ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 001037 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 WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, 2008 In Today's Papers Wiretapping Mystery Solved by Cell Phone Records All papers report Turkey's GSM operator Turkcell confirms that there was a 44-minute call recorded between Vakit daily newspaper and the mobile phone of CHP Secretary General Onder Sav on May 24th. Last week, the opposition CHP accused the AKP government of "monitoring" Sav's conversation with a former governor, and "servicing" the talk to the Islamist daily Vakit which published it almost verbatim in their newspaper the next day. Vakit claimed Sav forgot to switch off his cell phone after he mistakenly answered the call and proceeded with his talk with the governor.The ruling AKP and Islamist media had blamed Sav for "falsely accusing" the government of having bugged the CHP party building and phones. In "Turkcell Confirms 44-Minute Call Between Sav and Vakit," nationalist Turkiye and others report Vakit's claim was supported by a Turkcell document released yesterday. On May 30, CHP filed a criminal complaint against Vakit, claiming illegal monitoring of Sav's office. CHP leader Deniz Baykal told his party group meeting yesterday, "Members of Islamist groups have been bugging almost the entire country and using the information obtained for blackmail or other political purposes." In addition, Baykal charged, "No authority in Turkey should be given such mandates; we'll launch a legal fight against such practices." Mainstream Milliyet reports on its front page, "The Country is uneasy with reports that all personal communication is monitored by the Security Forces." Cumhuriyet lashes out at the Justice Ministry for allowing police and the intelligence service MIT to monitor people, but turned down a similar request from the gendarme. Meanwhile, the Turkish Parliament adopted a motion on Tuesday to set up a parliamentary committee to investigate the CHP's allegations of wiretapping by the police and MIT. EDITORIAL OPINION: Iraq; Turkey's Efforts for Middle East Peace "Future of Iraq" Cuneyt Ulsever wrote in mainstream Hurriyet (6/4): "It seems the upcoming presidential race will take place between Barack Obama and John McCain. The U.S. election results will shape the future of Iraq. With that in mind, the year 2009 will certainly be a fateful year for Iraqis. On the surface, there seems to be a policy difference between the Republican Party and the Democrat Party as the former wants to stay in Iraq while the latter prefers an immediate withdrawal. Given the current failure of the Bush administration's policy in Iraq, it is politically correct for Democrats to defend the policy of withdrawal in theory. However in reality, I do not see a major policy difference between the two parties. Moreover Democrats do not look as if they have a clear and solid Iraq policy. Let's take Obama's remarks to the extent that he will not act hastily to withdraw from Iraq. McCain says the same thing, so one can conclude that both parties are saying the same thing. They both know an immediate pull-out will not serve Iraq's interests. After all it is very important for the U.S., regardless of which party is in power, not to repeat the same 'Divide and Rule' mistake that the United Kingdom made by focusing on communities, instead of a national identity. Using Iraqi tribes and communities, like Sunnis and Shiites, may appear to be work but in the end it only paves the way for a divided Iraq. With its tribal-focused policy on Iraq, unfortunately the U.S. seems to be repeating the UK's mistakes." "Turkey-Syria-Israel" Soner Cagaptay wrote in liberal-intellectual Radikal (6/4): "For sometime Turkey has been conducting diplomacy between Israel and Syria. The efforts for a Syrian-Israeli peace agreement require some important aspects to keep in mind. First of all, it remains to be seen whether Israel and Syria are genuinely ready to make ANKARA 00001037 002 OF 003 compromises or are they just acting like peace advocates for show? If the efforts produce a peace agreement, the ruling AKP will undoubtedly gain enormous credit. However there is also a serious risk here. If the Syrian nuclear connection to North Korea is proven, Ankara will face a serious blow against its credibility. Moreover, such a development will harm the AKP's image vis-`-vis Washington. As far as the peace effort is concerned, a positive atmosphere for the AKP in Washington can only be achieved if Syria signs a peace agreement with Israel and if it can distance itself from Iran and Hezbollah. In other words, Turkey is gambling with politics as it takes a role in the Syrian-Israeli peace talks. The gambling table has four actors, Ankara, Washington, Tel Aviv and Damascus. Let's hope that Ankara acts with good knowledge of the cards in other players' hands." Human Rights Court Backs Headscarf Ban in Turkish Schools All papers report the European Court for Human Rights (ECHR) rejected yesterday a complaint from two Turkish teachers who were not allowed to wear the Islamic-style headscarf in the classroom. Fatma Karaduman and Sevil Tandogan from Theology High School (Imam-Hatip) in the city of Sakarya, complained that headscarf restrictions amounted to a violation of freedom of religious expression. Tuesday's ruling was the ECHR's second rejection of a headscarf-related complaint, leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet says. Mainstream Hurriyet says the ECHR approved, once again, the headscarf ban in Turkey. Papers noted the ECHR ruling came hours before the Constitutional Court takes up the CHP's objection to controversial AKP-MHP sponsored headscarf reforms, which were passed by the Turkish parliament earlier this year. The Constitutional Court is scheduled to consider the case against the reforms on Thursday. KRG Changes Stance Regarding Kirkuk Milliyet, Sabah, Zaman, Vatan, Bugun and others: Papers report that, speaking to Reuters News Agency, Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said "Regarding Kirkuk, as Kurds, we are ready for sharing power. We are seeking a solution, not a referendum. We have asked the UN to be technically involved because the situation is complicated." The regional Kurdish Parliament voted in December for a six month delay in a proposed referendum, mainly to give the UN time to come up with solutions for the issue. U.S.-Turkey Nuclear Cooperation All papers report the nuclear energy production agreement (123 Agreement) between the U.S. and Turkey is covered in a straightforward manner, but also reflects a sense of relief that the discussions have finally concluded with an agreement after eight years of discussions. In "A Peaceful Nuclear Agreement with the U.S.," mainstream Milliyet writes, "this agreement will make it easier for U.S. companies such as GE to proceed with plans to invest in Turkey's nuclear development program." Mainstream Hurriyet points out, "This agreement is very important," as "Turkey's neighbor Iran experiences serious problems with the international community because of its nuclear efforts." Leftist Taraf calls the agreement, "Praise from the U.S. for Turkey's Peace Efforts," because, "soon after Sean McCormack praised Turkey for its mediation efforts between Israel and Syria, the nuclear cooperation agreement was signed." Leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet writes in "On the March Toward Nuclear Cooperation," that "Bill Clinton was President when the agreement negotiations were first initiated in 2000," and "the agreement targets cooperation to exchange nuclear technology, material, and reactor equipment." Matt Bryza Emphasizes Close Ties Leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet carried an interview with U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Matt Bryza under the headline, "Our Close Cooperation Will Continue." The article notes Bryza emphasized, "The U.S. has always appreciated ANKARA 00001037 003 OF 003 Turkey's secular values," and, "The AKP closure case will not damage relations with the U.S." He said the U.S. attributed significant importance to Turkey's secularism and democratic principles since the time of Ataturk, and "see it as the basis of our partnership with Turkey." In addition, Bryza noted, "While it is necessary to fight against PKK terrorism, Turkey's cooperation with Iran on this topic is not perceived warmly by the U.S." NGOs against Gay Rights Group 'LambdaIstanbul's Closure Hurriyet, Radikal, Taraf, and Cumhuriyet report some 150 domestic NGOs backed by international organizations held a press conference in Istanbul on Tuesday to express support to Turkey's gay and lesbian rights organization, LambdaIstanbul, which was closed by the Governor's Office last week. Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International (AI) representatives told the press the closure was indicative of the official intolerance against diverse groups and minorities in Turkey. "With this decision, the authorities have approved the prejudice in the Turkish public against marginalized groups," HRW representative Emma Sinclair-Webb told the leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet. Obama Reaches Necessary Delegate Count for Democratic Party's Nomination All papers cite the Associated Press (AP) report that U.S. Democratic Party Presidential candidate Barack Obama has reached the requisite delegate count for the Democratic Party's nomination. According to mainstream Sabah, Obama's rival, former first lady and New York Senator Hillary Clinton said "If it will help the Democrats win the elections, I am open to taking the vice-president position." TV - Morning News: NTV Domestic News - Four suspects accused of spying at the Turkish border for the northern Iraqi Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) will face up to 20-year prison sentences. - Opposition far right MHP leader Devlet Bahceli told his party group Tuesday preparations for Kurdish language broadcasts on state-owned TRT television were "a good-will gesture for the PKK." - "Turkey's growth performance over the last 20 years had been mediocre," said the elite business group TUSIAD member Ali Kibar. International News - Greek Cyprus has withdrawn some of its objections to EU financial support for Turkish Cyprus. - The European Court of Human Rights has called on Turkey to demonstrate "positive attitudes" in dealing with the Greeks living on Gokceada and Bozcaada islands. - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad announced to the world press, "Israel must be prepared to return all Syrian lands occupied in the 1967 War as part of any peace deal between the two sides." WILSON