ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 001006 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 THURSDAY, MAY 29, 2008 In Today's Papers Baykal: There's a Wiretapping Network Within the State All news outlets report the main opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal said Wednesday security officials were tapping the office of the party Secretary General Onder Sav. Baykal said police bugged Sav's office and gave excerpts of his talk with a former governor to the Islamist daily Vakit. On May 23, Vakit published the conversation almost verbatim. AKP deputy chairman Dengir Mir Mehmet Firat denied Baykal's claims. "We will carry the allegations to the court, and the CHP will be pronounced as a slanderer if it fails to prove the claims," Firat said. Interior Minister Besir Atalay said he asked for an investigation into the allegations. The CHP is to submit a censure motion to parliament against the government in connection with the scandal. Papers report opposition far right MHP leader Devlet Bahceli has warned party officials to be careful as they, too, might have been bugged. Liberal Radikal says Baykal believes the ruling AKP government is behind the wiretapping scandal. "There is a wiretapping network within the state," Baykal said, adding the state uses advanced technological equipment for systematic bugging. Baykal blamed the police, saying "All in Turkey are aware of the 'F-type groups' within the police," which is a direct reference to government appointees in the Security Directorate of police officers who are reputed to support Islamic sect leader Fethullah Gulen. Leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet and mainstream Milliyet write "Turkey's main opposition party has become a victim of wiretapping that has also targeted representatives of the judiciary, military officials, rectors and journalists." Cumhuriyet says, "wiretappings increased after the AKP came to power." Wiretapping allegations were first raised when Cumhuriyet's chief editor Ilhan Selcuk was taken into custody in connection with the "Ergenekon" gang probe. Selcuk was asked a number of questions about his private life. Recently, Constitutional Court vice-president Osman Paksut voiced suspicions that he was being followed and wiretapped. Editorial Opinion on 'Turkey's Watergate': Who Bugged the Opposition? "Is There A Special Unit?" Murat Yetkin implies a link with the Fethullah Gulen sect in liberal-intellectual Radikal (5/29): "The bugging of the main opposition party CHP's Secretary General created a scandal in Ankara. Not only was the CHP Secretary General being monitored, but a complete transcript of the conversation he had with a former governor was published in the Islamist daily Vakit. CHP Leader Deniz Baykal dubbed the scandal 'Turkish Watergate' and claimed surveillance units within the security forces are being directed against government opponents. Along with previous events of this nature, there are some serious questions waiting to be answered. Has the ruling AKP established a special unit within the police force that monitors political dissidents? Has this unit been provided with high-tech devices? And does this unit have a separate organizational scheme that is related to a certain sect? These and more questions can only be answered by top government figures. Let's hope that the investigation into the surveillance against the opposition CHP will end up bringing some convincing answers to those questions. Healthy answers will not only serve democracy well, but will be good for the fate of the AKP government." "The Bugging Scandal" Taha Akyol writes in mainstream Milliyet (5/29): "Bugging is a very serious thing and main opposition CHP leader Baykal's reaction is fully justifiable. In this country, being bugged, unfortunately, is a common concern. We keep hearing similar fears from top level Constitutional Court members to cabinet ministers. First of all, living with such fears and concerns seriously harms stability. It is the utmost duty of the government and public institutions to ANKARA 00001006 002 OF 003 eliminate worries of this nature. Yesterday, the Interior Minister asked the Ankara Governor to take action in this matter. This is procedurally correct, but politically incorrect. The Interior Minister should have immediately opened internal investigations within intelligence units and relevant police offices. The AKP, which claims to be the defender of liberal rights, should have been more responsive than this." Babacan: Muslims Not Free to Practice Their Religion in Turkey All papers report Foreign Minister Ali Babacan addressed Wednesday the members of Foreign Relations Committee of the European Parliament. On a question regarding religious freedoms in Turkey, Babacan said not only non-Muslim minorities but the "Muslim majority in Turkey experienced religious freedom problems as well." In "Babacan Poured Out His Sorrows to EU Countries," leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet writes "Babacan complained about Turkey," which will "trigger controversy." Islamist-oriented Zaman claims Babacan's actual words were, "The majority of Muslims have problems exercising their religious freedoms," and calls the Foreign Minister's words, "A new opening in the topic of religious freedom." Mainstream Vatan notes Babacan insisted to the committee that because of Turkey's Muslim majority, "Turkey's accession to the EU will strengthen the influence and depth of the EU." Secretary Chertoff Emphasizes Coordination Against Terror Hurriyet, Sabah, Radikal, Cumhuriyet, Taraf, Zaman and others report U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff met with Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin, Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul, Interior Minister Besir Atalay, and with the military General Staff (TGS) during his one-day visit to Ankara on Wednesday. Islamist-oriented Zaman writes on its front page, "The U.S. Invites Turkey To Join Intelligence Sharing Network," noting, "Turkey was asked to join the U.S. and European countries like England and Italy who have implemented security screening measures at their borders that link up with FBI records." Leftist Taraf carries the headline, "Come, Let's Talk about This Al-Qaeda Threat," and reports Chertoff told reporters, "While Turkey may not have specific threats from al-Qaeda, we are all in the same boat in the war on terror and we want to continue our cooperation in the war against terror." Amnesty International Report Mainstream Sabah, liberal Radikal, leftist Taraf, Islamist Yeni Safak, and mainstream Hurriyet report that in its 2007 report, Amnesty International suggests that the increasing political uncertainty and increased clashes between the PKK and Turkish military led to an increase of violations against human rights and violence in Turkey. Hurriyet notes that the report covered increased violence, torture, ill-treatment and limitations on the freedom of speech in Turkey, but did not mention the turban issue. Second Round of Israel-Syria Talks to be Held on June 5 Sabah reports that the second round of indirect talks between Israel and Syria will be held in Istanbul on June 5. Prime Ministry Chief Advisor Ahmet Davutoglu and Foreign Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu will mediate the meeting. During the second round of talks, the parties will decide on the format of the talks, the frequency of them and the type of commissions to be formed. Telecom Board Board Blocks 433 Websites in 6 Months Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak reports Turkey's "Telecommunications Board" has blocked access to 433 websites over the past six months. Board Director Tayfun Acarer said blocking access to websites such as YouTube was done in accordance with court orders blocking websites according to the "catalogue crimes" defined in Law No: ¶5651. A New Administration and A New Foreign Policy Liberal Radikal carries an op-ed by retired Ambassador Ozdem Saberk, ANKARA 00001006 003 OF 003 who writes, "Now is the time to establish fundamentally new relations with a new America." Saberk notes, "Now is the time when the presidential campaigns are formulating their plans for foreign policy during their administrations. Turkey needs to reach out and open the lines of communication with all sides so Turkish-American relations are not limited to coordination against the PKK and the debate over Armenia." TV Highlights NTV Domestic News - Mustafa Birden, a high court justice who was wounded in the 2006 attack on the Council of State in 2006, has been elected the head of the Council of State. - Chief of the Greek military General Staff General Dimitrios Grapsas visited the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul on Wednesday. - The pro-Kurdish DTP MP Hasip Kaplan defended Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir for not joining PM Erdogan in Diyarbakir. "Erdogan refuses to shake hands with the DTP members; he cannot expect our mayors to accompany him," Kaplan said. International News - President Bush's former spokesman Scott McClellan claims in a new tell-all book that Bush relied on propaganda to sell the Iraq war. - Turkish Cyprus Foreign Minister Turgay Avci said the joint military exercises planned by France and South Cyprus was "not a well-intentioned move." - In a new video, al-Qaeda calls on jihadists to use biological, chemical and nuclear weapons in attacks against the West. WILSON