SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY, October 25, 2002

UNCLAS ANKARA 008149 SIPDIS E.O. 12956: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU IZ SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY, October 25, 2002 ¶1. This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for October 25, 2002. Please note that Turkish press reports often contain errors or exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for the accuracy of the reports summarized here. POLITICS, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS -------------- ¶2. FIRST POLITICAL PARTY CONVOY IN SIRNAK IN 12 YEARS (Evrensel) Democratic People's Party (DEHAP) parliamentary candidates, accompanied by a convoy of over 100 vehicles, are the first political party delegation to enter Sirnak's Uludere and Semdinli sub-districts in the past 12 years. ECONOMIC AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS -------------- ¶3. WOVEN PRODUCT EXPORTS UP 0VER 36% SINCE JANUARY (Bolge) According to the Southeastern Anatolia Exporters' Union, woven product exports from the Southeast increased 36.7% in the first nine months of the year, rising to USD 186.7 million from USD 136.5 million for the same period in ¶2001. In the same period, the share of woven products in overall exports from the region rose from 29.7% in 2001 to 45.4% in 2002. In January-September 2002, USD 86.8 million worth of machine-made carpets, USD 83.2 million of cotton (knitted and synthetic textiles),USD 9 million of towels and USD 7.7 million of plastic bags were exported from the region. Major customers included Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Rumania, Uzbekistan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Belgium, Greece, France, the U.S., Algeria, Spain, Iraq, the U.K., Germany and Russia. ¶4. MERSIN EXPORTS DROP BY USD 116 MILLION SINCE JANUARY (Dunya) According to the Mersin-based Mediterranean Exporters Union, exports from Mersin decreased by USD 116 million (approximately 9%) in the first eight months of the year, falling to USD 1.180 billion from USD 1.296 billion for the same period in 2001. PEARSON