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Turkish Press Review, 08-08-25Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>Summary of the political and economic news in the Turkish press this morning25.08.2008FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNSCONTENTS
[01] ERDOGAN VISITS RIZEPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accompanied by State Minister Hayati Yazici, paid a visit to the Black Sea coastal city of Rize over the weekend. Addressing a meeting of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Erdogan said that Turkish people had given great support to the AKP. Stressing that his government had ensured reliability and stability in Turkey, the premier added that they would continue to serve the nation in line with the basic principles of the republic. /Turkiye/[02] STATE MINISTER SAHIN IN KAZAKHSTAN FOR CONFERENCEState Minister for the Economy Mehmet Sahin left for Kazakhstan on Saturday to attend a conference on "Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia" set for today. He is also set to hold bilateral talks with Kazakh officials. /Turkish Daily News/[03] CAGLAYAN: "PUTTING MONEY IN TURKEY HAS BECOME A PRIVILEGE FOR FOREIGN INVESTORS"Investing in Turkey has become a privilege for foreign investors, said Industry and Trade Minister Zafer Caglayan yesterday. Touting Turkey as an important automobile production hub, he said, "In recent years Turkey has made important strides towards being a state under the rule of law, in line with international law, with a well-established market economy, and this has made Turkey a favored and attractive location for foreign investors." Stressing that Turkey enjoys key advantages to attract more foreign investments, he said that the government had made sweeping legal changes to make such investing easier. He said that to make the progress in its automotive sector sustainable, Turkey should also have an inexpensive auto sector. The government will provide interest-free loans to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) which do exports, he said. Touching on recent international economic woes, he added, "As long as Turkey's economic development trend continues, income growth and demand will keep rising. This means the automotive sector won't face any dramatic contractions in the future." /Sabah/[04] IN AFYONKARAHISAR, CHP'S BAYKAL LASHES OUT AT ERDOGANSpeaking in the town of Kemerkaya, Afyonkarahisar, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal yesterday criticized Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Speaking about allegations of corruption concerning ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Deputy Chairman Saban Disli, Baykal said, "The AKP won more votes in last year's general elections, but they couldn't follow through." He added, "Turkey is worried about its future. Using his business connections in Istanbul, the premier's right-hand man got $1 million. And the prime minister says, 'I will do a clean hands operation.' Physician, heal yourself." /Cumhuriyet/[05] BAHCELI: "BRIBERY, EMBEZZLEMENT, AND FAVORITISM ARE LIKE A CANCER EATING AWAY AT SOCIETY"Although public services is being provided effectively in many areas, certain notorious cases have enabled embezzlement and bribery to cast a shadow over all public administration, said opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli yesterday. Speaking at an opening ceremony in Kastamonu, Bahceli added that bribery, embezzlement, and favoritism are like a cancer which has destroyed entire societies. "At some times, unfortunately, our country has suffered grievously from this illness, and still has yet to recover from it," he said. "Neither our nation nor its leaders should ignore it when someone is trying to spread these illnesses to society at large." /Aksam/FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS…FROM THE COLUMNS [06] ENVIRONMENTALISM IN THE NATIONAL PROGRAMBY FERAI TINC (HURRIYET)Columnist Ferai Tinc comments on Turkey's environmental policy. A summary of her column is as follows: "The government has prepared its third national plan for the European Union's acquis communautaire, which means the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government has put EU reforms back on the agenda. The following oft- repeated slogan has ended up making little sense: 'Without Brussels, we would continue EU reforms as the Ankara reforms.' So I'm glad the reforms are back on the government front burner, but I can't tell you who will implement them. Can such reforms be prepared and implemented in the absence of a strong-willed political leadership? They cannot. What's more, when there are so many examples showing the shortcomings of this will, this makes prospects seem very dim indeed. For example, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemns environmentalists not only on the local level, but also internationally. If he says environmentalists do nothing important and dismisses non-governmental organizations' environmentalist campaigns as the work of idle people, how will he implement environmental reforms to comply with the acquis? What's more, the environment is one of the EU acquis' most difficult chapters. I reviewed the national program yesterday. Among the laws Parliament has to pass is the Law on Protecting Nature and Biological Diversity and also the Law on Bio-safety, and a Framework Water Law. In short, the national program has things done by certain people to put their spare time to good use. In addition, the program envisages the passage of laws to comply with international environmental agreements Turkey has signed onto: the Bonn, Gothenburg, Rotterdam and Aarhus pacts. The latter includes something Erdogan should consider when he gets angry with environmentalist opposition to nuclear power plants. Aarhus covers the right to information about the environment, participation in decision-making mechanisms, and access to the judiciary. It also includes matters such as public bodies preparing environmental impact reports and the nation's participation in this process. But how can this possibly be done? How will a prime minister go from being angry at environmentalists yesterday to being able to push through these reforms with the political will to implement them tomorrow? A government can propose building nuclear power plants, but using facts to try and change the minds of nuclear opponents is also very important. While presenting nuclear energy as an inevitable alternative, one should be knowledgeable about clean energy or at least tell people who respect the environment and natural resources that efforts in this direction are being made. There is an international trend towards prioritizing the environment as the key factor. The years to come will determine world policies and how the global demand for basic needs such as food, water and energy will be met. People will devote more time to environmental protection and how to ensure this while promoting economic productivity. But perhaps those who look blankly into the future will never be able to understand this." Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |