SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JULY 13, 2006

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000163 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JULY 13, 2006 This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for July 13, 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 / EKSPRES / SABAH (GUNEY) / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA) / ZAMAN: The Ceyhan end of the Baku-Tibilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline, dubbed as the "Silkroad of the 21st Century", will be opened today. Turkish President and Prime Minister, Georgian President, Azarbaijani President, Minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Prime Minister, UK's Deputy Prime Minister, U.S.'s Deputy Energy Minister and Assistants to Secretary of State, and ministers and deputy ministers from 49 countries will be attending the ceremony. Petroleum traveling through the pipeline arrived for the first time on May 28 to the Ceyhan end. The vessels started transporting the petroleum at the onset of June. HURRIYET ONLINE: Anthrax detected in animals in Hakkari's Yuksekova district has caused panic among local people. Quarantine has been imposed in four villages and one hamlet. The disease reportedly killed eighty cattle and 30 sheep. OZGUR GUNDEM: A person in Antakya has been hospitalized in Hatay because of suspected Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever. OZGUR GUNDEM: Matt Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, who came to Turkey to attend BTC opening ceremony, told journalists at the U.S. Embassy that Turkey should cooperate with the Baghdad government and southern Kurdistan officials to eliminate the arms support extended from southern Kurdistan to the PKK. Bryza, while pointing out the difficulty of conducting operations in Iraq's 3000-meter Qandil Mountain where PKK headquarters are located, admitted that despite the many steps taken to counter PKK terrorism, there was yet more to do to address the issue. OZGUR GUNDEM: UNICEF reportedly made a call to the Turkish government to provide mother tongue education for Kurdish children. A UNICEF official said that multi-language education systems increase the standards of education. OZGUR GUNDEM: Inspectors of Ministry of Interior took statement of Emrullah Cin, Mayor of Sanliurfa's Viransehir district, because of a Kurdish-language bulletin created in order to promote the services of the municipality. �A;OZGUR GUNDEM: Disciplinary committee of the Education Faculty of Ataturk University in Agri dismissed 14 students from the university because of the alleged occupation by the students on March 28 of the office of the dean to protest the ongoing investigations then. The daily claims the students went to the office to talk with the university officials. Dozens of other students have been temporarily suspended from school. OZGUR GUNDEM: KESK (Confederation of Public Sector Workers' Unions) Platform in Diyarbakir and several non-governmental organizations sent fax letters to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and made a call to veto the new Anti-Terror Law. EVRENSEL: DTP Provincial Chairperson in Mersin, who was arrested during the protests held in Mersin following the violent demonstrations in Diyarbakir at the end of March, has been released by the Adana 6th Heavy Penalty Court. The case is still pending trial (see press summary 07/11). EVRENSEL: A new initiative called Free Kurds' Group is going to found a new party in September. The initiative is being led by Serafettin Elci, a former state minister. ZAMAN / BOLGE / EKSPRES / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): Walter Scott Reid, U.S. Consul in Adana, who will soon be departing Adana for his next career appointment, paid a farewell visit to Adana Chamber of Commerce, reported the dailies. RADIKAL / HURRIYET: PM Erdogan paid a visit to Malatya, attended TOKI mass housing administration's ceremony, and delivered a speech at the AKP provincial convention. BOLGE: A park marking Turco-Azarbaijani friendship will be opened today in Adana's Ceyhan district by President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Azarbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. BOLGE: MHP Adana Provincial Chairperson severely criticized Yakapinar Municipality in Adana's Yuregir district which named parks it built after the Kurdish name of the Diyarbakir province and a Kurdish singer Ahmet Kaya. ADANA 00000163 002 OF 002 HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): Diyarbakir Jandarma Command teams found 44 pistols in a car during an operation conducted to counter illegal arms trading. Four people were detained during the operation. EVRENSEL: First notary attested Kurdish translation bureau started its business in Istanbul. NTVMSNBC ONLINE: A U.S. company has been building a security hub in a truck parking area between Sirnak's Silopi district and the Habur Gate in order to provide security for the Turkish trucks traveling to Iraq. The company has been dismissing the allegations that the U.S. has been building a U.S. base in the region. NTVMSNBC ONLINE / EVRENSEL: A Sweden based mine cleaning company representative came to Sanliurfa and held talks with Sanliurfa Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The company is reportedly interested in the mine clearing tender in the region. RADIKAL: A 30-year-old woman, who allegedly eloped with a married man, was stabbed in the throat by her brother in Kahramanmaras yesterday. The woman has been hospitalized. OZGUR GUNDEM / EVRENSEL: Cleaning services workers in Adana, who were dismissed from their jobs, have been continuing their strike for 66 days. The workers marched towards the Seyhan Municipality yesterday and demanded resignation of the Mayor. REID