SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 0209 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU IZ ADANA SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY, AUGUST 02-03-04, 2003 ¶1. This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for August 02-03-04, 2003. Please note that Turkish press reports often contain errors or exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for the accuracy of the reports summarized here. POLITICAL, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS ¶2. Milliyet / Five teachers who were expelled from their state teaching jobs in Diyarbakir returned to their positions. Teachers were accused of singing Kurdish songs as a group in Diyarbakir Festival last year. ¶3. Evrensel / Adana Labor Platform Youth Branch gathered in Inonu Park at the weekend and asked for a safe and secure future for the young people in Turkey. ¶4. Evrensel / Ten village guards who were accused of killing eight villagers in Midyat/Mardin are sentenced to life imprisonment. ¶5. Evrensel / Widow women in Sirnak started a support group. The group has about 600 members who lost their spouses. ¶6. Milli Gazete/ Muhammed Guzelkurtoglu, Head of the Health Services in Van announced that about 2500 health personnel would be appointed to Van which urgently needs medical personnel. These people would be working on yearly contracts and with higher salaries. ¶7. Sabah Guney / Tarsus Prison scheduled a conference for the prisoners. Professors from Mersin University talked about crime and the factors that cause crime. ¶8. Turkiye / Kasim Demir, Head of Religious Services in Hatay announced that there is a big increase in Christian Missionary Services in Hatay, Istanbul, Trabzon and Sinop. According to Demir Christian Missionaries put American Dollars in the bibles they give away to attract people. ECONOMICAL ¶9. Sabah Guney / Mehmet Aslan, Head of Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce announced that Syrian Prime Minister Mustafa Miro's visit to Turkey was very fruitful. Aslan stated that the agreement on the opening of a Syrian Consulate in Gaziantep would be the start of a new era in Syrian-Turkish business relations. ¶10. Bolge / Adana MUSIAD (Independent Businessmen Assosiation) announced that they support the Harmonization Package and the work of the government. Mustafa Caliskan, the Head of the Association stated that there would a danger of devaluation if privatization projects aren't accomplished by next year. ¶11. Zaman / Cukurova Electric Distribution Company now legally belongs to The State after the completion of the Uzan family's legal procedures. Clients are pleased due to the %5 decrease in the prices. ¶12. Turkiye, Milli Gazete / Salih Alma, a farmer from Harran announced that he had the first fruits of the banana trees that he planted five years ago. Farmers who used to grow just wheat and cotton in the area now grow soybeans, corn, almonds and different types of fruits. ¶13. Zaman, Hurriyet, Milliyet, Bolge, Express, Turkiye, Sabah Guney / Corn farmers in Adana visited Governor Kemal Onal and wanted the government stop the import of corn. CULTURE and TOURISM ¶14. Hurriyet / Asim Hacimustafaoglu, Governor of Bitlis announced that there is a possibility of an explosion in Nemrud Mountain area. Governor stated that Nemrud was an active Volcano in the past and there are examples of non-active volcanoes being active again. ¶15. Turkiye / Diyarbakir Movie Festival is starting on August 8. HART