TURKISH
CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW
No.
108/13
11/6/13
1.
Erdogan blamed ‘interest rate lobbies’ for aiming to destroy
Turkey; He warned the protestors to end violence
2. Arinc announced
that Erdogan is to meet with representatives of Gezi protests
3. Bagis: “Protests
in Turkey target Premier Erdogan”; he accused foreign media for
hypocrisy
4. Gulen calls for
peaceful coexistence, warns about deceit and oppression
5. Demonstrations in
Turkey continues-Police forces entered Taksim Square in the morning
to remove the placards from the square
6. Moody's warns
Turkey that protests may impact negatively on foreign investments
7. AKP government to
implement restrictions on the use of social media through legal
regulations
8. Gul approves
alcohol regulation law
9. Thousands of
February 28 coup documents destroyed in 2010
10. Eroglu: the
territory issue is the actual power of the Turkish Cypriot side at
the Cyprus talks
11. Kucuk is visiting
Ankara today
12. The three
political parties proposed Dr. Sibel Siber to be assigned as the new
“prime minister” of the occupation regime; Eroglu’s response is
expected
13. Reference by
Evkaf’s new director to the Armenian Church in Lefkosia
14. The newly
appointed director of Evkaf replaces picture of Dr Fazil Kucuk with
Sultan Selim II
15. “Martyr
Lieutenant Caner Gonyeli Search and Rescue Exercise” kicked off in
the occupation regime
16. Turkey tries to
upgrade the position of the breakaway regime in TÜRKPA summit
17. Memur-Sen Trade Union to participate in an education meeting in FYROM; it will inform about the Cyprus problem
17. Memur-Sen Trade Union to participate in an education meeting in FYROM; it will inform about the Cyprus problem
18. Turkey to build a
new $5 billion thermal power plant
19. Lithuanian envoy
expressed support for Turkey's EU membership
1.
Erdogan blamed ‘interest rate lobbies’ for aiming to destroy
Turkey; He warned the protestors to end violence
Ankara
Anatolia news agency (11.06.13) reported that Turkish
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged on Sunday immediate halt of
protests which started more than 2 weeks ago as a sit-in against a
construction project at Gezi Park, a green area in Istanbul's central
Taksim Square, but then spiraled into broader anti-government
demonstrations and rallies in many provinces across the country.
"People who do not
respect the government will pay the price. I appeal to my friends who
are being played in (Ankara's) Kizilay, Kugulupark and here and
there, please stop the protests," Erdogan told his supporters on
Sunday who gathered to welcome him in Turkey's capital Ankara upon
his return from Istanbul.
Erdogan
said some groups inside and outside the country were troubled because
of Turkey's "powerful steps", adding: "Can the
international media dream be positive about Turkey? Now, the media
attacks our government. And they cooperate with the interest rate
lobbies, domestic and foreign."
Erdogan
blamed "interest rate lobbies" for causing volatility in
financial markets and vowed to stop them, adding: "Those who
attempt to sink the bourse themselves will be trapped under the
debris."
"We
had a $23,5 billion debt to IMF. Now we have closed the IMF chapter
but they feel uncomfortable about this. The central bank used to have
$27.5 billion in its foreign currency reserves and now they have $130
billion. It is not about the Taksim Gezi Park. It is not an issue to
root out 15 trees and carry them to another place. Believe me, 95% of
the population did not know the name of the Gezi Park until now,"
he said.
"Interest rate
lobbies have made fortunes in this country. You had to stop them. We
were very patient until now but when the interest rates fell, these
lobbies felt uncomfortable and they do not want a strong Turkey."
Erdogan
also accused protesters of vandalism saying: "they burned down
public buildings, vehicles, public buses, cars and injured about 600
police officers. And they are responsible for the death of one of our
police officers."
"If
you do not stop the protests and continue this war we will speak in
the language you understand. My patience has its limit. You cannot
show this country as a country where terror prevails."
"The
interest rate lobbies who continue to battle us, market speculators,
who continue to support these groups, those who use universities and
students for your games, you will all fail. If you believe in
democracy, if you believe in freedom, the way of democracy passes
through the ballot box", Erdogan said.
Erdogan
also invited people to join rallies of his ruling Justice and
Development (AK) Party to be held next weekend in capital Ankara on
Saturday and Istanbul on Sunday.
2.
Arinc announced that Erdogan is to meet with representatives of Gezi
protests
Turkish
daily Today’s Zaman (10.06.13) reported that Deputy
Prime Minister Bulent Arınc, in statements yesterday to reporters
following the Cabinet meeting that lasted more than six hours, said
that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet with
representatives of the Gezi Parkı protests on Wednesday, to have
talks over the protests and government's plans on the area.
Arınc
told reporters that after he met with the Taksim Solidarity Platform,
another group asked for a meeting with the Prime Minister. Arınc
said that Erdogan agreed to meet with some of the organizers of the
Gezi protests. He however, declined to elaborate about the names that
will be included in the delegation to meet with Erdogan.
Speaking
on the ongoing nation-wide anti-government protests, Arinc said the
government is determined to not let illegal rallies take place.
He argued that some of
the extreme and fringe groups hijacked the protests and engage in
clashes with police and security forces.
Arınc
said some demands voiced by protesters are unacceptable. "Some
are talking about release of those who are in detention over charges
of damaging public property and attacking police officers. Should we
release those who killed a police officer?" Arinc said.
He
also stated that calls for resignation of the government are
irrelevant, citing that Turkey is a state where rule of law prevails.
"They can't just demand from us to 'remove him or that public
official' as some rebels did in the Patrona Halil revolt (which took
place in 1730 in Ottoman era and ended with toppling of the sultan
and hanging of the Grand Vizier)."
The
Deputy
Prime Minister said also that the government has concrete evidence
over the foreign meddling in the protests, adding that the legal
process is still unfolding. Therefore, Arınc said, he can't
elaborate on details of the process and what kind of evidence
government has at the moment.
(…)
3.
Bagis: “Protests in Turkey target Premier Erdogan”; he accused
foreign media for hypocrisy
According
to Ankara Anatolia news agency (10.06.13) Turkey's
European Minister and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis said on Monday
that the ongoing anti-government protests had nothing to do with
Taksim Gezi Park but they targeted Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan.
In
a written statement, Bagis said
that Turkey was taking "the biggest strides to become a global
power" but there were some circles "disturbed by Turkey's
growth."
"Some feel
humiliated as Turkey grows. Some have realized that they have been
silenced as the society raised their voices. Some have lost sleep
when we talked about justice and development [...] Today is the day
for unity. Today is the day when resentments should be forgotten and
left aside," Bagis said.
Bagis
said protests initially started with environmental concerns but then
they were exploited, adding: "those who cannot defeat us with
their own efforts have begun exploiting the protests deceiving our
children. But this society has not given any credit to those
provocations in the past ten years and it will not after these ten
days, since the protests broke out."
Bagis said western media
had made a mistake and revealed "hypocrisy by showing their
feelings towards Turkey."
"Western media have
made a mistake. They thought the protests in Turkey were similar to
the ones in Egypt's Tahrir Square. They are not aware of the fact
that Turkish nation had its liberation struggle in 2002 that is when
the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party came into power [...]
They had better not call these protests as a civil resistance. These
protests have given a great deal of damage to Turkey," said
Bagis.
4.
Gulen calls for peaceful coexistence, warns about deceit and
oppression
Turkish
daily Today’s Zaman (10.06.13) reported that the Turkish
Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen has called for living together in
peace, echoing similar remarks issued by President Abdullah Gul last
week against the background of two-week-long anti-government protests
in Turkey.
“For the love of God,
let's live for a while in a [spirit] of brotherhood,” Gülen said,
borrowing a theme from a popular song sung by children participating
in the Turkish Olympiad.
“As
they said in the Turkish Olympiad, ‘A new world, a new world,
together a new world,'” Gulen
stated and rejected totalitarian, oppressive, dictatorial and
authoritarian systems.
While
meeting with a group of Turkish Olympiad participants at the Cankaya
Presidential Palace, President Gul praised the event as contributing
to peace, brotherhood and friendship, stating the following: “For
peace to exist in the world, different languages, religions, beliefs
and cultures need to respect each other, recognize one another and
live in serenity and peace with each other. If that does not happen,
then efforts to oppress one another become the source of much
suffering and conflict”.
In
earlier remarks, Gulen
criticized the police handling of recent protests, saying that the
initial protesters who gathered in Taksim's Gezi Park for a sit-in to
prevent construction workers from destroying trees could be seen as
rightfully demanding the preservation of the ecosystem and green
spaces. He called their initial demands “logical” but condemned
the subsequent violence of extremist groups.
Gulen
also noted that indifference and the inability to comprehend events
could cause another problem on the other side and urged the
government not to underestimate the protests.
In
remarks posted on the herkul.org website, Gulen
also warned on Sunday of a sinister campaign by hypocrites targeting
Muslims, saying that hypocrites are more dangerous than unbelievers.
“It is difficult to
deal with a hypocrite,” he said, stressing that a hypocrite
pretends to be a believer when in fact s/he is in disbelief. He said
taqiyye (hiding one's true intentions) is commonly used by hypocrites
to shield their dangerous campaigns to destroy Islam.
He said taqiyye has no
place in Islam, despite the fact that some have tried to make it one
of the essentials of the Muslim religion. The Shiite ideology
propagated by Iranian clerics sees taqiyye as a lawful practice but
the Sunni jurisprudence dismisses it as baseless.
Recalling
Prophet Muhammad's reported words, “Whoever cheats us is not one of
us,” Gulen
underlined that Islam does not condone any deceit or cheating. He
asked that Muslims should be vigilant for people who use deceit to
hide their evil intentions.
5.
Demonstrations
in Turkey continues-Police forces entered Taksim Square in the
morning to remove the placards from the square
Turkish
Istanbul T24 (http://t24.com.tr/)
web site (11.06.13) reported about the latest demonstrations in
Turkey and broadcast that a large number of police officers from the
Riot Squad have entered Taksim Square from the Gumussuyu Boulevard to
remove the placards and banners from the square.
Eleven buses carrying
Riot Squad forces gathered in front of Inonu Stadium in the early
hours of the morning.
The police announced on
loudspeakers that the purpose of the intervention was to maintain law
and order in front of the AKM [Ataturk Cultural Center] and the
monument [in the middle of the square]. They added that groups on the
square should withdraw to Gezi Park and that there will be no
intervention in the park.
In the meantime, it has
been alleged that the intervention may not be aimed at only the
barricades and that thousands of police officers are present around
Taksim.
The
web side brodacast that
Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu said in a statement:
"The demonstrations
of Gezi Park started with motivations of protecting the environment.
However, the proportions they have assumed subsequently have caused
our nation deep concern and distress. "There is no question of
preventing or restricting the continuation of the current situation
with democratic conduct and behavior. However, the placards, signs,
banners, flags, and pictures covering the Ataturk Monument and the
AKM have generated public indignation, serious criticism, and
sentiments that strain the limits of tolerance. […]
"For this reason, it
has been decided to put an end to these scenes, which have had a
negative impact on the image of our country in the world, which have
generated public indignation at home, and which, in truth, are
incompatible with and even contradict the message and objective of
the persons in Gezi Park.
"Consequently,
starting at 8:00 am today, our security forces will conduct an
activity that will only be aimed at removing these placards, signs,
and pictures. This activity will have no component aimed at Gezi Park
or Taksim. There will be no activity against any person or group in
Gezi Park or Taksim.
"It is important
that assistance be given to our security forces in their activity,
which will be restricted to this scope, and that no credence be given
to any propaganda that may lead to any misunderstandings or
misinterpretations. "The public is respectfully informed.",
he stated.
In
addition, Hurriyet (11.06.13) reported on the demonstration and wrote
that Istanbul’s working-class and predominantly Alevi neighborhood
of Gazi continues to see heavy clashes with police. The clashes come
long after security forces withdrew from Taksim Square, leaving Gezi
Park and the square to the protesters’ occupation. Every night
since the unrest began, more than 15,000 people have gathered at 9
p.m. in the district of Sultanbeyli’s Gazi neighborhood center,
according to daily Radikal’s report published on June 10.
The protesters use the
same method as the Taksim occupiers, blocking the neighborhood’s
entrance with barricades and clashing with police to prevent an
intervention in the protest.
Police officers used
TOMA, a vehicle used to intervene in public incidents, water cannon,
and tear gas to disperse the group.
Veli
Gulsoy, the head of Gazi Cemevi (Alevi house of worship) said what
was happening in the Gazi neighborhood was a reaction to the
government by ordinary people, daily Radikal reported. The
neighborhood, predominantly populated by Alevis, witnessed mass
demonstrations in 1995 after 23 people were killed in four days of
unrest, 17 of them by police bullets, according to forensics reports.
6.
Moody's warns Turkey that protests may impact negatively on foreign
investments
According
to Turkish daily Today’s Zaman (10.06.13) credit
ratings agency Moody's has said in a statement that anti-government
protests in Turkey, may have a negative effect on foreign investments
in the country.
Turkish
markets have indeed been rattled by the two-week protest movement,
namely dipping on comments made by the country's Prime
Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has dismissed the protesters as
vandals and pledged to go ahead with a park demolition project that
sparked the initial protests.
(…)
In a statement released
on Monday, Moody's said foreign investments in Turkey may be
negatively affected by the anti-government protests which may also
pose a serious risk for the country's balance of payments.
On
Friday, Fitch, another leading global credit rating agency, said in a
statement that the anti-government protests in Turkey are not a
threat to its sovereign
BBB- rating at present. “Nonetheless, much will depend on how the
authorities respond to the protests. Poorly handled, the situation
could escalate, with adverse consequences for the economy,” the
credit ratings agency warned in the statement.
7.
AKP government to implement restrictions on the use of social media
through legal regulations
According
to Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (10.06.13) social
media, the supreme arsenal of the demonstrators at the Gezi Park
protests is now being targeted by the ruling Justice and Development
Party (AKP) for working against society’s “serenity and peace,”
and the government is now seeking ways to restrict it.
After
Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Twitter a “plague,” the
government has moved to bring certain legal regulations to the use of
social media. Following the snowballing impact it engendered in
organizing the Gezi Park protests, Erdogan is reportedly considering
precautions to take, as discussed during an emergency meeting of the
Central Decision and Executive Council (MKYK) of the AKP on June 8.
The
AKP’s vice chairman of media and public relations responsible for
social media, Ali Sahin,
hinted at a “legal regulation” to “set social media in order.”
“Social media must be brought under order and regularity ... A
legal regulation could be made. People must be held responsible for
the content they write. If as a result of a tweet they write, people
loot shops and burn vehicles, the one who wrote it must bear its
costs,” Sahin told the Hurriyet Daily News yesterday.
Sahin
said people’s personal rights, legal personalities of companies and
public institutions were being attacked while commercial activities
were harmed due to news spreading on social media. “The elected
government is being conspired against, there is an intention to
topple the government through social media and people are being sworn
at. All these things should have a cost, a sanction. Cursing at
people is not freedom. As someone responsible for social media, I am
in preparations in this sense. Social media must be brought under
order and regularity. Such a draft law can be considered,” Sahin
added.
Yalcın
Akdogan, an AKP Deputy and a Senior Adviser to Erdogan has said that
there is a conspiracy behind the Gezi Park unrest directly aiming at
the government.
“We
will not sacrifice the prime minister,” Akdogan
said, portraying the government’s resistance to calls coming from
the Gezi Park as a matter of life and death. “A tweet containing
lies and slander is much more dangerous that a vehicle loaded with a
bomb. The explosion of a vehicle loaded with a bomb would be limited,
but a tweet filled with lies and slander can lead to a climate of
conflict. If the situation is serious, necessary precautions must be
taken,” Sahin said.
“If
we are really to use social media, it should not be used to chafe
someone, to produce false campaigns, to conspire
or to topple a government.”
According to a decision
made at the June 8 MKYK meeting, the AKP intends to “synchronize”
its local elections campaign with its maneuvers concerning the Gezi
Park unrest. The local elections, the first of a series of looming
elections, are scheduled to be held on March 30, 2014.
Deputy
Prime Minister Bulent
Arınc and AKP Deputy Chair Huseyin Celik will seek to get in touch
with protesters at Gezi Park. Interior Minister Muammer Guler is
expected to meet with sociologists to draft “a process analysis”
to introduce to Erdogan.
8.
Gul approves alcohol regulation law
Ankara
Anatolia news agency (11.06.13) reports that Turkish
President Abdullah Gul approved a new law which involved regulations
of alcohol consumption.
The new law approved by
Turkish President restricts the consumption and advertising of
alcohol.
It bans companies
producing alcoholic beverages from sponsoring events and sales of
alcohol between 10 p.m. and 6:00 a.m..
It also introduces
stricter penalties on drunk driving.
9.
Thousands of February 28 coup documents destroyed in 2010
Turkish
daily Today’s Zaman (10.06.13) reported that the General
Staff destroyed 2,007 documents regarding the February 28, 1997
unarmed military intervention. This information emerged during the
investigation into the weaponless coup that forced a government out
of power in that same year.
The General Staff
recently responded to a query from the Ankara 13th High Criminal
Court regarding documented actions of the suspects from the coup era,
sending reports of classified documents from 2007 that had been
destroyed. The documents were destroyed in 2010, according to the
General Staff's response. The reports are included in the indictment.
(…)
10.
Eroglu:
the territory issue is the actual power of the Turkish Cypriot side
at the Cyprus talks
Turkish
Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (11.06.13) reports that
Turkish Cypriot leader, Dervis Eroglu has said that the territory
issue is very important in the ongoing negotiations for reaching a
solution to the Cyprus problem. In statements yesterday during a
meeting with a delegation of the association of the Turkish Cypriot
“refugees from the south who suffered damage”, as the association
of Turkish Cypriots who have abandoned property in the
government-controlled area of Cyprus is called, Eroglu claimed that
because of the importance of the territory issue the practice of
giving land in the occupied area of Cyprus has stopped.
“It
seems that only in October we will start the negotiations”, he said
adding that the territory issue is the actual power of the Turkish
Cypriot side at the negotiations.
He
argued: “The biggest problem at the negotiating table today is,
perhaps, the territory issue. The Greek Cypriots say: ‘the
territory is indispensable condition for us’. Therefore, the more
territory we possess, this will be our power”.
Eroglu said that he would
consult with the “government” which will be established after the
“elections” in the occupied area of Cyprus on the issue of
creating packages for granting land to [Turkish Cypriot] “point
holders” that abandoned property in the government-controlled area
of Cyprus. He noted that the breakaway regime possesses land to
distribute and wished for the issue of the point holders to end after
the “elections”.
Eroglu claimed that the
Greek Cypriots do not invest in areas where Turkish Cypriot
properties exist in the government-controlled area of Cyprus. He said
that this is done deliberately in order for not increasing the value
of these properties. He argued that during the discussion of the
territory issue at the negotiations, a “settling of accounts will
be made by taking into consideration the improvement of the Turkish
Cypriot properties”.
(I/Ts.)
11.
Kucuk
is visiting Ankara today
Turkish Cypriot daily
Kibris newspaper (11.06.13) reports that Irsen Kucuk, self-styled
prime minister of the breakaway regime in the occupied area of
Cyprus, is visiting Ankara today. Even though no “official’
statement is issued, sources who are close to Kucuk said that he
would meet with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan today at 14.30
hours.
Referring to the same
issue, Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika newspaper (11.06.13) reports that
the decision for Kucuk’s flying to Ankara has been taken suddenly.
The paper writes that according to sources, Kucuk is expected to
brief justice and Development party (AKP) officials on the latest
developments in the occupied area of Cyprus.
(I/Ts.)
12.
The
three political parties proposed Dr. Sibel Siber to be assigned as
the new “prime minister” of the occupation regime; Eroglu’s
response is expected
Under the title: “The
parties have reached to an agreement towards the new ‘cabinet’
and the ‘prime minister’”, Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris postasi
website (11.06.13) broadcast that the meeting of the three political
parties that are the Republican Turkish Party-United Forces (CTP-BG),
the Democrat Party- National Forces (DP-UG) and the Social Democratic
Party (TDP), has been completed.
The three parties
gathered today to designate the name of “prime minister”, as well
as the names of those who will participate to the “new cabinet”
to be formed until the “early election” that will take place in
the occupied area of Cyprus on July 28.
According
to Kibris postasi, Ozkan Yorgancioglu, chairman of CTP-BG has stated
after their meeting with the Turkish Cypriot leader, Dervis Eroglu,
that Dr.
Siber Siber,
“deputy woman” at the “parliament”, is the name they had
submitted to Eroglu to be assigned as “prime minister”.
Yorgancioglu went on and
said that from now on, the duty belongs to Eroglu, adding that they
are waiting from Eroglu whether he will approve Siber Siber or not.
The “new cabinet” will be also announced today to the public
after it will be approved first by the Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis
Eroglu.
Meanwhile, the three
parties agreed yesterday in the principles of the establishment of an
interim government.
Also,
making a statement after the completion of today’s meeting of
political parties, the leader of the Republican Turkish Party United
Forces Ozkan Yorgancıoglu said that they discussed during the
meeting the principles related to the “prime minister” and added
that they had also agreed that “experts” will be taking place in
the “interim government”, as he said.
Also, the leader of the
Democrat Party- National Forces Serdar Denktas said that they are
exerting efforts for an “interim government” to be formed, adding
that they had already agreed on the name of the “prime minister”.
Finally,
the leader of the Social Democratic Party Mehmet Cakıcı pointed out
to the difficult days that the “country” is going through, and
said that the three political parties took the responsibility to
finalize this procedure. He went on and said that they
had reached to an agreement after they exchange views and added that
they will announce the new “technocrat cabinet” to the public
after they will submit it to the “president”.
Also, predictions say
that CTP will be represented at the so-called cabinet with 4
“deputies”, while DP-UG and TDP with 3 “deputies”.
The National Unity Party
(UBP) did not participate in the meeting.
AK
13.
Reference
by Evkaf’s new director to the Armenian Church in Lefkosia
Turkish
Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (11.06.13) reports that
the way by which the Armenian Church Sourp Asdvadzadzin will be used
has not been clarified yet. According to the paper, the Church is
located at Arabahmet area in the occupied part of Lefkosia. The newly
appointed director of Evkaf religious foundation, Ibrahim Fadil
Benter told Kibris that he had not yet examined the file of the
Armenian Church Sourp Asdvadzadzin.
The paper notes that in
spite of the fact that no meeting has been held between the
interlocutors on the issue, who are the Evkaf, US Agency for
International Development (USAID), the UN Development Program- Action
for Cooperation and Trust in Cyprus (UNDP-ACT) and the Armenians
living in Cyprus, the Armenian community wants to use the church for
carrying out their religious duties.
Benter told Kibris that
he personally sees “no drawback” in the use of the church by the
Armenians for carrying out their religious duties, and recalled that
the Turkish Cypriots also visit Hala Sultan in the
government-controlled area of Cyprus and pray. He said that he will
examine the file of the case and brief the people as regards what
will happen. He noted that if there is an agreement on the historical
church, they will act accordingly, but expressed his objection to
views expressed in the past, such as turning the building into a
Department of Turkology.
According to the paper,
the project manager of UNDP-ACT, Christopher Louise has said that a
“gentlemen’s agreement” had been reached between the sides for
turning the buildings outside the church into a multicultural center
and for using the church in a manner approved by the Armenian
community. He noted that they want to settle the issue before the
completion of UNDP-ACT’s term of duty in the end of this year.
In statements to Kibris,
Peter Weiderud, who is holding the dialogue at the peace process in
Cyprus between the religious leaders under the auspices of the
Swedish Embassy, said that the Turkish Cypriots should give the
Armenian Cypriots the right to pray in their church whenever they
want. On the other hand, he claimed, the Armenians should understand
that they should get into direct contact with Turkish Cypriot
“officials” on this issue. He said that last January they secured
a meeting between the Armenian Archbishop Varoujan Herkelian and the
head of the “Religious Affairs Department”, Talip Atalay. He
added that this meeting had been very positive and that they are
ready to arrange similar meetings in the future.
(I/Ts.)
14.
The
newly appointed director of Evkaf replaces picture of Dr Fazil Kucuk
with Sultan Selim II
Turkish Cypriot daily
Afrika newspaper (11.06.13) reports that the first action of the
newly appointed director of Evkaf religious foundation, Ibrahim Fadil
Benter has been to lift the picture of former Turkish Cypriot leader,
Dr Fazil Kucuk from his office and replace it with a picture of the
Ottoman Sultan Selim II. According to the paper, this decision caused
great reaction among the employees. Afrika recalls that the
appointment of Benter to the post of Evkaf’s director had also
caused reactions and notes that as it had been said, Turkish Prime
Minister Erdogan played a role in this appointment.
Turkish Cypriot daily
Halkin Sesi newspaper (11.06.13) refers to the issue under the title
“Great disrespect” and reports that the administrative council of
Evkaf convened urgently yesterday and harsh debates were experienced.
Turkish Cypriot daily
Star Kibris newspaper (11.06.13) reports that Benter expressed his
sorrow about these “allegations” and added that he did not
removed Kucuk’s picture from his office, but only changed its
place. Explaining why he had put the picture of Sultan Selim II in
his office, he noted that this was the Ottoman Sultan who had
conquered Cyprus.
(I/Ts.)
15.
“Martyr Lieutenant Caner Gonyeli Search and Rescue Exercise”
kicked off in the occupation regime
According
to illegal Bayrak television (10.06.13) the
“2013 Martyr Lieutenant Caner Gonyeli Search and Rescue Exercise”
which is being conducted with the participation of civilian and
military units from Turkey and the “TRNC”
The
exercise will take place
off the coast of Gazimagusa [occupied Famagusta] in the Eastern
Mediterranean within the “TRNC territories and territorial waters”.
The land phase of the
exercises will begin tomorrow and the sea phase of the exercise will
begin on Wednesday.
According
to the information issued by the “Press
Office of the Cyprus Turkish Security Forces Command” the exercise
will be conducted with the participation of civilian and military
units from Turkey and the “TRNC”.
16.
Turkey
tries to upgrade the position of the breakaway regime in TURKPA
summitTurkish
Zaman newspaper (10.06.13) reports that Parliamentary speakers from
the Turkic world went to Ankara to attend a summit of the
Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-speaking Countries (TURKPA) and adds
that Turkey tried to upgrade the position of the breakaway regime in
the summit.
The
visiting
parliamentary speakers with their national delegations and the
Turkish Parliamentary Speaker Cemil Cicek, held the fourth summit of
TURKPA, a regional council established by Turkey, Azerbaijan,
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan in 2008 in order to promote relations and
cooperation among the people of the Turkic world.
During
the summit, Kyrgyzstan officially passed the chairmanship of TURKPA
to Turkey. In the meeting's keynote speech, Cicek deemed the
organization a "group of friends," rather than a typical
political organization. He also said, "As long as we are united,
we can make the voice of the Turkic world heard globally and we can
take the position we deserve in the international arena," He
also called on the breakaway regime and Uzbekistan “to also take
their places in the organization”, according to the paper.
Cicek
also mentioned Turkey’s bid for non-permanent membership status on
the UN Security Council for the 2015-2016 term, as well as a bid to
host the 2020 Olympic Games in İstanbul and the EXPO 2015 business
fair in İzmir and asked for the support of Turkic countries in those
efforts.
17.
Memur-Sen
Trade Union to participate in an education meeting in FYROM; it will
inform about the Cyprus problem
Turkish
Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper
(11.06.13) reports that Memur-Sen Trade Union which is the
representative of the breakaway regime of the International Eurasia
Education Trade Unions Union, is participating in the 8th
Representative Council Commission that is starting tomorrow and will
be completed on June 15.
The
meeting is taking place in Skopje,
FYROM.
The
delegation
of Memur-Sen consisted of its chairman Sener Ozburak and its general
secretary Kaan Mindikoglu will represent the trade union in the
meeting and will also hold contacts with FUROM President and with the
Minister of Education, according to the paper. Memur-Sen will also
inform the participants in the meeting about the Cyprus problem.
Participants from
Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Kosovo and Turkey will also
attend the meeting.
18.
Turkey to build a new $5 billion thermal power plant
Turkish
daily Hurriyet Daily News (10.07.13) Energy Minister
Taner Yildiz said in a written statement yesterday that Turkey plans
to establish a 3,500-megawatt (MW) thermal power plant with a $5
billion investment in the western province of Afyon, which possesses
950 million tons of lignite,
Taner
Yıldız said that the exploration by the Mineral
Research and Exploration (MTA) in the Dinar district of Afyon, which
has been continuing for five years, had now been completed and that
they had discovered lignite reserves in the area, totaling around 950
million tons.
“We aim to build a
thermal power plant, worth $5 billion, that will have 3,500 MW of
power. It means employment for 6,000 or 7,000 in the plant’s
construction and the mining field,” he said.
Yıldız
recalled that Turkey’s goal was to generate one-third of its
electricity via coal by 2023. “We aim to raise the local coal-fired
power plant’s capacity to
30,000 MW in the next 10 years”, Yildiz said, adding that coal
power plants would be built using resources from the Turkish Coal
Enterprises’ (TKİ) coal mining fields in Afsin-Elbistan,
Karapinar-Konya, Dinar-Afyon and Alpu-Eskisehir.
Yıldız
also said
that a coal field in the Karlıova district of Bitlis had been
transferred to the private sector under the condition that a coal
power plant be constructed. “The private sector will build a
thermal power plant that will have 240 MW of power and which will be
worth $700 million”, he added.
On
average 1 MW of power can supply electricity to as many as 300 U.S.
households per year. According to TUİK
figures, the average person in Turkey consumes 540 kW of electricity
in one year.
The
Minister
said that they aimed to end Turkey’s dependence on $12 billion
worth of natural gas imports with power plants fired by domestic
coal. Turkey produces around half of its electricity from natural
gas, a source for which it is largely dependent on Russia, Iran and
Azerbaijan.
Turkey
has recently been encouraging the construction of coal-burning plants
in an effort to break its large dependence on natural gas. Yıldız
said the investment in high-calorie local coal would be profitable
for both Afyon and Turkey. The scope of state incentives for
coal-mining investments was expanded with a decision by the Cabinet
declared on May 31. The recent incentive system, which came into
force on June 20, 2012, had allocated incentives to only low-calorie
coal (low C class), but the recent decision will allow for incentives
to be given also to high-calorie coal.
However, Yıldız said
they had also made investments worth $1.2 billion in the last 10
years for clean coal technologies and the environment, adding that
they would invest more than $1 billion in advance.
19.
Lithuanian envoy expressed support for Turkey’s EU membership
According
to Ankara Anatolia news agency (10.06.13) Lithuanian
Ambassador to Turkey Kestutis Kudzmanas said on Monday that Lithuania
was ready to support Turkey’s European Union (EU) membership
although they recently entered the EU.
Speaking
at a press conference during a visit to Turkey’s
northwest province of Bursa Monday, Kudzmanas said that Lithuania
would assume European Union’s term presidency on July 2013 and they
would do their best to support Turkey’s EU membership.
Kudzmanas
said Lithuania exerted great efforts to develop the trade volume
between Europe and Turkey by presenting the “Viking
Project”.
“The
Viking Project is a project which will help some of the shipping on
the silk route be made by sea and some by railway. The project is
based on container shipping. In order to ship a container nearly
€1400 is needed. If this project is achieved shipping a container
will cost €300 in 52 hours. Lithuania has good experiences in
trade. We can share these experiences with Turkey. We are ready to
cooperate in every field particularly in technology,” said
Kudzmanas.
Kudzmanas also touched
upon Taksim Gezi Park protests and said the incidents in Taksim
should be solved through democracy.
“Officials
should communicate with the demonstrators in a constructive way,”
he said.
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