SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JULY 11, 2006

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000161 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JULY 11, 2006 This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for July 11, 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 HURRIYET: A group of PKK members opened fire at a police point in Sirnak's Idil district with long-barreled automatic guns and killed two policemen at 10 p.m. yesterday. A large-scale military operation has been started following the incident. HURRIYET: A PKK terrorist reportedly surrendered himself to security officers in Tunceli's Ovacik district. HURRIYET: Burial place of a 27 year old PKK member, Aziz Askol, has been found in Kars's Kagizman district upon tip-off given by shepherds in the area. The autopsy report stated that the PKK member died as a result of blows in the head with a stone. However, pro-PKK Firat News Agency reported on May 25 that Askol died in an accident as he fell from rocky cliff during an operation carried out at night. ZAMAN: A commemorative ceremony will be held in Van's Bahcesaray district to mark PKK massacring in July 18, 1993 of twenty-four people. EVRENSEL: Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, district mayors, union and civic society members commemorated Vedat Aydin, HEP (People's Labor Party) Diyarbakir Provincial Chairperson, who was killed in July 9, 1999 after allegedly being kidnapped by JITEM members. BOLGE / ZAMAN: PM Erdogan will come to Adana tomorrow to attend June 13 opening ceremony of Baku-Tibilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline's terminal in Adana's Ceyhan district. Meanwhile, preparations for the official opening ceremony have reportedly been finalized. Matt Bryza, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, who came to Ankara for a two-day visit to hold talks with senior foreign affairs ministry officials, will attend the BTC opening later. HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): PM Erdogan will attend the ground-breaking ceremony of Ilisu Dam in Bitlis on August 5. OZGUR GUNDEM: Kurdistan National Congress in Brussels announced May 14 as a day to celebrate Kurdish Language Day. ZAMAN: Zaman daily cited Tunceli mayor Songul Erol Abdil as reportedly dismissing the allegations in some media reports claiming that Abdil demanded to expose those people responsible for veiling the heads of female folkloric dancers with turbans as they danced at an opening ceremony held on Saturday in Tunceli (see press summary 07/10). ZAMAN / EVRENSEL / HURRIYET: DTP National Chairperson Ahmet Turk and party assembly member Aysel Tugluk gave their statements at the Ankara Court Hall because of alleged pro-PKK propaganda they made during their speeches at a June 25 DTP's first convention held in Ankara. OZGUR GUNDEM: Ibrahim Sunkur, DTP Van Provincial Chairperson, paid a visit to Hangedik village of Van's Caldiran district which suffered from flooding on July 2. A woman was killed, 58 houses were ruined and 300 farm animals were killed in the disaster. Sunkur demanded that authorities urgently address the problems of the local people living in tents. HURRIYET (CUKUROVA) / OZGUR GUNDEM: More than 600 manhole covers have been stolen in one year in Diyarbakir. The thieves have reportedly been selling the covers as junk material. OZGUR GUNDEM: Chairperson of Chamber of Agriculture in Bitlis's Tatvan district claimed that hoof-and-mouth disease erupted and it reached a hazardous level in Budakli village. OZGUR GUNDEM: UN Special Rapporteur for Violence against Women talked with Kurdish origin women who immigrated to or took refuge in Holland, and discussed their problems. Holland is the eleventh country Erturk paid a visit to. EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Representatives of non-governmental organizations in Adana convened in Adana's Egitim-Sen (Teachers' Union) and demanded release of Adana Newruz committee members in the coming June 13 court hearing and DTP Chairperson in Mersin during June 11 court hearing. OZGUR GUNDEM: Jandarma officials, who conducted local inspections in Dag hamlet of Tunceli's Hozat district upon ADANA 00000161 002 OF 002 complaints from villagers claiming that a mortar shell landed on a section close to their settlement area (see press summary 07/07),allegedly mocked the villagers by asking, "Could it be a meteor rather than a mortar shell?" RADIKAL / ZAMAN: Hans Jorg Kretschmer, Head of the EU delegation in Turkey said that village guards have been impeding the return the to villages project (of Turkey.) BOLGE / ZAMAN / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): EU Information Bureau at Adana Chamber of Commerce will hold a "European Folk Dances Festival" on September 5-9 in Adana. BOLGE / EKSPRES: Fourteen Turk youths living in Sweden, who came to Adana upon invitation from Young Communication Specialists in Cukurova University under the project of "Building Bridges", paid a visit to the Seyhan Municipality in the last phase of their visit. EKSPRES: A short-length documentary film is being shot in Adana to mark Turco-German friendship. The project is being sponsored by a Turkish businessman in Germany. HURRIYET: Ismail Karabucak, member of a well-known family engaged in industrial business and farming in Adana has been shot dead as he was traveling from Mersin to Adana's Yuregir district. REID