Cablegate: Ankara Media Reaction Report

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 001958

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT
TUESDAY, APRIL 5, 2005

THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE
THEMES:

HEADLINES
BRIEFING
EDITORIAL OPINION
--------------------------------------------- -----

HEADLINES

MASS APPEAL
Pope's Fight Against `Da Vinci Code' - Hurriyet
Prime Minister Erdogan Going to the Funeral - Milliyet
9 PKK Members Die in Clash on Cudi Mountain - Milliyet
Military Service to Be Shortened - Sabah
New York Times Criticizes Erdogan - Sabah
Kongra-Gel is PKK Once Again - Aksam

OPINION MAKERS
PKK Terror Returns - Cumhuriyet
Turkey and China Want Cooperation on Space Industry- Zaman
New Commission for Revised Penal Code - Yeni Safak
PM Erdogan to Attend Pope's Funeral - Zaman
Is Plastic Surgery Compatible with Islam?- Yeni Safak
Turkey Donates 1 million dollars to Islamic Conference
Organization - Yeni Safak
Europe and US Differ on China - Cumhuriyet
Armenian Church in Van to be Restored - Radikal

BRIEFING

FM Gul on Turkey/US, Incirlik Airbase: "Yeni Safak"
reported that during a party group meeting, Foreign Minister
Gul told AKP parliamentarians that some of the American
requests regarding Incirlik are `not suitable' for Turkey to
meet. He said `we explained the reasons for this, and the
US has understood.' Meanwhile "Cumhuriyet" reported that a
file on the US requests for Incirlik was presented to Prime
Minister and awaits the PM's approval. "Cumhuriyet" claims
that the Government is having trouble making a decision on
the issue due to concerns about rising abit-American
sentiment in Turkey. The report mentioned that the
Government plans to implement certain restrictions on the
use of base to minimize negative public reaction. The
particular sticking point seems to be the alleged US request
for `blanket clearances' for US cargo planes to land and
take off from Incirlik. Nejat Eslen, a retired army
general, urged the Government to carefully consider the
consequences of the Incirlik decision. In an article
carried by "Radikal," the retired general suggested that
American use of Incirlik could pull Turkey into a future
world war. Eslen said the Government should not grant
permission to the US without first seeking parliamentary
approval.

Armenian Church on Akdamar to Be Restored: "Radikal"
reports that the Armenian church on Akdamar Island in
southeast Turkey is soon to be restored. Niyazi Tanilir,
Governor of Van Province, said that the Turkish Culture
Ministry has allocated 2.4 million YTL (approximately 1.7
million USD) for the restoration. The church was
constructed in 915-921 AD, and many of the carved stone
figures on the faade of the building have been worn away.
The Armenian Patriarch Mutafyan visited the church at
Akdamar in 2003 with a group of 100 people.

Pope's Funeral: Papers report that Prime Minister Erdogan
and State Minister for Religious Affairs Mehmet Aydin will
represent Turkey at the funeral of Pope John Paul II later
this week. There had been speculation that the Prime
Minister would not attend the ceremony because of the
perceived requirement to wear western-style mourning dress,
something that Erdogan has consistently refused to do.
Erdogan reportedly will attend the funeral wearing a
conventional business suit.

US Freedom House Report: Several commentators mention a
report released by Freedom House concerning the level of
freedom enjoyed in various countries around the world. Both
the Islamist-oriented "Yeni Safak" and leftist-naionalist
"Cumhuriyet" portray Freedom House activities as an effort
by the US Government to overturn dictatorial regimes to
install leaders more favorable to the United States. The
consistently anti-American commentator Ibrahim Karagul wrote
in "Yeni Safak" that the United States is using NGOs like
Freedom House as a `new style of war and occupation' against
governments it opposes. Karagul notes that Turkey achieved
a rating of `partially free' under Freedom House criteria.

Air Force Commander Firtina in China: Turkish Air Force
Commander General Ibrahim Firtina met with Chinese military
officials yesterday in Beijing. Papers highlight that
Firtina expressed interests in acquiring Chinese medium-
range air defense missiles and in expanding Turkish-Chinese
space cooperation.

PKK Terror On The Rebound: All papers report on a clash
between PKK militants and Turkish security forces in the
Cudi Mountains, a remote area in the southeast province of
Sirnak. Nine PKK militants were reportedly killed in the
clash, which also claimed the life of one Turkish soldier.
Meanwhile, the Mosopotamia News Agency reported that the PKK-
KongraGel had decided to change its name back to the PKK.

MOD Announces Budget Allocation for Iraq Training: Defense
Minister Vecdi Gonul announced that the Government has
allocated 100,000 euros for the training of Iraqi security
personnel in Turkey. The training will take place at the
Partnership For Peace Training Center in Ankara.

Turkish Trucker Reportedly Beaten By US Forces in Iraq:
"Milliyet" reports claims by a Turkish truck driver who
recently returned home to Gaziantep after spending more than
a month in Iraq. The driver claims that he was stopped by
US forces in Tikrit `because he was Turkish,' and was
subsequently beaten, hooded, and thrown into a prison cell.
The trucker claims he was subjected to repeated beating and
torture before being released and told that his imprisonment
had been `a mistake.' The driver further claimed that he
had seen the bodies of two other Turks at the hospital in
Tikrit, and said he was told that the two had been killed by
US soldiers.

100 Years of Turkish-American Friendship Exhibit: A
"Cumhuriyet" story highlighted last night's opening of the
"100 Years of Turkish-American Relations" photo exhibit at
the Turkish National Library in Ankara. The story carried
extensive excerpts Ambassador Edelman's speech, which
focused on the importance of bonds between the Turkish and
American people, not just relations between governments.
The report noted that there was no significant
representation from the AKP Government, and that Tourism
Minister Koc failed to attend.

Spies in Turkey's Southeast: "Tercuman (Dunden Bugune)"
reports on allegations that there are 3,000 foreign spies
working in southeast Turkey. The report, based on
`intelligence sources,' claims that most of the foreign
agents are in the region `to incite ethnic separatism.'
Many of these `foreign provocateurs' are wanted by Interpol,
according to "Tercuman." Police in Diyarbakir say that
foreigners have come from European countries including the
UK, Belgium, Sweden, Germany, Norway, Finland, Spain,
Switzerland, and France, as well as from Japan, Iran, Iraq,
and Syria. The foreign agents are reportedly visitng even
the remotest villages in the region. Some even speak
Kurdish, and yet they claim they have come to the southeast
to do research on wild plants and animals. The former DEHAP
party chairman in Batman, Mehdi Oztuzun, said that the
foreigners coming to the region `are not well-intentioned.'
`Human rights activists are encouraging people to emphasize
their ethnic identities and accentuate their differences,'
he said. `We said before that there are American spies
lurking around Batman,' Oztuzun continued, adding that
`nobody believed us.' `A US delegation came here suggesting
that we support the Kurds in northern Iraq,' he claimed.

EDITORIAL OPINION: Pope John Paul II

"The Last Pope of the 20th Century"
Haluk Ulman commented in the economic-political "Dunya"
(4/5): "The Catholic world is mourning the Pope and also
watching the process by which their new spiritual leader
will be elected. It will be interesting to see whether the
new pope will be an Italian, a Latin American, or a black
African. Tettamanzi, an Italian Cardinal, is believed to be
a leading candidate but the final choice remains to be seen.
As has been seen in the past, the election of a pope is
often a surprise. . There is no longer the `communism issue'
for the Catholic church to worry about. The current
challenge before the Catholic Church is to find ways to
adapt Catholic dogmas to the constantly changing realities
of the world. The Pope and the Cardinals will have to deal
with certain issues completely outside of the tradition of
Catholic conservatism, including illegitimate marriage,
abortion, gay relations, and the marriage of religious
leaders."

"John Paul II Was Different From The Others"
Mehmet Ali Birand commented in the mass appeal-sensational
"Posta" (4/5): "John Paul II served for 26 years, and he was
a very different kind of pope. First of all, he was the
first non-Italian elected to head the Catholic Church in 455
years. During his term, he visited 125 countries. One of
John Paul's primary objectives was to promote harmony among
religions. The first thing he did upon arriving in a
foreign country was to kiss the ground. It really did not
matter if it was a land of Muslims or Buddhists. He focused
on the importance of human beings more than anything else.
He always believed that reconciliation between religions
would ensure peace. John Paul II was the most approachable
and `people-friendly' pope in history. He was never afraid
of walking among the crowds. He was always shaking people's
hands until he was shot by Mehmet Ali Agca. His personality
and his actions restored the Vatican's reputation. He
succeeded in reconciling millions of people from different
religions. The world has lost a very important spiritual
leader."

EDELMAN

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