SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR 28-29-30, 2006

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000126 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR 28-29-30, 2006 This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for May 28-29-30, ¶2006. 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 BOLGE / OZGUR GUNDEM / HURRIYET: On the second day of his visits in the southeastern Turkey, Ross Wilson, U.S. Ambassador to Ankara, visited Diyarbakir Bar Association, Southeasten Businessmen and Industrialists Asociation, and AKP Provincial Party Chairmanship. Ambassador Wilson said that they wanted people to stay away from terrorism and that they were supporting the Turkish people in their efforts against terrorism. Wilson and the accompanying delegation paid a visit to the Mardin Governor and Mardin Mayor later. (This summary is from 05/28 edition) Wilson paid a visit to El-Rizk Mosque and to the citadel in Batman's Hasankeyf district. Wilson said that the current condition of Hasankeyf was very impressive. (This summary is from 05/29 edition of Hurriyet daily.) EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: The daily reported that number of investigations started against Seferi Yilmaz, owner of the bookstore where a bomb exploded in Semdinli in November 2005, have increased to 10. Recently, a new investigation has reportedly been started against Yilmaz for closing his business three times following the bomb incident -a common way of protest people resort to in the southeastern region-. Yilmaz claimed that he did not open his business because it was damaged because of the bombing. EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Co-chairpersons of DTP (Democratic Society Party),who went to Iraqi Federal Kurdistan Region in Iraq to attend a meeting of Socialist International's Kurdish Work Group in Suleymaniyah, met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Women's Branch of DTP has launched a signature gathering campaign against warnings issued by the Supreme Court demanding DTP to abolish co-chairmanship system, which is not in conformity with the Political Parties Act of Turkey. CUMHURIYET / RADIKAL / ZAMAN / EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Diyarbakir Governor's Office announced that a sergeant major was killed in a clash at 6.20 p.m. yesterday during a military operation in the Lice, Hani, Kulp, and Hazro districts which has been going on since May 23. Three village guards and one Jandarma commando private have been wounded. EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Border security meeting of Turkish and Iranian military delegations started in Hakkari. Hakkari Governor said that the meetings will last for two days. CUMHURIYET / YENI SAFAK / SABAH (GUNEY) / EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: A hydroelectric power plant located at the end of a tunnel which carries the water of Ataturk Dam to the Harran Plateau in Sanliurfa has been flooded with waters. 10,000 cubic meters of water have accumulated at the site. Authorities are working to address the problem. ZAMAN / BOLGE / RADIKAL: Petroleum that traveled through Baku-Tibilisi-Ceyhan pipeline arrived at the Ceyhan end of the pipeline. The British Hawtharne, the ship that will carry the petroleum to the world markets, has already arrived at the terminal at Ceyhan district in Adana. The official opening ceremony will be held on July 13. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer started sending invitations to more than 90 countries for the opening ceremony. (This summary is from 05/28 editions.) CUMHURIYET: The daily reported that Strategic Vision Document worked out by mutual efforts of the U.S. and Turkey did not directly touch upon the PKK issue. ZAMAN / EVRENSEL / BOLGE / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): A bomb which was placed in a trash can in Mersin exploded at around 10.30 a.m. yesterday and caused panic among people. No casualties have been reported. Pieces of a cell phone have been found as the police was conducting a close examination in the area. HURRIYET / CUMHURIYET / OZGUR GUNDEM: An explosion took place at 5.43 am on Sunday morning as a military vehicle was passing on a road in Hakkari's Daggol quarter. No casualties have been reported. Ozgur Gundem daily pointed out that no explosions took place in the months that followed Semdinli bombing on November 9, 2005. However, according to the paper, the bombings resumed and three bomb incidents took place in May. As the next trial date for Semdinli case nears (June 1),the people of Hakkari, who were reportedly getting more uneasy about ADANA 00000126 002 OF 002 the intermittent bomb incidents, are reportedly asking whether certain circles are attempting to orchestrate new scenarios in the region (This summary is from 05/29 edition). ZAMAN / RADIKAL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Fuat Gecen, Hatay deputy from AKP (Justice and Development Party),who reportedly documented irregularities local AKP officials reportedly conducted in public tenders in Hatay, have been referred to Joint Disciplinary Committee of AKP. Gecen refused to defend himself before the committee and fired sharp criticisms at the party administration in a letter. HURRIYET / RADIKAL: UN's rapporteur Yakin Erturk, who came to southeastern region to conduct studies on such issues as increasing number of suicides, violence against women and violence within the family, has held a press conference in Sanliurfa. Erturk said that mentalities should be transformed to prevent violence against women. Erturk, while stating that the average number of suicide cases were not higher than the average figures in Turkey or in the world, added that if there were murders veiled as suicide cases, the authorities must probe those issues. (This summary is from 05/28 edition) OZGUR GUNDEM: Hilmi Aydogdu, the new chairperson of DTP Diyarbakir provincial party organization who was elected as chairman during the May 21 congress, said that their goal was to increase the number of party members to 100,000 in Diyarbakir. Aydogdu reminded that former DEHAP party organization had had 60,000 members. OZGUR GUNDEM: To encourage more widespread use of Kurdish language, TZP-Kurdi (Kurdish Language and Education Movement) in Van urged parents to speak with their children in Kurdish. OZGUR GUNDEM: Lawsuit brought against artist Ferhat Tunc because of an article Tunc wrote for Ozgur Gundem daily, which was published on in January 2004, will continue hearing the case tomorrow in Istanbul. EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: The daily reported that mines drifting away with flood waters created by melting snow in a village in Van's Caldiran district have been jeopardizing lives of people living there. Three children have been disabled in three years because of mine explosions. ZAMAN / BOLGE / EKSPRES / SABAH (GUNEY): Adana Municipality announced that fourth of Cukurova Industry and Commerce Fair will be organized by TUYAP fair organizing company. BOLGE: AKP Adana Provincial Chairperson Mustafa Attaroglu started visiting AKP district party organizations in Adana. SABAH (GUNEY): Jandarma teams in Kahramanmaras caught two gun smugglers with numerous undocumented guns and bullets in Kahramanmaras. SABAH (GUNEY): Wheat harvest started in Hatay's Amik Plain. SABAH (GUNEY): Workers of the excavation site in Batman's Hasankeyf district have launched a strike allegedly because their social security payments were not being paid. SABAH (GUNEY): Veli Serin, Mayor of Yenice in Mersin (from CHP),has reportedly been reprimanding Cag University administration, who allegedly rejected hiring a person as a cleaner upon request of Serin, by not collecting the garbage at the university. REID