BUSY DAY AT CANKAYA PRESIDENTIAL PALACE

Turkish President Suleyman Demirel received Virtue Party (FP) leader Recai Kutan, the Chief of General Staff, General Huseyin Kivrikoglu, Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit and Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA) Yildirim Akbulut respectively. After the meeting that lasted for 45 minutes, Ecevit stated that he had briefed Demirel on the presidential election. When asked what President Demirel had said to that in reply, Ecevit said, "I have not asked that. At this stage, the important thing is a constitutional change. People's thoughts and the stages involved in the election will be discussed later." /Sabah/

'SPECIAL PENSION PLAN' CONFERENCE AT CANKAYA PRESIDENTIAL PALACE

Those of the judiciary who are against the 'special pension plan', and who said so in a decleration demanding that President Suleyman Demirel veto this law, will go to Cankaya Presidential Palace and repeat their request for a 'veto'. The five-person judicial delegation comprises Chairman of the Supreme Court of Appeals Sami Selcuk, Chief Republican Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals Vural Savas, Chairman of the Punishment Board of the Supreme Court of Appeals Mater Kaban, Chairman of the Supreme Court of Appeals' Law Council Ismet Arslan and Secretary-General of the Supreme Court of Appeals Ugur Ibrahimhakkioglu. These five will explain the general attitude of the Supreme Court of Appeals towards the 'special pension plan' to President Demirel this afternoon. /Sabah/

AKBULUT'S COMMENTS ON THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

The Speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TRNC), Yildirim Akbulut, has stated that he predicts that the potential change to the presidential electoral procedure will be made. Akbulut visited Ankara Chamber of Commerce (ATO) yesterday and pointed out his views on the presidential elections: "If our President wants to be nominated again, I think he might undertake this duty for five years more." /Aksam/

CEM'S HISTORIC MEETING

The rapprochement between Greece and Turkey, which began after the earthquake disaster that occurred in Turkey last year, reached its peak with Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Ismail Cem's visit to Athens yesterday, the first time in 40 years that a Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs has been to Greece on an official visit. Cem pointed out the warmth experienced in relations between Turkey and Greece over the last six months and said, "We have more achievements under our belt in the last six months than in the last 40 years." Cem and his accompanying delegation were received by George Papandreou and his wife. Papandreou expressed his gladness at welcoming Cem to Athens on behalf of the Greek government and the Greek public. Papandreou declared, "There have been many difficult times between the two countries but even then peace was secured between Ataturk and Venizelos. In the following period, again there was a rapprochement between Demirel and Karamanlis and between Yilmaz and Mitsotakis and now my people are asking why we are spending money on weapons instead of education." Then Cem and Papandreu held bilateral meetings and discussed the final details of the five agreements that are expected to be signed today. Meanwhile, during the second day of his visit, Cem will receive the Mufti of Western Thrace, Mehmet Emin Aga, who is not officially recognized by Greece. /Aksam/

CYPRUS TALKS

The second round of the Cyprus talks under the auspices of the UN is still underway in Geneva as planned. The Cypriot leaders, Denktas and Klerides, continued the proximity talks process in separate meetings yesterday with Alvaro de Soto, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's special envoy to Cyprus. The tension caused by the declarations issued by both leaders in an attempt to send signals to each other, despite the speech ban, was eased yesterday with the publishing of more positive statements. Denktas' calm approach to Klerides' announcement yesterday that there would be 'no approval for a confederation` allowed the talks to be re-directed along a positive path. Klerides told reporters after the meeting with Soto that matters related to security issues had been discussed. On the other hand, Denktas stressed that they had negotiated on four topics; he also added, "We don't want to block the talks and we are determined to maintain this." /Cumhuriyet/

JANUARY INFLATION

The first inflation rate figures under the stand-by deal signed with the IMF have been revealed to be higher than was estimated. The State Statistics Institute (DIE) on Thursday announced the month-on-month wholesale inflation rate at 5.8% and consumer inflation of 4.9%. The foreign exchange rate increase remained at 2.1%. The increase in the 12-month-average consumer price index is 65.2 and for wholesale prices is 54.6. Last year the figures were 81.5% and 68.2% respectively. During his statement after the declaration of the inflation data, Treasury Undersecretary Selcuk Demiralp said that they had been expecting an inflated rate of inflation for January due to the high price adjustments made in December by the public and private sector, but that the situation would not have a negative effect on the stand-by deal. He also added, "We predict a significant decrease in inflation rates after February." Chairman of Ankara Chamber of Trade Sinan Aygun stressed, "To expect a sudden decrease in the inflation rate is fantasy. We have endured hardships for 25 years; we should remain patient for three more months." /Cumhuriyet/

ECEVIT: "JANUARY INFLATION RATE IS NO SURPRISE"

Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit visited Cankaya Presidential Palace to meet President Suleyman Demirel and then made a statement during which he said, "The high inflation rate in January is no surprise for us." Ecevit recalled the words of those ministers and bureaucrats involved in the economy that 'a decrease in inflation should not be expected during the first few months of the year' and said, "Therefore, this has not shocked us. I believe that a rapid decrease in the inflation rate will begin through the second half of the year." /Hurriyet/

BRIEFING ON HIZBULLAH BY TANTAN

The Minister of Interior Affairs, Saadettin Tantan, gave the first of his briefings, started to enlighten the public on various topics, on the Hizbullah issue. Tantan explained the aim of the briefing to journalists in the Meeting Hall of the Ministry of Interior Affairs, as 'the enlightenment of the public with more realistic information'. Tantan pointed out the results that had been obtained since 1991 as part of the work against Hizbullah. The briefing was also supported by the Directorate General of Security and the General Command of the Gendarmerie. /Sabah/

HIZBULLAH OPERATIONS

The crackdown is continuing throughout Turkey against the illegal Hizbullah organization. The number of corpses unearthed in several regions in Turkey has reached 59. In total the identity of 37 corpses remains a mystery and so the results of DNA tests are being awaited. If their identities cannot be established, the corpses will be buried in pauper's graves after a 15-day legal duration. /Hurriyet/

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS WERE OPENED TO SIGNATURE

The Virtue Party (FP) and the True Path Party (DYP) which are insisting that the President should be elected by the general public have taken their first concrete step. The FP and DYP expressed their view that the President should elected by the public during Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's visit to them, and have launched a petition suggesting this Constitutional change which FP leader Recai Kutan and DYP leader Tansu Ciller were the first to sign. Under the proposed Constitutional change, which would faciliate President Demirel's nomination for the Presidency for a second term, it is also envisaged that the President could be re-elected for a second five-year term in office. If 184 signatures can be collected, as required by the Constitution, the petition will be handed to the Parliamentary Chairman and will then be sent on to the Constitutional Commission where it will first be voted on, followed by a ballot in the General Council. /Aksam/

LAND ALLOCATION FOR HOUSES IN EARTHQUAKE ZONE GRANTED

The go-ahead has been given to those private sector establishments and institutions which have been awaiting government approval for the past six months to build permanent houses in the earthquake-hit region. The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement began to allocate land as from yesterday to nearly 10 organizations and companies, including the Turkish Union of Chambers and Stock Market Exchanges (TOBB) and Turk-Is. The Secretary-General of Kocaeli Chamber of Industry, Hamdi Dogan, stated that they would begin preparations in a short period of time. Private sector institutions will build nearly 10,000 permanent houses in the earthquake-hit region, 5,000 of which will be constructed by TOBB. Among those organizations and companies which want to build permanent houses in the earthquake-hit region, are Turk-Is, the Province of Konya, the Union of Textile Employers, Sabanci Holding Company, Koc Holding Company, Kayseri Chamber of Commerce, Pirelli, Good Year, Italian Merloni, the Province of Sirnak and Serflex. /Milliyet/

RENT DRAFT LAW UPHELD

The proposal that 'rents should be limited to the rate of inflation', which has pleased tenants but not landlords and which has been at the forefront of public opinion for many years, has been upheld by the government. It was noticed that an important defect was present in the draft law, which limited rent increases to inflationary target figures and which was rapidly approved by the Justice Commission of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA). It was revealed that the government desired to expand the law so as to place the same limitation on public territory, land prices and car parking places' rents; however, a clear decision has not been made by the government yet. The Chairman of the TGNA Justice Commission, Emin Kara, supplied an explanation on the issue, saying, "The government has as yet received no request for the consideration of the approval of the draft law by the Commission, but I pressed for it due to the expectations of the public." /Milliyet/

PARRIS: "2000 IS THE YEAR OF MANY POSITIVE CHANGES"

American Ambassador to Ankara Mark Parris pointed out that the year 2000 would be very good in terms of the Turkish economy, saying, "The year 2000 will be the first year of many positive changes." Parris and his accompanying delegation comprising trade, education and agriculture attaches, went on a tour of inspection in Mugla. The delegation members, who visited Mugla Chamber of Commerce, were briefed concerning investment opportunities in Mugla. Parris delivered a speech there, declaring, "We came here to determine what sort of investment opportunities are here. We envisage commercial, agricultural, cultural and economic cooperation to the mutual benefit of our two countries." Parris also talked of Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's visit to Washington, American President Bill Clinton's visit to Turkey and the approval of Turkey's candidacy to the European Union which had increased Turkey's importance abroad. Parris added, "We also welcome Ecevit's pledge in Davos that privatization will continue." /Sabah/

PARRIS: "AMERICAN TOURISTS WILL FLY DIRECTLY TO ANTALYA"

American Ambassador to Ankara Mark Parris has said, "This year will be good for Turkish tourism. However, we are expecting the following years to be even better than this year. Antalya will be twinned with an American city and the agreements needed to ensure direct flights to America from Antalya will signed." Parris arrived in Antalya on a tour of inspection and met Governor Ertugrul Dokuzoglu and the Mayor of the Metropolitan Municipality, Bekir Kumbul, at their respective offices. Parris pointed out that Antalya was a city whose cultural beauties are due to many centuries' history. His intention in visiting Antalya was to determine areas ripe for cooperation between the two countries. /Hurriyet/

TNT TURKEY COMES THIRD IN PROFITABILITY

One of the world's largest companies in the express courier and logistics business, the TNT company in Turkey came 3rd in terms of profit and 8th in terms of endorsement in the region. The region on which TNT Turkey depends covers all the other countries in the world except for England, Germany, France and the Asian countries. In this group, there are also economically-developed countries such as Spain, Portugal and most Northern European countries. The TNT Post Group, TNT Turkey's mother company, invited 200 of its administrators to Amsterdam last week. TNT Turkey's General Director Turgut Yildiz, who attended the meeting, explained how they had grown by 2,000% during the last ten years. /Hurriyet/

MADO TO OPEN BRANCH IN ITALY

The boss of the Mado Ice-cream, Mehmet Kanbur, who is from a family that has been dealing with ice-cream making for 200 years, is opening a branch in Italy, following its branches in Saudi Arabia, England, Cyprus and Romania. Kanbur stated that preparations to open the Mado Ice Cafe in Milan are at the final stage and that they were expecting Mado to attract the crowds as in other countries. Mehmet Kanbur pointed out that Italians are known to be very advanced in the ice-cream industry and that it was very important for Mado to gain a foothold in this country. /Hurriyet/

TWO TWIN BROTHERS FOR ANKARA

Ankara Metropolitan Municipality has announced its twinning with Chile's capital city of Santiago and the city of Manama in Bahrein, calling them 'twin brothers'. In a statement issued by Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, steps will be taken for the improvement of relations with these two cities and for the implementation of a friendship protocol. /Aksam/

FIRST TURKISH MARBLING EXHIBITION IN THE U.S.

The first Turkish marbling exhibition in the U.S. was opened by artist Ferudun Ozgoren in Boston at the Boston Fine Arts Museum and visitors will be able to tour it until 15th April. Ferudun Ozgoren stated that he had depicted the art of marbling, which is among the Islamic art traditions, with a concern for modern aesthetics and a modern conception. /Hurriyet/

GREEK ACTORS IN TURKEY

Greek actors Dimitri Matsouka and Nikolaos Sergianopoulos and Greek film producer Nino Elmacioglu, who will be involved in the film entitled 'Uclu Oyun' to be produced by a famous name in Turkish cinema, Turker Inanoglu, arrived in Turkey yesterday. The Greek actors, who will play alongside main characters, Zeki Alasya and Okan Bayulgen, said that they were very excited about taking on a role in a movie filmed in Turkey. Actress Dimitri Matsouka, who will play the role of a Turkish woman, said, "I will memorize my dialogues under the guidance of a Greek teacher and learn Turkish as my role requires. You see, nobody will believe that I am Greek. It is a pleasure for me to play a role in a film supporting Turco-Greek friendship. Besides which, the screenplay is perfect." /Milliyet/

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON BLUE STREAM

The construction of the Blue Stream Natural Gas Pipeline's 373-km overland sectionin Russia began officially with a pipe-welding ceremony yesterday. At the ceremony organized at the 236th km of the line, which begins at Izobilniy in Stavropol and ends at Jubga on the Black Sea coast, the construction on land started with the first welding of the pipes. The Chairman of the Russian Gazprom Company, Rem Vyahirev, the Deputy General Director of Botas, Fuat Celepci, Turkish parliamentary representatives, the Governor and Mayor of Samsun attended the ceremony. During his speech Vyhirev said, "Blue Stream will contribute to the political and economical rapprochement of Russia and Turkey, and also bring heat and light to the nations of Eurasia." In the meantime, Fuat Celepci declared that with its completion at the beginning of April 2001 the first gas flow will start along the Blue Stream Line. /Turkiye/

WORLD BANK: 'REMOVE ELECTRICITY FROM STATE MONOPOLY'

Energy sector experts from the World Bank who have been in Turkey for 15 days on a round of observations have proposed the gradual abolition of the state monopoly and interference in the energy sector, thus giving complete autonomy to the network. They recommended complete privatization of power production and distribution and for the price to be set according to free market conditions. As far as the experts are concerned, TEAS and TEDAS should be re-constructed. /Turkiye/

TURKEY AND BELARUS SIGN JEC SECOND-TERM PROTOCOL

The second-term protocol of the Turco-Belarussian Joint Economic Commission (JEC) was signed in Ankara yesterday by State Minister Kazym Yucelen on behalf of Turkey and State Minister Ural Latipov in the name of Belarus. The protocol envisages the improvement of Turkish contract work in Belarus, researching means of cooperation in tourism, and furthering relations in the areas of pharmacology, the pharmaceuticals industry and communications, as well las searching out joint investment possibilities in the automotive, agriculture and food industries, the Anatolia News Agency reported.

EXPORT OF DEBENTURES TO JAPAN

The Treasury Undersecretariat has authorized Nomura Securities Co. Ltd. to issue debentures for the Japanese Samurai market. In a statement released by the Treasury, it was stated that the export of debentures planned for this month is estimated to last for a three- year term amounting to 25 billion Japanese Yens. This is the first export of debentures following the upgrading of Turkey's credit rating by Japanese rating institution JCR, the Anatolia News Agency reported.

AWARD FOR TALAT HALMAN

Prof. Talat Halman, Turkey's first Minister of Culture and head of the Turkish Literature Department of Bilkent University in Ankara was presented with a shield for 'superior performance` by Foreign Minister Ismail Cem. Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, Democrat Turkey Party Chairman Ismet Sezgin and a number of distinguished guests attended the ceremony held at Ankara Palace. During his speech, Cem said that Halman had made great contributions to presenting Turkey to the world. /Hurriyet/

FROM THE COLUMNS ...FROM THE COLUMNS ...FROM THE COLUMNS

EUROPE WILL UNDERSTAND TURKEY BETTER NOW BY TUFAN TURENC

(MILLIYET) Milliyet correspondant Tufan Turenc compares the past political climate in Turkey to the present European furore over changes in Austrian politics. A summary of his column follows.... "It had been very hard for Europe to comprehend the social unrest during the time the Refahyol coalition was in power. It could not understand that the 28th February decisions were directed at warning the ruling parties intent on destroying democracy. In fact, the European democracies could not be expected to grasp the meaning of the 28th February decisions throughout Europe as there was no-one who wished to change the democratic regimes there. Therefore, in Europe such interventions were not seen. However, the policies of the Refahyol Government, which began with painting the pavements green and white, and went on to ban the sale of alcohol, continually shocked Turkey. Moreover, the sight of the heads of sects coming to the Prime Ministry wearing robes and headgear, in violation of the dress code, the government's defiance of the European Union, its initiatives to overturn the main policies of the State and many other moves created a tense atmosphere. The majority of the society was united to pressurize the ruling Coalition in order to protect democracy and the secular Republic. Representatives of the major partners in Government were hurling all kinds of insults at the Republic, secularism and Ataturk. As Europe was looking at these events from outside, it did not understand the dangers they posed and the tension Turkish society was experiencing. Some intellectuals within the country were also watching these events as if they were living on clouds. In the end, the country was faced with the 28th February statament. The decisions taken to enforce laws, so preventing the danger directed at the secular Government basis, were signed by both the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister. However, when the Welfare Party lost power thanks to the democratic reflex shown by society which was reflected in Parliament, they began to cry out for democracy forgetting that they had done everything in their power to stifle it. Europe is now experiencing the shock Turkey had previously went through with the threat to democracy in Austria. Even though this does not concern other European countries directly, they are raging with fury. What about democracy in Europe? Did they say that no-one could interfere with the will of the public? Did they not say that democracy could only be protected through democratic means? What happened to the advice they have been giving to Turkey for years? The democrats in Europe are neither thinking of democracy nor of the free-will of the Austrian public. "

BELGIAN MODEL FOR CYPRUS BY BULENT AKARCALI (MILLIYET)

ANAP deputy Bulent Akarcali writes on the possibility of implementing the 'Belgian plan' in Cyprus. A summary of his column is as follows: In the 'Milliyet' issue dated 31 January 2000 it was stated that the Belgian model was being examined so as not to allow the Turkish side to be swallowed up by the Greek-Cypriot economy. The report went on to say that the Turkish-Cypriots were concerned about the free circulation of people, goods, money and services if the Greek-Cypriot Adminstration were to be accepted in the EU. With the advent of free circulation, it is feared that the more progressive economy of the Greek-Cypriots will swallow that of the Turkish side. In the studies it was seen that the EU candidacy process for Belgium, which also has two differing communities had gone through similar stages. The Turkish-Cypriot side, which began to study the Belgian model, prepared a statement setting out the conditions under which the Turkish side could enter the EU within the framework of a confederative solution. Belgium was an independent state in 1830 but began to become divided in two due to the difference of language between the Walloons and the Flemish, although no difference in culture existed between the two, as of 1960. In Belgium today, Flemish is spoken in the north, in the south French and in the northeast, German; in Brussels all three are spoken. Each region has its own parliament and there is a common national parliament. However, the delicacy and wisdom of this division stems not from race or ethnic origin but from the language spoken. In the 1960s Belgian state asked its citizens to decide which one language each preferred as their mother tongue, and the region in which these languages would be spoken were determined. As a result, in each region all the official documents were written in the language of that region. For example, if a person living in the French-speaking region settles in the Flemish-speaking region with his family, he loses all rights to his mother-tongue except when talking with the members of his family. He has to use Flemish in the office, even when he is writing to central Government. The wisdom of the model lies in this. A person can change the language he is speaking but not his ethnic origin. Belgian citizens are racially discriminated against according to their origin. Free circulation can only be possible by changing the language. All people are Belgian citizens and have to live with the official language spoken in their region. How can this model be implemented in the Cyprus Confederation? Turkish can be spoken in the north, Greek in the south, and both languages can be used in the capital. Therefore, everyone working in the capital has to know both Turkish and Greek. A Greek family coming from the Greek- speaking region to settle in the Turkish-speaking region has to write and speak in Turkish and be Cypriot citizens. Under this model, provocation of fanatics cannot disturb the other society with their racial, cultural and religious views. If they are going to buy property, they will do so to live and work there. The Belgian model could be valid on Cyprus because it allows societies with equal rights to live side by side, not within each other, without taking economic, political, social and cultural aspects or the size of the population into consideration.

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