Cyprus PIO: Turkish Press and Other Media, 05-12-01

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From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] Mr. Serdar Denktas continues to set February 2008 as landmark date for a solution

[02] The leader of the Peace and Democracy Movement calls on the sides to work together for a solution to the Cyprus problem

[03] Soyer and Murat appear certain that the barricade at Ledra Street will be opened but the Turkish armys stance, which created the problem, remains unclear

[04] The Turkish Foreign Ministry asked the EU Commission Representative to be careful with his statements

[05] Rules and Regulations warning to the Justice and Development Party

[06] Rifat Hisarciklioglu: Turkey will not open its ports before the solution of the Cyprus problem

[07] Two new hospitals will be built in the occupied areas

[08] KIBRIS: TWI will work with Atlas jet in the London Ercan line

[09] The Technical University of Middle East aims at six thousand students

[B] COMMENTARIES, EDITORIALS AND ANALYSIS

[10] Mehmet Ali Birand assesses the mood in Brussels after Turkey got what it wanted from the EU

[11] Sener Levent accuses the UN, the USA and the EU of encouraging division in Cyprus

[A] NEWS ITEMS

[01] Mr. Serdar Denktash continues to set February 2008 as landmark date for a solution

Speaking at a panel discussion on ''Turkey-EU Relations and Cyprus'' at Gazi University in Ankara, Denktas said, ''Greek Cypriot administration which rejects Annan Plan does not support a joint solution in the island. Also the attitude of international community does not encourage such a solution.''

''We are not hopeful, but our goodwill efforts will continue. However, it will not last forever. For now, a joint solution between TRNC and Greek Cypriot administration seems impossible,'' noted Denktas.

He added, ''It is unfair to establish a direct relation between Turkey's EU membership and Cyprus issue. There is a wrong impression in the EU that Turkey can make any concessions for EU membership. Turkey's recognition of Greek Cypriot administration as 'Cyprus Republic' means to violate international agreements it signed.''

''We will continue to take steps for solution until February 2008. After that date, we will make our future more clear. We accept to be a separate state which is neighbor of EU,'' noted Denktas.

He said, ''the understanding of a bizonal, equal, fair and permanent solution starts to lose its validity due to intransigent attitude of Greek Cypriot administration.''

[02] The leader of the Peace and Democracy Movement calls on the sides to work together for a solution to the Cyprus problem

The Leader of the Peace and Democracy Movement (BDH) Mustafa Akinci has said that Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots should work together to bring about a solution to the Cyprus problem as early as possible, warning that otherwise the two communities estrangement will be deepened further.

Speaking at a conference in South Cyprus, Mr Akinci provided details of a package prepared by his party on the Cyprus issue.

In his speech, Mr Akinci said that the two communities should listen to the views of each other in order to find a way to bring about a solution to the Cyprus problem instead of waiting others to bring proposals for a settlement to the Cyprus problem.

Pointing to the new parameters created after Cyprus EU membership as a divided island and the start of Turkeys EU membership negotiations, the BDH Leader underlined the need to formulate new policies in line with latest developments.

He also underlined the need for the Greek Cypriot Side to give a message that they are ready to share authority with Turkish Cypriots, and that the Turkish Cypriots should be ready to share land to establish a bi-zonal and bi-communal federation in Cyprus.

[03] Soyer and Murat appear certain that the barricade at Ledra Street will be opened but the Turkish armys stance, which created the problem, remains unclear

Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer has stressed that the Turkish Cypriot Side will continue to work with good will and determination to open a gate at the Lokmaci Barricade in Lefkosa.

The Prime Minister called on the Greek Cypriot Administration to support the opening of a gate at the Lokmaci Barricade- which he said, is the symbol of the division of the island.

Mr Soyer also asked the leader of the Greek Cypriot Administration Tassos Papadopulos if he wants the wall demolished at the barricade to be rebuilt.

Speaking before entering todays meeting of the Council of Ministers, Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer denied Greek Cypriot Administrations claims that the Turkish Cypriot Side violated the buffer zone at the Lokmaci Barricade and said that the Turkish Cypriot Side had removed the wall and the observation post at the barricade.

The Prime Minister explained that the aim of the pedestrian overpass being built is to ease the movement of military and UN vehicles in the area and to prevent the contact of military with pedestrians using the gate.

Accusing the Greek Cypriot Side of creating unreasonable obstacles to prevent the opening of a gate at the Lokmaci Gate, he pointed to the importance of the opening of the barricade for the two peoples of the island.

The Prime Minister said that the work to open the Lokmaci Barricade was intensified after the opening of the Bostanci Gate in line with a decision by the European Union.

Calling the Lokmaci Barricade as a symbol of the division of the island, he called on those wanting to achieve the unification of the island and wanting to bring about a settlement to the Cyprus problem based on the political equality of the two sides to work together for the opening of a gate.

Referring to his partys visit to the headquarters of the Greek Cypriot United Democrats Movement or EDI, the Prime Minister said he briefed the EDI Leader Mihalis Papapedru on work being carried out at the Lokmaci Barricade.

Mr Soyer also added that the Mayor of Lefkosa Kutlay Erk will hold a press conference tomorrow to give detailed information about the work being carried out at the Barricade.

On the same issue illegal Bayrak television (30.11.05) broadcast the following:

The Minister of Interior Ozkan Murat has said that the Lokmaci Barricade will certainly be opened in spite of the Greek Cypriot Sides unwillingness on the issue.

Referring to allegations by the Greek Cypriot Side on the issue, Mr Murat made it clear that the pedestrian overpass being built at the Lokmaci Barricade is completely on the soil of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Speaking during a visit paid to him today, the Minister of Interior Ozkan Murat said that the Turkish Cypriot Side is making all the preparations necessary for the opening of a gate in the area but complained that the Greek Cypriot Side does not seem willing to open a new crossing point.

Mr Murat reminded that similar difficulties had been experienced during the process to open the Bostanci Gate, but stressed that the Lokmaci Barricade will certainly be opened.

The Minister added that the views of the Turkish Cypriot Side on the issue were also supported by the spokesperson for UNFICYP Brian Kelly in his statement yesterday.

Referring to allegations by the Greek Cypriot Side about the work being carried out for the opening of the gate, Mr Murat called the allegations as `baseless` and pointed to the fact that the pedestrian overpass being built at the Lokmaci Barricade is completely on the soil of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

[04] The Turkish Foreign Ministry asked the EU Commission Representative to be careful with his statements

It has been revealed that a high-level official from the Foreign Ministry has warned Hans Jorg Kretschmer, head of the European Commission Delegation in Turkey. According to the information received, Foreign Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Ertugrul Apakan has called Kretschmer and has asked him to be careful with his statements.

According to the information received from diplomatic sources, the Foreign Ministry held an assessment meeting following Kretschmer's statements and it decided to warn the EU ambassador. Later, Apakan, one of the deputy undersecretaries of the Foreign Ministry, called Kretschmer and warned him to be more careful with his statements in the future. It was reported that during the phone conversation Apakan especially underlined that making changes in the Lausanne Treaty is out of question. Foreign Ministry sources asserted that the statements issued by Kretschmer on the basic agreement that concerns Turkey's foundation are meaningless. The sources recalled that the representative had also been warned by the minister due to the statements that he had previously issued.

"Who Is Kretschmer, Anyway?"

Responding to the criticism that had been leveled by Kretschmer earlier to the effect that Turkey has slowed down its efforts in the EU adaptation process, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul had said: "What is this? As the foreign minister and deputy prime minister, am I obliged to respond to each and every word uttered by Kretschmer? Who is Kretschmer, anyway?"

[05] Rules and Regulations warning to the Justice and Development Party

Supreme Court Attorney General Nuri Ok said: The General chairman, with the arrangements in the rules and regulations, had become single authority. The operation in deciding Center�s candidates, is possible, at the end, with a decision that is binding on the party. Whereas the General Chairman is not the authorized organ of the party to take decision alone. The real political organ of a political party is the general congress, and that it is the Central Decision and Administrative Council that has the authority to take decisions which are out side of the authority of the General Congress. In democracy, the fundamental thing is, decision is taken through negotiations and voting.

Mr Ok added that the provision in the last paragraph of the article 50 of the Rules and Regulations of the JDP, introduces new condition to the extraordinary congress conditions which is not envisaged in the law. Mr Ok stressed that this is against the Political Parties Law as well as Turkish Civil law.

The paper reports that on 20 June Mr Ok sent a warning letter to the JDP regarding the amendment of the rules and regulations. Since the JDP did not introduce the necessary amendments then Mr. Ok recourse to the constitution court to warn the JDP.

[06] Rifat Hisarciklioglu: Turkey will not open its ports before the solution of the Cyprus problem

Mr. Hisarciklioglu was speaking to reporters after a meeting with the EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn.

The chairman of the Union of Turkish Chambers and Stock Exchanges Rifat Hisarcigkioglu said that it is impossible to take a one - sided step by opening of the Turkish ports to the Greek Cypriot side and added that Turkeys main aim is to lift the international isolations on north Cyprus.

Reminding that there were still some obligations the European Union had yet to fulfill with regard to the implementation of the Customs Union Agreement, Mr. Hisarciklioglu asked how it was possible to expect Turkey to open its ports to registered vessels of the Republic of Cyprus while there is still an ongoing restriction on the movement of goods and services from the north to the south of the island, as he alleged.

[07] Two new hospitals will be built in the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus

Furthermore, the Council decided also the construction of another hospital in the occupied area of Nicosia. For this reason it allotted to the self-styled ministry of health a piece of land behind Burhan Nalbantoglu hospital. Tenders will be asked for this hospital in March 2006, the latest.

I/Ts.

[08] KIBRIS:TWI will work with Atlasjet in the London Ercan line

According to the paper, the reason for which TWI took this decision is that Atlasjet marked Turkeys private sector aviation with its strength, quality services and reliability.

The Turkish Cypriot director of the TWI, Ibrahim Kanli has stated that their aim is to unconditionally support the tourism economy of the self-styled TRNC and expressed the belief that the cooperation between the two companies will make happy the government and the investors in the field of tourism especially during the next year.

He said that Atlasjet has 17 airplanes in its fleet and that this number will increase to 22 in the beginning of the next year. Mr Kanli noted that their aim was to bring to the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus more than 50 thousand tourists next year.

I/Ts.

[09] The Technical University of Middle East aims at six thousand students

In statements to KIBRIS newspaper, Dr Erdal Onurhan, who is the deputy General Secretary of the Cyprus Campus, stated that the campus was established on behalf of Turkey and the TRNC and the aim is to have six thousand students.

The opening of the new illegal university in the OTRC took place last September and its construction is continuing rapidly, according to the paper.

C/S

[B] COMMENTARIES, EDITORIALS AND ANALYSIS

[10] Mehmet ali Birand assesses the mood in Brussels after Turkey got what it wanted from the EU

The EU Commissioner for Enlargement has been repeating the same sentence over and over for weeks: The celebration is over, now is the time for action...

Olli Rehn repeats this sentence over and over. He is giving a clear warning. And at a Monday meeting he explained in further detail what exactly it was that he meant by this sentence.

Rehn, who confirms that Turkey has made very courageous and crucial reforms and in so doing has earned the praise and, in fact, the surprise of the world, also adds, "Following October 3, you became lethargic." Certain implementations are being skipped. Many of the reforms that appear on paper don't actually make it beyond the files in which they are noted.

Infractions of freedom of expression (such as the Orhan Pamuk and Hrant Dink cases) and chinks in human rights law implementation are increasing every day. No new steps are being taken.

After he touches on these points, Rehn gives an important warning: If you don't change the direction of this road you are on and if you don't shake off this lethargy, actual accession talks will not start following the current screening process.

It would be good to take these words of warning seriously.

There are many countries working hard to ensure that official accession talks with Turkey are postponed. If we're not careful, they will gather their reasons and present them somewhere near the end of 2006, saying: "It's just not happening. Turkey has begun to take steps backwards. Let's wait a while before we begin these talks..."

This is the result some are after... The only way to prevent a postponement is to carry out implementation of reforms with greater care, to take new steps and in so doing to get the EU Commission on our side.

Turkey's most effective lawyers are the EU Commission and Olli Rehn. If we begin to see Rehn as against us and, instead of listening to his advice and moving in step with him, we begin to react negatively to everything he says, we will needlessly lose a great ally.

Subtitle: Atmosphere in Brussels continues to darken:

The atmosphere in Brussels continues to darken. The reason for this is the daily emergence of some new, negative piece of news. On the one hand, every time the prime minister speaks, he seems to introduce a new argument or a controversial new concept onto the daily agenda. On the other hand, the PKK is pressing forward with all of its strength. They are provoking incidents and trying to put Ankara in a difficult position. Prior to the talks, it was as though they were in a race to drive Ankara crazy.

And, of course, the Cyprus problem now faces Brussels. The opening up of our seaports and airports stands before us as a condition within the framework of the customs union.

In short, people are getting more and more confused about all of this. And now that we have left the field empty, the side saying "no" to it all is gaining strength.

And so, these are all reasons that it is important to listen to Olli Rehn now.

Subtitle:A name Brussels can trust: Ali Babacan:

When I speak to authorities in Brussels, I don't only get bad news. There is also good news out there. And Ali Babacan's name seems to be at the head of this good news.

Babacan, with his knowledge, body language and general approach, picks up a lot of praise. While the EU's Ankara representative criticizes the Turkish talks mechanism, saying it puts too many people in charge, the Brussels view of Babacan is different. Babacan has a very interesting personality. His way of talking is very open and, according to EU authorities, he is an accession talks representative who "expresses his views without arguing and who turns down certain offers with a smile."

I'm telling you what I've heard from people at the top of the EU Commission. The truth is, it's not easy to create such trust in a picky center of government like Brussels...

Subtitle: Is alcohol being banned in response to the headscarf ban?:

A strange situation is at hand. There is the distinct impression that municipalities under the control of the AKP are trying to spread a ban against alcohol. I don't know whether this impression is correct; however, the impression the public has is very important. Even when they are incorrect, impressions take precedence over the truth.

So are bans on alcohol really increasing?

The secular media claim they are. The media that support the AKP say the opposite. Well, no matter what anyone claims, there seems to be suspicion in the public that AKP-governed municipalities are "trying to impose alcohol bans in response to the ban on headscarves in universities and state offices."

If this is really the situation, if there were some sort of challenge going on among the local municipalities on this subject, then the AKP would be making a huge mistake.

I advise all AKP supporters to read the most recent statement from Abdullatif Sener. Let's see whether anyone out there listens to his words of prudence in these times.

[11] Sener Levent accuses the UN, the USA and the EU of encouranging division in Cyprus

Looking into the latest developments, unfortunately the bitter result is the following:

It seems that the powers that dominate the world are not in favour of the re-unification of Cyprus. It seems that continuation of the status quo, and the division becoming lasting, is more favourable to these powers. Had the UN, the USA and the EU played a more uniting role, then they should have acted differently and should not have done what they were doing now.

If Turkey, continues its military presence and sovereignty in the north Cyprus, that it controls for 31 years, it is doing so because of these powers. If Varosha is still closed, which is a monument of shame for all of us, it is closed because of these powers. If the Mass Graves are not opened yet, it is because of these powers

If the population transfer from Turkey to the north Cyprus is still going on, it is continuing because of these powers. If the destruction of the antiquites and the plundering of the Greek Cypriot property continues, it is because of these powers.

Neither the UN or the USA and nor the EU raise their voice against these.

They are not only urging Turkey to stop, they are encouraging Turkey. Turkey never faced pressure for what it is doing in Cyprus.

In fact it is being praised

The EU is encouraging Turkey for not recognizing and not opening its sea ports to a EU member country.

The UN turns a blind eye to Turkey�s military presence in Cyprus. In fact, if the UN Secretary - General could secure the Russian approval in the UN Security Council, he will not hesitate to take steps which will strengthen the separate state in the north Cyprus.

In its turn the European Court of Human Rights on whose neutrality we over trust, is after finding a legal cover to the regime in the north Cyprus.

Turkish Cypriots who favour a separate state in Cyprus, could look into these developments and be happy. But it is difficult to understand why those who are against a separate state and favour unification are happy

Had they given up the unified Cyprus objective, then there is no problem.

They can continue their course with the support of the UN, the USA and the EU.

However, if they are for a united Cyprus, don�t you think that they should protest and say; down with such support? They are using the Turkish Cypriots to make the division in Cyprus lasting.

They are trying to secure giving up of our united Cyprus dreams. In this strategy, there is also fanning of our nationalist feelings against the Greek Cypriots

With chauvinism they are instigating everybody by continuously accusing the Greek Cypriot side of being against settlement and peace

What happened at the Ledra Street crossing recently, served nothing but increase of mistrust among the Greek Cypriots towards the Turkish side.

The Turkish side, without taking the consent of the Greek Cypriot side and the UN all of a sudden started to build an overfly bridge at a place where no such bridge was necessary.

The Turkish side is building a bridge in the heart of the South Cyprus that is on the Ledra Street. Who could doubt that they haven�t done this with military objectives?

Could Turkish Municipality of Nicosia take such a decision alone? The decision came from the commandership.

In the face of this what the Greek Cypriots could do but say OXI was it so difficult to open the Ledra Street crossing agreeing together with the UN and the Greek Cypriot side, the Turkish side acted alone?

The powers that dominate the world with their pro - Turkish stance in Cyprus, made the Greek Cypriot side fearful.

No one trusts the UN and the EU. The stance of the ECHR was salt and pepper.

If the new property regime is approved this will register the division on the island.

As for the Ledra Street crossing..Which Greek Cypriot will favour opening of this crossing after the constructions that have military objectives especially with the support of the UN.?

/X.CHR.

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