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Turkish Press Review, 01-05-03

Turkish Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

03.05.2001


CONTENTS

  • [01] PRIME MINISTER ECEVIT IN SPAIN
  • [02] CEM TO VISIT SWEDEN FOR EU TALKS
  • [03] DERVIS: "GERMAN BUSINESSMEN ARE PLEASED WITH THE ECONOMIC PROGRAM"
  • [04] DENKTAS: "VERHEUGEN'S STATEMENT CONTROVERSIAL"
  • [05] GREECE REAFFIRMS IT WILL BLOCK EU EXPANSION IF GREEK CYPRUS EXCLUDED
  • [06] TANTAN TO VISIT IRAN
  • [07] CILLER TO GO TO THE US
  • [08] TURKEY SUPPORTS MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM
  • [09] IMF FOREIGN AFFAIRS DIRECTOR DAWSON: "REFORMS IN TURKEY HAVE ACCELERATED"
  • [10] "LEVEL OF SOCIAL STANDARDS SHOULD BE INCREASED"
  • [11] NUCLEAR KNOW-HOW, FROM UKRAINE TO TURKEY
  • [12] POLISH-TURKISH INTERPARLIAMENTARY FRIENDSHIP GROUP VISITS TURKEY
  • [13] KINZER'S ARTICLE ON TURKEY
  • [14] COOPERATION BETWEEN FRANCE AND ARMENIA DURING THE WORLD WAR I
  • [15] PARLIAMENT APPROVES LAWYERS BILL
  • [16] SYRIAN GENERAL ADNAN BEDR AL-HASSAN TO VISIT ANKARA
  • [17] FEHRIYE ERDAL ON COURT TODAY
  • [18] LIMITATION OF THE POLITICAL IMMUNITY
  • [19] KIEKENS:"GLOBAL ECONOMY WILL BENEFIT FROM CREDIT EXTENDED TO TURKEY"
  • [20] NATURAL GAS MARKET LAW ENACTED
  • [21] GOLDEN SHARE FOR SECURITY
  • [22] FOREIGNERS RETURN TO IMKB
  • [23] EXIMBANK LOANS
  • [24] NEW TENDER BILL IS READY
  • [25] GERMAN MAN COMPANY TO INCREASE ITS INVESTMENTS IN TURKEY
  • [26] AIZANOI ANCIENT CITY TO DRAW IN TOURISTS
  • [27] PAINTERS OF FOUR COUNTRIES TO MEET
  • [28] WIND OF FESTIVAL IN ANKARA
  • [29] CHECHEN PANEL AT BILKENT UNIVERSITY
  • [30] TURKISH MUSICIANS RECEIVE AWARDS
  • [31] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...
  • [32] FREEDOM OF THE PRESS BY OKTAY EKSI (HURRIYET)

  • [01] PRIME MINISTER ECEVIT IN SPAIN

    Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit is traveling to Spain today as the official guest of his Spanish counterpart Jose Maria Aznar. On Ecevit's agenda will be Turkey's accession process to the EU, reforms in human rights and democracy and bilateral economic relations with Spain. It was stated Spain, who allows education and publication in different languages, is expected to convey her proposals and expectations on the issue of minorities' "right to use their own mother tongue in education and publications" to Turkey. Ecevit, who will visit Spain with a delegation consisting of Foreign Minister Ismail Cem and top-level economy bureaucrats, will request support for the new economic program. He will also invite Spanish investors to Turkey. Meanwhile, economy bureaucrats will inform Spanish officials about the economic program and new opportunities for foreign investors at the Turkey-Spain Business Council meetings. Ecevit will meet Aznar today and will be received by Spanish King Juan Carlos. /Cumhuriyet/

    [02] CEM TO VISIT SWEDEN FOR EU TALKS

    Foreign Minister Ismail Cem will visit Sweden to be present at the working lunch of the informal meeting of the European Union Foreign Ministers to be held on May 5-6. Foreign Ministry sources said on Wednesday that Cem will go to the city of Nykoping in Sweden at the invitation of Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, the current term-president of the EU. At the meeting, which is to hold debates over the future of Europe at the level of foreign ministers, the foreign ministers of member and candidate states are to present their views according to the realities of their states. Foreign Minister Ismail Cem will present his views at the working lunch of the informal meeting. /Turkish Daily News/

    [03] DERVIS: "GERMAN BUSINESSMEN ARE PLEASED WITH THE ECONOMIC PROGRAM"

    State Minister for the Economy, Kemal Dervis, said he is hopeful that foreign private financial institutions will support Turkey, but everybody wonders whether there is a political support behind the economic program. Dervis said, "The interest rates are declining. The current condition is not satisfactory, but we aim to decrease the inflation to single digit figures in 2003 and remove all kinds of depression in Turkey. It is of great importance that both internal and foreign investors be active in Turkey and create employment. The biggest problem in Turkey is unemployment." Responding to a reporter asking how do the German businessmen view the economic program, Dervis said, "Everybody is happy with the program. I am also happy that a definite amount of financial assistance will be given by an official institution(IMF)and this will ease the markets. Private sector always wants to get profit. We expect foreign investors to come into both financial area and real sector. But, everybody asks whether the program will be implemented on time and properly. We try to assure them that the program will be implemented successfully." /Milliyet/

    [04] DENKTAS: "VERHEUGEN'S STATEMENT CONTROVERSIAL"

    Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas said EU Commissioner responsible for Enlargement, Gunther Verheugen's speech stating while the UN was responsible for the current situation on Cyprus, EU's responsibility was to carry Cyprus to full EU membership was a great contradiction. Denktas said the path towards the EU meant the colonization of Turkish Cypriots by the Greeks. /Cumhuriyet/

    [05] GREECE REAFFIRMS IT WILL BLOCK EU EXPANSION IF GREEK CYPRUS EXCLUDED

    Greece reaffirmed yesterday it will veto the expansion of the European Union if the Greek Cypriot administration is excluded, a stand that could put Greece at odds with EU partners wary of accepting the divided island. "This is the steady Greek stand," Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos said the following meetings with the visiting Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides. Turkey does not approve Greek Cyprus' EU membership before the Cyprus issue is resolved. /Turkish News/

    [06] TANTAN TO VISIT IRAN

    The Minister of the Interior, Sadettin Tantan's visit to Iran, which kept on being postponed due to the operations against the terrorist Hizbullah organization, which will take place next week. Tantan will maintain contacts concerning the organized crime and his visit will last for four days. /Sabah/

    [07] CILLER TO GO TO THE US

    True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller will visit Washington and New York on 7-9 May. She is expected to arrive in Washington on 7 May and will make a speech at the Washington Institute. /Sabah/

    [08] TURKEY SUPPORTS MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEM

    Representatives of the US President George W. Bush will start a tour to European and Asian countries including Turkey to brief about a new missile defense system which is planned to be established by the US. The US Deputy Secretary State, Richard Armitage, National Security Deputy Advisor, Stephen Hadley, and Deputy Secretary of Defense, Paul Wolfowitz, will visit the countries including Turkey, Japan, South Korea, China, Singapore, Australia, India, Britain, France, Germany, Denmark, Poland, the Netherlands, Canada and NATO Headquarters in Brussels to explain the US views on the new missile defense system and ask support for it. /Turkiye/

    [09] IMF FOREIGN AFFAIRS DIRECTOR DAWSON: "REFORMS IN TURKEY HAVE ACCELERATED"

    IMF Foreign Affairs Director Tom Dawson sent a letter to the US daily The Washington Times in a reply to a criticism naming the IMF (International Monetary Fund) as "International Misery Fund". Dawson said IMF programs were approved by an international society including US President George Bush himself. Emphasizing many countries in Asia, Latin America and Europe benefited greatly from their cooperation with the IMF, Dawson said the success of the economic program in a country was totally dependent on the determination of that country. Stating reforms in Turkey did not slow down as the Washington Times argued, Dawson said, "On the contrary, reforms have accelerated as in the case of the restructuring of the banking sector." He added President Bush supported Turkey's efforts to overcome the crisis. /Cumhuriyet/

    [10] "LEVEL OF SOCIAL STANDARDS SHOULD BE INCREASED"

    The Turkey-Europe Foundation sent messages of congratulations to the associations constituting Labor Platform on the May 1 Labor Day. The Foundation said social conditions and democratic structure in the EU countries must be a target for Turkey. Emphasizing the minimum social standards foreseen by the EU are very important, the Foundation argued the improvement of Turkish people's social standards depends upon developing the organizations on the issue at a global level. "The principles of Maastricht Treaty institutionalizing the social dialogue culture in Europe should be implemented by the parties of social life and the government in Turkey. Improving social standards of the labor is very important for an advanced democracy and is also a guarantee for social peace." said the statement by the Turkey-Europe Foundation. /Cumhuriyet/

    [11] NUCLEAR KNOW-HOW, FROM UKRAINE TO TURKEY

    Turkey and Ukraine signed an agreement which foresees cooperation between the two countries on early warning systems for nuclear incidents, and know-how transfer for nuclear power plants. According to the agreement, which was published on the Official Gazette yesterday, each country will immediately warn the other in the event of a nuclear incident. In addition, should Turkey or Ukraine find that levels of radioactivity within their countries is higher than average, they will inform each other according to the agreement. /Turkish News/

    [12] POLISH-TURKISH INTERPARLIAMENTARY FRIENDSHIP GROUP VISITS TURKEY

    Polish-Turkish Interparliamentary Friendship Group President Tadeusz Iwinski and the Polish delegation arrived in Ankara yesterday, and in the evening a reception was held at the Polish Embassy for them. Iwinski will meet Bekir Ongun, his Turkish counterpart, at the Turkish Parliament building today, after which he will have a meeting with Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Kamran Inan. Later in the day, Iwinski and his group are scheduled to visit the Anatolian Civilizations Museum in Ankara. He will hold another important meeting during the day with the chairman of the Polish-Turkish Joint Commission, State Minister Hasan Gemici. In the evening, the group will be on route to Nevsehir to visit ancient cities. Iwinski and other members of the Polish-Turkish Interparliamentary Friendship Group will arrive in Istanbul and depart for Poland on Saturday evening. /Turkish Daily News/

    [13] KINZER'S ARTICLE ON TURKEY

    Completing his term of duty, 'The New York Times' correspondent in Turkey, Stephen Kinzer, has gone back to the US. However, the successful writer cannot break his ties with Turkey. Kinzer, who is currently writing for the culture and art department of the journal, wrote an article titled 'Turkey's Art and Culture Kaleidoscope', including Turkey's richness of historical artifacts. The article wrote, "During the time I spent in Turkey, people kept on asking my opinion about the museums to be visited. I had an answer for this question, that is, a list of the collections to be visited as an introduction. However, I have experienced some difficulties while making suggestions. Because Turkey itself is a museum. No country in the world has hosted such a variety of civilizations during such periods of time." /Sabah/

    [14] COOPERATION BETWEEN FRANCE AND ARMENIA DURING THE WORLD WAR I

    It was uncovered that France had been in cooperation with the Armenians during the World War I. The facts were proven by documents showing that France provided military training to the Armenians against Turks during the military maneuvers in Egypt, Syria, Cyprus, Iskenderun and Adana during the World War I. The documents in the archives of the times prove how France used the Armenians, who lived as the Ottoman citizens, against Turks. /Turkiye/

    [15] PARLIAMENT APPROVES LAWYERS BILL

    Parliament in its plenary session has approved the first two chapters of the Lawyers Bill, which will bring radical reforms to the profession, the Anatolia news agency reported yesterday. The bill requires that prospective lawyers complete an internship and then pass an exam in order to be lawyers and that these exams are to be conducted by the Student Selection and Placement Center (OSYM). Only lawyers starting their internships after the law goes into effect will have to take the exam. The exam will be held twice a year and should the applicant fail six exams she_he will not be allowed to apply again. Loans will be given to interns by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB). /Turkish Daily News/

    [16] SYRIAN GENERAL ADNAN BEDR AL-HASSAN TO VISIT ANKARA

    As a follow-up to the ongoing talks between Turkish and Syrian military officials, Syrian General Adnan Bedr Al-Hassan will visit Ankara in June for talks with his Turkish counterpart Gendarmerie Forces Commander Aytac Yalman, diplomatic sources told the Turkish Daily News. Yalman and Bedr Al-Hassan will debate within the context and as a follow-up to the Adana agreement, which was signed between the two officials in 1998. The agreement paved the way for the opening of a new page in relations between the two countries, after the PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan left Damascus. /Turkish Daily News/ IMF DIRECTORS MEETING ON MAY 8 The IMF executive directors will evaluate Turkey's letter of intent on May 8. The $8 billion loan which will be extended by the IMF is expected to be approved at that date. The letter of intent includes performance criteria, such as net internal assets and budget. The IMF directors meeting may be postponed if the Banking Law and the Law on Privatization of Turk Telekom are not ratified until May 8. /Milliyet/

    [17] FEHRIYE ERDAL ON COURT TODAY

    One of the assassins in the Ozdemir Sabanci murder, terrorist Fehriye Erdal, will be on court today in Brussels for the second hearing of a case appealed by the Sabanci family demanding her trial for her crimes committed in Turkey. The Belgian government insists on her trial for her crimes committed in Belgium such as carrying weapon, joining the activities of an criminal organization and bearing a false identity card, not for the crimes committed in Turkey. /Turkiye/

    [18] LIMITATION OF THE POLITICAL IMMUNITY

    Supports came from other parties for Nationalist Action Party leader (MHP) and Deputy Prime Minister Devlet Bahceli's declarations on the "necessity for the limitation of deputies' immunity." In their statements, Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, Deputy Prime Minister and the Motherland Party (ANAP) leader Mesut Yilmaz, Virtue Party (FP) leader, Recai Kutan, and True Path Party (DYP) leader, Tansu Ciller, all expressed their desires for the restriction of the deputies' immunity. /Turkiye/

    [19] KIEKENS:"GLOBAL ECONOMY WILL BENEFIT FROM CREDIT EXTENDED TO TURKEY"

    The IMF Belgium Representative, Willy Kiekens, said the global economy will benefit from the support given to Turkey. Speaking to the Belgian newspaper "La Libre Belgique", Kiekens said, "$10 billion credit that we decided to extend to Turkey last week will be added to the $10 billion credit that was previously given. This the highest amount that the IMF has extended to a country following the case in Korea." Kiekens said this credit will be useful for the balance of the global economy. /Milliyet/

    [20] NATURAL GAS MARKET LAW ENACTED

    The Natural Gas Market Law, one of the 15 reform laws of the government, was enacted yesterday and went into effect after its promulgation on the Official Gazette. Accordingly, an Energy Marketing Regulation Institution will be formed, municipalities can cooperate with distribution firms and firms which violate the law will have to pay a fine of TL 500 billion. /Turkiye/

    [21] GOLDEN SHARE FOR SECURITY

    State Minister Kemal Dervis had a phone call with Second Chief of the General Staff, Gen.Yasar Buyukanit regarding the "security" reservation of the Office of the General Staff on the privatization of Telekom. After the talk, Dervis said, "The problem is not that big and can be solved by retaining the golden share of Telekom to the state. With holding the golden share, Turkey's all kinds of security concerns can be eliminated. Privatization, if implemented in an honest manner and taking into account the transparency principle, will strengthen the economic position of Turkey." /Milliyet/

    [22] FOREIGNERS RETURN TO IMKB

    Chairman of the Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB), Osman Birsen said, "Foreigners' share in the IMKB rose to 37%-38% in the last ten days." Stressing that foreign investors were in the IMKB even in the worst days, Birsen said, "The IMKB is an inexpensive stock exchange. Due to the losses in index and devaluation, it becomes cheaper in foreign currency. This is an opportunity not to be missed." /Turkiye/

    [23] EXIMBANK LOANS

    According to the US economic sources, the US, Japan and Germany will grant Eximbank loans to Turkey this year under very convenient conditions to be used in financing Turkey's foreign trade. Reportedly, the total amount of loan will be over $2 billion. Meanwhile, this year, Turkey's exports are expected to go beyond the level of $30 billion. /Turkiye/

    [24] NEW TENDER BILL IS READY

    The "Construction 2001 Istanbul Fair" was opened by Minister of Public Works and Housing, Koray Aydin, yesterday. Replying to a question posed by a journalist regarding the new tender bill, Minister Aydin said, "Preparation of the bill is completed. We will convey it to the EU Secretariat General to be examined by the EU and then we will present it to the Parliament. Everybody agreed on the bill and I expect it will pass through the Parliament rapidly." /Turkiye/ 17% INCREASE IN EXPORTS Exports in April increased by 17% compared to the same month last year. In four months, the exports increased by 11.8%. /Milliyet/ 93% INCREASE IN AUTOMOTIVE EXPORTS The automotive exports increased by 93% in April compared to the same month last year. Tofas and Oyak Renault export almost all of their production. In four months, automobiles worth $350.9 million were exported. /Milliyet/

    [25] GERMAN MAN COMPANY TO INCREASE ITS INVESTMENTS IN TURKEY

    The German MAN Company decided to enlarge its factory in Ankara. MAN Company's second biggest investment is in Turkey following Germany. The Company now produces 500 buses in the facilities in Turkey and this number is expected to reach 2,000 with the new investments. Group Director of MANAS Marketing, Tuncay Bekiroglu, said, "All sorts of instability and economic crisis cause a question mark but the Germans think that Turkey can overcome these problems immediately. We predict that the situation of the business world will be better during the last quarter of the year. However, the conditions are harder when compared to those in 1994. If the determination in the economic program continues and the political stability is maintained, then the year 2002 will be much better." /Sabah/ 1 MILLION TOURISTS IN ANTALYA The amount of tourists to visit Antalya is expected to reach 1 million by the end of May of this year. The governor of Antalya, Ertugrul Dokuzoglu, said this year Antalya will host around 4.5 million tourists. /Milliyet/ 350,000 BELGIAN TOURISTS IN TURKEY The Belgian bank Fortis' Istanbul branch manager, Jacques Laloux, evaluated the economic crisis in Turkey to the Belgian newspaper and said it is the right time to invest in Turkey. In the economy section of the newspaper, tourism is considered to be an important asset for Turkey and said that around 350,000 Belgians will come to Turkey this year. /Milliyet/

    [26] AIZANOI ANCIENT CITY TO DRAW IN TOURISTS

    The 5,000 year of city of Aizanoi in the Cavdarhisar district of Kutahya and which boasts the only undamaged 'social complex' in Anatolia still standing, is expecting more attention, the Anatolia news agency reported yesterday. Mayor of Cavdarhisar Ismail Tanriverdi said that Aizanoi, which contains works dating back to 3,000 BC, had not been promoted well enough and was unknown to tourists. /Turkish Daily News/

    [27] PAINTERS OF FOUR COUNTRIES TO MEET

    The second Painting Exhibition to be organized with the participation of the German, Austrian, Swiss and Turkish painters will be opened at the European College on 4 May. The painting exhibition was organized by Die Brucke (The Bridge) Association, established by the Turkish people living in Germany, and the works of 18 painters will be exhibited. The exhibition will be open on 5-6 May between 10:00 and 17:00. /Hurriyet/

    [28] WIND OF FESTIVAL IN ANKARA

    In spite of the economic crisis, the wind of festival keeps on blowing in Ankara. Following the 18th Ankara Music Festival, the 4th Flying Broom Women's Films Festival and the 7th International Ankara Cartoon Festival will begin as well. Fourth Flying Broom Women's Films Festival will be opened tonight. The festival will bring together women film producers from 27 countries in six continents and will end on 10 May. The 7th International Ankara Cartoon Festival will be organized by the Cartoonists Association with the participation of cartoonists, academicians and artists on 4-8 May. /Hurriyet/

    [29] CHECHEN PANEL AT BILKENT UNIVERSITY

    The panel titled 'Chechnia' was organized by the student organizations of Bilkent University, Faculty of Fine Arts, during which the Chechen war and some incidents that occurred concerning the Chechen people in Turkey were discussed. A lecturer at Bilkent University, Associate Professor Hakan Kirimli made a speech at the Conference Hall of Bilkent University and said, "The Chechen war has been one of the most successful wars of independence in the course of history." /Turkiye/

    [30] TURKISH MUSICIANS RECEIVE AWARDS

    In the 10th International Discovery 2001 Music Competition held in Bulgaria in April, famous Turkish composer Selmi Andak and singer Nur Yoldas were presented with awards. In order to promote this international success, a press conference was organized yesterday at Istanbul's Ataturk Culture Center. /Turkish News/

    [31] FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS...

    [32] FREEDOM OF THE PRESS BY OKTAY EKSI (HURRIYET)

    Columnist Oktay Eksi writes on the recent developments concerning the World Press Freedom Day. A summary of his column is as follows: "The intellectuals in civilized countries or those considering themselves to be civilized, wonder how their country is graded on the World Press Freedom Day. Every year, on May 3 countries where there is no freedom of press are being exhibited. Turkey constantly appears on these lists for years. Sometimes the criticism is well deserved and sometimes it is unjust. However, we are not able to get our name off these lists. On the World Press Freedom Day, the news that journalists are prevented from entering the lobbies of the Parliament will attract your attention. You cannot expect a Parliament afraid of journalists to tolerate freedom of the press. In Turkey there are many disagreeable facts but the number of those who are distorting these facts to treat Turkey unfairly is more. For example there is an organization called 'Reporters Sans Frontiers' based in Paris. This organization while listing some of the bitter realities of Turkey exaggerates others as much as possible, as if multiplying them by five. The Director of this organization Robert Menard, in a conference in Berlin on 30 March 2001 said that there were 60 journalists in prison. Etching the number 60 in the minds of the listeners he added that it was not known how many were in prison due to their profession. The same organization, in a report it published on 3 May World Press Freedom Day said 13 journalists were imprisoned in Turkey and then changed this into '13 journalists were detained'. However, it could not give more than five names. As it is the trend to discredit Turkey, Committee to Protect Journalists(CPJ) in its report claimed that 14 journalists were in prison in Turkey. World Association of Newspapers took the same number and said that the number of journalists in prison in Turkey were 14. However, the figure given by the CPJ covered journalists who were imprisoned for crimes in no way related to journalism. The search conducted by Turkish Press council revealed that there was no one in prison except Kemal Evcimen as of January 1, 2001. In fact, International Press Institute (IPI) taking this study into consideration did not say that there were journalists in prison in Turkey. However, neither the efforts of those acting with good intentions nor the pressures of those bearing malice helped to correct the situation in Turkey."
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