ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 ANKARA 004955 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT TUESDAY, AUGUST 23, 2005 THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE THEMES: HEADLINES BRIEFING EDITORIAL OPINION -------------- -- Tuesday, August 23, 2005 HEADLINES MASS APPEAL PKK: Will Not Lay Down Arms Unconditionally - Hurriyet 50 Kurdish Writers, Artists Support Erdogan's Kurdish policy - Milliyet Chuck Hagel Likens Iraq to Vietnam - Aksam Insurgents Hang US Collaborators in Iraq - Sabah US Preparing to Open Embassy in Libya - Sabah Workers Around the World Unite Against Wal-Mart - Aksam Syrian Terrorist from PKK Killed in Northern Turkey - Vatan OPINION MAKERS US to Send Bryza and 2 Generals to Discuss PKK - Yeni Safak No Agreement on Iraqi Constitution - Radikal Republicans Lash Out at Bush on Iraq - Radikal PKK Transfers Militants to Iran - Zaman Governmen, Unions Disagree on Salary Hikes - Radikal Muslim Brotherhood Opposes Boycott of Egypt Polls - Yeni Safak Indonesia to Pull Out of Aceh - Yeni Safak China, Russia, India Form Tripartite Alliance Against US - Yeni Safak The Castro and Chavez Show - Radikal BRIEFING National Security Council to Discuss Terror in Southeast Turkey: Turkey's National Security Council (NSC) is expected to discuss the anti-terror law drafted by the AKP government, and the upsurge of violence in the southeast at its monthly meeting on Tuesday, papers report. The NSC Secretariat General advised in a report against the SIPDIS implementation of emergency rule in the region. It said that the PKK had been forced to resume terrorist attacks in May 2005 in an effort to prevent a disintegration of the organization, which is suffering from leadership problems. A separate report by the military stressed that the problem is not merely an ethnic one, but one that had economic and social roots as well. The military members of the NSC will caution PM Erdogan for acknowledging a `Kurdish problem' in Turkey, warning that statements made without consulting the related state institutions may prove to be harmful in the ongoing fight against terror. The NSC will also discuss Iran, Iraq, Cyprus, and the EU. Cicek on Terror, Kurdish Issue, Armenian Conference: Justice Minister and Government Spokesman Cemil Cicek said after Monday's Council of Ministers meeting that those who have proposals for the government with regard to the struggle against terror must first accept Turkey's unitary structure. Cicek said that the Council of Ministers evaluated PM Erdogan's statements about the `Kurdish problem' in Diyarbakir earlier this month and the criticism it has drawn from opposition parties. Erdogan's remarks in Diyarbakir were assessed from a political standpoint, Cicek said, noting that Turkey's Constitution guaranteed that nationals enjoy equal rights and freedoms. Asked the controversial Armenian conference that will be held in Istanbul on September 23, Cicek said that he had not been informed about plans for the gathering. `We will see who will say what at the conference,' Cicek said. On the other hand, 46 Kurdish intellectuals and artists released a declaration Monday voicing support for Erdogan's statements on the Kurdish issue. Edelman Brings Balance to Pentagon: Turkish papers carry an article from the Washington Post which argues that Eric Edelman and Gordon England, who are replacing Doug Feith and Paul Wolfowitz at the Pentagon, have brought `less ideology, and more balance' to the Defense Department. The article expects the two figures to be more attuned to Congress than their predecessors. England, the Pentagon's number two, is described as a very good `technocrat,' and Edelman comes with a reputation as a `skilled career diplomat' with an `easygoing personality' who does not engage in ideological battles. Graham, Hagel Criticize US Policies on Iraq: Dailies report US Republican Senators Lindsey Graham and Chuck Hagel as criticizing American policies in Iraq on "Fox News" over the weekend. Graham said the United States would have a huge problem if the Kurds are given independence from Iraq, a development which will turn Iraq into a `center of anarchy.' Hagel claimed that Iraq was becoming another Vietnam. `The last two-and-a-half years have shown that we are not winning in Iraq,' Hagel said, advising the US to develop an exit strategy from the war-torn country. Bryza, Abizaid, Jones Due in Ankara: Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matt Bryza is to visit Ankara August 25- SIPDIS 26 to discuss the PKK, Cyprus and EU, "Yeni Safak" reports. The paper also says that US generals John Abizaid and James Jones are expected in Ankara in early September. Karayilan Says One-Month Cease-Fire is Enough: Murat Karayilan from the PKK leadership told "Roj TV" that one month of suspension of operations is enough for Turkey to take `confidence-building measures,' and that the unilateral cease-fire will be extended if such measures are implemented. Karayilan called for an end to Turkish military operations and to the isolation of Abdullah Ocalan, and for dialogue with the elected representatives of the Kurdish people. `There is a confusion in Turkey, with many different voices being heard. The position of certain circles is unclear. Will they carry on military operations, or will they try to ameliorate the situation?' Karayilan asked. Mobs Attack Suspected Terrorists: An angry crowd attempted to lynch suspected supporters of the outlawed separatist group PKK in two separate incidents, one in the Aegean port city of Izmir and another in the Black Sea town of Trabzon, papers report. Security forces killed a PKK militant and wounded another in clashes in Trabzon. The terrorist who was killed was of Syrian origin. The police had to fight off an angry mob attempting to lynch the wounded terrorist. In Izmir, five people from southeast Turkey were detained for shouting slogans in favor of imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan after getting involved in an argument with local shopkeepers. An angry mob of 1,500 people attempted to lynch the southeasterners, but security forces dispersed the crowd by shooting into the air. CHP MP on Return of Displaced People to Southeast Turkey: The main opposition CHP Diyarbakir lawmaker Mesut Deger said that 125,539 displaced villagers have returned to their homes in 14 provinces under the `Return to Villages' project, revealing information he received from the interior ministry, the Mesopotamia News Agency reported. Data by the interior ministry showed that 355,803 people from 58,368 homes in 2,958 settlements were forced to leave their homes during violence in the southeast in the 1990s. `All houses have been destroyed in these villages. There are no stables, roads, water or electricity. It is impossible to resolve this problem by sending the villagers to empty land without providing support to them in some way,' Deger stressed, urging the state to prepare the necessary ground to make the return home project a reality. New Parties On The Way: Kurdish activist and former MP Leyla Zana invited the former mayor of Gaziantep, Celal Dogan, to join the Democratic Society Movement (DTH) during a meeting on Monday, papers report. Papers claim that Zana and her colleagues are trying to win over social democratic voters to supplement their Kurdish base. Dogan reportedly told Zana that the DTH should pursue policies that cover all of Turkey, not only the southeast, and that democratic principles should be observed in the DTH, which is expected to turn itself into a political party in September. Meanwhile, Dogan invited Zana and other Kurdish politicians to join the new party he is about to establish. "Aksam" claims that Rifat Hisarciklioglu, chairman of the Turkish Union of Chambers (TOBB),and Sinan Aygun, chairman of the Ankara Chamber of Commerce (ATO),are preparing to establish a democratic nationalist party targeting the votes of social democrats. Meanwhile, papers report that the Chief Prosecutor's Office has launched an examination of statements by former DEP lawmakers, including Leyla Zana, who are involved in the DTH. Legal action may be taken against the DTH if the prosecutor decides that a ban on propagating regional movements was violated. Significant Increase in Kurdish Satellite Broadcasts: "Milliyet" carries a report detailing a significant increase in Kurdish broadcasts via satellite from Iraq, Iran, and Europe to Turkey. A seventh Kurdish channel began test transmissions along with six others, of which two are supportive of the PKK, one is an Iranian state channel, and the others belong to Kurdish groups in northern Iraq. The Kurdish broadcasts reach 72 countries across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa as well as Turkey. The broadcasts can also be received in America via satellite. The channels are as follows: ¶1. Roj TV: Broadcasts in Kurdish, Arabic and Turkish from Brussels and follows the PKK line. It broadcasts for 12 hours starting at 1000 GMT. Roj TV, known as `PKK television,' airs news, political discussions, music, and children's programs. ¶2. Mesopotamia TV (Me-TV): Close to the PKK cause, Me-TV broadcasts cultural, educational and music programs in the morning and evening timeframe. Me-TV was allegedly set up as insurance against a possible closure of Roj-TV. ¶3. Kurdistan TV: Broadcasts from the city of Selahaddin in northern Iraq. Kurdistan TV is controlled by the Kurdistan Democracy party (KDP) and broadcasts news, political talk shows, musi,c and children's programs 24 hours a day. It also offers news in Arabic. ¶4. Kurd-Sat TV: Broadcasts from the city of Suleymaniye in northern Iraq. Controlled by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK),Kurd-Sat TV broadcasts news, political discussions, music, and children's programs 24 hours a day. It also has some programs in Turkish and Arabic. ¶5. Zagros TV: Began broadcasting from northern Iraq a short while ago. Known to be close to the KDP. Zagros TV broadcasts news, discussions, and music programs in Arabic during the day and in Kurdish in the evening. ¶6. Ishtar TV: Has begun test transmissions. The content and broadcast policies to be adopted by Ishtar TV, which is close to Kurdish groups in northern Iraq, is not yet clear. ¶7. Sahar TV: Iranian state television. Broadcasts two 30- minute Kurdish news and commentary programs every day. Women from Southeast Turkey Receive Leadership Training in US: "Zaman" carries a report that 62 women from southeast Turkey received 10-days of training in Ohio under a `women's leadership' program funded by the US State Department. The program aims to make Turkey a `model country' in women's leadership opportunities. True Path Party (DYP) lawmaker Mehmet Eraslan submitted a motion to the parliament asking the AKP government about the goal of the US program and the number of participants. State Minister Nimet Cubukcu said that the program, a joint project of Turkey's Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP),Kent State University in Ohio, and Bahcesehir University in Istanbul, was kicked off in November 2004. Cubukcu also said that George Soros' `Open Society Institute' is to donate 300,000 USD to the program, which aims to turn women in southeast Turkey into business owners. EDITORIAL OPINION: Turkey's Kurdish Issue; Israel "The AKP Government Has No Kurdish or Middle East Policy" Cuneyt Ulsever wrote in the mass-appeal "Hurriyet" (8/23): "Turkey will not be able to resolve the PKK problem without clarifying its policies on Iraq and the Middle East. Prime Minister Erdogan and his advisors are so confused on the Middle East that they cannot solve the Kurdish problem, but could proceed down a dangerous path. . It is unclear what the PM meant when he referred to a `democratic republic,' a term used by Ocalan to define a republic founded by two separate but equal entities under the same roof. . Only about 600 people listened to Erdogan at a recent rally in Diyarbakir, the province where the AKP received 34 percent of vote in the last election. Couldn't Erdogan's advisors have predicted that after such tumult, the PM would be put in a difficult position and the PKK would collect the gains? Why was the AKP provincial office only able to turn out a crowd of 600? PKK leader Ocalan, the lone inmate of Imrali prison, has made public 101 written notes through his lawyers since he was jailed in 1999. Does the PM have anything in mind to prevent this? Finally, since the PM has acknowledged a Kurdish problem in Turkey, comments demanding that Ocalan be accepted as an interlocutor have started to receive more attention in the press." New Voices From Diyarbakir Oral Calislar wrote in the leftist/nationalist "Cumhuriyet" (08/22): The PKK announced a ceasefire for a one-month period. That is unacceptable. We need to create greater public pressure so that they will never touch their weapons again. We need to do what those who support violence do not want us to do. We need to strive for a new initiative that will completely destroy the atmosphere for violence. Compared with two months ago, we are at a very positive stage now. Evaluating this new situation, Sezgin Tanrikulu, President of the Diyarbakir Bar Association, said this: `The time when problems were solved through violence has passed. In this light, I do not think it is right for the PKK to use violence as a method. At this point, the Kurdish problem can be solved not through violence, but by enhancing freedoms in a democratic environment through tolerance and compromise. That is why the PKK should not declare a ceasefire for one month, but renounce violence as a method altogether.' The voices rising from Diyarbakir are proof that we have reached a new stage in terms of the region and the Kurdish problem. Now is the time to say "stop" to those who wish to take Turkey back to the old days. If the process that started with the 151 signatures becomes permanent, it will mark a turning-point in Turkey's path to the European Union. "Sharon as a Deterrent Example" Mim Kemal Oke opined in the conservative/nationalist "Halka ve Olaylara Tercuman" (8/23): "It was Ariel Sharon who settled the Israeli fundamentalist, racist, and fanatical masses in the Gaza Strip in a bid to safeguard the region. He came under heavy attack by Jewish extremists for evacuating Gaza. Sharon defined the extremist settlers who resisted Israeli troops as `Jewish terrorists' and `barbarians.' Sharon now says in a postmodern, neo-liberal, urban manner that you cannot achieve security through the use of force. This shows that human beings can be tamed by history. Palestinians, who claim the Gaza pullout has been a victory won by resistance groups like Hamas, should learn from Israel's experience that they cannot advance too far with such a mentality. You can capture a country by violence, as seen in Iraq, but you cannot keep it. Sinn Fein is striving to disband the IRA, and the US is exhausting itself to win the global war against al-Qaida, a group the Americans had propped up for use in the Afghan war. Those who will write the history of Israel will devote a chapter to Sharon. Reading it is not so important. What matters is to take a lesson from it." MCELDOWNEY