ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000124 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT TUESDAY, JANUARY 23, 2007 In Today's Papers Hrant Dink Funeral to be Held in Istanbul Today All papers continue to have extensive front page coverage of Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink's murder and his funeral to be held today in Istanbul. Several papers criticize Istanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah for saying "The murder has no political links or connection to any organization," and that "The suspect committed the crime out of nationalist feelings." Cerrah, however, backpedaled two hours later, saying the police were probing the political and organizational dimensions of the killing. Several papers believe the murder of Hrant Dink was not the act of an individual, holding radical nationalist groups responsible for the murder. Cumhuriyet comments that the killing of Dink was linked to two earlier attacks that targeted Christian culture, i.e. the 2004 bombing of a McDonald's restaurant by Yasin Hayal and the murder of Roman Catholic priest Andrea Santoro in Trabzon last year. The killing of Dink which followed was actually an attack against a newspaper (Agos) representing Christian culture. Papers report President Sezer, Prime Minister Erdogan, Parliament Speaker Arinc, Foreign Minister Gul, and CHP leader Deniz Baykal will not participate in the funeral in Istanbul. The government will be represented by State Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin and Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu. Erdogan is expected to visit the Dink family soon, extending his condolences. Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc offered his condolences to Armenian Patriarch Mesrob II and the family of Dink. Arinc told the press after the visit he was positive about the amendment or abolishment of Article 301. The mass-appeal Aksam says the politicians who had presented various reasons for rejecting Article 301 changes were now equally skillful in finding reasons not to attend Dink's funeral. Columnist Cengiz Candar says in Referans that top level Turkish officials could have raised hope for changes in Turkey by attending the funeral. By not doing so, they ended all hopes for changing the future of Turkey. Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian or his deputy Arman Kirak is expected to attend the ceremony. Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, the spiritual leader of the Armenians in America, also accepted the invitation of Foreign Minister Gul to join the funeral. Joost Lagendijk, co-chairman of Turkey-EU joint parliamentary commission, said Turkey should find those responsible for the murder of Dink. The chairman of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Ren van der Linden condemned the murder of Dink and welcomed the swift reaction of the Turkish government to the murder. "A whole nation cannot be blamed because of a fanatic," van der Linden said. A delegation of the Committee for Coordination of Armenian Associations of France (CCAF) will attend the funeral. Papers also report the American Armenian organization ANCA called on the Bush Administration to drop efforts to prevent US Congress from formally recognizing the Armenian genocide. Meanwhile, Yeni Safak reports Turkish Parliamentary Foreign Relations Commission Chairman Mehmet Dulger will lead a delegation to the United States in an effort to counter Armenian lobby attempts. Editorial Commentary on the Assassination of Hrant Dink Hasan Cemal questioned in the mainstream Milliyet (1/23): "Why did this assassination happen? Would Hrant Dink be alive today if we didn't have a problem called the 'Armenian Issue'? Would he be alive today, if he wasn't an Armenian? If we weren't so scared of the past, would he be with us today? Would Dink still be alive if those who wanted to organize an Armenian conference under the roof of a university had not been prosecuted under Article 301? Would he be alive if he was not accused of stabbing the nation in the back? Would his assassination take place if those who claimed that there was no genocide, and those who believed the contrary could have freely researched the history? If politicians, journalists, public ANKARA 00000124 002 OF 003 opinion leaders, academics and jurists had not allowed access to the culture of "concocting enemies", would our brother Dink be alive today? Rest in peace dear Hrant. You are not alone. My dear brother, I share your pain that stems from history and I understand your mourning." Fatih Altayli commented in the mass appeal Sabah (1/23): "Although the Istanbul Security Chief announced that there isn't any organization behind the Dink murder, we should not believe it. The Chief regretted his statement immediately and issued a correction statement. Last year, Sabah newspaper covered lots of news about Trabzon, and its columnists warned everyone in their pieces that there more criminals would come out of Trabzon because of current economic and social problems. We also warned the Trabzon Security Department many times. Nevertheless, no in-depth investigations were conducted on these issues, nor were any preventing measures taken. The authorities only buried their heads in the sand. All these developments indicate the lack of political authority in this country. Some provinces are becoming a paradise for criminals and the government is failing to take any effective measures. Despite their weakness in fulfilling their duties, the government stubbornly insists on keeping their local administrators and security officials in their posts. Let me warn that what has happened so far is a guarantee of what will happen in the future." Ilter Turkmen commented in the mass appeal Hurriyet (1/23): "If Dink's murder encourages the public to be more tolerant, Dink will rest in peace. The assassination of Dink will bring the Armenian Genocide issue onto some countries' agendas with a strong determination. The possibility that the Armenian resolution will pass the US Congress this time is much stronger with the Democratic majority. Diplomatic initiatives will no longer be good enough. There have to be immediate steps to obstruct such trends in the US and in Europe. First of all, the Turkish-Armenian border should be re-opened on the basis of the 1921 Kars agreement and the border gate should be named after Dink. Second, Article 301 should be changed immediately. And, third, the foundations bill should be passed within the framework of the decision by the European Court of Human Rights. The arguments concerning the Heybeliada Seminary should be overcome and the seminary should re-open. We need to stop being afraid of the minorities in this country. The biggest danger lies with the minorities who need foreign shelter. Gul on Iraq, US-Turkey Ties Sabah, Milliyet, Cumhuriyet and Yeni Safak report Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told a gathering of the ruling AKP lawmakers in a spa town near Ankara that Operation Provide Comfort had played a significant role in breaking northern Iraq from the rest of the country. Yeni Safak reports Gul said "[Turkish] governments supporting the extension of the mandate of the force also had a great role in the disconnection of northern Iraq from its mainland. We are now trying to reunite Iraq." Gul also said, "We defend Iraq's territorial integrity, which is in the interest of both the Kurds and Turkmen. The Kurds in northern Iraq are our brothers, just as the Turkmen are." Cumhuriyet reports Gul, responding to a question from an MP whether the US was honest in supporting Turkey, said "Whenever we cannot convince the Europeans, we call the Americans, even in the middle of the night, asking them to warn the Europeans. The US, supporting us honestly, does so. Without support from Americans, we could not have recorded any progress." The FM also added, "The US approaches the Iraq problem with the mentality of a wholesaler; it's only recently that they have started to understand us. We are helping them on details." On the other hand, the Turkish Parliament will hold a closed session to discuss the issues of Kirkuk and cross-border incursions into northern Iraq at 19.00 on Tuesday. Gul Due to Visit the US Mainstream Sabah reports Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is scheduled to meet with Secretary Rice; Senator Murtha,who is known to be close ANKARA 00000124 003 OF 003 to House Speaker Pelosi, and the leading names of the Jewish lobby during an upcoming visit to Washington on February 5. Gul will also meet with UNSYG Ban Ki-Moon in New York to discuss Cyprus and Kirkuk. EU to Step up Work for Trade with Turkish Cyprus Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah, Radikal, Zaman and others report European Union foreign ministers have agreed to step up efforts to lift trade restrictions against Turkish Cyprus in line with earlier pledges made to Ankara. The ministers said after meeting in Brussels that "Work toward the adoption of special conditions for trade with north Cyprus must resume without delay." Papers are skeptical about the EU decision, saying the expression "direct trade" was not used by EU ministers adding that the future of the process depended on the attitudes of the Greek Cypriots. Meanwhile, Turkish papers report visiting Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi saying he could mediate for a settlement in Cyprus. TV Highlights NTV, 6.00 A.M. Domestic News - A new regulation promulgated by the Turkish Justice Ministry permits inmates in F-type prisons to come together 10 hours weekly in ten-member groups. - The owner and editor of Evrensel newspaper defending the Kurdish cause will face trial for insulting the Turkish military in violation of the penal code's Article 301. - Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his Italian counterpart Romano Prodi will attend the opening ceremony of a tunnel through Bolu Mountain that will reduce the travel time between Ankara and Istanbul to 3.5 hours. - Italian Prime Minister Prodi said the EU needed Turkey if it wanted to become a "flexible and pluralistic" institution. International News - The leader of the Kurdistan regional government Massoud Barzani said Kirkuk was a Kurdish city, adding they were not afraid of Turkish threats regarding the matter. - Turkish novelist Elif Shafak wrote in The Wall Street Journal that the killing of Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was an act of individual madness. - Addressing the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I defended Turkey's EU membership process, but added that his Patriarchate was facing problems. - On Monday, 100 people were killed and over 200 wounded in bombings targeting the Shiite areas in and around Baghdad. http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON