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Cablegate: Southeast Turkey Press Summary for June 26, 2006

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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JUNE 26, 2006


This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for June 26, 2006.
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

ZAMAN: A village guard has been killed because of a mine
explosion in Elazig's Palu district. The mine was placed
allegedly by PKK members.

OZGUR GUNDEM: 4500 people set off from Diyarbakir in 120
vehicles for the DTP congress to be held on Sunday in Ankara.
Jandarma allegedly caused difficulties to people traveling to
Ankara from Sirnak by conducting intermittent searches on cars
on separate sections of the road. Twenty buses and 25 cars from
Batman, nearly 200 people from Siirt, four buses and four cars
from Mardin set off for Ankara yesterday. Thousands of people
reportedly arrived in Ankara from Mardin, Bingol, Malatya,
Tunceli and Sanliurfa, as well. (This summary is from 06/25
edition)

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ZAMAN / BOLGE / SABAH / YENI SAFAK / CUMHURIYET / RADIKAL /
EVRENSEL: The dailies reported that when posters of PKK leader
Abdullah Ocalan were waved and pro-PKK slogans in Kurdish were
shouted during DTP's congress held in Ankara on Sunday (06/25),
the president of the congress warned those groups. 15,000
people reportedly took part in the congress. The congress
marked the first time in ten years that the Ataturk Sports Hall
(ASH) has been assigned to the congress of an ethnic-based
party. (Note: In 1996, an incident concerning the removal of
Turkish flag during the HADEP's congress took place at ASH. End
Note.) The dailies noted that Turkish flag was hung, but
Turkish National Anthem was not sung at the onset of the
congress. Abullah Ocalan's brother and sister, representatives
of IRA and ETA, mayors from DTP attended the congress. Kurdish
activist Leyla Zana did not attend the congress. Ahmet Turk,
the sole candidate for DTP chairmanship, said that they would
amend their charter according to the requirements placed by the
Supreme Court; but a de facto co-chairmanship would continue
within the party. (Note: Aysel Tugluk, former co-chairperson,
did not announce her candidacy; despite the fact that she was
the one recommended allegedly by Ocalan for chairmanship of the
party. End Note.) Turk called on the government to introduce
amendments in the constitution and political parties act, to
lower the election threshold, to end the "isolation" of the
inmate at the Imrali Jail, to introduce a general amnesty for
political prisoners, to introduce policies concerning education
in one's mother tongue, to withdraw the draft anti-terror law
etc.; however, Turk reportedly did not make a call to PKK to lay
down arms. The congress elected Turk as the national
chairperson.

OZGUR GUNDEM: DTP's former co-chairperson Aysel Tugluk said
that they were told to put distance between the party and the
PKK at several occasions. According to Tugluk, it was
impossible to realize that argument. Tugluk, on the contrary,
argued that democratic forces and the society should remove the
barriers between themselves and the PKK to end the ongoing war
within the country. Ahmet Turk told the crowd that a solution
that does not involve the Kurds would not be realistic. Both
Tugluk and Turk called on the Turkish state to establish a
dialogue with the Kurds.

OZGUR GUNDEM: Joost Lagendijk, Head of the Turkey-EU Joint
Parliament, criticized the requirement in Turkey's "Regulation
Governing Broadcasts in Different Languages and Dialects" which
stipulates using Turkish subtitles in Kurdish language
broadcasting. An official from the Diyarbakir-based Gun TV said
that they filed a lawsuit with the Council of State to annul the
subtitles requirement in the regulation.

OZGUR GUNDEM: The daily cites allegations that the U.S. had
started operations in the radar base located in Hatay's Amanos
Mountains.

OZGUR GUNDEM: A group comprised of members of ESP (Socialist
Platform of the Oppressed People) and SGD (Socialist Youth
Association) staged a protest against the pollution seen in the
Asi River (Orontes River) in Hatay.

HURRIYET / OZGUR GUNDEM / ZAMAN: Eleven PKK terrorists have
been killed in a clash which broke out between PKK terrorists,
who attempted to infiltrate Turkey, and Turkish Armed Forces, at
Cukurca district of Hakkari on Friday (06/23) morning, Hakkari
Governor's Office announced. (This summary is from 06/24
editions)

CUMHURIYET: Two non-commissioned officers were wounded in

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Elazig's Maden district because of a mine blast that took place
on a road. (This summary is from 06/25 edition)

OZGUR GUNDEM: Seferi Yilmaz, owner of the bookstore bombed
last year in November in Hakkari, who was arrested early last
week and imprisoned in Van's jail, told his attorneys that he
was arrested only because a PKK informant told the authorities
that some PKK members had said they (PKK) should protect Seferi
Yilmaz. Yilmaz complained that he was put in solitary
confinement and he was barred access to books and newspapers.
(This summary is from 06/25 edition)

ZAMAN: 680,000 barrels of petroleum have been loaded onto
the Panama-flagged second vessel, Tridents Hope, and the vessel
started its journey towards Lavera port in France. The third
vessel will reportedly arrive at Haydar Aliyev Terminal at
Ceyhan on June 27. A total of 9 petroleum vessels will come to
the terminal throughout July. Meanwhile, preparations for the
July 13 official opening of the pipeline are under way. Fifteen
presidents, 30 prime ministers, and nearly 50 ministers will
reportedly take part in the opening ceremony. (This summary is
from 06/25 edition)

.
REID

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