SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR APRIL 20, 2006

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000088 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR APRIL 20, 2006 This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for April 20, ¶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 OZGUR GUNDEM: Yusuf Akbulut, Priest of Diyarbakir's Mother Mary Church, has reportedly received threats from anonymous sources. Sur Municipality Mayor Abdullah Demirtas, DTP Diyarbakir administrators and two imams paid a visit to the church and condemned the threat incident. BOLGE: AKP Adana Provincial Congress will be held on May 6 in Adana and PM Erdogan will also attend it. This congress will name the new AKP Provincial Chairman. As the day for the congress nears, speculations surfacing about an alleged rivalry initiated by reported attempts of Seyhan Mayor Azim Ozturk against current provincial chairman Abdullah Dogru, have been denied by Ozturk during Ozturk's Monday (04/17) visit to Dogru paid at the provincial party building in Adana. This visit has reportedly been a surprise to AKP grassroots in Adana. A reported indirect support has also been extended by Hayati Yazici, AKP Deputy National Chairman, to Dogru as well. Yazici reportedly ordered two candidates, one of whom was allegedly supported by Ozturk, to come to Ankara immediately. SABAH (GUNEY): Return to Villages and Rehabilitation Project has reportedly been fruitful in Tunceli, told Muzaffer Arslan, secretary general of Special Provincial Authority in Tunceli. SIPDIS Arslan reported amount of money spent and total numbers of houses per year that the state built in Tunceli province. SABAH (GUNEY): District branches of political parties in Hatay's Iskenderun district made a joint press announcement and said that they voiced their disapproval of claims circulating about the U.S. which would allegedly shift its navy base in Romania to the port in Iskenderun. OZGUR GUNDEM: The clashes between soldiers and PKK terrorists have reportedly been going on in Hakkari's Cukurca district around the border area. Meanwhile, reinforcements have reportedly been sent to support military operations going on in Siirt's Eruh district. Meanwhile, PKK claimed that a military unit has been ambushed and 6 soldiers have been killed in Sirnak's Besta quarter. CUMHURIYET: The daily reported that Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) has been taking strong measures to counter terrorist entities around the border area in Hakkari's Yuksekova, Semdinli and Cukurca districts, and Sirnak's districts in the border area. TAF has been deploying new military units in those areas. OZGUR GUNDEM: Relatives of two PKK terrorists, who have allegedly not been able to take possession of bodies of the terrorists killed on April 12 at Sirnak, have applied to Diyarbakir chapter of Human Rights Association and made a press announcement. Former Head of Istanbul University's Forensic Medicine Department said that such policy of authorities that did not allow the families to take dead bodies of their kin was against international laws. OZGUR GUNDEM: A tent has been set up in Mardin's Kiziltepe district to receive people offering condolences to the family of a woman terrorist killed on an unspecified date in a military operation in Sirnak. Kiziltepe mayor and DTP Kiziltepe administration paid a visit to the family to offer condolences. OZGUR GUNDEM: Eight out of 9 DTP administrators, who have been recently detained in Tunceli, have been arraigned and released. DTP Tunceli provincial chairperson is among persons released. One DTP member has been arrested for keeping possession of a false ID card. Meanwhile, interrogations of nine persons who were detained upon tip-off given by a confessor have reportedly been continuing. OZGUR GUNDEM: Three people have been detained in Malatya on grounds that they attacked security forces with batons and stones, and they damaged businesses at a spot where they held a reported violent protest against reported raid of police on March 14 at Tunceli Basic Rights and Liberties Association. OZGUR GUNDEM: A DTP delegation, which attempted to ameliorate hostilities going on between two families feuding with each other, has been denied entrance with their cars to Van's Muradiye district by the soldiers. The delegation had to walk 10 kilometers to get to the district. OZGUR GUNDEM: DTP Kars Provincial Chairperson Mahmut Alinak ADANA 00000088 002 OF 002 said that there were lawsuits opened against 5,000 people in Kars province on charges of conducting electricity theft. Alinak claimed that this situation sharply contrasted with "thieves" stealing larger amounts of money from coffers of state and receiving no penalties for that. EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM: Human Rights Association, TIHV (Turkey's Human Rights Foundation) and Mazlum-Der (Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed People) made a joint press announcement and extended support to Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, against whom Ministry of Internal Affairs started an investigation for his remarks uttered during violent protests that were going on in Diyarbakir last month. BOLGE / EKSPRES: Cukurova University Rector Alper Akinoglu made a written press announcement and condemned some media circles carrying out a campaign targeting President Ahmet Necdet Sezer to create bad publicity against him. EKSPRES: Authorities announced that 219,285 liters of smuggled fuel oil has been seized in a total of 16 operations carried out in Mersin last year in the fight against smuggling. EKSPRES / ZAMAN: A delegation of TCDD (Turkish Railways Authority) has returned to Turkey after holding a meeting with Syrian railway authorities in Aleppo between April 10 and 14 to solve railway transportation problems between Syria and Turkey. HURRIYET (CUKUROVA) / ZAMAN: Kyrgyzstan Minister of Culture, who came to Adana for the ongoing theater festival paid a visit to the Adana Chamber of Commerce, as well. The minister stayed for two days in Adana. CUMHURIYET / YENIS SAFAK: Ministry of Justice reportedly favored issuing of a warning to Van Prosecutor Ferhat Sarikaya rather than filing a complaint against him on charges of "including unrelated statements in Semdinli indictment" and "improperly sending a document to the provincial Jandarma Command." Higher Board of Judges and Prosecutors will discuss today investigation report created by Ministry of Justice inspectors against Sarikaya. EVRENSEL: According to the paper Anti-Terror Draft Law will prevent the arrest of non-commissioned officers Ali Kaya and Ozcan Ildeniz, defendants of November 2005 Semdinli bombing case, as they stand trial. RADIKAL / EVRENSEL: This year's May Day will reportedly be overshadowed by the terrorist developments and demonstrations taking place in the southeastern region. Reportedly, while some of the trades and labor unions fear that pro-PKK organizations such as DTP will abuse May Day as an opportunity to voice their own demands, other unions stated that they do not hold such an opinion that political parties will reduce value of labor movement and fight for democratic rights and liberties to mere political and ideological messages. SABAH (GUNEY): Journalists in Hatay staged a march in Antakya district and carried a giant Turkish flag to condemn the reported recent attacks on the integrity of the country. SABAH (GUNEY): Villagers and 14 muhtars (headmen) held a protest activity in Batman's Gercus district to voice their demands about an international highway project crossing the area that has been on local agenda for nearly thirty years. REID