TURKISH CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW
No. 47/13 7/3/13
C O N T E N T S
1. Kucuk describes the Greek Cypriot side as “wolf in
sheep’s clothing”
2. British House of Lords on Turkey’s EU accession and
Cyprus; Comment by Bagis
3. Eroglu met with Irish MEP Donaldson
4.
The halloumi and zivania were promoted at the occupation regime’s stand in ITB
Berlin Fair
5. “Swine flu”
suspicions in the occupied area of Cyprus were confirmed; official statement by
the so-called ministry of health
6. Davutoglu in London
7. Jordan and Turkey seek boost in defense trade
8. Arinc: “Greek Orthodox seminary should be reopened”
9. Turkey appoints ambassador to “Palestinian state”
10. Uludere report passes through parliamentary
commission
11. Turkish Deputy PM announces new legislation for
jailed journalists
12.
The new “tax department” building will be inaugurated on the 20th of
July
1. Kucuk describes the Greek Cypriot side as “wolf
in sheep’s clothing”
Turkish Cypriot
daily Gunes newspaper (07.03.13) reports that Irsen Kucuk, self-styled prime
minister of the breakaway regime in the occupied area of the Republic of
Cyprus, has alleged that the Greek Cypriot side is the one which had always
been attacking in Cyprus and that Democratic Rally Party (DISY), of the newly
elected President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Anastasiades has been
established on EOKA-B organization.
In statements
yesterday during a meeting with a delegation from TMT “fighters’ association”,
Kucuk said that with the election of former President Christofias some people
thought that there was hope for the Cyprus problem because he was leftist, but
no progress has been achieved.
Kucuk claimed
that the newly elected President Anastasiades, who is “known for saying ‘yes’
to the Annan Plan”, “destroyed the hopes for peace” by stating one thing before
the elections and another afterwards, and by allegedly showing that he was not
much different from the other [Greek Cypriot] leaders.
Kucuk alleged
that the solution of the Cyprus problem and not the accession of Cyprus in NATO
should be on the agenda in the government-controlled area of the island. He
recalled that all guarantor powers of the Republic of Cyprus are members of
NATO and alleged that the Greek Cypriot side “is trying to give to the world a
message being a wolf in sheep’s clothing”.
In his
statements, the chairman of the above-mentioned association, Yilmaz Bora
alleged that fifty years after what he called as “genocide”, President
Anastasiades makes a call saying “come on let us unite” as if nothing happened
in Cyprus. Bora claimed that the current situation “offers the viable bi-zonal,
two-state solution which the whole world is looking for”.
(I/Ts.)
2. British
House of Lords on Turkey’s EU accession and Cyprus; Comment by Bagis
Ankara Anatolia news agency (06.03.13) reported from
London that the European Union Select Committee of the British House of Lords argued
yesterday that it was a “grave mistake” to accept the Republic of Cyprus as a
member of the European Union without a solution to the Cyprus problem.
The Committee presented their opinion on Turkey's EU
accession process and Cyprus’ EU membership in a report titled “The Future of
EU Enlargement”, published on March 6, 2013.
According to
Anatolia news agency, the report said, inter alia, the following:
“In allowing Cyprus entry into the Union before the
dispute over Northern Cyprus was resolved, the EU has imported a bilateral
dispute into the Union, transforming it into a dispute between the EU and one
of its candidate countries. This was a grave mistake, for which both the EU and
Turkey bear some responsibility, and one that has had serious negative consequences
for both Turkey and the EU [...] The EU has learned some painful lessons about
the problems that such disputes can throw up. The entry of Cyprus into the EU
in 2004 without reconciliation between its Greek and Turkish populations has
led to an entrenched dispute, diminishing the EU’s leverage in encouraging both
sides to reach a settlement, and consequently interrupting Turkey’s accession
process [...]”
Meanwhile, Turkish daily Zaman newspaper (07.03.13)
writes that the report drew attention to the “strategic importance” of accepting
Turkey into the EU as regards the Middle East, noting that some officials said
that living Western Balkans outside EU would be very risky.
Commenting on the report, Turkish EU Minister and
Chief Negotiator, Egemen Bagis told Zaman that the content of the report
becomes more important due to the publication of such a report in a country
which had stated that it would submit its EU membership to a referendum. He
expressed the hope that the “warnings” of the British Lords will reach the
necessary destination.
Bagis argued that everybody have accepted Turkey’s
importance in the solution of the problems of the EU and that “it would be a
more reasonable preference” for the 27-member Union to “adjust their sails to
the wind of Turkey instead of resisting to this wind”.
Complaining of the slow progress in Turkey’s EU
accession course, Bagis said that the “realities” mentioned in the reports of
esteemed European state institutions and think tanks, should be reflected as
progress on Turkey’s accession course.
(I/Ts.)
3.
Eroglu met with Irish MEP Donaldson
According to illegal Bayrak television
(06.03.13), Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu met on Wednesday with Irish
MEP Jeffrey Donaldson. The Cyprus Problem was on the agenda of the meeting.
Eroglu briefed Donaldson on the latest
stage reached in the Cyprus talks as well as the Turkish Cypriot side’s
expectations for the process ahead.
Eroglu’s undersecretary Hasan Gungor and
his special representative and spokesman Osman Ertug were present at the meeting.
No statement was issued to the press
before or after the meeting.
4.
The halloumi and zivania were promoted at the occupation regime’s stand in
ITB Berlin Fair
Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris (07.03.13)
reports that the International Berlin Tourism Fair, which is one of the biggest
fairs worldwide, has opened its doors yesterday and will close on March 10.
According to the paper, the occupation
regime is represented at the fair by “representatives” of the “tourism sector”
of the so-called ministry of tourism and culture.
The so-called minister of tourism,
environment and culture Unal Ustel attended yesterday the inauguration ceremony
of the fair and visited also the occupation regime’s 169 meters square stand,
together with Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc and Turkey’s Minister
of Tourism, Omer Celik.
So-called minister Ustel, informed the
Turkish officials writes the paper about the “occupation regime’s stand”. They
later held a meeting with the so-called minister Ustel and had a launch
together, the paper writes.
Also, at the occupation regime’s stand,
products such as the traditional Cyprus halloumi cheese and zivania drink were
promoted.
Also, leaflets written in English and in
German languages entitled: “50 reasons why to visit the TRNC” were distributed
to the visitors in order to promote the “TRNC” as a tourism destination, writes
the paper.
(AK)
5. “Swine flu” suspicions in the occupied
area of Cyprus were confirmed; official statement by the so-called ministry of
health
Under the front-page title: “Positive to
the H1N1” Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris (07.03.13) reports that the so-called
ministry of tourism, in a written statement yesterday confirmed the suspicions
on “swine flu” in the occupied area of Cyprus, adding, that the 57 years old
police officer Kemal Oner Erureten, who lost his life last Saturday, died
because of the H1N1 virus, which means “swine flu”.
The paper continues adding that the
samples which were sent to Turkey for further exams about Erureten’ death, were
positive.
The statement said also that it cannot
be said that the current case of “swine flu” is related with the cases of
epidemic experienced four years ago.
The statement underlines also that
pregnant women, children under 5 years old, elder above 60 years old and people
suffering from chroming diseases belongs to the group mostly under risk and
indicates to be more careful.
The so-called ministry announced also
that samples taken by four more persons and sent to Turkey for examination with
suspicions on swine flu, were negative to the disease.
The “ministry” said also that it had
already informed the “World Health Organization” on the case and had asked also
for its cooperation.
(AK)
6.
Davutoglu in London
According to Ankara Anatolia news agency
(06.03.13), Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will travel to Britain on
Wednesday to attend the 5th meeting of the Friends of Yemen Group
between March 6 and 8.
In a written statement released on
Wednesday, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said that, while in
London, Davutoglu will also meet his British counterpart William Hague.
Davutoglu will deliver a speech at the
London School of Economics during his stay in London, the statement also said.
7.
Jordan and Turkey seek boost in defence trade
Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News
(online, 07.03.13) with the above title reports that Jordanian King Abdullah
II, accompanied by Turkish President Abdullah Gul, visited the TAI facilities
in Ankara and watched the show flight of the ATAK helicopter. During the visit,
President Gul provided information to King Abdullah and his company about the
characteristics of Turkey’s first T-129 attack helicopter, co-produced by
Italy’s AgustaWestland and TAI.
During their visit the two leaders were
accompanied by high-ranking officials, including Turkish Defence Ministry
Undersecretary Murad Bayar, Board Chairman of Turkish Aerospace Industries
Yalcin Kaya and Director General of the defence company Muharrem Dortkasli.
Jordanian King, Turkish President
examine military attack helicopters
Beside the attack and tactical
reconnaissance helicopter ATAK, Turkey’s unmanned aerial vehicle systems ANKA
and Turkish primary and basic training aircraft HURKUS were also displayed to
the Jordanian leader.
With the nationally developed fresh arms
systems, Turkey has been passionately seeking to increase its arms and defence
industry systems abroad, especially in Middle Eastern countries who have so far
responded with a high interest.
8.
Arinc: “Greek Orthodox seminary should be reopened”
According to Ankara Anatolia news agency
(06.03.13), Turkey’s Deputy Premier Bulent Arinc, speaking at a conference in
Germany on living together in peace, said the Theological School of Halki
(Halki seminary) should be reopened for clerics to be trained for Greek
Orthodox Patriarchate and the Orthodox community.
He said new arrangements were made with
the new Law on Foundations and the orphanage belonging to the Patriarchate in
Buyukada (Princes' Islands), was returned to Patriarchate as well as other
foundations and/or real estates belonging to minorities in Turkey and they were
all glad about that.
Arinc said the Halki seminary could not
be reopened due to political reasons; first was the unfriendly attitude of
Greek administration to Muslim Turkish minorities in Western Thrace. He said
Greek administration should take steps to relieve Turkey and Turkish minorities
in Western Thrace but that should not mean that Turkey would not do anything
before Greek administration takes steps. He said Greek Orthodox community was
in need of clerics and it was a human right.
Arinc said they and the “minorities” in
Turkey have the same rights adding that he was using the term “minority” as a
legal term.
9.
Turkey appoints ambassador to “Palestinian state”
Under the above title, Turkish daily
Hurriyet Daily News online (06.03.13) reported that the title of Turkey’s
consul-general in Jerusalem has been upgraded to “ambassador” in an apparent
reflection of Palestine’s new, non-member state status in the United Nations,
as Ankara had already recognized Palestine as a state as soon as the Palestine
Liberation Organization (PLO) declared itself as such in 1988.
Turkey’s consul-general in Ramallah,
Sakir Ozkan Torunlar, will present credentials to Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas, a Turkish Foreign Ministry official told Hurriyet Daily News today.
Ankara’s move parallels Turkey’s support
of Palestine’s bid to join the United Nations as a non-member state, the
official said.
Noting that Ankara recognized Palestine
as a state many years ago, the official said that according to the latest
upgrade, Torunlar will be appointed to the “Palestinian State.”
Torunlar met with Palestinian Authority
Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki in Ramallah and pledged to work to enhance
cooperation between the two states.
10.
Uludere report passes through parliamentary commission
According to Turkish daily Today’s Zaman
(online, 07.03.13), a report prepared as part of an investigation into a
botched airstrike that killed 34 civilians from Sirnak’s Uludere district in
December 2011, passed through the parliamentary sub-commission tasked with
investigating the Uludere incident on Wednesday.
Five members of the sub-commission voted
in favour of passing the report, while three rejected the report, which
concludes that the incident happened due to a lack of coordination between
military officials and civilians at the scene of the airstrike.
The 34 civilians in Uludere, a district
of Sirnak, were killed after they were mistaken for terrorists of the Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK). The civilians were smuggling goods from northern Iraq as
part of their livelihood. The incident led to outrage across the country.
Today’s Zaman spoke to the head of the
sub-commission, Ihsan Sener, who stated that the members of the commission read
the 70-page document for a last time on Wednesday and voted on it. “Three
members of the commission voted against the report. They have been allowed
until next Tuesday [March 12] to finish writing down the reasons for their
disagreement with certain parts of the report,” Sener stated.
According to Sener, the content of the
report will not be shared with the press yet. “We may discuss it with the upper
commission next week and then it will be presented to the Parliament Speaker
[for an overview],” he noted.
Speaking during a press conference held
in Parliament, main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Levent
Gok, one of the members of the commission, said the report falls short of
expectations as it fails to reveal the culprits responsible for the botched air
strike.
Gok said the report only offers new
precautions to boost border security but leaves the controversial points
untouched and fails to elaborate over how the incident took place. He said none
of the critical questions with regard to the incident were answered in the
report.
"‘Who reviewed the UAV camera
footage?', 'Who decided that the people coming from the Iraqi side were
terrorists?', 'What kind of intelligence led to that conclusion?' and 'Who gave the order to conduct the air
strike?'," were among the questions that remained unanswered, Gok said.
He said the report neither defines the
air strike as an accident nor does it suggest intentional wrongdoing.
The report suggests installing
electronic devices (thermal cameras) and constructing a fence along the border
to increase security measures in order to end smuggling and illegal entry into
the country.
After the deadly airstrike, the military
said the Kurdish civilians were initially mistaken for members of the terrorist
PKK, but according to experts, the images of the group taken by Herons,
unmanned aerial vehicles, would have made it impossible to mistake the
villagers for terrorists.
11.
Turkish Deputy PM announces new legislation for jailed journalists
Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News
(online, 07.03.13) with the above title reports that a new law that will
decriminalize the creation and publication of propaganda that does not
encourage violence will be discussed soon and journalists imprisoned on these
charges may be released in line with the new law, Deputy Prime Minister Bulent
Arinc said in the German capital of Berlin.
“A draft legislation is about to be
brought to Parliament [in the next few] days. We are hoping to announce at the
Council of Ministers meeting on March 11 that even if a person makes
propaganda, as long as it doesn’t steer the masses toward weapons and violence,
it will no longer be considered a crime. I believe journalists who are in
prison for violating this article of the law will benefit from this amendment,”
Arinc said at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Berlin.
“Our concern is over journalists who, in
the scope of the Anti-Terror Law, are on trial or in prison. There are many
illegal organizations in Turkey. There are bombings and protests against women,
children and soldiers every day. Turkey has to implement this law as a state
that has suffered deeply from terrorism. If you are favouring the idea that
there should be no Anti-Terror Law or these protests shouldn’t be considered a
crime, I’m afraid we don’t share the same opinion. If Turkey is a country
suffering from terrorism and many are losing their lives due to terrorism, we
have to implement the Anti-Terror Law,” Arinc added.
12.
The new “tax department” building will be inaugurated on the 20th
of July
According to illegal Bayrak television
(06.03.13), the so-called ministry of finance is continuing work for the coming
into service of the “new tax and revenues department” building which will come
into operation as of the 20th of July.
Speaking at the meeting yesterday,
so-called finance minister Ersin Tatar said that the building will include
latest technological infrastructure.
The construction of the building which
started 3 years ago is estimated to cost around 10 million Turkish Liras to
build. Once completed, the building will be an important leg of the e-state
project.
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TURKISH
AFFAIRS SECTION
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