28 June 2002

1. "Unable to agree on EU-sought reforms, Turk parliament goes into recess", Turkey's parliament went into summer recess on Thursday after government and opposition parties failed to agree on key democracy reforms required under the country's struggling bid to join the European Union. A compromise over the need to abolish the death penalty and legalize education and broadcasts in the language of the sizable Kurdish minority might have enabled the 550-member house to extend work into the summer months.

2. "Pro-Kurdish writer released from jail", a prominent pro-Kurdish writer was released from a prison near the Turkish capital Ankara on Thursday after serving a year for "disseminating separatist propaganda through the press," Anatolia news agency reported. A state security court had convicted Fikret Baskaya, an associate professor of economics and the author of several books, for a editorial published in the now-defunct pro-Kurdish Ozgur Bakis (Free View) newspaper in 1999.

3. "Turkey's premier flip-flops on elections", In a rambling speech that was his first public address in two months, Turkey's ailing prime minister, Bulent Ecevit, appeared yesterday to call for early elections, but later backtracked and said there would be no balloting until 2004.

4. "Torture decrease by 50 percent this year, IHD", Turkey's prominent human rights advocate, the Human Rights Association (IHD) deputy chairman Osman Baydemir stated that there is a fifty percent decrease in the number of torture and bad treatment complaints in the first five months of this year in Turkey, when compared with the same period of 2001.

5. "Turkey looks to loan to ease uncertainty", the International Monetary Fund will on Friday approve its next $1.1bn loan tranche for Turkey, as political uncertainty continues to threaten the country's IMF-backed economic rescue programme.

6. "EU's important messages to Turkey", speaking to Turkish daily Cumhuriyet yesterday, a high-level European Union Commission official remarked that Turkey’s accession negotiation process could not begin before the Turkish government succeeded in fulfilling all of the Copenhagen criteria.

1. - AFP - "Unable to agree on EU-sought reforms, Turk parliament goes into recess":

ANKARA / 27 June 2002

Turkey's parliament went into summer recess on Thursday after government and opposition parties failed to agree on key democracy reforms required under the country's struggling bid to join the European Union. A compromise over the need to abolish the death penalty and legalize education and broadcasts in the language of the sizable Kurdish minority might have enabled the 550-member house to extend work into the summer months.

Turkey, the only candidate among the 13 EU hopefuls that has so far failed to start membership talks, aims to obtain a date for the opening of talks by the end of the year. With only six months left before Ankara's self-imposed deadline runs out, the three-way coalition of Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit has hit a deadlock due to stiff opposition to the said reforms by its far-right partner, the Nationalist Action Party (MHP).

Ecevit's ill health, meanwhile, has kept him away from his office for almost two months, triggering fears of a political paralysis and increasing calls for early elections ahead of regular polls in 2004. Unable to break MHP resistance on the EU-demanded reforms, Ecevit's Democratic Left Party and the other partner, the center-right Motherland Party, have turned to the opposition in the hope of garnering support. But while backing the reforms in principle, the three opposition parties have put forward conditions and have demanded early elections in a bid to capitalize on the government's weakness.

Aides of Ecevit are now expending efforts to set up a commission between the political parties in parliament, excluding the MHP, in an attempt to hammer out an agreement on draft laws while deputies are on holiday. "This working group will continue working and if a result is obtained, the parliament will be summoned for an extraordinary session either in July or August," Emrehan Halici, a senior member of Ecevit's party, said.

The parliament normally re-convenes in October. Turkey fears that if it does not open talks with the EU next year, it will be unable to obtain a formal place on the calendar of enlargement and postpone its accession indefinitely. The first group of newcomers -- numbering up to ten -- are expected to join the pan-European bloc in 2004.

2. - AFP - "Pro-Kurdish writer released from jail":

ANKARA / 27 June 2002

A prominent pro-Kurdish writer was released from a prison near the Turkish capital Ankara on Thursday after serving a year for "disseminating separatist propaganda through the press," Anatolia news agency reported. A state security court had convicted Fikret Baskaya, an associate professor of economics and the author of several books, for a editorial published in the now-defunct pro-Kurdish Ozgur Bakis (Free View) newspaper in 1999.

In his article, which followed the capture by the authorities of Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan, Baskaya, 62, criticized Turkey's oppressive policies towards its sizable Kurdish minority. Baskaya had earlier served another prison term -- of 20 months -- under a 1993 conviction for "disseminating separatist propaganda" in a book about Turkey's socal and economic development, in which he decried government policies towards the Kurds. The convictions have unleashed harsh criticism by international human rights group against Ankara, which is under pressure to improve its democratic credentials if it wants to join the European Union.

3. - AP - "Turkey's premier flip-flops on elections":

ANKARA / 28 June 2002 / by Louis Meixler

In a rambling speech that was his first public address in two months, Turkey's ailing prime minister, Bulent Ecevit, appeared yesterday to call for early elections, but later backtracked and said there would be no balloting until 2004.

The address, in which the 77-year-old Ecevit seemed to be out of breath and repeatedly confused similar words, left opposition deputies demanding new elections. Some of the prime minister's loyalists were in tears during his address.

Ecevit, who has been too ill to work recently, has no apparent successor in his Democratic Left Party. His party faithful said they will stay united behind Ecevit, whose personality keeps the ruling three-party coalition together.

''I don't want early elections, but elections appear to be on the horizon,'' Ecevit told members of his Democratic Left Party.

He later told reporters that ''an election before April 2004 is out of question.'' That would be the scheduled date for elections.

Turkey is suffering from a severe economic crisis and Ecevit's coalition members are likely to suffer at the polls.

Ecevit's call for early elections was a ''slip of the tongue'' said Ergun Ozbudun, a member of the ruling Motherland Party.

''We're not afraid of early elections, but they could be painful,'' he added.

Ecevit was apparently unable to walk up the steps to deliver his speech from the podium in the Parliament meeting room and had to speak in front of microphones on the floor. The 15-minute address was to party legislators. Ecevit several times confused similar words.

''Forgive me,'' Ecevit told the deputies. ''I have been working in an environment where conversation is limited.''

Ecevit has been hospitalized or recuperating at home for the past two months. He said Wednesday that he expects to continue resting in bed for the next two to three weeks. Ecevit has been suffering intestinal problems, a vein infection, a cracked rib and a spinal injury.

''I'm very happy to be back with you after such a long absence,'' Ecevit said. ''May God not separate us.''

At that point, several of the deputies began to cry.

4. - Turkish Daily News - "Torture decrease by 50 percent this year, IHD":

28 June 2002

Turkey's prominent human rights advocate, the Human Rights Association (IHD) deputy chairman Osman Baydemir stated that there is a fifty percent decrease in the number of torture and bad treatment complaints in the first five months of this year in Turkey, when compared with the same period of 2001.

On the occasion of the Solidarity with the Torture Victims Day, IHD Diyarbakir office, Diyarbakir Bar Association, Diyarbakir Chamber of Doctors and Turkish Human Rights Foundation (THIV) regional representative's office made a joint declaration on Wednesday, stating torture is still common in Turkey despite some of the improvements.

Diyarbakir Bar Association Chairman Mustafa Ozer said that Turkey is among the countries that witness death of detainees in custody.

"Despite officials pledges in the recent years to prevent torture, it is still implemented in state offices and police stations," Ozer added.

5. - Financial Times - "Turkey looks to loan to ease uncertainty":

ANKARA / 28 June 2002 / by Leyla Boulton

The International Monetary Fund will on Friday approve its next $1.1bn loan tranche for Turkey, as political uncertainty continues to threaten the country's IMF-backed economic rescue programme.

The latest part of Turkey's record $16.3bn IMF loan has become even more important since Turkey's financial markets were shaken by the news of prime minister Bulent Ecevit's illness.

Mr Ecevit, 77, who is credited with personally holding together a fractious three-party coalition was hospitalised for 10 days in early May. During his convalescence at home, markets have been gripped by fears of a collapse of the coalition, followed by early elections and the demise of Turkey's hitherto successful IMF-backed reform plan.

On Thursday, Mr Ecevit fuelled the uncertainty when he professed to see "early elections on the horizon", only to claim shortly afterwards that he had been "misunderstood" and that he did not want early polls. His retraction was seen by some analysts as designed to minimise further upset to financial markets, while he confers with his coalition partners, whom he plans to meet on Monday.

Friday's IMF loan had been held up until bank regulators, with Mr Ecevit's blessing, last week seized Pamukbank, the seventh-largest bank. "The government agreed to the takeover of Pamukbank only after the IMF hit them round the head with a very big stick," said a western banker in Istanbul. "If the next loan tranche had been withheld by the IMF, Turkey would have faced another crisis."

A devaluation in February 2001 pushed the government to agree to reforms dismantling state interference in the economy in return for fresh IMF loans to avoid a debt default. The US government, Turkey's closest ally, and the IMF last week praised the Pamukbank takeover as illustrating the government's commitment to those reforms. Pamukbank had posed a threat to the banking system with a capital shortfall last week estimated at $2bn.

Apart from leading to stricter banking supervision, the IMF-backed programme had until the recent turmoil produced a sharp fall in inflation amid early signs of a resumption of economic growth after a 10 per cent contraction in gross national product last year.

Over the past two months, however, interest rates have shot up 20 percentage points to 73 per cent and the lira has weakened to 1,600,000 to the dollar from 1,300,000. Although interest rates are still close to the 70 per cent level projected for June by the government, concerns could resurface about Turkey's ability to service its public sector debt unless they start falling.

Mr Ecevit can hope for some relief from parliament going into recess next week. But markets are still looking to see how the coalition proposes to delay elections, which are not due until 2004, until at least next year when the economy might be stronger.

6. - Cumhuriyet - "EU's important messages to Turkey":

28 June 2002

The European Union has conveyed important messages to the Turkish government, which is currently discussing the steps which need to be taken in the country’s bid for full EU membership. Speaking to Turkish daily Cumhuriyet yesterday, a high-level European Union Commission official remarked that Turkey’s accession negotiation process could not begin before the Turkish government succeeded in fulfilling all of the Copenhagen criteria.

Stating that the EU was satisfied with recent discussions on a number of sensitive issues in Turkey, the anonymous EU official added that the Union was placing a high premium on the continuation of reforms, decreasing the role of military in politics, abolishing the death penalty, allowing education in mother tongues and advancing the freedom of thought and expression.

The EU official also stated that the main document for Turkey’s bid for EU membership was the Accession Partnership Document (KOB), which explains all the necessary criteria Turkey needs to fulfill. He added that there were no additional criteria for Turkey other than the ones set out in the KOB.