Turkish Press Review, 07-07-20

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From: Turkish Directorate General of Press and Information <http://www.byegm.gov.tr>

20.07.2007

CONTENTS

[01] IN GUMUSHANE AND BAYBURT, ERDOGAN MAKES CASE FOR SECOND AKP TERM

[02] GUL CRITICIZES SEZER’S VETO OF GOVT NOMINEE FOR NSC SECRETARY-GENERAL

[03] IN SAKARYA, BAYKAL CRITICIZES AKP PRIVATIZATION POLICIES

[04] BAHCELI CAMPAIGNS DOWN TO THE WIRE IN TOKAT

[05] AGAR: “WITHIN A YEAR, I WILL END TERRORISM”

[06] WAR ACADEMIES GRADUATES GET DIPLOMAS

[07] TOBB HEAD: “TURKEY COULD MOVE UP TO JOIN THE TOP 10 RICHEST COUNTRIES”

[08] A STYLE UNSUITABLE FOR THE NEW PARLIAMENT!

[09] VOTER TURNOUT WILL DETERMINE THE OUTCOME

[01] IN GUMUSHANE AND BAYBURT, ERDOGAN MAKES CASE FOR SECOND AKP TERM

[02] GUL CRITICIZES SEZER’S VETO OF GOVT NOMINEE FOR NSC SECRETARY- GENERAL

[03] IN SAKARYA, BAYKAL CRITICIZES AKP PRIVATIZATION POLICIES

[04] BAHCELI CAMPAIGNS DOWN TO THE WIRE IN TOKAT

[05] AGAR: “WITHIN A YEAR, I WILL END TERRORISM”

[06] WAR ACADEMIES GRADUATES GET DIPLOMAS

[07] TOBB HEAD: “TURKEY COULD MOVE UP TO JOIN THE TOP 10 RICHEST COUNTRIES”

FROM THE COLUMNS...FROM THE COLUMNS... FROM THE COLUMNS...

[08] A STYLE UNSUITABLE FOR THE NEW PARLIAMENT!

Columnist Sami Kohen comments on the strong language politicians use at campaign rallies. A summary of his column is as follows:

“Today I wanted to give a number of examples of recent statements made by political party leaders at campaign rallies. But then I gave up because you probably wouldn’t like to read or hear these ugly statements all over again...

Politicians have yet to understand that their aggressive, worthless style disturbs many people.

We had hoped that the political party leaders, at least in the last week of campaigning, would change their approach and begin to discuss the real problems of the public instead of aiming barbs at each other...

Unfortunately, our expectations weren’t met, and politicians played the same old song throughout the campaign...

One of the hallmarks of this election is the poor quality of the statements made by the politicians in their public addresses.

Of course, previous elections also saw harsh words, but in my opinion, this time it’s reached a peak.

Why did this happen?

Perhaps the politicians thought that their strong words would stir people up, in other words, this style would win them votes. Or maybe this style is rooted in their characters. They have short tempers. Do they feel they owe their fellow politicians good advice?

Is another reason the crowds cheering such statements at campaign rallies?

These are all possibilities. But whatever the reason, this approach doesn’t suit our democracy.

I wish that the silent majority bothered by this style could tell the politicians, ‘We don’t like your approach, stop lashing out at each other, and instead focus on our country’s real problems.’

I hope that this aggressive and bellicose style is left behind and is absent from the post-election Parliament.

Whatever the outcome of Sunday’s elections, the new Parliament will have a different composition from the current one. It will probably have more parties and independents from different political viewpoints, regions and ethnicities.

Many contentious issues are awaiting the new Parliament. The presidential election is the first priority, of course ... Afterwards there will be many other domestic and international issues which urgently need debate.

Now the public expects lawmakers to display a conciliatory, constructive attitude in the new Parliament so as to face the country’s pressing issues...”

[09] VOTER TURNOUT WILL DETERMINE THE OUTCOME

Columnist Tufan Turenc comments on poll predictions for Sunday’s general elections. A summary of his column is as follows:

“The Democrat Party (DP) will determine the outcome of Sunday’s elections. If, in defiance of the expectations and predictions, the DP crosses the 10% election threshold, this will be the end of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) rule. Because a four-party Parliament would make a single-party government impossible. Then the polls showing the DP consistently below the threshold will go into history’s dustbin. On the other hand, if the center-right parties can’t get enough votes, as the polls show, and just three parties cross the threshold, the percentage of votes going to the AKP will rise, as in that case most of the votes of the center right will go to the AKP. Should the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) get 45% of the votes, the AKP can’t come to power alone. There’s yet another possibility: If people’s votes reflect their concern about the regime, the CHP may benefit. Sunday’s election is very complicated, and making predictions is no easy task.

Another interesting point about the elections is the differences between various polls. For instance, one poll shows the AKP with 48%, while another shows 30%. The CHP ranges between 19% and 28%. The results of polls conducted scientifically shouldn’t differ so dramatically. We’ll see on Sunday evening that some of these polls are far from scientific. But beware, because the same shady firms will do polls in future elections, and some newspapers will publish them. In Western countries, such companies have their licenses revoked.

We’ve seen a difficult election campaign due to the high mercury, but it’s still very interesting. Quarrels between the party leaders make the atmosphere tense sometimes, but at other times they make it humorous. For instance we shouldn’t take Prime Minister Erdogan’s pledge to give up politics if he can’t come to power alone so seriously. Because he generally forgets his promises. For instance, he pledged many times in the 2002 election campaign to end parliamentary immunity, but he hasn’t done it. A similar example is pledges to fight corruption.”

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