patients including 1,020 Turkish citizens get AIDS treatment.

2002 BUDGET TO BE DISCUSSED

The parliament will start to discuss 2002 year budget today. A total of 75 deputies applied to the Parliament Speaker's Office to talk in the parliament about the budget. Yet the Office didn't give all of them the right to address the parliament on the issue.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)

State banks had earlier put some of their deposits to the banks abroad with low interests and kept it there. This had caused Turkey to lose trillions of Turkish Liras. State banks keep nearly 3,5 quadrillion liras abroad with an interest rate of 2,6 percent. In return to that the Treasury borrowed money with 11,5 percent interest by selling bonds abroad on Nov. 19. The difference between the two amounts is 500 trillion liras. State bank Ziraat Bank has 1,5 billion dollars and Halkbank has 1,4 quadrillion TL in banks abroad.

-ANNAN PROPOSES TO EXTEND MISSION OF UNFICYP IN CYPRUS

LEFKOSA - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has presented a report to the UN Security Council that proposes to extend the mission of the UN Peace Force (UNFICYP) in Cyprus for another six months starting on Dec. 15.

The report states that the situation on Green Line is normal but the Turkish forces did not lift the measures against the UN Peace Force. It also says that Annan sent invitation to both Turkish Republic of Northern Cyrus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides to attend talks in September and he received a positive reply from Clerides and a negative one from Denktas.

It was reported that the Greek Cypriot Administration was pleased about Annan's report.

The mission of te UNFICYP is extended every six months.

Despite its earlier warning, the UN had referred to the Greek Cypriot Administration as the ''Cyprus government'' in its decision regarding the UNFICYP. As a reaction, the TRNC has been imposing sanctions against the UNFICYP since last year.

-DE SOTO ARRIVES IN CYPRUS

LEFKOSA - Alvaro De Soto, the special envoy of U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan arrived in Cyprus on Saturday night to participate in the meeting of TRNC President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides on December 4.

De Soto will seperately meet with Denktas and Clerides on Monday. De Soto plans to leave the island on December 5, but he can change his plan according to the developments in Denktas-Clerides meeting.

Clerides had asked De Soto to attend the face to face meeting to be held on Dec. 4.

-BERLIN-BRANDENBURG TURKISH COMMUNITY CELEBRATES

10TH FOUNDATION ANNIVERSARY

BERLIN - Berlin-Brandenburg Turkish Community (TBB) held a meeting to mark the tenth year of its anniversary on Saturday.

Berlin Prime Minister Klaus Wowereit said, because of the law, they could not prevent a demonstration by the extreme right Nationalist Democratic Party (NPD) on Saturday and the demonstration greatly bothered them.

Stating that the NPD should be banned, Wowereit said ''Banning of the NPD will not solve the problem of xenophobia and racism problems but it is still necessary.'' He indicated that Berlin was an international city and it was home to people from 180 countries.

Berlin prime minister said that there were foreigners who adjusted very well to the German society as well as those who failed to adjust. ''The Berlin government is responsible for offering adjustment and language programs, and prevent discrimination. And TBB is responsible to encourage adjustment among Turks,'' he stated.

German Turkish Community (TGD) Chairman Hakki Keskin said that the Turkish associations in Germany came together to form the TBB after a Turkish man Ramazan Avci was killed by extreme rightests in 1985. Keskin stressed that foreigners who are born in Germay should have the same rights with German citizens.

TBB Spokesman Safter Cinar protested the march of the NPD in Berlin and he declared that they were in cooperation with the Jewish community in Berlin.

Cinar said the TBB has no chairman but three spokesmen. He also pointed out that they don't create policies for Turkey but they only carry out activities to protect the interests of Turks who live in Germany.

-SUSURLUK CASE

-SUPREME COURT OF APPEALS TO DISCUSS OBJECTION OF PROSECUTOR KANADOGLU

ON DEC. 4

ANKARA - Supreme Court of Appeals General Council will discuss on Dec. 4, Tuesday the objection of Chief Prosecutor Sabih Kanadoglu to the verdict of the Eighth Penal Chamber which annuled the decision given for Susurluk case by a lower court due to ''incomplete investigation.''

According to the Law of Supreme Court of Appeals, at least two thirds of the members of the Court have to cast votes for rejection or acception of the objection. If this majority can't be provided, absolute majority in the members' votes has to be ensured in the second tour.

If the General Council of the Supreme Court of Appeals accepts the objection of Kanadoglu, the Eighth Penal Chamber will discuss the case in its merits.

-GAP EXPORTS AGRICULTURAL AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS TO 112 COUNTRIES

GAZIANTEP - South East Anatolia (GAP) region exported over 100 kinds of agricultural and industrial products to 112 countries and various places of Turkey in the last ten months worth of 524 million 580,000 U.S. dollars.

This is 14 percent more than the same period of last year's export revenues which was 459 million 831,000 U.S. dollars. Last year, GAP had sold products to 104 countries.

South East Anatolia Exporters' Association Chairman Abdulkadir Cikmaz told the A.A that their export products were consisted of textile, grains, oily seeds, fresh and dried fruits and various animal products.

Iraq ranked first among the countries GAP exported products and thread was the most commonly exported product in 2001.

-IMF DELEGATION TO START HOLDING CONTACTS IN TURKEY ON MONDAY

ANKARA - The IMF delegation headed by IMF Turkey Desk Chief Juha Kahkonen will come to Turkey on Monday and start contacts.

After having a meeting with the Turkish economy delegation headed by State Minister Kemal Dervis at the Treasury, the IMF delegation will start its regular contacts.

The IMF delegation which will be crowded this time will be divided in groups and start their studies at the Treasury, Privatization Administration Board, State Planning Organization, Finance Ministry, Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BRSA) and Central Bank.

Financial sector experts of the IMF delegation will also proceed to Istanbul and meet with the representatives of the fiancial sector and businessmen there.

The IMF delegation will particularly focus on the structural programmes within the new economic programme which will be supported by nearly 10 billion dollars. Structural measures which will increase the effectivity of the public sector, which will revive economy and which will draw foreign capital will be discussed in the meetings.

The details of the programme which will be implemented as a new Stand-by agreement for the years 2002-2004 will be determined after the meetings.

IMF Executive Director Willy Kiekens and IMF Director of European Department I Michael Deppler can also come to Turkey to help in the studies on preparation of the new letter of intent.

IMF will allow Turkey to use a new loan of totally 14 billion dollars within the scope of the new programme in 2002. IMF is expected to release a new tranche of 3 billion dollars within the scope of the eleventh review.

The IMF delegation can return to Washington D.C. if it completes studies until the Ramadan Holiday, but if this is not the case, it will continue studies in the beginning of January.

-TURKEY MINERS' ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN SAYS TURKEY, DESPITE ITS

RICH MINE RESERVES, DON'T EXPORT ENOUGH MINES

ISTANBUL - Turkish Miners Association Chairman Ismet Kasapoglu has said Turkey's export of mines did not exceed 550 million U.S. dollars in the last ten years although Turkey is very rich in mine reserves.

''We cannot even be among the first 20 countries in export although Turkey is one of the first ten countries in the world which owns the richest mine deposits,'' he commented.

Kasapoglu told the A.A on Dec. 4 World Miners' Day that the Turkish mining had not made any progress in the last decade.

''Our country has ten billion tons of coal deposits but the consumption of coal has decreased in the recent years because they say it causes pollution, '' he continued. ''However, the United States is obtaining 56 percent of its electricity from coal. Turkey was obtaining 40-35 percent of its electricity from coal ten years ago. In 2001, this amount dropped below 30 percent. They are planning to bring it down to ten percent in 2010. This is a suicide. Buying electricity from other countries is not logical.''

He also complained that state owns 90 percent of the Turkish mining and the private sector remains too weak. ''Our annual marble production is 240 million U.S. dolalrs. The private sector must develop marble and industrial mineral sector,'' he said.

Kasapoglu also pointed out that Turkey, although it owns the richest boron reserves in the world, imports boron worth of 10 million U.S. dollars.

Ankara Mining Engineers Chamber Chairman Prof. Tevfik Guyaguler also said that Turkish mining was not developed because of wrong policies and implementations.

-TURKEY, A RISING STAR IN TOURISM

ANTALYA - The tourism sector in Turkey is on the rise again.

A study carried out by a team headed by Fehmi Kofteoglu, Tourism Research Centre Director of Ekin Tourism Publication Centre on Turkey's tourism has been completed and a report has been published about it.

Turkey has a rich tourism potential, the report noted commenting that Turkey has become a country in which other countries can make investment due to the developments in the world following the terrorist attacks in the U.S. on Sept. 11. Turkey has also achieved the chance to become the centre of tourism in East Mediterranean according to the report.

Turkey needs a new strategy to continue being a rising star in tourism sector, the report stressed.

Kofteoglu told A.A on Sunday that the chains of hotels including Hilton, Merit, Holiday Inn and Dedeman spreads rapidly to Anatolia, adding that leading chain of hotels in the world like Mariott, Radisson SAS, Ritz Cartlon, Dorint start to open branches in Turkey.

The preliminary report of the study was also presented at the Mediterranean International Travel and Tourism Fair (MEDITT-ANTALYA) held between 21-24 Nov.

Kofteoglu said that the developments that followed Sept. 11 attacks created an opportunity for Turkey to become a tourism center in Eastern Mediterranean. ''This situation could bring joint investments with Europe and countries in the region,'' he said.

He indicated that the South East Development Project (GAP) would create a business traffic and added that South East and Eastern Anatolia offered much more favorable conditions to tourism investments compared to the past.

Kofteoglu pointed out that Syria was developing its tourism relations with Turkey, China officially declared Turkey a tourism country and Lufthansa made Turkey regional supply center.

He said that Turkey possesses the most untouched investment areas in the Mediterranean and that Turkey currently could offer over 40 products to the international markets.

''Turkey is at a more advantageous position than its rivals,'' he continued. ''Turkey doesn't have to make a choice between the mass tourism and other tourism kinds. Because it can both invest in sun-sand-and sea investments which appeal to millions of people and also to alternative tourism kinds which appeal to fewer people.''

-HANDICAPPED ASSOCIATIONS ORGANIZE MARCH IN ISTANBUL

ISTANBUL - Association for the Tranining of the Handicapped organized a march between Galatasaray and Taksim in Istanbul due to December 3, World Handicapped Day.

Members of Turkey Handicapped Association and Joy of Life Handicapped Association as well as a number of celebrities joined the march which started in front of Galatasaray High School. Tarik Akan, Selda Alkor, Menderes Samancilar, Rutkay Aziz, Ustun Asutan and Aytac Arman were among the celebrities.

Association for the Training of the Handicapped Chairman Zeki Cobanoglu told the A.A that 12 percent of Turkey's population were handicapped. He said that the real handicap was in people's minds and added that they were ready to offer any kind of help to families with handicapped children.

Cobanoglu also stated that they were working to make Parliament pass bills for the handicapped people.

Turkey Handicapped Association Istanbul branch Chairman Dursun Guneysel said they want to work and produce which were their democratic rights.

He pointed out that under the law, all managements should employ handicapped people and critized that state institutions don't employ handicapped people. ''If the state is not employing the handicapped, how can private institutions can?'' he asked.

Modern Actors Association (CASOD) Chairman Rutkay Aziz said a society which is claiming to be modern, must first protect the handicapped people in that society.

-TURKEY BANKING SYSTEM SEPTEMBER REPORT PUBLISHED

ANKARA - The total assets in the banking system in Turkey in September 2001 increased by 77 percent when compared to the same period in 2000 and reached 169,7 quadrillion liras.

The total assets in U.S dollar basis decreased by 22 percent as of September 2001 when compared to the same period in 2000.

Turkey Banks Union (TBB) published a ''Turkey Banking System-September'' report on Sunday.

The ratio of total assets to the national income which was 85 percent in Sept. 2000 increased to 105 percent as of Sept. 2001.

Banks having state capital grew by 44 percent, banks having private capital grew by 66 percent, foreign banks grew by 93 percent and development and investment banks increaesd by 95 percent.

The ratio of commercial banks in total assets decreased by one point to 95 percent in 2001 September when comaperd to the same month last year. The ratio of public banks decreased to 27 percent and banks having private capital decreased to 50 percent. The ratio of banks which were transferred to the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (SDIF) increased by nine points to 12 percent and that of development and investment banks increased by one point to 5 percent.

In total deposits, the ratio of banks having state capital decreased to 30 percent, that of banks having private capital increased to 54 percent, that of banks in the SDIF increased to 13 percent, that of foreign banks increased to 4 percent.

As of September 2001, assets in TL increased by 77 percent and assets in foreign currency increased by 133 percent when compared to September 2000.

In return to that the liabilities in TL increased by 47 percent, liabilities in foreign currency increased by 106 percent.

Acquýty capital of the banking sector (except the profits of the previous years and term profit) increased by 178 percent in current prices and 22 percent in U.S. dollars.

This development in acquity capital had an effect on paid capital and the growth in reserves. Paid capital climbed from 5,2 quadrillion TL to 10,5 quadrillion TL, reserves increased 4,4 quadrillion TL to 14,8 quadrillion TL. Acquity capital increased 130 percent to 15,6 quadrillion TL including total profit.

The term loss which was one quadrillion 757 trillion TL (two billion 638 million U.S. dollars) end of 2000 increased 6,9 quadrillion TL (4 billion 591 million U.S. dollars). Total loss which also includes the loss of the previous years increased from 4,8 quadrillion TL (7 billion 187 million U.S. dollars) to 11,6 quadrillion TL (7 billion 638 million U.S. dollars).

Term profit of banks which made profits increased three percent, and decreased 55 percent in U.S. dollars.

As of Sept. 2001, commercial banks with private capital and foreign banks, had a profit of 506 million U.S. dollars and 217 million U.S. dollars respectively and their term losses were formed by the banks in the fund.

As of Sept. 2001, term profit of banks decreased five quadrillion 103 trillion TL.

In current prices, interest incomes increased 170 percent and interest expenses increased 151 percent.

The number of workers employed in banking sector continued to decrease. The number of employees decreased by two percent in 2000 compared to end of 1999. In the first nine months of 2001, their number decreased by 16 percent (23,200 people) to 147,201.

As of Sept. 2001, 96 percent of the workers are employed at commercial banks, four percent are employed at development and investment banks.

In 2000 Jan.-Sept. period, the number of banks in the banking sector dropped from 79 to 68 percent and the nubmer of bank branches dropped 503 to 7,335.

-TURKEY BANKING SYSTEM SEPTEMBER REPORT PUBLISHED (2)

ANKARA - Ziraat Bank is the biggest bank of Turkey in respect of assets.

According to the report of the Turkey Banks Union (TBB) for September 2001, which was published on Sunday, state bank Ziraat Bank became the biggest bank of Turkey having an asset value of 27,3 quadrillion TL as of Sept. 30, 2001.

Private bank Isbank followed Ziraat Bank with assets worth of 14,5 quadrillion liras and private bank Akbank followed Isbank with assets worth of 14,4 quadrillion liras.

Below is the list of the biggest banks of Turkey in respect of assests:

BANKS

ASSETS (Billion Liras)

27.365.726

2- Is Bank

14.549.978

3- Akbank

14.488.640

4- Yapý ve Kredi Bank

13.241.294

5- Halkbank

11.088.096

6- Garanti Bank

10.363.762

7- Pamukbank

8.652,470

8- Vakýfbank

7.690.300

9- Etibank

7.131.074

10-Osmanlý Bank

5.419.955

-LAST 20 YEARS OF TURKEY DISCUSSED IN PARIS

PARIS - The last two decades of Turkey was discussed at a meeting organized by French-Turkish Friendship Committee in Paris on Sunday.

French and Turkish academicians spoke at the meeting which was consisted of four topics which were ''Republic, nation and democracy'', ''Society and Culture'', ''Capitalism, social issues and globalization in Turkey'' and ''Expectations for the future''.

Political and economic crises in Turkey, earthquake disasters, separatist and fundamentalist terrorism, wars in the region, globalization movements and developments after the Cold War were

Turkish Ambassador in Paris Sonmez Koksal and French-Turkish Friendship Committee Chairman Alexandre Jevakhoff.

Vorld

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