SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 0230 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU IZ ADANA SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY, SEPTEMBER 02, 2003 ¶1. This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for September 02, 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/Evrensel/Cumhuriyet: 2138 persons applied to benefit from the Reintegration Law which aims to bring active members of the terrorist organizations committing crimes against the state from the mountains. 1507 inmates applied from prisons to benefit from the law that came into force on August 6. The number of those who applied at their own will from the rural remained at 211. The breakdown of the applicants from prisons are as follows:PKK/KADEK members:1169; Hizbullah: 338; DHKP/C: 22; Hizb-ut Tahrir: 28; TKP/ML: - TIKKO: 26; Dev-Sol: 22 Tikko: 41; and Other Organization Members: 240. ¶3. Sabah/Evrensel: Unlike in the past, the Governorate of Diyarbakir granted permission to celebrate September 1 World Peace Day in Diyarbakir. The meeting which was organized by the Democracy Platform and the leadership of DEHAP, turned into a festival of support for Abdullah Ocalan. The crowd frequently shouted pro-Ocalan slogans. A big banner, written in Kurdish and Turkish, carrying one of Ataturk's statements saying "Peace at Home, Peace in the World" was arrayed in the meeting square. ¶4. Turkiye: The mysterious dead body of a young man, 24, was found on a heap of dirt in a cemetery in Kiziltepe of Mardin. The victim was shot to death in the skull. The police started an investigation. ¶5. Sabah' Guney Supplement: ANAP and DYP Provincial Chairmen stated that they would jointly nominate the current mayor of Adana, Aytac Durak, as their mayoral candidate for Adana in the upcoming local elections. Both parties were unable to pass ten percent national bar in November 2002 General Elections. ¶6. Turkiye: Six persons suspected of having contracted anthrax in Catak, Van province, were sent to the Research Hospital of Centennial University in Van. Innoculations started in the villages and hamlets where anthrax has been reported. ECONOMIC ¶7. Turkiye: Eleven workers at the Uzan Group affiliated cement factories in Gaziantep and Sanliurfa claimed that they were terminated from their positions solely for being members of a labor union. In their press announcement in a park, the workers claimed that about one hundred workers were registered with the labor union, and the factory's management pressured the workers not to become members of the union. ¶8. Dunya/Zaman: The Young Businessmen Associations in Iskenderun, Hatay, Gaziantep, Siirt, Mardin, Diyarbakir, Cukurova, Adana, and Mersin merged, forming the South and Southeastern Young Businessmen Federation. After formation of the business federations in other regions by the end of October, the Young Businessmen Confedaration of Turkey will be formed. TOURISM and CULTURE ¶9. Hurriyet: David Packard is going to host an exhibition in Istanbul in 2004 of Objects Found in Zeugma, Gaziantep province. David Packard had donated USD 5 million for excavations in Zeugma and has suspended donating USD 100 million for the excavations that would be carried out for ten years because of a dispute with the Turkish Cultural Ministry over the issue. ¶10. Zaman: Because of lack of funds, excavations at Hasankeyf, Batman province, have been halted. The head of the excavation team, Prof. Dr. Olus Arik said they were expecting to carry out their excavations for two or three more months, but they had to stop their operations due to lack of funds. REID