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Turkish Press Review, 98-12-07
From: Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs <http://www.mfa.gov.tr>
07.12.98
Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning
CONTENTS
[01] ECEVIT TO MEET PARTY LEADERS
[02] PARLIAMENTARY IMMUNITY
[03] TISK CHAIRMAN: REFIK BAYDUR
[04] WORLD TURKISH BUSINESSMEN'S FOUNDATION
[05] GAP FOR EGYPT
[06] TURCO-EGYPTIAN TRADE RELATIONS
[07] EROGLU'S VICTORY IN TRNC
[08] SPECIAL AWARD TO MASUMIYET
[09] TWO DEAD IN CRASH OF SMALL PLANE
[10] OVER 500 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRESTED
[11] TURKISH MATHEMATICS GENIUS CRACKS 'UNSOLVABLE' PROBLEM
[12] THE BEST IN THE US
[13] KADDAFI DOES NOT WANT OCALAN
[14] BERLUSCONI: "WE SUPPORT TURKEY"
[15] EXTRADITION OF OCALAN CAN BE BROUGHT BEFORE EHRC
[16] EU: "OCALAN IS A TERRORIST"
[17] OCALAN MEETS ITALIAN JOURNALISTS
[18] XANTER: "WE ARE PREPARING TURKEY FOR FULL MEMBERSHIP"
[19] WORLD CHILDREN
[20] NATIONAL ENERGY CONGRESS
[21] WINTER FLOODING AND HEAVY RAINS
[22] TURKISH COMMANDO UNIT LEAVES FOR PAKISTAN
[23] UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO DISCUSS CYPRUS ISSUE
[24] CONSUMPTION OF TURKISH GOODS UP BY 15 % IN THE US
[25] REUTERS' NEW FAVOURITE: TURKEY
[26] DHKP-C IN A NEIGHBOUR COUNTRY
[27] INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR IN ANKARA
[28] TUGIAD REPRESENTATIVES IN BRUSSELS
[29] INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON HISTORY OF SCIENCE IN ISTANBUL
[01] ECEVIT TO MEET PARTY LEADERS
Prime Minister-designate Bulent Ecevit will meet True Path Party
(DYP) Leader Tansu Ciller today. In an attempt to form a
coalition government with his Democratic Left Party (DSP), the
Motherland (ANAP) and True Path (DYP) Parties, Ecevit has already
secured the support of ANAP. However, the DYP is so far hesitant
in joining such a government. Speaking to reporters after a short
but successful meeting with ANAP leader Mesut Yilmaz on Saturday,
Ecevit said he had offered the ANAP leader a coalition made up of
the DSP, ANAP and the DYP. He said Yilmaz had pledged full
support for his proposal. Speaking at a separate press
conference, Yilmaz said: "We have full confidence in Ecevit".
Ecevit noted that he would meet Yilmaz a second time after his
meeting with Ciller, adding that he would decide afterwards
whether to meet other party leaders. However, Virtue Party (FP)
leader Recai Kutan and Republican People's Party (CHP) leader
Deniz Baykal have already declared that Ecevit's meeting with
them would not change their opposition to the creation of a
DSP-led coalition government. National Movement Party (MHP)
leader Devlet Bahceli stated at a press conference that charging
DSP leader Ecevit with the formation of a new government has
critical drawbacks. /All papers/
[02] PARLIAMENTARY IMMUNITY
On Wednesday, debates will take place on a draft bill pertaining
to the amendment of Article 83 of the Constitution calling for a
reduction in the scope of parliamentary immunity. Except for the
Virtue Party (FP), all parties in Parliament have expressed their
support for the draft which, if passed, would make it possible to
try any deputy accused of committing a crime that would make him
or her ineligible for election to Parliament. /All papers/
[03] TISK CHAIRMAN: REFIK BAYDUR
During the 20th Ordinary Congress of the Turkish Confederation of
Employers' Unions (TISK), Refik Baydur was re-elected as
Chairman, receiving 100 votes from 130 members. Prime Minister
Mesut Yilmaz sent a message to Baydur and congratulated him.
/Aksam/
[04] WORLD TURKISH BUSINESSMEN'S FOUNDATION
The World Turkish Businessmen's Foundation has been established
in Ankara. The Foundation aims to set up and support
organizations, which enable Turkish businessmen to receive
further shares from the globalizing world economy and strengthen
their competitive power abroad. The capital for the Foundation
based in Ankara totals TL 12 billion. /Aksam/
[05] GAP FOR EGYPT
Turkish State Minister Isin Celebi, who has furnished information
regarding agreements which envisage economic cooperation between
Turkey and Egypt, said that they had signed an important and
historical agreement with Egypt. Celebi noted that they aimed to
triple foreign trade volume between Turkey and Egypt in the year
2000. Celebi stated that they also agreed to start negotiations
to carry out direct banking connections between Turkey and Egypt.
These connections have been made via Switzerland to date. Celebi
pointed out that there was a project similar to Turkey's
Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) in Egypt called TUSHKA.
Egyptian officials noted that they wanted to take advantage of
Turkey's experiences. /Aksam/
[06] TURCO-EGYPTIAN TRADE RELATIONS
A Turco-Egyptian Business Council meeting was held in Ankara
within the scope of President Husnu Mubarak visit to Ankara last
weekend. At the end of the meeting Minister of State, Isin
Celebi, Egyptian Minister of Finance, Yusuf Butros and Minister
of Trade, Ahmed Gouli, who accompanied the Egyptian President
Husnu Mubarak during his visit to Ankara last weekend, held a
meeting in Ankara. After the meeting they issued a joint
statement saying that Turkey and Egypt had decided to sign a Free
Trade Agreement in 1999 to increase the trade volume to $1
billion. The statement noted that with the agreement they aimed
to reach a $2 billion trade volume in 2005. /Sabah/Turkiye/
[07] EROGLU'S VICTORY IN TRNC
The Turkish Cypriots voted yesterday to elect 50 new members of
the unicameral Republican Assembly. More than 120,000 eligible
voters turned up at voting stations to elect lawmakers from among
352 candidates fielded by seven political parties. There were
also two independent candidates. According to unofficial results,
the National Unity Party (UBP) headed by Prime Minister Dervis
Eroglu won the general elections, receiving 43.65 % of the votes.
The Democrat Party (DP) received 22.31 % of the votes while the
Republican Turkish Party (CTP) received 13.52 %. /Aksam/
[08] SPECIAL AWARD TO MASUMIYET
During the Mediterranean Films Festival in Brussels, the Turkish
film 'Masumiyet' (Innocence) was presented with the jury's
"special award". The Italian film 'Medal' won the Festival
attended by 40 films from 20 countries. /Aksam/
[09] TWO DEAD IN CRASH OF SMALL PLANE
A small plane owned by private firm Dogus Air crashed shortly
after takeoff at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport yesterday killing the
pilot (Kadir Deveci) and the copilot (Yusuf Cetinkaya). According
to reports, the small plane crashed near the runway, hit an empty
cargo container and caught fire. There were no passengers on
board. The plane was flying to Antalya when it headed back to the
airport after the crew reported a technical problem. Governor
Erol Cakir commented that the cause of the crash would be
determined after a technical investigation had been completed.
/All papers/
[10] OVER 500 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRESTED
The Turkish ship "Sirinbahce" ran aground between Canakkale's
Lapseki and Biga districts on Saturday packed with 600 illegal
immigrants. Approximately 500 of the passengers were arrested,
and authorities are currently in search of the crew and the
captain of the ship. The majority of the 500 arrested illegal
immigrants were Kurds, among them many women and children. The
illegal immigrants also included Afghans, Iraqi Kurds and
Africans, all of whom had intended to make their way to Italy,
Canakkale Governor Ekrem Ozsoy said. /All papers/
[11] TURKISH MATHEMATICS GENIUS CRACKS 'UNSOLVABLE' PROBLEM
Murat Aygen, the man who solved the space geometry problem that
could not be solved, has caught the attention of the mathematics
world. Naoki Sato of Yale University's Department of Mathematics
congratulated Aygen on his success and announced that he would
publish the solution to the problem in the magazine 'Math
Mayhem'. Aygen, who is currently employed as a translator with
the Foreign Ministry's Turkish Cooperation Development Agency
(TIKA), reported that the problem he solved was in the field of
space geometry. The theorem, known as "The Identity of a
Tetrahedron", had been identified by scientists but had remained
unsolved until now. /All papers/
[12] THE BEST IN THE US
Dr.Murat Tuzcu who is working as a cardiologist at The Cleveland
Clinic, one of the leading medicinal centres in the world, has
entered the "Best Doctors" list in the US. Murat Tuzcu has many
scientific publications. Dr.Tuzcu said that he was proud of this
achievement as a physician educated in Turkey. In addition to
many awards he has acquired over the years, Murat Tuzcu who is
known as "number one cardiologist" at the Cleveland Clinic has
written scientific publications on symptoms, observations,
prognosis and treatment. /Hurriyet/
[13] KADDAFI DOES NOT WANT OCALAN
Libyan Leader Kaddafi said in a statement to the Il Manifesto
newspaper that he did not know the PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan and
was not considering granting political asylum to him. Kaddafi
also blamed Turkey, the US and NATO regarding the Kurdish
problem. /Hurriyet/
[14] BERLUSCONI: "WE SUPPORT TURKEY"
The Italian main opposition leader and chairman of the Forza
Italia Party Silvio Berlusconi sent a message to State Minister
and Deputy Prime Minister Serdar Denktas on the occasion of the
general elections in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
(TRNC) and said that they fully supported Turkey over the Ocalan
crisis. Berlusconi noted that the left-wing government in Italy
did not take lessons from history and was supporting a terrorist
organization instead of struggling against it. /Hurriyet/
[15] EXTRADITION OF OCALAN CAN BE BROUGHT BEFORE EHRC
It was reported that those who had suffered from terrorism could
individually apply to the European Human Rights Commission for
the extradition of Ocalan from Italy. According to the European
Human Rights Contract, political parties, associations and trade
corporations can also bring a suit against Italy before the
Commission. /Cumhuriyet/
[16] EU: "OCALAN IS A TERRORIST"
The European Union term-president and Austrian Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Wofgang Schussel, said at the end of the first day's
session of the EU Council yesterday in Brussels that the PKK was
a terrorist organization. He added the EU would not take a joint
decision about Abdullah Ocalan and would not start any
initiatives about him. Schussel stressed that they would not like
to damage their relations with Turkey.
Meanwhile, the German Minister of Foreign Affairs, Joschka
Fischer, said they tried to find a solution which would not
disturb Ankara and that the idea of an international conference
on Kurdish issue was an unofficial one. The British delegation in
Brussels pointed out that they were completely against an
international conference on the issue. French officials also
stated that the PKK was a terrorist organization. /Sabah/
[17] OCALAN MEETS ITALIAN JOURNALISTS
The chief of the terrorist organization, Abdullah Ocalan, met
Italian journalists in his villa where he had been ordered to
stay. ERNK, the political wing of the PKK, announced that
representatives of the Corriere della Sera, La Stampa and La
Republica newspapers met Ocalan. It was also reported that Ocalan
gave an interview to the German ZDF TV channel.
Meanwhile, Turkish Embassy officials in Rome showed their
reaction to the Italian administration saying that Ocalan should
be prevented from holding a press meeting. /Sabah/
[18] XANTER: "WE ARE PREPARING TURKEY FOR FULL MEMBERSHIP"
The EU formally informed Greece that it was preparing Turkey for
full membership. In the letter to the Greek Prime Minister Kostas
Simitis, the Head of the EU Commission Jacques Xanter noted that
the Union was "determined to by-pass" the existing Greek veto
against the transference of funds to Turkey within the framework
of the route towards full membership. Xanter wrote: "To prepare
for the EU membership of this country requires not only legal
coherence but also the satisfaction of the material needs of the
population by means of EU aid." Xanter further complained that
the funds to be conferred to Turkey according to financial
protocols within the context of the Customs Unions Contract had
also been "besieged" by the Greek veto.
It was reported that all of the EU members but Greece were agreed
to grant Turkey the status of "candidate member country" and were
preparing to confirm their decisiveness in this matter during the
Vienna summit at the weekend. Meanwhile, it was also reported
that, in a report concerning the progress made by candidate
countries towards membership, Turkey was examined among those "12
country candidates for EU membership". /Milliyet/Turkiye/
[19] WORLD CHILDREN
The '16th International Father Christmas Call for World Peace'
organized by the Father Christmas Foundation in Antalya has been
celebrated with several activities attended by 550 children from
43 countries. Folkloric dances and marches were also held.
/Hurriyet/
[20] NATIONAL ENERGY CONGRESS
The first Energy Congress in the 75-year history of the Republic
of Turkey will be held in Istanbul today. During the three-day
meeting, Turkey's energy outlook for the 21st century will be
discussed. President Suleyman Demirel, Prime Minister Mesut
Yilmaz and Energy Minister Cumhur Ersumer are expected to attend.
/All papers/
[21] WINTER FLOODING AND HEAVY RAINS
Winter has shown itself with floods in cities around Turkey. In
Edirne 200 workplaces and residences were flooded, and firemen
and residents were kept busy pumping water from flooded
buildings. Strong southwest winds have badly affected daily life
in Bursa, while winter arrived in the form of heavy rainfall in
the Mugla region. /All papers/
[22] TURKISH COMMANDO UNIT LEAVES FOR PAKISTAN
A 35-man Turkish commando unit yesterday set out for Islamabad to
take part in a joint military manoeuvre with the Pakistani
military. The manoeuvres will take place on December 7-18. The
unit, made up of 21 officers and 14 non-commissioned officers,
left Ankara's Etimesgut Air Base in an Air Force plane. /All
papers/
[23] UN SECURITY COUNCIL TO DISCUSS CYPRUS ISSUE
The UN Security Council will discuss the Cyprus issue at an
unofficial meeting on December 11 that may continue for several
sessions, the Anatolia news agency reported from New York.
Meanwhile, UN envoy Ann Hercus' shuttle diplomacy mission in
Cyprus is continuing.
[24] CONSUMPTION OF TURKISH GOODS UP BY 15 % IN THE US
In the first nine months of 1998, Turkey succeeded in increasing
its exports to markets other than Russia and Germany despite the
economic crisis. As the exports from the EU to the US decreased,
Turkey's exports to the US increased by 15 %. In imports to
Turkey a general decline has been noted from all countries
excepting France. During this period, Turkey exported mainly
agricultural and forestry products, and imported consumer goods.
/Hurriyet/
[25] REUTERS' NEW FAVOURITE: TURKEY
Turkey is the new favourite of Reuters', one of the major news
agencies in the world. The chairman of the Turkish Desk at
Reuters', Sameeh El Din stated that they attached great
importance to Turkey's potential and its geographic location
uniting two continents. He added that in their news bulletin they
were allowing more room to Turkish for an hour and news about
Turkey. Sameeh Al-din said: "The interest in news about Turkey is
growing every day and we want the world to notice Turkey through
our news." /Hurriyet/
[26] DHKP-C IN A NEIGHBOUR COUNTRY
The dimensions of the arms scandal breaking out in Bulgaria is
widening. In a cell discovered in Haskova, organizational
documents, action plans and notes in code were found. In an
operation carried out by the Bulgarian police, six Kalashnikov
machine guns, four Makarov pistols, and 40 kgs of explosives were
seized in addition to organizational documents and dollar bills
belonging to the illegal leftist organization, the DHKP-C. The
arms confiscated during the investigation were planned to be
transported to members in rural areas. /Hurriyet/
[27] INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR IN ANKARA
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Turkish Cooperation and
Development Agency (TIKA) will organize a joint international
seminar on "The Importance of Industry and Cooperatives for the
Support of SSEs" on 8-10 December in Ankara. The role of the
government in preparing the infrastructure of small-to-medium
scale enterprises (SSEs), industrial areas and cooperatives, and
the support to be given to SSEs through trade and technology
centres will be discussed. /Turkiye/
[28] TUGIAD REPRESENTATIVES IN BRUSSELS
The Chairman of the Turkish Young Businessmen's Association
(TUGIAD), Hamdi Akin, who is in Brussels, said that some circles
were disturbing Turco-European Union (EU) relations. Meanwhile,
Hakan Hanli, the representative of TUGIAD, drew attention to the
fact that Ocalan would be used as an "opportunity" against
Turkey. Hanli stressed that new scenarios had been created to
exclude Turkey from Europe. /Turkiye/
[29] INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON HISTORY OF SCIENCE IN ISTANBUL
The Executive Board meeting of the International Union of History
and Philosophy was held in Yildiz Palace in Istanbul. The meeting
aimed to gather texts to contribute to the development of history
of science and philosophy and to support research activities in
the area. /Turkiye/
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