DEMIREL TO BE AWARDED BY AZERBAIJAN WITH 'INDEPENDENCE MEDAL'

President Suleyman Demirel will be awarded by Azerbaijan with 'Independence Medal' which is the most honourable reward of Azerbaijan, the Anatolia News Agency reports. Azerbaijani Press Centre said that Demirel has always supported the independence and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, contributed to development of friendship between Turkey and Azerbaijan, launched efforts for the solution of the Karabakh conflict and strengthening of unity and solidarity among Turkish-Speaking countries and therefore he has deserved the Azerbaijani Independence Medal.

ECONOMIC COUNCIL CONVENES

The Economic Commission established by Ministers from the three coalition parties gathered yesterday in Ankara to discuss their priorities in the economy under the Chairmanship of State Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Husamettin Ozkan. State Ministers Hikmet Ulugbay, Tunca Toskay, Yuksel Yalova, Mehmet Kececiler, Minister of Finance Sumer Oral, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Husnu Gokalp and Minister of Industry and Trade A.Kenan Tanrikulu attended the meeting which lasted for five hours. According to the Prime Ministry's Press Office, the 1999 budget, backing creals support for cereal production, border trade, the budget deficit, the socialsecurity reform, tax reforms and issues which are of priority in the economy were discussed during the meeting. /Cumhuriyet/

OCALAN'S TRIAL WILL CARRY ON WITHOUT ANY INTERRUPTION

The Minister of Justice, Hikmet Sami Turk, said that research into civilizing the State Security Courts (DGM) will not affect the trial on Imrali of the chief of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan. Turk declared, "In the DGM there is an obligation to have a judge in reserve; during the trial on Imrali this has been implemented. In the case of a revision, the trial will be carried on by this judge." He also added that the revision which is expected to be done to the DGM law is not directly concerned with Ocalan's trial. While he was replying to criticisms about his Ministry in the Plan and Budget Commission he explained the draft amendments to the 8th article of the Anti-Terrorism Law, the 17th, 159th, and 312th articles of the Turkish Criminal Code will be presented to the National Assembly during this legislation period. He continued, "As far as the amendmends are concerned, we cannot ignore the conditions of Turkey. In Turkey the borders of freedom of thought and expression should be expanded. However we cannot make any concessions to the unity of our nation and our country." On the other hand, great curiosity has been aroused about the defence of Ocalan in the last session of his trial on 23rd June. It is predicted that he will not make a political defence. Judicial circles say that from the beginning of the trial he has obeyed defeat, and by apologizing to the relatives of the martyrs and mentioning about the PKK as a terrorist organization he tries to show his repentence. He also knows that no one will prevent his execution if he gets the death sentence. /Star/

PKK MILITANTS DENOUNCE OCALAN

The imprisoned PKK militants' condemnation of Abdullah Ocalan, the chief of the terrorist organization, grows daily. Following the PKK members in Gaziantep Prison, those PKK militants imprisoned in Elbistan Prison also hung the Turkish flag on the door of their ward and submitted a petition to the prison administration to be declared to the public. Accordingly, they stated, "We lived in the mountains under unbearable conditions for years. Yet we were frequently subject to the accusations and humiliations meted out by both Ocalan and the PKK administration. Many of our friends were tortured and even executed due to charges of espionage. While Ocalan was living in luxury in his villa at Damacus, we were used as prey to protect the lives of a bundle of top-level commanders. We were forced to kill our own people for whom we were allegedly fighting. That was the only alternative left to us. We cannot even apologize to the Turkish people, because in the face of the blood of 30 thousand people, such a discourse remains quite simple. Even though the Turkish public may forgive us, we can by no means forgive ourselves." /Aksam/

EROGLU: "WORLD SHOULD ACCEPT TWO STATES IN CYPRUS"

The Prime Minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Dervis Eroglu, said that it was a pity that the final declaration on Cyprus would be initiated by the G-8 member countries. He added, "The world should accept that there are two states in Cyprus. It is useless to sit at the negotiating table unless this fact is realized. Attending the opening of the International Bursa Festival, Eroglu recalled that Greece and Southern Cyprus had helped Abdullah Ocalan and the terrorist PKK organization. He pointed out that both Greece and Southern Cyprus had acted in enmity against Northern Cyprus and Turkey. /Cumhuriyet/

TANTAN: "POLICE WILL BE MODERNIZED"

Minister of the Interior Sadettin Tantan said that he would ensure new arrangements to modernize the Police. He added that he had established working-groups in the Ministry and had meetings with lecturers from universities to make the necessary changes in the organization. Tantan stressed that the Police should be under the influence of the political parties. /Cumhuriyet/

COOPERATIVE PARTNER-99 MANOUOVRES

Cooperative Partner-99 Manoeuvres between NATO and the Peace for Partnership's group will be held between 14-28 June along the Black Sea's Western coasts hosted by Bulgaria. According to the Office of the Chief of General Staff, France, the U.S., Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia and Turkey will taken part in the military exercises. /Cumhuriyet/

IMF DELEGATION IN TURKEY TOMORROW

An IMF delegation led by Carlo Cottarelli, the Chief of the Turkey Desk, will arrive in Turkey tomorrow in order to carry out the annual regular evaluation process of the IMF. The delegation, which will meet the Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ISO), the Istanbul Chamber of Trade (ITO), the Union of Banks and private sector and financial circles in Istanbul between June 15-16, will go to Ankara on June 17 and there initiate its meetings with state departments. Accordingly, the IMF delegation will meet officials from the Treasury, the State Planning Organization (DPT), the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank and the Privatization Administration and leave Turkey on June 28. /Aksam/

TABA BRIEFS COTERELLI

The Turkish-American Businessmen's Association (TABA) briefed the Chief of the IMF-Turkey Desk, Carlo Coterelli, yesterday prior to the intended visit of an IMF delegation to Turkey. TABA Chairman Bulent Senver wanted Coterelli to announce IMF support for Turkey to the whole world. Senver said: "If financial resources worth $10 billion are made available following IMF meetings in Turkey, interest rates will decrease and the economy will relax". Senver stressed that the new coalition govrenment would achieve structural reforms and added: "The new government aims to re-arrange the banking system, address the shortcomings in the social security system and reduce the interest rates on domestic borrowing. Therefore, the IMF should announce its support for Turkey following the meetings due to start in Turkey tomorrow". /Hurriyet/

MORNINGSTAR EVALUATES BAKU-CEYHAN ROUTE

The U.S. Special Representative for Caspian Energy Diplomacy, Ambassador Richard Morningstar, has given his support to Turkey for the Baku-Ceyhan and Trans-Caspian Projects. He said that Turkey would become a bridge between NATO and the European Union, which has tried to improve its defense strategies in line ith NATO. Especially in so far as Kosovo is concerned, , where Europe wants to establish a long-lasting defence process, Turkey would play an important role. /Sabah/

CRUDE OIL FROM IRAQ

The transport of crude oil from Iraq started yesterday. The Director of the Tupras Batman Refinery, Umit Erden, said in a statement that the transport of crude oil from the Musul district of Iraq to pay off Iraqi debts of $81 million to 49 Turkish firms in the Southeastern Anatolia region began yesterday. The Anatolia News Agency reported that Erden stated 2,000 tons of crude oil would be transported to Batman every day in 100 tankers. He further said: "This crude oil will be unloaded at Tupras facilities. Nearly 60,000 tons of crude oil will arrive in Batman every month. In two years' time, a total of 2 million tons of crude oil will have been transported to Turkey".

TWO NOMINEES OF TURKISH ORIGIN IN EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

Two nominees of Turkish origin have managed to enter the European Parliament following the elections held yesterday in Germany, in addition to those in various European countries. Ozan Ceyhun from the Union 90 Greens and Feleknaz Uca from the Democratic Socialism Party were guaranteed entrance to the European Parliament. /Hurriyet/

USENMEZ TO SOUTH AFRICA

Suayip Usenmez, the State Minister, will go to South Africa to participate in the transfer-delivery ceremony in the Presidency Office of South Africa, the Anatolia News Agency reports. A State Ministry statement said that Usenmez will represent Turkey in the ceremony which will be held for the transfer and delivery in the South African Presidency on June 16, 1999, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

PRIVATIZATION TARGETS $ 2 BILLION

The Privatization Supreme Board will gather today to discuss the revision of their 1999 targets and measures needed to accelerate the privatization process. The experts on the Privatization Board have fixed their priorities as follows: political determination and transparency in the political process should be moved forward; profitableness and social advantages should be taken into consideration; the Privatization Law should be amended to protect employment; timing in capital markets should be of priority; Turk Telecom should become a private firm and sell its shares; the privatization process will be started with a new plan which the public can trust. Finally, it was stressed that $ 2 billion in revenue was expected from privatization in 1999. /Sabah/

CNN-DOGAN MEDIA GROUP COOPERATION

A statement issued by CNN and the Dogan Media Group yesterday said that they had reached an agreement to carry out a joint venture TV broadcast called CNN-TURK. Thus, CNN based in Atlanta will make its second biggest investment abroad in Turkey, in conjunction with the Dogan Media Group; CNN first invested abroad in Spain. The agreement signed in London by the Head of the Dogan Media Group, Mehmet Ali Yalcindag, and the Head of Turner International Broadcasting, Philip Kent, foresees that a joint venture will be implemented to produce TV broadcasts, both news and programmes. CNN-TURK, which will be set up in Istanbul, will begin to broadcast in Turkish in September. /Milliyet/

550-MILLION-DOLLAR INVESTMENT BY TURKCELL

Turkcell, which is one of the largest GSM operators in Europe, has started a new 550-million-dollar investment in order to establish the technological infrastructure for `third generation' communication products. Cuneyt Turktan, the General Manager of Turkcell, said, "We are starting to provide `third generation' products and services. We are engaging in a new and serious investment in order to establish an infrastructure for that reason. This 550-million-dollar investment will be financed by foreign loans from a consortium of banks which continues its efforts to this end in London. This consortium, comprised of American, European and Japanese banks, will provide a substantial credit only on the basis of a guarantee ensured by Turkcell. Meanwhile, its cost will be quite low as compared to previous periods. Now we are enjoying remarkable bargaining power; thus, we are quite at an advantage." Turktan also remarked that with this investment, the total amount of investments by Turkcell will reach $2.5 billion. It is reported that this investment will provide jobs for 5,000 people in Turkey. /Aksam/

TURKS CONSTRUCT ALMATI AIRPORT

A Turkish firm will construct the International Airport in Almati, Kazakhstan. Representatives from the Office of the Almati Governor and the Altunbas construction company met to discuss the construction of Almati Airport, which will be the biggest airport in Central Asia. The Altunbas construction company will lay the foundation of the airport in the next few days. It is reported that the cost of the airport will total $400 million. While it is planned that the first runway of Almati Airport will be completed within 24 months, the construction of the entire airport will be finalized in 2002. /Hurriyet/

WAN IN ZURICH

A meeting of the Executive Board of the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) was held in Zurich, Switzerland, yesterday. The owner of the Hurriyet and Milliyet newspapers, Aydin Dogan, also attended the meeting. Dogan delivered a speech saying that Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit was an experienced journalist, since he always positively approached the press this was an opportunity to extend the freedom of the press. Meanwhile, during the meeting it was decided that a training seminar should be offered to countries such as Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, which want to become members of the Association. A seminar for this purpose will be held in Istanbul in December. The membership of the said countries will be decided at the end of the meetings in Istanbul. /Hurriyet/

HUMAN RIGHTS MEETING

A seminar jointly organized by the Turkish Journalists' Association (TGC) and the National Committee of the UN Human Rights Training Association (1995-2005) was held yesterday. State Minister Mehmet Ali Irtemcelik, who attended the seminar, said that Turkey should make certain improvements in human rights and democratic standards. The Head of the Turkish Journalists' Association, Nail Gureli, said for his part that the Association had made great strides in the improvement of democratic understanding and added: "We wish that Turkish politicians carry out their commitments regarding human rights". /Hurriyet/

EXPORTS FROM GAP REGION

Between January and May 1999 a total of $ 54.3 million of agriculture and animal products was exported from Southeastern Anatolia (GAP) to European Union (EU) countries; a 24.8 % increase. The Chairman of the Southeastern Anatolia Exporters' Union, Abdulkadir Cikmaz, said that the greatest amount of exports was to Italy, with $ 16.6 million, then to Greece, $ 6.58 million, and to Britain with $ 5.8 million. He added that they aimed to increase their exports to the whole of Europe. /Turkiye/

FIRST TURKISH SATELLITE ON THE WAY

The results of the bid for a satellite placed by the Information Technologies and Electronic Research Institute (TUBITAK-ODTU BILTEN) will be resulted in July. The Head of BILTEN, Prof. Murat Aksar, said that a consortium of the Italian company, Carlo Gavazi Space, the British group Space Innovations, Turkspace, and the British Surrey Satellite Technology company is competing for the bid. Aksar remarked that, within the framework of the project, BILTEK would establish laboratories for the production of satellites by Turkish engineers. /Sabah/

FOUR MEASURES IN TOURISM

Nihat Boytuzun, Honorary Member of the World Tourism Agencies' Union (AFTAA), said that tourism in Turkey would be improved with new measures. He disclosed four such measures: the Ministry of Tourism will become an Undersecretariat attached to the Prime Ministry; a Promotional Council will be established by representatives of the sub-industries in order to continually promoto Turkey; in order to attain accurate results and discover the true problems a new system will be established; the tourist season will be extended to 12 months to include culture, religion and winter avtivities. Boytuzun stressed that he believed that Turkey had been developing in tourism sector and the tourist season in 2000 would be better than this year. /Sabah/

BLUE FLAGS FOR 11 MARINAS AND 64 BEACHES

It is reported that Blue Flags were awarded to 64 beaches and 11 marinas in Turkey. Blue Flags are presented to the cleanest and safest beaches and marinas. A ceremony organized by the Turunc Blue Flag Association was held yesterday in the Turunc county of Marmaris. /Hurriyet/

TOURISTS SPEND THEIR MONEY MOSTLY ON FOOD

Foreign tourists visiting Turkey spend their money mostly on food and beverages. According to data provided by the State Statistics Institute (DIE), tourists who visited Turkey during the January-September period last year spent a total of $ 5,867 million, $ 1,116 million of this figure was on food and beverages. /Aksam/

TURKISH BUSINESSMEN DELEGATION IN HONG KONG

A Turkish businessmen delegation which is headed by Avni Ozcan, Director General of Economic Research and Evaluations of the Foreign Trade Undersecretariat (DTM) went to Hong Kong on Sunday. The delegation will hold bilateral meetings with Chinese businessmen in Hong Kong and Shanghai and will hold contacts to increase the exports of Turkish products to China, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

HASHISH SEIZED

Members from the Bursa Security Office seized 1.8 kilos of hashish yesterday. Officials said that 10 people were taken into custody regarding the incident, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

6TH INTERNATIONAL ASPENDOS OPERA AND BALLET FESTIVAL BEGINS

The 6th International Aspendos Opera and Ballet Festival began on 12 June with the performance of the world-famous opera, "Carmane". Twelve operas will be staged during the festival which will end on 10 July. It is expected that 100,000 domestic and foreign tourists will watch the performances. /Sabah/

38TH INTERNATIONAL BURSA FESTIVAL

The 38th International Bursa Festival started in Bursa on Saturday. The Festival started by the '700th Year Special Programme' held by the Culture Ministry under the celebration activities of the 700th anniversary of the Ottoman Empire and within the special initiative of Orhan Tasanlar, Bursa Governor, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

METALLICA IN ISTANBUL

Renowned heavy metal music group Metallica staged a concert in Istanbul yesterday. Nearly 20,000 of their Turkish fans saw the concert. Metallica has come to Turkey as part of their tour "The Garage Remains The Same". /Milliyet/

BRITISH ARTIST IN GRAND BAZAAR

British painter Ned Pamphilon arrived in Istanbul to open an exhibition, titled "Istanbul? 2000, here we come" in the Grand Bazaar. Pamphilon said that he aimed to paint murals in Istanbul and also to paint the Bosphorus bridge which connects Asia to Europe. /Sabah/

YUSUF DUZER RECEIVES BRONZE MEDAL

Yusuf Duzer has received a bronze medal during the last day of the European Graeco-Roman Youth Wrestling Championship in Budapest, Hungary. As a team, Turkey ranked fifth with one gold, one silver and one bronze medal. /Hurriyet/

TURKEY BECOMES SECOND AMONG TEAMS

Turkey became the second in team standings by winning one gold and five silver medals in the First European Women's Boxing Cup which was held in Koping city of Sweden, the Anatolia News Agency reports.

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

ALL TABOOS SHOULD BE ABOLISHED - BY SUKRU ELEKDAG (MILLIYET)

Former Ambassador Sukru Elekdag comments on the Kurdish question and its exaggeration by other sources due to Turkey's silence on the issue. A summary of his column is as follows: "About a year ago, no one would have imagined that Turkey could ensure the expulsion of Ocalan from Syria by applying pressure on that country, and that the chief of the terrorist organization, unable to find shelter in any European country, would be handed over to Turkish justice in Kenya. However, this is what happened and the main reason for obtaining this solution lies in Turkey's power, international importance, diplomacy and influence. When this development is evaluated in conjunction with the successes of the Turkish security forces against PKK terrorism, we see that a great opportunity has presented itself for the solution of the Kurdish problem within the framework of democracy and the unitary state. It should be noted that the main reason why the problem has reached the present dimensions is the presence of politicians without a realistic perspective who ignore the matter. For years Turkish governments said that there were no Kurds but only mountain Turks. In 1992 when he was Prime Minister, Demirel recognized Kurdish reality but this approach legalizing the Kurdish identity was abandoned and it was said that there was no Kurdish problem but a terrorism problem existed instead. Recently, in a letter to German Prime Minister Schroeder, Prime Minister Ecevit said that there was no Kurdish problem. However surveys conducted throughout the country and public opinion polls carried out in Southeastern Anatolia have shown that the majority of the population see the Kurdish problem as a national one. In order to use this historic opportunity, Turkey has to take concrete steps towards a solution and not evade the facts. The 'sine qua non' condition for this is the recognition of the Kurdish identity. As the Turkish State has regarded the Kurdish question as taboo, the research done in this field was minimal while other states researched into all aspects of the issue and formed their policies based on this data. It is very sad to see that Turkey does not have enough information about her Kurdish citizens. Therefore Ankara lacks the opportunity to assess these problems based on scientific data and to find solutions to them. A simple example of this is the ratio of the Kurdish population in Turkey. During 1927-1965, to determine the ethnicity of the population, the'mother tongue' was aa question in the general population census. In 1965 the ratio for the Kurdish speaking population to the overall population was 7.1%. However, after 1965 the mother tongue question was not asked. Therefore, Turkey does not know the exact number of her Kurdish population. This being the case, Western writers analyzing the Kurdish question have exaggerated this ratio to 20%. Since Turkey has left the field to others, this ratio has been exaggerated even more and reached 24.1%. According to the results of a survey conducted by Professor Ahmet Yucekok, which covered the boundaries of Istanbul, although the ratio of citizens who are of Kurdish origin is 13.3%, only 3.9% define themselves as Kurds. While 3.7% define themselves as Kurdish Turks, 5.7% see themselves as Turks. This shows that in the description of identity 'language' and 'race' are no longer valid measures. It also shows that social and economic conditions have come to the fore. Therefore, if the fact that most of the Kurdish citizens live in the West is taken into consideration, it may not be surprising to see that those who define themselves as Kurds may well be less than the 7.1% of 1965."

SPECIAL KOSOVO

TURKISH UNIT TO KOSOVO

It is reported that permission for the passage of a 1,000-strong Turkish military unit through Bulgaria on his way to Kosovo is being awaited. Officials pointed out that the passage of Turkish soldiers through Bulgaria was a sensitive issue for the Bulgarian government. The Turkish unit is expected to participate in the NATO International Peace-Keeping Force in Kosovo within one week. Meanwhile, the Turkish Embassy in Belgrade, which was closed a short time after NATO air strikes against Yugoslavia began, will be re-opened in the shortest possible time. A statement issued by the Office of General Staff yesterday recalled that the US Secretary of Defence had said that the arrival of Russian soldiers in Kosovo without any notification was not an important issue. The statement stressed that the US Deputy Secretary of State had stated that those Russian soldiers to be stationed in Kosovo should be under a single order and command structure, otherwise, the separate control region granted to Russian soldiers and no clear command structure would cause a de facto free-for-all in the division of Kosovo. /Milliyet/

TURKISH F-16s FLY 23 HOURS

The Turkish F-16 fighters deployed in Italy for the NATO airstrikes on Kosovo totalled 23 hours of `operational flights' the day before. According to a statement issued from the Office of the General Staff's Press Centre, NATO planes performed 426 sorties yesterday and the day before. The flights were performed as `observation, patrol and support' missions due to the approval of a military technical agreement and the resolutions of the UN Security Council. /Aksam/

MILITARY AID FROM TURKEY TO MACEDONIAN ARMY

Turkey realized military aid to Macedonia for improvement of the latter's army and to contribute to the defence of the territorial integrity of this country, the Anatolia News Agency reports. A ceremony was held in Skopje for the military aid of Turkey which is worth $1.9 million.

FOR THOSE WHO EXPECTED TO WIN KOSOVO - BY FERAI TINC (HURRIYET)

Ferai Tinc, a columnist for `Hurriyet', reflects on the possible long-term implications of the recent developments in Kosovo for the ever-existent indigenous ethnic and religious disparity between the Kosovars of Turkish- and Albanian-origin. Tinc writes: "Kosovo starts a new period with the NATO occupation and Russian penetration. A period of Westernization begins in the Balkans. The defeat of the Serbians indicates not only the dismantling of the Orthodox Christian belt but also the fading away of a Muslim Ottoman history. Those great Albanian targets are backed by those Christian Albanians and their financial sources. On the contrary, the Kosovar and Macedonian Muslim Albanians only have dreams. Particular circles in Turkey expect that due to the defeat of the Serbian powers in Kosovo, consciousness of the Ottoman heritage in the region will also be strengthened. They pump the claims that the independence of Kosovo will pave the way for the perspective of a Greater Turkey. However, the Albanian nationalism of today does not involve the Muslim identity, let alone the Ottoman identity. Some people seem to be simply ignorant of past conflicts between the Turks and Albanians. Indeed, all these misinterpretations stem from the fact that they do not know the irreconcilable nature of the perceptions pertaining to the Turkish identity under the Ottoman period and that under the Republican era. Old Albanians in Kosovo and Macedonia can speak Turkish and bear an Ottoman heritage within their Albanian identity. However, the young define themselves under an Albanian identity which is closer to Italy or Greece; they do not speak Turkish, they simply feel closer to Europe. Now, one can seldom meet any young Albanians called Ibrahim or Huseyin. One of my Macedonian-Albanian colleague told me, `Our entire contact with and experience of the Turks was indeed with Ottoman Turkey. We have not experienced any kind of contact or coexistence with Republican Turkey. These words also highlight the reasons for the current contradictions between the Turks and Albanians living in Macedonia and Albania. The Turks still regard Turkey as their native land whereas for the Albanians, Albania is far more important than Turkey. The Turks know that they will always remain a minority in the region whereas the Albanians enjoy the chance of being the majority. The Turks strive to resist the menace of assimilation by sticking to Turkish nationalism but the Albanians try to persuade the Turks that they are indeed Albanians. Those who argue that the `historical conflict' has ended with the victory of the Ottomans given the defeat of Milosevic, also maintain that the current circumstances are absolutely to the advantage of Turkey. Indeed, NATO's occupation of Kosovo is at least an achievement for humanity as it ends the ethnic cleansing barbarism. Yet this is never the end of the problem. Turkey cannot have a sigh of relief until those Turks living in Kosovo and Macedonia are guaranteed their democratic rights. However, it should also be noted that nostalgic artefacts and nationalist obsessions will lead nowhere. Kosovo cannot be won before the settlement of democracy in the region."

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