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Turkish Press Review, 07-12-10
From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>
Summary of the political and economic
news in the Turkish press this morning
10.12.2007
FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS ...
CONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN OPENS NEW AIRPORT IN HATAY
[02] PARLIAMENT SPEAKER VISITS KUWAIT
[03] DEPUTY PM: “OUR GREATEST WISH IS THAT TURKS LIVE SAFELY, FREE FROM DISCRIMINATION”
[04] AHMEDINEJAD DUE TO VISIT TURKEY
[05] OPENING OUTSIDE, CLOSING INSIDE
[01] ERDOGAN OPENS NEW AIRPORT IN HATAY
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday attended the inauguration of
a new airport in the southern province of Hatay. "When everything has
settled from the latest passing issue, what remains are the services
provided," he said. "Every opening of a new facility means providing
service to the Turkish people, who deserve the best." He added, "Before
this July’s elections, I made a promise to thousands of people in Hatay
that I would soon visit this province. Today, I am pleased to fulfill that
promise.” Erdogan later proceeded to the Cilvegozu border crossing, where
he is set to inaugurate a new service building at the Turkish-Syrian
border. /Sabah/
[02] PARLIAMENT SPEAKER VISITS KUWAIT
Parliament Speaker Koksal Toptan yesterday called on Kuwaiti businessmen to
invite in Turkey. On the second day of his visit to Kuwait, Toptan met with
Emir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah and thanked him for Kuwait’s
support for Turkey on international issues, especially Cyprus. “I invite
Kuwaitis to invest in Turkey, especially in the health and tourism sectors,
” said Toptan. /Turkiye/
[03] DEPUTY PM: “OUR GREATEST WISH IS THAT TURKS LIVE SAFELY, FREE FROM
DISCRIMINATION”
In a message marking World Human Rights Day, Deputy Prime Minister Cemil
Cicek yesterday said that the government sees human rights as an
indispensable element of Turkey’s development and democratization. “Our
greatest wish is that Turkish citizens live in their own country without
fear or uneasiness, without being subjected to discrimination, and happily
and safely as first-class citizens,” said Cicek. “We are making great
efforts towards this end.” /Turkiye/
[04] AHMEDINEJAD DUE TO VISIT TURKEY
Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad-Ali Hosseini yesterday said that
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has plans to visit Turkey, but that
the exact date of his trip has not yet been set. /Hurriyet/
FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS ...
[05] OPENING OUTSIDE, CLOSING INSIDE
BY ERDAL SAFAK (SABAH)
Columnist Erdal Safak comments on Africa’s colonial era and Turkey’s
relations with the EU. A summary of his column is as follows:
“Turkey is undergoing a strange process. During a time when people are
retreating into themselves more and more each day due to their anti-
Westernism, they’re being ruled by a government whose openness is
unprecedented in the history of the republic. Fortunately, Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his team aren’t being influenced by these winds,
which might push Turkey into dangerous waters. As part of the
government’s policy to bring Turkey to the level that it deserves
everywhere and on every continent, Erdogan and Foreign Minister Babacan
attended the Second European-African Summit last weekend in Lisbon, where
European Union Term President Portugal managed to bring together 53 African
and 28 European countries.
The first European-African Summit was held in Cairo in 2000, also during
Portugal’s EU term presidency. It was decided there that these meetings
would become regular, with the next one to be held in 2003. But this
couldn’t be done due to problems in Zimbabwe. At that time, dictator
Robert Mugabe started to show his true face; he was arresting opponents and
even having them murdered, seizing the property of whites, and using his
racist xenophobic rhetoric to try to make people forget the skyrocketing
unemployment (82 percent), hunger, and inflation (6,000 percant). But
Portugal didn’t give up, and finally managed to convene a second summit.
So why is Portugal so interested in Africa? They claim ‘conscientious
sensitivity,’ but the actual reason is their bad conscience. Portugal was
the first colonialist European country, and it ruined Africa. It started to
do whatever it wanted on the West African coast as early as the 1300s. This
was followed by the voyages of Vasco de Gama in 1497. As a result of these
trips, Portugal carved out a monopoly in the African ivory and gold trade.
And, importantly, it pioneered the slave trade. In the beginning, about 800
Africans were kidnapped and brought to Portugal to cover a shortage of
workers. When it extended its colonial empire to the other side of Atlantic
and also captured Brazil, hundreds of thousands of Africans were made
slaves and brought there. Other colonial powers followed: Britain, France,
Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium.
When do you think slavery was banned? At the Berlin Congress of 1885. The
Ottoman Empire attended that meeting as well due to its territory in
Africa. One hundred and twenty-two years later, Turkey again set its hands
on Africa as a European power. Africans have no problem with Turkey, but
their message to other European countries is clear. They think that their
oil, uranium and other minerals whetted the appetite of the Europeans, who
don’t want China or the US to have them instead. Africans also think that
Europeans should first recognize the grave damage their colonialism caused.
On the other hand, Europeans think that we should consider not the past,
but the future. As in the case of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, they
don’t even apologize. The summit will be held on Friday and Saturday.
Let’s see if Sarkozy and German Prime Minister Angela Merkel will make
their advice to Africa into criteria for them, and view the future in terms
of their relationship with Turkey, or show more insincerity. We’ll
see.”
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