Cablegate: Southeast Turkey Press Summary for April 20, 2005

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

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000082

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU ADANA
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR APRIL 20, 2005

This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for April 20,
2005. Please note that Turkish press reports often contain
errors or exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for
the accuracy of the reports summarized here.

POLITICAL, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS

CUMHURIYET / OZGUR GUNDEM / EVRENSEL: Residents of
Diyarbakir's Hasirli quarters expressed their outrage about
yesterday's rape of a seven-year-old child (see 4/18-19 press
summ) by marching along the streets shouting "Shoulder to
shoulder against the gangs", "Arrest the brutes, penalize the
perpetrators." Meanwhile, the health condition of the victim was
reported as critical.

ZAMAN / CUMHURIYET / OZGUR GUNDEM / SABAH: Diyarbakir
Public Prosecutor Haki Celiker, after re-examining the case of
the March 1994 deaths of thirty-eight persons in two Sirnak
villages, sent the case back to Sirnak in October 2004, citing a
lack of jurisdiction in the case. (Note: The Sirnak Prosecutor
had sent the case to the Diyarbakir State Security Court after
the incident, alleging that it had been perpetrated by the PKK.
The families' lawyer urged last year that the case be
reinvestigated.) In returning the case, the Diyarbakir
Prosecutor reportedly sent a letter to the Sirnak Chief Public
Prosecutor allegedly stating that no evidence had been found to
support claims of PKK involvement in the case, and that
according to statements, the villagers died after planes and
helicopters had bombed the area. The Diyarbakir Prosecutor's
recent letter also reportedly advised that the case must be
investigated "effectively" to avoid putting Turkey in a
difficult position at a probable future European Court of Human
Rights case.

OZGUR GUNDEM / EVRENSEL: Approximately 6000 barrels of the
total amount of oil that leaked from the Batman-Yumurtalik
pipeline have been cleaned up. (Note: The total amount of the
oil leak was unspecified in these reports.) An American
specialist participated in the decontamination activities of the
affected area. The Provincial Director for Forests and
Environment announced that damage assessment studies would be
conducted at the end of BOTAS' decontamination process.

ZAMAN / EKSPRES / EVRENSEL / BOLGE / HURRIYET / SABAH / YENI
SAFAK: Guantanamo prisoner Salih Uyar has been released.
Uyar was brought to Adana, after spending more than three years
at Guantanamo. A military notice has reportedly been issued
calling Uyar to render his compulsory military service.

EKSPRES / BOLGE: Adana Governor Cahit Kirac called for an
investigation into media reports alleging that girls attending a
primary school in Seyhan district of Adana had been deprived of
the state's school transportation services. The Governor
discussed the matter for forty-five minutes with the Deputy
Provincial Education Director and the deputy governors.

EKSPRES: AKP Adana MP Abdullah Torun, Adana Mayor Aytac
Durak, and Yuregir Mayor Omer Topcu, announced that the State
Housing Administration would begin construction of 792 flats in
Yuregir district.

EVRENSEL: Military operations are reportedly continuing in
Silvan district of Diyarbakir. Separately, two thousand soldiers
and village guards are reportedly readying for an operation in
Narli Jandarma Command in Van.

EVRENSEL: The case of a lawsuit seeking the annulment of a
1998 Counci of Ministers decision to build two dams on the
Munzur river in Tunceli started today.

YENI SAFAK: Citizens of Adana are distrbed tat a ditc dug
during light-rail constrution hs bee lef neglected due to a
lack of funds and has turned into a lake with fish in it.
Recently, the level of water reportedly rose "dangerously".

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

1. ZAMAN / CUMHURIYET / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): As Mersin
emerges as a center for fuel-oil smuggling, the Investigation
Commission of the Turkish Parliament has launched a probe into
the matter. The (Turkish) state's losses from a variety of
smuggling methods reportedly reached three billion dollars.
Meanwhile, Hurriyet (Cukurova) reports the arrest in Mersin of
five people as they were caught red-handed emptying the tank of
a fuel-oil-transporting truck to Iraq.

REID

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