SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR FEBRUARY 28- MARCH 1,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000044 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU ADANA SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR FEBRUARY 28- MARCH 1, 2006 This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for February 28 - March 1, 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 ZAMAN: According to the daily, Roj TV, pro-PKK websites, and pro-PKK newspapers incited people to hit the street on Monday in Diyarbakir and gather in front of the local hospital because one of the dead bodies of the terrorists killed in Mardin's Dargecit district would be turned over to his family by that hospital. According to the paper, all these efforts of the pro-PKK media were able to gather only 3000 people at the site. (This summary is from 02/28 edition.) RADIKAL / SABAH: Diyarbakir Heavy Penalty Court sentenced 62 of the 72 defendants of a case which brought charges against defendants including police officers, Jandarma, prison guards, on grounds that they used disproportionate force which resulted in the death of 10 prisoners during the incidents sparked in a prison in Diyarbakir in September 1996. 23 prisoners were wounded then. The court decreased the 18-year prison sentence to five years taking into account the aggravated situation that incited the defendants to offence and the good behavior they displayed in the course of the court action. Seven defendants were not found guilty because of statute of limitations, and three senior military and police officers were acquitted because of lack of sufficient evidence proving their offence. (This summary is from 02/28 edition.) OZGUR GUNDEM: As Directorate of Agricultural and Village Works concentrated its efforts on the bird flu outbreak, in the meantime foot-and-mouth disease developed in animals in 9 provinces in three months in Turkey. (This summary is from 02/28 edition.) OZGUR GUNDEM: Civil society members in Mardin and its districts launched a campaign to gather signatures against the attempts to black out Roj TV. (This summary is from 02/28 edition.) ZAMAN: Turkish Parliamentary Commission Probing Semdinli Case heard statements from the Hakkari Mayor Metin Tekce, Semdinli district's Mayor Hursit Tekin, and Yukekova district's Mayor Salih Yildiz. The three mayors reportedly expressed common concerns and said that perpetrators of the bombing incidents in Hakkari (in the last quarter of 2004) were those circles (in Turkey) who were against the stance of the government about the Kurdish issue. PM Erdogan had acknowledged back in August that there was a Kurdish issue in Turkey during a speech he made in Diyarbakir. EKSPRES: As the day for the provincial congress of AKP approaches in Adana, Mustafa Kebude, announced his candidacy for chairmanship of the provincial party organization. BOLGE / EKSPRES: Jandarma teams, upon hearing a tip-off, arrested 18 Syrian national refugees as they were attempting to go to Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in Adana's Karatas district. RADIKAL: Fatma Sahin, Gazianep deputy from AKP and Chairperson of Turkish Parliamentary Commission for Probing Honor Killings (TPCPHK),said that a special action team should be set up to probe increasing cases of people committing suicide in Batman. Sahin further said that generation gap between members of families were factors triggering suicidal tendencies. According to Sahin, a mother would only speak Kurdish, but her son, who only speaks Turkish, cannot communicate with his mother. Sahin pointed out that support should be extended to the province to provide language education to people. EVRENSEL: The daily provided statistical figures about the suicide cases in Batman. According to TPCPHK, number of women committing suicide in Batman is three times higher than men, as compared to the figures in overall Turkey. Between 2001 and 2006, 402 people attempted to commit suicide in Batman. 80 people were successful in their attempts and 43 of them were women. Those people who committed suicide were between the ages 15 and 25. Majority of the suicide cases reportedly took place in the slums of the province which was formed by internal migration, according to the Batman Bar Association. RADIKAL / YENI SAFAK / CUMHURIYET: As a result of the four-month endeavors of the Security Directorate's Smuggling and Organized Crimes Branch, a 28-person gang comprised of computer hackers was allegedly caught in Diyarbakir. Reportedly, members of the gang have hacked over internet passwords of the digital household electricity meters to illegally decrease costs of electricity consumption for their clients. Leader of the gang has been detained in Mardin's Kiziltepe district. OZGUR GUNDEM: Reportedly thousands of people marched in the streets in Batman when the coffins of two of the 7 terrorists killed in Mardin's Dargecit district were brought to Batamn from Diyarbakir for burial procedures. (This summary is from 02/28 edition.) OZGUR GUNDEM: The daily claims that some body parts of 7 terrorists killed during a military operation in Mardin's Dargecit district in February 23 (see press summary 02/27) were allegedly cut apart or dissected. Families of the dead terrorists were reportedly had difficulty identifying their kin as a result of that alleged brutality. Meanwhile, the funerals of two of the 7 terrorists were held in Mus's Varto and Bitlis's Tatvan districts. The funeral car and 30-car convoy heading towards Mus were allegedly checked every three kilometers by the local Jandarma Command. EVRENSEL: Statements of the fifty-nine persons, who were detained during a demonstration that followed a funeral of a PKK member in Diyarbakir, have been taken at the Security Directorate in Diyarbakir. The detainees have been sent to the Prosecutor's Office. OZGUR GUNDEM: Attorneys of the 89 arrestees, who were detained and arraigned in Adana following a turbulent demonstration activity on February 16 marking the seventh anniversary of Abdullah Ocalan's capture, objected to Adana's 7th Heavy Penalty Court and demanded that their clients, who were jailed in a prison in Adana, be released. Meanwhile, Ziya Aydemir, DTP Adana Provincial Chairperson, said that they would file a complaint with the Ministry of Interior against the attitude of the police who reportedly smashed the door of the DTP provincial party building and broke into its headquarters during the incident. REID