SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR FEBRUARY 27, 2006

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000043 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU ADANA SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR FEBRUARY 27, 2006 This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for February 27, ¶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 CUMHURIYET / RADIKAL / YENI SAFAK: Abdulkadir Aksu, Minister of Internal Affairs, responded to a question submitted to the Turkish Parliament by Mehmet Eraslan, Hatay deputy from DYP (True Path Party). According to the figures in Aksu's response, 246 soldiers, police officers and village guards working on a temporary basis have been killed by terrorist activities. A total of 1325 terrorist organization members have been caught since 2003: 359 of them were killed, 377 of them were caught alive, 589 of them surrendered themselves to the security officers. Reportedly, neighboring countries have surrendered a total of 116 members of the terrorist organization to Turkey. SABAH (GUNEY): A march has been staged in Hatay's Iskenderun district to protest the western media which published caricatures of Prophet Mohammed. People crucified puppets of (Anders) Rassmussen, (George W.) Bush and (Ariel) Sharon during the protest activity. YENI SAFAK / ZAMAN / CUMHURIYET / HURRIYET / OZGUR GUNDEM / EVRENSEL / RADIKAL: During a funeral in Diyarbakir, which was reportedly held by the DTP (Democratic Society Party) members for one of the terrorists killed in a military operation last week in Mardin's Dargecit district, the police did not allow a 300-person group to march after the funeral car (Note: Ozgur Gundem daily reported the number of people as 5000. End Note.) The group showed resistance and anti-riot teams intervened when tension developed. The police used tear gas and detained 20 demonstrators (30 demonstrators according to Ozgur Gundem) during the incident. Ozgur Gundem claims that many people have been wounded. Hurriyet daily noted that a police officer was hospitalized, and some demonstrators fainted. Meanwhile, Ozgur Gundem claimed that Turkish military used chemical weapons during its operation at the Dargecit district. RADIKAL / HURRIYET / OZGUR GUNDEM / EVRENSEL / ZAMAN / CUMHURIYET / YENI SAFAK: Land Forces Commander Yasar Buyukanit paid a visit to the Diyarbakir Governor Efkan Ala with an accompanying 23-person group of other commanders. Buyukanit reportedly said that terrorist activities would do no good to anybody, and as long as terrorism persisted, efforts to counter it would continue. HURRIYET: An attorney in Adana filed a complaint against Directorate of Religious Affairs with the European Court of Human Rights, and claimed that the Directorate was working as if it was government's "intelligence center." According to the attorney, Directorate of Religious Affairs has been violating human rights through being the mouthpiece of the government in every aspect of ordinary life. HURRIYET / EKSPRES / BOLGE: Kemal Sag, Adana deputy from CHP (Republican People's Party),announced that studies have recently been launched to explore the gravity of internal migration Adana has been receiving to date. This study aims to find out whether Adana will be eligible to be listed among the other provinces cited in the 8th Five-Year Development Plans of the state and receive subsidies for the amount of migration they have been receiving. OZGUR GUNDEM: Abdullah Ocalan has applied to the European Council and submitted a petition for retrial in which he also claimed that his imprisonment conditions have been aggravated. OZGUR GUNDEM: Part of a 28-kilometer road that was newly constructed between Tunceli and Elazig provinces has collapsed and fractures have occurred on some road sections. This situation has reportedly been jeopardizing the safety of the drivers traveling on that road. OZGUR GUNDEM: A panel discussion has been held in Hakkari's Municipality Meeting Hall on "Human Rights and Rights of the City-dwellers." Mihdi Perincek, local representative of the Human Rights Association; Metin Tekce, Hakkari Mayor; Salih Yildiz, Yuksekova Mayor; Alaattin Ege, DTP Provincial Chairperson; Abdulkadir Seyitoglu, ANAP (Motherland Party) Provincial Chairperson were among the participants in the event. OZGUR GUNDEM: Three of fifteen people, who were detained for conducting a referendum called "Abdullah Ocalan is our political will," have been arrested in Siirt on charges of "making propaganda for the terrorist organization." OZGUR GUNDEM: Many people in Agri's Dogubeyazit have continued staging protest activities against police who recently conducted an unannounced raid and search at DTP provincial party building in Dogubeyazit. OZGUR GUNDEM: Five people have been wounded because of a fight that broke out between members of two families in Mardin's Nusaybin district. Fighting resumed in front of the hospital where the wounded people were taken to. Police reportedly had difficulty in taking the incident under control. OZGUR GUNDEM: A Dogubeyazit court in Van sentenced former DEHAP (Democratic People's Party) district chairperson to 5 months in prison on charges of using a Turkish courtesy title before the name of the terrorist organization leader. Meanwhile, an investigation has been started against another former DEHAP district chairperson on the same grounds. OZGUR GUNDEM: Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that people whose passports have been sealed with the statement "Kurdistan Region" will be allowed entrance to the country. However, owners of the passports which read "Kurdistan" in its field for "Place of Birth" will be deported on charges of illegal entrance. OZGUR GUNDEM: DTP has decided to take action to prevent government's attempts to build a dam (Ilisu Dam Project) which will submerge ancient city of Hasankeyf in Batman under dam waters. EKSPRE / BOLGE: Citrus fruit farmers and non-governmental associations for citrus farming in Adana have made a call for the government to take action to address their problems. Reportedly, citrus fruit farmers have been suffering the most severe of all the seasons. The farmers are reportedly looking forward to government's announcement to increase the exports subsidies for citrus fruits to 60 USD. OZGUR GUNDEM: The daily reported that people and organizations in many parts of the country have been readying to launch assorted activities on Marc 8-Women's Day. CUMHURIYET / EVRENSEL: Socialist Democracy Party's Adana provincial organization sent signatures it gathered in Adana to protest the Semdinli incident of 2005 and criminal structures embedded in the state to the Turkish Parliament. A group of people gathered in a quarter of Adana and shouted slogans saying, "Yesterday it was the Susurluk case, today it is the Semdinli case," "Dissolve MIT, JITEM and counter-guerilla teams." YENI SAFAK / EVRENSEL: Truck drivers at the Habur Border gate in Sirnak staged a protest against the new regulation adopted by the government obliging the drivers to pay 2000 to 3000 new Turkish liras (approx. 1500 to 2300 USD) to obtain licenses for conducting their businesses. The due date of the payment ends today, and drivers are also demanding that the due date of the payment be extended. YENI SAFAK: The New York Times reported in an article that the incidents that were sparked after last week's attack on a Shi'a shrine in Iraq might trigger a civil war in Iraq, a situation which may cause the countries neighboring Iraq, like Turkey, to consider crossing the border and conducting military operations, especially to protect Turkmen minority in Iraq against Kurdish region in the north in Turkye's case. REID