ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 001027

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SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT
WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2007

In Today's Papers

Court Annuls Turkish Presidential Election, AKP Calls for Polls on
June 24
All papers report Turkey's Constitutional Court declared the first
round of the presidential poll invalid and that Prime Minister
Erdogan subsequently proposed an early general election be held on
June 24 or July 1. The Constitutional Court ruled not enough
parliamentarians were present when the first round of the
presidential vote was held in the 550-seat assembly. Erdogan said
yesterday "The parliamentary system has been blocked; we are
urgently going to the people," proposing an early general election
be held "on June 24 or July 1." Erdogan also said his ruling AKP
wants the Turkish people, not parliament, to elect the president.
He said AKP also suggests reducing the term of parliament to four
years from the current five years.

Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak claims the government will hold a
referendum on a package of constitutional amendments if the
opposition declines to support the changes. Opposition Anavatan
Party leader Erkan Mumcu pledged unconditional support for
constitutional reforms. The main opposition CHP leader Deniz
Baykal, however, opposed Erdogan's proposal for electing the
president in general elections, saying such an implementation will
pave the way for the introduction of a "semi-sultanate" in Turkey.


On Wednesday morning, AKP submitted a bill to the parliament on
holding parliamentary elections on June 24. AKP MP Salih Kapusuz
said his party will also send to parliament today a proposal for
having the president elected for a five-year term, renewable after
another five years, directly by voters and not by the parliament.

Editorial Commentary
Mehmet Yilmaz writes in the mainstream daily Hurriyet: "One of the
main obstacles against resolving the current political crisis stems
from the fact that Turkey does not have a political party which can
address the demands of millions who are rallying against the
government. The rallies are organized by NGOs as opposed to a
political party because we have no party one that can attract the
attention of the masses. Let's be clear about the main opposition
party. CHP is doomed to lose elections as long as Baykal remains
the leader. Neither supporters of CHP nor the center right voters
concerned about the rise of the Islamists support Baykal. All of
this, I hope, gives a message to Baykal: leave your seat to an
emerging and promising young leader right now if you really want to
prevent a recurrence of the current political situation after the
elections."

Hincal Uluc writes in the mainstream daily Sabah: "Secular Turkey
must find its political leader as soon as possible. Otherwise,
those impressive numbers at the street demonstrations will not be
converted into votes. If the supporters of secularism go through
the elections without proper leadership, they will end up presenting
an election gift to the Islamist AKP."

Mustafa Unal comments in the intellectual Islamist-oriented Zaman:
"The [April 27] military warning cast a shadow on the court
decision, and opposition parties paved the way for this. Regardless
of point of view, it is certain this will be a litmus test for
Turkish democracy. One side represents supporters of democracy --
wounded due to the military warning -- and the other side represents
a group who support 'less democracy' to put it mildly. The problem
comes not only from the threat of the military acting against the
people's will but also from some politicians who seek a coup.
Nevertheless, Turkey should not live with pessimistic scenarios.
Turkey is capable of overcoming this turbulence as well. The
solution is very clear: immediate elections and an immediate call to
hear the people's will."


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May Day Riots Paralyze Istanbul
All papers report Turkish riot police detained more than 900
demonstrators while at least 30 protestors were injured in Istanbul
on Tuesday as they tried to march to Taksim Square in the heart of
the city. Police fired tear gas and water canons on some groups
trying to access Taksim and detained several people. Forty-one
schools were shut down in the area for the day in anticipation of
turmoil. Public transport was paralyzed in the city as the
authorities blocked roads, cancelled ferry services and closed metro
stations. The Istanbul stock exchange began trading later than
usual because of the traffic gridlock. Organizers later complained
at a press conference that a large number of people were taken into
custody and treated roughly. People are treated like terrorists,
says liberal Radikal under a page-one headline, "Police terror for
the people of Istanbul," adding the city "ground to a halt because
of rigid measures taken by the police." Istanbul Governor and
police chief were strongly criticized for shutting down parts of the
city and the use of excessive force by riot police.

Minister Aydin to Represent Turkey at Iraq Summit
Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah, Radikal, Zaman and others report Turkey
will be represented by State Minister Mehmet Aydin at the May 3-4
expanded Iraq neighbors conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, due to
the domestic political developments in Turkey preventing Foreign
Minister Abdullah Gul to participate. At Sharm al-Sheikh, Turkey is
expected to express its concerns over Kirkuk and the PKK.

Turkish University to Host Turkey-Armenia Congress
Mainstream Hurriyet reports a group of Middle East Technical
University (METU) students in Ankara will hold a congress, "Turkish
Universities' Approach to Turkey-Armenia Ties," from May 4-6. METU
students will explain their projects to reduce strain between the
two countries at the congress which will not discuss Armenian
genocide allegations.

US 2006 Country Reports on Terrorism
Milliyet, Sabah, Radikal, Cumhuriyet, Yeni Safak and others report
the US State Department 2006 Country Reports on Terrorism described
the PKK as the "most prominent among terrorist groups in Turkey."
"The PKK maintained an active presence in Greek Cyprus and
reportedly used the island as both a fundraising and transit point.
Among Kurdish-origin Turkish settlers in the north, the PKK
reportedly enjoys significant support," papers cite the report.
Liberal Radikal says the report contains criticism of Turkey and
Prime Minister Erdogan for its continued failure to act against
Yasin al-Qadi, a Saudi terrorist financier included in the UN list.


TV Highlights
NTV, 7.00 A.M.

Domestic News

- A rally in support of secularism will be held May 5 in the Aegean
city of Manisa.

- A delegation headed by the Kurdish party DTP leader Ahmet Turk has
met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in Dokan town in northern
Iraq to discuss a solution to the PKK problem through dialogue.

- AKP MP from Konya Ibrahim Hakki Askar has resigned from his party,
dropping the number of the ruling party seats in parliament to 352.


- A Turkish military helicopter crashed on Tuesday while trying to
make an emergency landing north of Diyarbakir, injuring both pilots.


International News


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- Millions of people participated in May Day demonstrations around
the world yesterday on international Labor Day, May 1.

- A report on the state of media freedom released by Freedom House
rates Turkey under "partly free" countries, noting a dramatic rise
in legal harassment was seen in the country where almost 300
journalists and writers were prosecuted for "insulting Turkishness"
under Article 301.

- Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister George Lillikas has rejected the
proposal of Turkish Cypriot "Foreign Minister" Turgay Avci for
meeting in a third country.

- Iraqi officials said they have received reports that Abu Eyyub
al-Masri, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, was killed by Sunni
tribesmen.

WILSON