TURKISH
CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW
C
O N T E N T S
No. 89/15 15.05.15
1. Erdogan: Turkey has no intentions of giving up its guarantor
rights on Cyprus
2. Greek FM: The guarantor powers, the Turkish army and the Greek
army, should move away from Cyprus
3. Denktas resigns from the “government” accusing Turkey’s “aid
delegation”
4. ISAD: There is a need for a “coalition government” made up of a
cabinet of technocrats
5. Talat has an opponent for the leadership of the CTP
6. “DPO” announced the latest unemployment rate in the occupied
area of Cyprus
7. MHP will not back Erdogan’s presidential system
1. Erdogan:
Turkey has no intentions of giving up its guarantor rights on Cyprus
According to Turkish daily Milliyet
(12.05.15), Turkey’s President RecepTayyip Erdogan, commenting on several
issues on board the plane during his return from his visits to Germany and
Belgium, which he conducted during the last weekend, referred also to the
Cyprus problem.
Asked to comment on the latest developments
regarding the Cyprus problem, Erdogan
said: “Greece may give up its guarantor rights but Turkey has no intention of
giving up its guarantor rights. We will exercise our guarantor rights to the
end there and we do not need to ask for advice from anyone in this regard”.
(DPs)
2. Greek
FM: The guarantor powers, the Turkish army and the Greek army, should move away
from Cyprus
Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online,
15.05.15), under the title “Greek FM: Let’s make use of our ‘lucky dice”,
publishes an interview with the Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias.
Turkey and Greece should resolve their
problems peacefully by creating common interests in the region, making use of
the “God-given” opportunity of being neighbouring countries, Greek Foreign
Minister said in Antalya, where he was attending at NATO Foreign Ministers’
meeting on May 13.
According to the paper, Turkey and Greece
held High Level Cooperation Council meetings in 2010 and in 2013 and inked many
agreements. Kotzias and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu decided to set
up a commission to check how efficiently these agreements are implemented. The
two countries will hold a new meeting of the council at the end of 2015, the
Greek Minister said.
Kotzias said that he also proposed to
create a new institutional framework with Turkey, Greece and Italy, for
stabilization and security of the whole region in the Mediterranean.
“New Prime Minister of Greece Alexis
Tsipras wants to visit Turkey in 2015 to participate in the high level council
meeting”, Kotzias said, adding that arrangements would be made after the next
month’s elections in Turkey.
“Tsipras met with [Turkish Prime Minister
Ahmet] Davutoglu while he was leader of the opposition at the airport for
one-and-a-half hours. They had a positive chemistry. Tsipras wanted to meet
Davutoglu to learn about each other and to see how they can understand each
other, to keep relations better than they were in the past,” he said.
Touching up the Cyprus talks, Kotzias
described the newly elected Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci as “a
politician who still has an old identity as Cypriot”.
“He feels Cypriot, not just Turkish
Cypriot. He speaks Greek. His citizens don’t speak Greek anymore. Old Greek
Cypriot politicians [spoke] Turkish and Turkish Cypriots spoke Greek. But now
there’s a good momentum. This generation can make a good solution. Afterwards
it will be much more difficult,” he said.
Greek
Foreign Minister stressed that the Cyprus dispute is “a problem for Cypriots,
not for Greeks or Turks”, adding: “The Turkish Cypriots had difficult
years 1963-1964 because of the behaviour of part of the other population in
Cyprus. What we have to do is to give
possibility to the Turkish Cypriots getting the maximum rights they are asking
for … In every society you have communities, minorities … The most
important thing is that the Turkish Cypriots feel, believe and live with the
thought that Cyprus is their own, home island”.
The
guarantor powers, the Turkish army and the Greek army, should move away from
the island, he added, saying that nobody should pressure the leaders in Cyprus
to create their own momentum.
(DPs)
3. Denktas
resigns from the “government” accusing Turkey’s “aid delegation”
Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis newspaper
(15.05.15) reports that SerdarDenktas,
chairman of the Democratic Party – National Forces (DP-UG) and self-styled
deputy prime minister responsible for sports, economy, tourism and culture has announced that he gave his resignation
to self-styled prime minister OzkanYorgancioglu.
In statements at a press conference
yesterday, Denktas noted that the
“ministers” coming from the DP-UG will remain on their duties until the
Republican Turkish Party’s (CTP) congress and the formation of a new
“government”.
Denktas announced also that his party will
change its name again to Democratic Party (DP) and ‘present itself to the
people being stronger”.
Denktas said that the “government” had been
established as a “reform government”, but did not succeed in making reforms in
the “public sector” and, in spite of some things that have been done, the
people’s basic demands for change were not met. “Today we are very far away
from the TRNC administration, which was dreaming of and set as a target when I
was in the opposition”, he noted.
Referring to the relations with Turkey, Denktas said that without Turkey’s
financial aid many projects could not have been materialized and the standard
of living in the occupied area of Cyprus would have been significantly damaged.
He noted that the environment for the Turkish Cypriots being self-sufficient
has not been created and as long as the conditions do not change, the economic
mobility which the Turkish Cypriots create will not be sufficient. He
added that they do not complain about Turkey’s stance, but about the “approach
of some persons appointed here by the motherland”. “Therefore we say that absolutely no bureaucrat of motherland Turkey can
be above the Turkish Cypriot people’s democratic will”, he said arguing
that “the behaviour and statements of
some bureaucrats in this direction are very quickly spread among our people,
are distorted from time to time and therefore weak rings emerge on the issue of
the Turkish Cypriot people’s devotion to the motherland”.
Denktas argued that he has been repeatedly
saying since 1996 that the way by which
Turkey’s aid delegation operates in the occupied area of Cyprus is wrong and it
should either change or its operation should be terminated. He expressed
the view that Turkey’s aid delegation went beyond functions and duty
description and became “the main actor
of the system”. He said that Turkey’s aid committee has come to a position of being “parallel to the power of the
government and sometimes even stronger”, adding that this “delegation” has
“spoiled the political authority”. This, he noted, prevents the achievement
of the “country’s” targets and spoils the relations with “motherland
Turkey”.
Citing sources close to Denktas, Havadis
newspaper’s editor-in-chief, HuseyinEkmeci reports that the reason of Denktas’
attack against Turkey’s aid delegation derives from an argument the latter had
with self-styled finance minister ZerenMungan during a meeting of the
“cabinet”. When Denktas asked for money to restore antiquities (such as the
castle and the old port of occupied Keryneia) and to use them for incentives in
the field of tourism, Mungan told him that Turkey’s aid delegation does not
give money for this purpose. Reacting to
this, Denktas replied that “the aid delegation refutes our democracy” and that
the political will “passes over to the persons appointed by Turkey”.
Asked after
the press conference whether he will participate in the “government” to be
established after CTP’s congress, Denktas responded: “This depends on Mr Talat.
If Mr Talat himself will not undertake any duty, I will not as well. If Talat
undertakes a duty, I will also evaluate it”.
(I/Ts.)
4. ISAD:
There is a need for a “coalition government” made up of a cabinet of
technocrats
According to illegal Bayrak television
(online, 14.05.15), the chairman of the Cyprus Turkish Businessmen’s’
Association (ISAD) MetinSadi has said that there is a need for a “coalition
government” made up of a cabinet of technocrats that will have the consensus of
the public and which focus on introducing a series of sweeping reforms.
Sadi’s words came during a visit paid to
the main opposition National Unity Party (UBP) on Thursday.
Speaking during the visit, Sadi said that
the latest “election results” showed that the public desired change and
transformation. He said that there was a need for reform in the “country” to
improve the quality of life.
Underlining the need and importance of
reaching a solution to the Cyprus problem, Sadi said: “We need a popular
coalition government with a cabinet of technocrats in order to have a
parliament that has a high performance track, that can create a country with a
sustainable and efficient economy and which can bring stability”.
The leader of UBP Huseyin Ozgurgun, for his
part, said that his party is trying to do its best whilst in opposition. He
also said that he is open to the idea of a wide base “coalition government”
that will include the CTP and the UBP.
Accusing the current “government” of being
a failure, Ozgurgun said that the current coalition had shown it was incapable
of dealing with the “country’s” problems.
Referring to the Cyprus problem, the UBP
leader said that they will be following developments closely but that they are
confident that Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci will show the necessary
sensitivity while conducting the talks.
5. Talat
has an opponent for the leadership of the CTP
Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper
(15.05.15) reports that two persons,
former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat and YasarOduncuoglu have
submitted an application for the post of the chairman of the Republican Turkish
Party – United Forces (CTP-BG). The voting will take place during CTP’s 25th
extraordinary congress to be held on 14 June. Furthermore, 121 persons have submitted their candidature for the 40 positions of
the party’s council. The deadline for applications ended yesterday
afternoon.
Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika newspaper
(15.05.15) reports that explaining the
reasons of his candidature, Oduncuoglu said that he does not approve the
persons who are around Talat, because these persons have humiliated
self-styled prime minister OzkanYorgancioglu. Ha added: “This is why I became a
candidate. Many games were played during the presidential elections and Siber’s
candidature. In spite of the fact that Siber comes from Nicosia, she came in
the fourth place here. This creates suspicions from itself”.
Noting that
pressure is exerted on him to withdraw his candidature, Oduncuoglu said that he
will not do so.
(I/Ts.)
6. “DPO”
announced the latest unemployment rate in the occupied area of Cyprus
According to Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris
Postasi Daily News (online, 14.05.15), so-called “prime ministry state planning
organization” (“DPO”) announced that the number of unemployed in the occupied
area of Cyprus is 9 thousand 320.
According to “DPO”, the highest
unemployment rate is in the occupied region of Morphou. The nation-wide
unemployment rate for the occupied area of Cyprus is calculated as 8.3%.
Unemployment rate among men is 5.8%; among women is 12.8%, said the “DPO”
report.
Self-styled undersecretary of “DPO”
OdulMuhtaroglu also announced that the highest employment ratio is in the
occupied part of Nicosia with 49.5% and the lowest employment rate is in occupied
Morphou with 38.5%.
7. MHP
will not back Erdogan’s presidential system
Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online,
15.05.15) reports on the two main questions that the Nationalist Movement Party
(MHP) faces regarding its stance after the elections: If the Kurdish
problem-focused Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) manages to exceed the 10%
national threshold, it will be almost impossible for President Tayyip Erdogan
to achieve his goal of shifting Turkey’s parliamentary system into a
presidential one with reduced checks and balances through a constitutional
change by AKP votes.
Under those circumstances, will the MHP
support the AKP for a constitutional change to introduce the presidential
system?
“No,” replied the leader of MHP
DevletBahceli, and added: “Erdogan wants regime change. The MHP is not going to back a presidential system, it is impossible
for us to support Erdogan. We want a new constitution, but through
parliamentary mechanisms, in order to achieve a better democratic parliamentary
system”.
The second question is about scenarios
leaked from the AKP ranks. President Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
imply that the alternative to the AKP will be a coalition government with the
MHP, hoping to revive fears of instability after years of fragile coalitions.
Is the MHP getting ready for a coalition after the election, if the AKP is
unable to form a single-party government?
“Turkey has a tradition of coalitions,”
Bahceli said. “But unfortunately coalitions failed to deliver much to people,
neither were they long-lasting. We do not favour a coalition. We aim to
establish our own government.”
The polls - which Bahceli says he has no
confidence in currently, show the MHP in third place within the 16-18% bracket.
He believes that if something “extraordinary does not take place in the last 10
days,” the AKP government could fall. He doesn’t give any clues what that might
be, but says the AKP “would do anything to stay in power”.
---------------------------------------------------
TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION
(DPs/
AM)
