Today`s Zaman

Transcription

Today`s Zaman

T01-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
19:07
Page 1
Oil hits record above $135 on supply worries page08
Man U
is Europe’s
greatest
19
There are up to 27 of the outfits
worn by Ottoman Sultans left today
in beautiful colors and motifs
10
FRIDAY, MAY 23, 2008 WWW.TODAYSZAMAN.COM YTL 1.50
Georgian President Saakashvili
declared victory as results show his
party is on course for landslide win
ALÝHAN HASANOÐLU
09
Yo u r Way o f U n d e r s t a n d ý n g Tu r k e y
CAR MAKERS SEE TURKEY AS GATEWAY TO A WIDER REGION, TARGETING 1.1 MLN IN CAR EXPORTS
ABDULLAH BOZKURT, ÝSTANBUL
Turkey is growing as an export base for
automotive manufacturers and auto-related sub-industries because of its strategic
market location, industry incentives, low cost,
abundance of skilled labor, customs union with
the EU and high technology and know-how.
Emerging from a financial crisis in 2001, Turkey
has successfully transformed itself into a highly
competitive economy, attracting a sizable portion of
foreign investment in the auto sector. Today, industrial goods account for more than 90 percent of
Turkey's exports, with automobiles the most-sold
item in this category. Seeing Turkey as a gateway to
European and Asian markets, the world's leading
auto manufacturers are increasingly opting to use
Turkey as a base of operations to gain access to
wider markets while expanding their sales figures in
the domestic market. All indications show Turkey is
on its way to becoming a global automotive hub.
The Turkish automotive sector reached a record-
level figure of 1.1 million motor vehicles manufactured
in 2007 by attracting the attention of giant automotive
firms. In the first quarter of 2008, the production figure increased by 42 percent, and projects indicate that
another 250,000 vehicles will be produced by yearend. Turkish officials say Turkey is expected to become
the world's 10th in terms of the highest number of
motor vehicles produced in the next four years.
Turkish carmakers ship passenger and commercial
cars to Germany, France, Italy, Britain and Russia.
Industry and Trade Minister Zafer Caglayan said at a
press briefing earlier this month, "Turkey aims to
reach $25 billion in automotive exports and to allocate
$20 billion for research and development by 2011."
As of today, Turkey is the world's 17th-largest auto
manufacturer. Its automotive production plants have
a combined annual production capacity of 1.5 million
vehicles. It is the European Union's leading manufacturer of passenger buses and third in trucks and commercial vehicles. Turkey attaches special importance
to R&D development in the auto sector to maintain
a knowledge base for the industry. CONTINUED ON PAGE 07
PHOTO
Turkey now a base for auto exports
Nechirvan
Barzani
BURCÝN SELÇUK DOKGÖZ
Iraqi Kurds serious
about ending PKK
attacks on Turkey
PHOTO
04
COMMON GROUND
EMERGES IN ISRAELISYRIAN PEACE TALKS
Babacan says Israeli and
Syrian officials holding secret
peace talks with Turkish
mediation are satisfied after
their meetings and further
talks will follow periodically.
Seasonal employment
mostly detrimental to
women and children
Adana's Çukurova, Turkey's largest plain, plays a pivotal role in Turkey's agricultural production and provides
employment for many in the South and Southeast; however, the seasonal nature of the work pushes many to
migrate, including families, thereby preventing children from finishing school. Çukurova sees the earliest harvest in all of Turkey and pulls in migrant workers from late January onwards. The season lasts for eight to
nine months and many families move from one region to another in search of work. CONTINUED ON PAGE 06
Politicians, civil society rap judicial memo
Civil society leaders, academics and intellectuals yesterday continued to criticize a statement recently issued by a top court, underlining that it was undemocratic for the judiciary to
criticize the legislature and state agencies.
On Wednesday the Supreme Court of Appeals had
issued a statement harshly criticizing the government,
claiming that it was exerting systematic pressure on the
judiciary at a time when it had crucial rulings to make.
The court accused the government of attempting to
create a pro-executive judiciary and of undermining the
Turkish Republic's founding values. The judges accused
the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government of trying to influence the course of a closure case
against it filed at the Constitutional Court.
Also on Wednesday, Justice Minister Mehmet Ali
Þahin and Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek responded
strongly to the judicial declaration, but politicians and
opinion leaders continued to comment on Thursday.
Treasury Minister Mehmet Þimþek said, "Statements that
might affect political stability are not good for the country
at a time when Turkey has a high current account deficit."
Salim Uslu, head of the Confederation of
Turkish Real Trade Unions (Hak-Ýþ) described the
statement as "unfortunate" for Turkish democracy,
claiming that it was filled with inconsistencies. In a
statement, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
leader Devlet Bahçeli said the court's statement had
come at a time of increased attacks on the judiciary that
he said were led by the governing party. CONTINUED ON PAGE 17
11
Featuring news and articles from
HILLARY CAMPAIGNS
AS ATTENTION TURNS
TO ‘CHELSEA IN 2016’
The souvenir vendors
outside Clinton's campaign
have added a new button to
their wares that reads
‘Chelsea in 2016’ with a picture of the ex-first daughter.
The Iraqi Kurdish administration is serious
about preventing the use of northern Iraq for
attacks on Turkey by the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK), a senior official of the
Kurdish government has said. Nechirvan Barzani,
prime minister of the semi-autonomous Kurdish
administration running northern Iraq, told Turkish
journalists during a visit to Washington that measures against the PKK would continue. He also hailed
a recent improvement in ties between the Kurdish
administration and Ankara and said he hoped contacts would continue after the two sides broke the
ice in the first direct high-level meeting on May 1.
Turkey's special envoy for Iraq, Murat Özçelik, and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan's
chief foreign policy advisor Ahmet Davutoðlu
convened with Barzani in Baghdad in the May
meeting. Ankara said more talks will follow
provided that the Iraqi Kurds prove their commitment to fighting the PKK. CONTINUED ON PAGE 04
Kurds' call for
mediation draws
ire from Ankara
The Turkish capital has reacted harshly to a
recent call for mediation by a group of Kurdish
activists, saying the content of the call was biased
and false and highlighting that the call suggests a
conditional end to activities of an organization listed as a terrorist organization by a large majority of
the international community. "Biased and false
statements concerning our country have been
included in a declaration released to the international press by a marginal group which prefers terrorist discourse and tactics to pursuing legitimate
and legal democratic channels in Turkey," the
Foreign Ministry said yesterday in a written statement, referring to an advertisement signed by
1,000 Kurds living in Turkey and European countries and published on Tuesday in the International
Herald Tribune and the French daily Le Monde.
The declaration, titled "Call for a Peaceful
Settlement of the Kurdish Question in Turkey,"
was signed by deputies of the Democratic Society
Party (DTP), former members of Parliament,
intellectuals and leading Kurdish figures well
known by the European public. CONTINUED ON PAGE 04
14:19
Page 1
02 TODAY’S ZAMAN
CROSS READER
FATMA DÝÞLÝ
[email protected]
Lost ýn the
separatýon of powers
A harsh statement released by the Supreme Court of Appeals
Board of Chairmen on Wednesday, criticizing the ruling Justice
and Development Party (AK Party) and even directing accusations at it, has once again brought the role of the Turkish judiciary into the spotlight. The judiciary, which is supposed to be impartial in a democratic state with a separation of powers, has recently intervened in Turkish politics on many occasions in an attempt to influence the course of politics, raising suspicions about
its impartiality.
Zaman’s Mümtaz’er Türköne thinks this statement will deal
the greatest harm to the prestige and independence of the
Turkish judiciary itself and not to that of the AK Party, as it intends to do. In the statement, the Supreme Court of Appeals
Board of Chairmen obviously accuses the AK Party of harboring
a belief that it can do as it pleases because it derives its power
from the public, states Türköne. In his view, such an allegation
could be brought up by the main opposition Republican People’s
Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal at his party group meeting, but
not by the judges. When this allegation is brought up by the top
judiciary against a party facing closure, it gives the appearance
that the top judiciary is against democracy, he says.
Emre Aköz of Sabah describes this statement as the most recent in a series of efforts to intervene in politics that started ahead
of last year’s presidential election and says he was not surprised
by the statement. He thinks the statement is full of inconsistencies. On the one hand it talks about the separation of powers,
while on the other it complains about Parliament’s efforts to
write a new constitution. “Will Parliament ask the Supreme
Court of Appeals what kind of constitution it is to write?” he
asks. Another inconsistency in the statement, according to Aköz,
is the sentence “Articles 10 and 42 of the Constitution were
amended and enforced unhindered.” These articles were
amended to remove a ban on headscarves at universities. “What
does it mean [for amendments] to be enforced unhindered?
They seem to be saying that these articles were so speedily
amended that their passage could not be prevented,” says Aköz.
According to Ergun Babahan, another Sabah columnist, the
Supreme Court of Appeals Board of Chairmen violated the
Constitution and overstepped its bounds by issuing such a statement. “This statement is no different than last year’s April 27
military statement against the AK Party government, later
termed a memorandum,” contends Babahan.
’
F OOD FOR THOUGHT
’
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
PRESS REVIEW
Q UOTE OF THE DAY
The possibility of military action
against Iran should be retained as a
last resort.
US Gen. David H. Petraeus
Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek
columns
A way out for Turkey!
Despite suffering from an eye problem, Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdoðan played host on Wednesday to visiting Azerbaijani
Prime Minister Artur Rasizade at the Prime Ministry in Ankara.
Radikal’s headline read yesterday, referring to a harsh statement
released by the Supreme Court of Appeals against the ruling
Justice and Development Party (AK Party). The daily said the
court, which accused the AK Party of trying to influence the
Constitutional Court in the closure case brought against it, had
acted like the main opposition party in releasing such a statement.
CM Y K
Our hearts are drunk
with a beauty our eyes
could never see.
George W. Russell
press roundup
radikal: “Like an opposition party, not a judiciary,”
’
W ORDS OF WISDOM
The Supreme Court of Appeals ... has taken
the side of the indictment in the [AK Party]
closure case... in the Constitutional Court.
AA
22.05.2008
PHOTO
T02-23-05-08.qxd
star:
The Star daily covered the AK Party’s response to
the harsh statement released by the Supreme Court of Appeals
in its top story yesterday. Speaking on behalf of the
government, Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek said the
statement was “unacceptable” and described it as an effort to
influence the Constitutional Court ahead its decision on
whether or not to close down the AK Party, Star reported.
MUSTAFA ERDOÐAN, STAR
If, as is generally believed it will
be, the Justice and Development
Party (AK Party) is closed down,
it seems that remaining passive
and trying to look for ways to
reconcile with the system will
not work for the party. At that point the most
logical thing for the party to do is not to act hesitantly but to be proactive and take steps that
will transform the system into a more democratic and pro-freedom one. If the party is not
closed, there will be no problem. In both cases,
both Turkey and the AK Party will benefit. It
seems there is no other way to save Turkey
from the current state of suspension it is in now.
Supreme Court of
Appeals on the front
AHMET TAÞGETÝREN, BUGÜN
Yes, the Supreme Court of
Appeals Board of Chairmen has
taken its place on the front with
the statement it released. The
language of the statement is full
of polemic. It is as if the government formed a monopoly and has the power to
do whatever it wants. It is as if there is no
Parliament and Parliament does not have any
right to write a Constitution. The court is directly
interfering in politics with this statement.
16:15
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T04-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
19:09
Page 1
04 TODAY’S ZAMAN
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
NATIONAL
It listed several demands as "a basis for
Kurdish people's common minimum demands."
"The constitution that is being drawn up must
not define citizenship on the basis of belonging to
Turkish stock. It must put an end to the denial of
the Kurdish people's existence. Kurdish citizens
must have a system of public education in their
own language at all levels. Their right to use their
language in public, to create and to develop media in the Kurdish language, to found associations, institutions and political parties to develop
their culture must be guaranteed. On this basis, in
order to create a climate of peace and confidence
and, once and for all, to turn the page of violence
and armed confrontation, an all-inclusive political
amnesty must be decreed, and the Kurdistan
Workers' Party [PKK] must lay down its arms in
accordance with procedures yet to be defined. In
the same way, Turkey's so-called 'village guard'
militias must be dismantled," the declaration stated.
The most significant handicap before the ongoing
reform process being conducted by the government
for expanding individual rights and freedoms is surely
the terrorist organization, which targets Turkey's territorial integrity, constitutional order and social peace
by resorting to violence, the Foreign Ministry said.
"The presence of terrorist organization members who are being sought by Interpol's red notice among signatories of this declaration but the
absence of representatives from sincere and independent nongovernmental organizations
which have been exerting efforts to improve democratization and individual rights and freedoms
in our country points to the identities and goals
of those who drew up the declaration," it said.
Without citing any names from among the
signatories, the ministry was apparently referring
to Zübeyir Aydar and Remzi Kartal, whose names
were among the signatories. Both are senior leaders of the PKK, which has been listed as a terrorist
organization by the EU, the US and Turkey. The
two are among most-wanted terrorists in Turkey
who have made use of some European countries'
unwillingness to cooperate in Turkey's anti-terrorism efforts. Last year Aydar -- the head of
Kongra-Gel, an offshoot of the PKK, and the
head of the PKK's European operations -- was arrested in a crackdown in Belgium but was later released, and no legal action could be taken against
him by Belgian authorities since he had earlier
been granted political asylum. Ankara Today's Zaman
ALÝ ÜNAL
Common ground emerges
ýn Israelý-Syrýan peace talks
PHOTO
Hamas and the Lebanese Hezbullah.
Israeli and Syrian officials holding
secret peace talks with Turkish
The United States praised Turkey's
mediation are satisfied after their
role in the indirect talks between the two
meetings over the past three days and
countries, but its reaction to the new
further talks will follow periodically,
peace process was a lukewarm one. In
Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said yesterday.
its initial public reaction to Israeli-Syrian
Babacan, speaking at a press confercontacts, Washington said it did "not
ence with Djibril Yipene Bassole, the forobject" to talks but repeated its criticism
eign minister of the West African nation
of Syria's "support of terrorism."
of Burkina Faso, said however there will
Many analysts say US hostility to
be little detail disclosed to the public
Damascus, and to its Iranian and
about the content of the talks. In stateLebanese Hezbullah allies, makes a Syriaments released minutes apart, the
Israel deal unlikely before President
Turkish, Israeli and Syrian governments
George W. Bush steps down in January.
confirmed officially that peace talks between
Responding to a question on a US
Israel and Syria were under way with
role in the process, Babacan did not comTurkish mediation and said the two enement, saying only that it was both Israel
mies were willing to conduct these talks "in
and Syria's choice that Turkey play the fagood faith and with an open mind" with a
cilitator role. He said no statement would
goal of reaching "a comprehensive peace."
be made regarding the content of the
Babacan said the Israeli-Syrian chantalks, in line with the two sides' wishes.
nel of the Middle East peace process is fiOn Thursday, Israel set terms for connally open to dialogue after a deadlock of
cluding a peace deal with Syria, closing
13 years. Turkey has been mediating beranks with Washington in demanding that
tween the two countries for a year, and
Damascus distance itself from Iran and stop
Babacan revealed there were meetings
supporting Palestinian and Lebanese milibefore this week's talks in Ýstanbul.
tants. "The Syrians know what we want
and we know what they want," Olmert said
Two top aides of Israeli Prime Minister
in Jerusalem. Syria has demanded the reEhud Olmert, Yoram Turbovitch and
turn of the Golan Heights, a plateau overShalom Turgeman, were in Turkey on
looking Damascus on one side and the Sea
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday having
of Galilee on another, since Israel captured
indirect talks with Syrian officials in Ýstanthe strategic territory in the 1967 Middle
bul. Deputy Undersecretary of the Turkish
East war. Olmert, who recently took a vacaForeign Ministry Feridun Sinirlioðlu, a
former Turkish envoy to Israel, was intion in the Golan Heights, has not said
volved in the talks from the Turkish side.
publicly that Israel would give up all of
the area. But he has spoken of difficult
Babacan said the talks were completed
concessions Israel would have to make in
for now, and Israeli and Syrian representaany land-for-peace accord with Syria.
tives had left Ýstanbul as of Thursday. The
Echoing US comments, Israeli
Turkish delegation met Israeli and Syrian
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Israel
teams separately, and direct talks between
wanted to live in peace with its neighthe two sides would only be possible after
bors but that Syria needed to "distance
"satisfactory and visible progress" on the
itself completely" from "problematic"
issues discussed, he added. The Ýstanbul
ties with Iran. Syria, she told reporters,
talks, according to Babacan, were satisfacand must also stop supporting terror.
tory to both sides as they saw "common
The United States and Israel consider
ground" emerging between them.
Hamas a terrorist organization. The
"In the period ahead, talks will conIslamist group, which seized control of
tinue periodically. We as Turkey will do
Speaking after talks with Ali Babacan (R), Burkina Faso's Djibril Yipene Bassole called for cooperation with Turkey
in the areas of agriculture and textiles and said his country would support Ankara's bid to get a seat at the UN
the Gaza Strip last June, opposes
our best to help the talks be concluded in
Security Council in 2009-2010. Babacan said Turkey would open an embassy in Burkina Faso by the end of 2009.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's
a satisfactory manner," he added. The
statehood talks with Olmert. A television
venue for the meetings could change in
with the Palestinians six months ago, has
United States in 2000, but they collapsed after
poll found 70 percent of Israelis oppose returnthe future depending on the parties' prefersaid he is willing to discuss handing back the
the two sides failed to reach an agreement on
ing the Golan Heights to Syria, and a majority
ences, but for the time being Ýstanbul is likely to
Golan to Syria in return for Damascus severthe fate of the Golan Heights, Syrian territory
remain the host. So far, the meetings have taken
also believes Olmert was using the talks to detract
ing ties with Iran and guerrilla movements
that Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
attention from a criminal investigation that could
place in all three countries, Babacan disclosed.
hostile to Israel, notably the Palestinian
Olmert, who also re-launched peace talks
Israel and Syria last had peace talks in the
force him from office. Ankara Today's Zaman with wires
northern Iraq will continue," he was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency. "Turkey's demand
-- asking that our territory not be used against
Turkey -- is a just and righteous one," he added.
Nechirvan Barzani's statements are likely to further improve the political atmosphere between
Ankara and the Kurdish administration but the
Turkish government has made it clear that it expects
the words to be followed by deeds. Erdoðan is planning to visit Iraq soon but there is no word whether he
will have talks with Kurdish officials during his trip.
Responding to questions on plans for Erdoðan's visit,
Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said yesterday high-level
visits between Turkey and Iraq have intensified over
the past year, adding that it is likely that such contacts
will continue. But he said there was no finalized program for a visit by Erdoðan yet, although noting that
such a visit would only be a natural development.
The United States, which recognizes the PKK as a
Nechirvan
Barzani
PHOTO
contýnued from page 1
Turkey has long suspected that the Kurds
support the PKK and that Kurdish officials had fed
the mistrust with inflammatory statements in the
past several years, saying they had no intention to
confront the PKK and urging Turkey to address the
Kurdish issue through political means instead of
military ones. Amid tension, the two sides avoided
dialogue until the May meeting in Baghdad.
Asked to comment on the Kurdish administration's stance on the PKK, Nechirvan Barzani,
nephew of Iraqi Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani,
said the Iraqi Kurds were opposed to any sort of
threat to Turkey stemming from Iraq's north.
In his talks with US officials in Washington, he
said the Iraqi Kurds were serious about not letting
the territory they control be used against Turkey or
any other neighbor of Iraq. "Secondly, we said
measures to restrict and prevent PKK activities in
CÝHAN
Barzani: Kurds serious about ending PKK attacks on Turkey
terrorist organization, assists Turkish cross-border attacks on targets belonging to the group by providing
intelligence and air space clearance for Turkish jet
fighters. Nechirvan Barzani, who has been in
Washington since the beginning of the week, has met
with Defense Secretary Robert Gates, US President
CM Y K
George W. Bush's National Security Advisor
Stephen Hadley and Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice. He has also overseen the launching of a
Kurdish caucus in the US House of Representatives.
Responding to questions on another contentious issue, namely the status of Kirkuk,
Nechirvan Barzani reiterated that the Kurdish administration expected the issue to be resolved in
line with a constitutional provision that calls for a
referendum on the fate of the disputed city.
The referendum on Kirkuk, which was opposed
by Turkey and was originally scheduled to take
place in December 2007 according to the Iraqi constitution, was postponed for six months under a
proposal by the UN. Nechirvan Barzani signaled
that the Kurds may not insist on holding the referendum in June, saying the timing is "not a big issue."
"The important thing is seeing progress in
the region," he said. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman
PHOTO
MUSTAFA KÝRAZLI
Kurdish activists’ call for mediation draws ire from Ankara
Ferdi Sabit Soyer
KKTC leader in
Ankara for talks as
momentum wanes
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit
Soyer had talks with the Turkish government
yesterday in Ankara amid signs of a loss of momentum in talks with the Greek Cypriots aimed at
paving the way for reunification of the island.
Soyer, accompanied by Foreign Minister
Turgay Avcý and Finance Minister Ahmet Uzun,
met with Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek in
Ankara. He is scheduled to meet President Abdullah
Gül today before heading back to the island.
The visit by the Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus (KKTC) delegation follows Greek Cypriot
statements expressing doubt about the fate of reunification talks planned to start between KKTC
leader Mehmet Ali Talat and Greek Cypriot
leader Dimitris Christofias in late June. Earlier this
week, Greek Cypriot government spokesman
Stephanos Stephanou said in New York that the
Turkish government opposes the reunification of
Cyprus and instead wants two separate states.
Stephanou said a recent statement by the
National Security Council (MGK) of Turkey indicates that the latter wants to change the longstanding agreement between Greek Cypriots and Turkish
Cypriots to reunify Cyprus in a loose bi-zonal, bicommunal federation. He said the Turkish statement will be high on the agenda of Friday's meeting between Christofias and Talat at the residence
of the UN special representative in Cyprus.
"The National Security Council of Turkey a few
days ago came out with a statement that Turkey
wants a solution of two states and speaks about the
necessity of a new cooperation between the two
states -- of the Greek Cypriot state and the Turkish
Cypriot state as they say -- and this is the idea of
the 'virgin birth' of a new state," Stephanou said.
"For us this is a very dangerous position because
if we agree, if we accept the idea of a virgin birth,
that means we eliminate the idea of the Cyprus
Republic and the history of the Cyprus Republic,
which is a member of the United Nations and of the
European Union," he told a news conference
Tuesday at the UN Correspondents Association.
The Turkish Cypriot side, on the other hand, said
a settlement to the Cyprus problem did not necessarily mean the creation of a new state and invited
Christofias to come up with "an alternative model."
"A virgin birth [creation of a new state] was
put forward by a third party during negotiations
on the Annan plan as a method for bringing the
two existing states together," Talat's spokesman
Hasan Erçakýca said in remarks published in the
Cyprus Mail newspaper this week. "If Christofias
has a better method, then we are ready to listen
to him," he added. "When we or Turkish officials talk of two states and two peoples, we are
simply talking about the reality as it is now," he
said, but added, "What we do insist on is political equality, which means that we have active
participation and equal say in all major state decisions such as foreign policy and taxation."
In a 2004 referendum, a UN reunification
plan was rejected by Greek Cypriot voters and accepted by Turkish Cypriots. Soon after, the island
joined the European Union, but the bloc's benefits are enjoyed only by Greek Cypriots. The election in February of communist-rooted Christofias
as Greek Cypriot president rekindled efforts to
end the country's division, and optimism grew
following his meeting in March with Talat. They
agreed to set up working groups to narrow differences before they begin negotiations.
Stephanou said the Greek Cypriots "are not so
satisfied" with the progress of those discussions so
Christofias asked for Friday's meeting "to see how
the two communities can overcome the problems
and the obstacles and to have progress in this procedure." The most important problem, he said, is
getting the "two communities to speak the same
language in relation to the basis of the solution." He
noted that following the statement by the MGK,
"we are not sure that we speak the same language."
"The two communities in 1977 and 1979
agreed on a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation,
the framework in which Cyprus will reunite,"
Stephanou said. "The idea ... is to transform the
Republic of Cyprus to a United Republic of
Cyprus as one state and not two states."
"This is the ... goal that the two communities
must agree on, and we believe that the most important element of the progress of the dialogue is
that: to speak the same language on the basis of
the solution," stated Stephanou. "The key of the
solution is in the hands of Turkey, and Turkey
must change her positions on the Cyprus problem
in order to allow the people of Cyprus to find [a]
mutually accepted solution." Ankara Today's Zaman with AP
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CÝHAN
NATIONAL
TODAY’S ZAMAN 05
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
James Baker delivered a speech at Gülen Institute.
Gülen Institute
hosts former US
Secretary of State
James Baker
ed yesterday. The mathematician also
runs the Nesin Foundation for Children,
founded by his father and currently providing shelter for almost 50 orphans.
The village of mathematics, located
near Þirince, outside the Aegean city of
Ýzmir, officially opens on June 2, when a
number of local and international mathematicians will arrive. On June 7 the village will be open to the press, with classes set to commence on June 16.
The facility, built by the Nesin
Foundation, ran into bureaucratic difficul-
CAVÝT KARABAÐ HOUSTON
The latest guest of honor at one of the
Houston-based Gülen Institute’s traditional luncheons was James Baker, former US secretary of state and secretary of the treasury.
Baker delivered a speech on Tuesday to some
250 community leaders from the world of academia, business and government at the Gülen
Institute, founded through the joint efforts of
Houston University and the Institute for
Interreligious Dialogue (IID). Among the guests
were also religious officials and journalists.
Baker said he was grateful to the Gülen
Institute for the contributions it made to the
promotion of a culture of living together and
for tireless efforts to foster mutual understanding between the people of different religions, cultures and civilizations.
“The Gülen Institute rigorously and very rightly
advocates prayer, interfaith dialogue and helping
ease tension between peoples in our very complicated world,” he noted, adding that if respect to all religions and views could be spread globally, the
world’s problems could be solved much more easily.
“In fact I believe spiritual values are important
in the pursuit of world peace. And I agree with
something that Pope Paul VI once said at the
United Nations. He said, ‘The problems of the
world are so great and perhaps the leaders of the
world would have to learn how to pray together.’
The problems of the world would be easier to address if only at global level we develop ways of sharing respect for each other’s religious perspectives. It
is in this manner that the Gülen Institute and those
who promote shared vision of interfaith dialogue
provide truly invaluable leadership,” Baker said.
The former secretary of state also emphasized
that he believed spiritual values would play a major role in building peace all around the world,
noting that he appreciated the Gülen Institute’s efforts to give prominence to spiritual practices such
as praying. “I have learned that, through prayer,
each of us can help find our way in a difficult and
sometimes very confusing world,” he said adding
that prayer really transcended the individual quest
to improve oneself on an individual level.
Baker also stressed that prayer, when shared
among earnest people, was a critical component
required in building a cohesive society. “As
members of a community, I think we should
share certain spiritual responsibilities, regardless
of our particular religious background,” he said.
Kemal Öksüz, the chairman of the Gülen
Institute, delivered a speech after Baker and
emphasized the importance of working patiently in building friendship and dialogue between
people with different backgrounds. Öksüz presented Baker with a finely woven carpet bearing a portrait of the former secretary of state.
Who is James Baker?
James Addison Baker served as undersecretary of
commerce under President Gerald Ford in 1975
and ran Ford’s unsuccessful re-election campaign
in 1976. After serving as George H.W. Bush’s
campaign manager in the 1980 Republican primaries, Baker was named White House chief of
staff by President Ronald Reagan in 1981. He
served in that capacity until 1985. Baker managed the president’s 1984 re-election campaign.
In the new administration, Baker “switched roles”
with Secretary of the Treasury Donald Regan, who
replaced Baker as chief of staff. Baker served
on Reagan’s National Security Council and remained Treasury secretary through 1988, during
which year he also served as campaign chairman for Bush’s successful presidential bid.
George H.W. Bush appointed Baker secretary
of state in 1989. Baker served in this role through
1992. From 1992 to 1993, he served as Bush’s
White House chief of staff, the same position that
he had held during the first Reagan administration.
In 2006, The Washington Post reported that
Baker is “the Republican co-chairman of a bipartisan commission tasked by Congress with assessing US options in Iraq.” Baker is married
and the father of six sons and two daughters.
CM Y K
ties when it tried to open a year ago. The
village was subsequently shut down by
authorities for not having all the required
permissions to run an educational facility.
“We fulfilled my father’s ambition 12
years after his death,” Nesin told
Anatolia. He described the village as a
“camp where mathematicians from
Turkey and around the world, including
instructors, students, professors, researchers and high school students, will
get together to concentrate on mathematics.”
The village will also offer a series of
summer classes for students from
across the country, said Nesin. It will
have a 10-student quota for talented
high school students from the area.
“Our math village is not a course to
prepare students for the national
Student Selection Examination (ÖSS).
It is not intended to improve students’
poor math skills. Attendees here are
foremost the mathematicians of today
and tomorrow, but our door is open to
anyone from any walk of life who takes
math seriously.” Ýstanbul Today’s Zaman
AA
A math professor who runs a
foundation for orphans has made
a reality of his father’s long-held
dream of a workshop for budding and established mathematicians to gather and
talk about problems and numbers.
Ali Nesin, the head of Ýstanbul Bilgi
University’s Department of Mathematics
and the son of Turkish author Aziz Nesin,
has finally fulfilled his father’s wish for a
“village of mathematics,” where young
and talented children will also be trained
in math, the Anatolia news agency report-
PHOTO
PHOTO
Philanthropist establishes ‘math village’
Professor Ali Nesin
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06 TODAY’S ZAMAN
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
NATIONAL
OSMAN BALCI
Turkish doctors volunteer
health services in West Bank
PHOTOS
A team of doctors from the
Doctors Worldwide association’s Turkey branch has been working without stop in the Palestinian
city of Al-Khalil (Hebron) in the
West Bank for the past three days.
The chairman of the Turkish branch
of Doctors Worldwide, Dr. Ýhsan
Karaman, and his team of five volunteer
doctors arrived in Al-Khalil over the
weekend to join the “Palestine -Smiling Children” project jointly sponsored by Doctors Worldwide and the
Palestinian Health Ministry.
Amid the frenetic work in three operating rooms at Aliya Hospital, the
largest public hospital in Al-Khalil,
Palestinian fathers, holding their children’s hands in the hallways of the hospital, plead with the doctors to include
their kid’s names on the list of patients
who will undergo operations. The head
doctor of the hospital, Dr. Said
Sarahneh, says, “Both the hospital administration and the patients are
pleased with the Turkish doctors.”
The upper floor of the hospital was
This leads to their children’s irregular school attendance and many
only attend school until they are 10 years
old, five years less than required by law.
Efforts are under way to reduce unemployment throughout the Southeast with
the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP),
which aims to increase agricultural fertility
by improving irrigation, but its completion is
not expected for a few more years.
Çukurova’s season begins with workers planting seedlings and then harvesting
watermelons, melons, tomatoes, onions,
cotton and citrus fruits for the next 10
months. Some seasonal workers also head
for Ordu and Giresun, cities in the eastern
Black Sea region, in July to harvest hazelnuts while others return to Þanlýurfa in
September for the cotton harvest.
Emine Altundað, a mother of seven,
says seasonal workers work under very difficult conditions and are not paid much,
adding that she has been working as a seasonal worker for 25 years and that nothing
has changed so far. Altundað, 45, says most
workers live in tents. “We use a tent, which
only has one room, as a bedroom, a living
room and a dining room at the same time.
We do not have electricity, but use lamps to
illuminate the tent. We do not have a television or a washing machine. However, we do
have mobile phones, though only the men
use them, and must go to nearby villages in
order to recharge their batteries.”
Altundað says daily life for them begins
at dawn, with work starting shortly thereafter. “We generally make our bread ourselves and go to the field to work by the
tractor of the employer. Each person earns
YTL 17 per day, which is very low. You can
buy only one kilogram of meat with this
much money, nothing more. We generally
return to our tents at six o’clock in the
evening and have dinner before it gets dark
-- otherwise it is very difficult to both cook
and have dinner in the dark. Sometimes we
also work over the weekends.”
Fatma Akbulut, a mother of four, left
Þanlýurfa in December 2007 for Adana’s
Çukurova and stayed there for four months,
after which she came to Ýstanbul’s Tuzla.
She says her family has been living in the
same way for the last 10 years and added:
“We do not have our own fields in Þanlýurfa
and we have nothing to do there to make a
living. Of course we also want to live in our
own home, like everybody else, but we do
not have any other choice. I do not know
how long life will go on like this.”
Ayfer Yetiþ, 19, left school when she
was in fifth grade as her parents were also seasonal workers. Yetiþ said they
used to go to Çukurova when she was a
child, noting: “Nowadays there is little
work in the fields so we, as young girls,
come together and knit. Our days are
spent cooking and washing dishes.”
Boys and girls leave school early
Children suffer most from seasonal labor
movements. As their families move from
one city to another throughout the year in
order to find work, they must leave school
early -- oftentimes before even finishing
their compulsory education. Bahar Eroðlu,
14, cooks in her family’s tent as her parents and elder sisters go into the field to
work. Eroðlu, who left school while she
was in fourth grade, cooked a full pot of
lentil soup for her family. She said she
wanted to be a teacher. “I asked my family
and myself how long our life would go on
like this, but have found no answers. We
have to accept this lifestyle.” Ahmet
Eroðlu, a father of eight, interrupted our
conversation with his daughter and said,
“Our only chance is the lottery!”
Halime Dede, 14, quit school while
she was in sixth grade. Dede said her family’s moving from their hometown prevented her from going to school. “If I had
the opportunity to continue my education,
I would like to be a teacher or a policewoman. I hardly see my school and my
friends from the school when we return to
our hometown. I tell them about the difficulties of working as a seasonal worker.”
Twelve-year-old Zübeyde Bektaþ, who
has seven siblings, and Pýnar Menekþe, who
has eight siblings, are just two of dozens of
children who have had to leave school early.
Unlike their friends back in their hometowns, they have to cook and wash clothes
in the tent while their parents and elder
brothers or sisters work in the field.
Mustafa, one of Hacý Yetiþ’s 11 children, is looking forward to returning to
his hometown and going to school again,
but he has to wait until late October to go
back and realize his dream of being a
teacher. Mustafa says that if he cannot
finish primary school, he will not be able
to get a driver’s license. “I cannot be a
driver without a driver’s license. This life
has turned out to be our destiny and my
father, brothers and I are fed up with it.”
Prison censors Kurdish translation
BÜLENT CEYHAN ÝSTANBUL
The Midyat Prison in the southeastern province of Mardin has censored
an inmate’s translation of a Turkish book
into Kurdish because it was not certified
by an official translator.
M. Nezir Gümüþ, a lover of literature who
writes short stories and poems in Kurdish, is
serving time at the prison. He translates
Turkish books into Kurdish and recently
translated Bejan Matur’s “Ayýn Büyüttüðü
Oðullar” (Sons Fostered by the Moon); however, the translation was censored by the
prison’s reading commission because
Gümüþ, who was asked to secure the approval of a certified interpreter at his own expense, failed to do so. The translated volume
was censored before being referred to Matur.
Gümüþ, serving 36 years in prison on
charges of being a member of a terrorist organization, mailed a letter to Matur along
with the translated volume; however, Matur
received only the first page of the letter, written in Turkish. The prison administration attached a note to the end of the later that
reads, “The poems were returned to the in-
mate because they were in Kurdish.” Upon
learning of the censorship, Gümüþ filed a
complaint with the office of the prosecutor.
‘Procedural matter,
language not an issue’
Gümüþ has published stories and poems in
mainstream dailies and has won second place
in a story contest. His previous translations of
Turkish books into Kurdish met the same fate:
The prison administration censored the works.
Midyat Prison Warden Murat Yýlmaz
notes that the procedure is a requirement under relevant laws. Officers serving on the
reading commission were unable to understand the language Gümüþ used so they informed the inmate that he would need to hire
a certified translator. “We would have authorized the work if he had hired a certified
translator at his own expense,” Yýlmaz said,
underlining that the commission cannot take
the word of an inmate who argues that it is a
translation of a volume of poems. The letter
was seized because it was written in an unrecognizable dialect, according to the warden,
who said there are various dialects of Kurdish
and that the written language is not known
by all. Stressing that no ulterior motives
were involved, Yýlmaz noted that the commission is required to comply with the law.
Gümüþ had previously translated a volume of poems by Ahmet Telli, titled
“Çocuksun Sen” (You are a Child), while in
prison. The book, written in Turkish, was
delivered to the inmate, but his translation
was censored. Gümüþ was asked to hire a
certified translator. In a written statement,
Gümüþ said: “Books by various writers are
translated into French, German and
Flemish and are praised by newspapers,
which made headlines when Orhan
Pamuk’s ‘Benim Adým Kýrmýzý’ (My Name is
Red) was translated into Japanese. It is as if
we are living on two sides of the same coin.”
Matur only receives
Turkish part of letter
Gümüþ noted in the letter that he had not
written a single line in years and that translating Matur’s book signals a return to literature.
Noting that sending texts in Kurdish from
prison leads to much difficulty, he expressed
hope that Matur would one day get the opportunity to examine the translated work.
CM Y K
PHOTO
Seasonal agrýcultural
employment most detrýmental
to women and chýldren
sign up. The doctors picked the patients who most needed operations.
Karaman, recalling that they
would come again with the same
team in September, said they filled a
huge gap in the city.
Noting that most of the people
who requested surgery were poor,
Sarahneh thanked the Turkish doctors
for their invaluable help and support
for the Palestinian patients. Sarahneh
recalled that a number of other teams
had performed surgery in their hospital
before, but that most of them were unsuccessful because the doctors were
“inexperienced.” Sarahneh added:
“We are thankful to Dr. Karaman and
his colleagues. Both the [hospital] administration and the patients are
pleased by their presence here. We
have seen great results. They have
done a perfect job and they have been
very successful. ... The doctors in our
hospital have also been able to benefit
from the experience and further their
medical knowledge, so they are pleased
as well.” Al-Khalil Today’s Zaman with wires
AA
Female seasonal workers complain that they work under very difficult conditions for low wages in Çukurova.
vacated for allocation to the Doctors
Worldwide team, which includes two
urologists, two plastic surgeons and one
anesthetist. Noting that they have completed 16 surgeries in the two days since
their arrival in Al-Khalil, Karaman said
they would stay until next weekend and
that in this time they would perform 8090 more operations, mostly for children.
Dr. Hüseyin Kamberoðlu, from Ýstanbul’s Haydarpaþa Hospital, takes
care of the patients with urological birth
defects. Next to him, Dr. Ethem
Güneren, a specialist in plastic, reconstructive and aesthetic surgery from the
19 Mayýs University Medical School in
Samsun and his young colleague, Dr.
Ozan Arslan, from the same university,
operate on patients with palate and lip
birth defects. Anesthetist Dr. Yýldýz
Yüzbaþýoðlu prepares the patients for
surgery, working with both teams.
Karaman explained that before
the arrival of Doctors Worldwide, the
Palestinian Health Ministry had publicized the campaign in the West Bank
to get people in need of surgery to
The chairman of
the Turkish branch
of Doctors
Worldwide, Dr. Ýhsan Karaman, and
his team of five
volunteer doctors
take care of patients with various
health problems
in the Palestinian
city of al-Khalil
(Hebron).
Doctors Worldwide extends a helping hand
Doctors Worldwide was founded in England in April 2000 by a group of volunteers, including Turkish physicians. It is a civil society organization that seeks to extend assistance and relief to people in every part of the world regardless of religion, language, race, ethnicity and
nationality. The Turkey branch of Doctors Worldwide was launched in 2004. According Karaman, there are around 1,000 doctors worldwide who volunteer their services for the organization, of which 300 are Turkish. Doctors Worldwide has so far provided medical and humanitarian aid to 20 countries on four continents. These include Palestine, Sudan, Ingushetia, Congo, Sierra Leone, Ghana, India,
Kenya, Bangladesh, Niger, Sri Lanka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iraq, Kosovo, Guatemala, Indonesia, Lebanon, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
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BUSINESS
TODAY’S ZAMAN 07
FRIDAY, MAY 23, 2008
growing auto industry. Besides the
national and European market, Turkey is
also focusing on the US market, the
world's largest auto market, with a value
of $198 billion. Last year, Turkey
exported only $210 million worth of cars
and spare parts to the US, and its target
is $3 billion annually by 2013, according
to a TAYSAD report.
In terms of vehicle exports, Ford
Otosan maintained its lead in the first
four months of this year, increasing its
exports by 33.2 percent to 94,430
vehicles. Oyak Renault was second, with
93,064 vehicle exports in an increase of
33.2 percent over the same period last
year. Tofaþ Fiat's exports increased by
100.9 percent to 86,613, third place.
Toyota Turkey exported 55,232 vehicles,
followed by Hyundai Assan with 20,242.
In the meantime new vehicle sales
in Turkey shot up by 11.7 percent in
April 2008, reaching 50,956 units,
according to Turkey's Automotive
Manufacturers Association (OSD). But
increasing fuel prices and less than
favorable interest rates for loans in the
country are major obstacle to domestic
car sales. In the first quarter of this year,
130,000 cars were sold to domestic
consumers. The year-end projection for
this trend is 500,000 vehicles. Last year, a
total 641,000 cars were sold
domestically. The Turkish Statistics
Institute
(TurkStat)
yesterday
announced new car registration figures.
First quarter results showed that new car
registrations increased by 22 percent
over the same period last year, a total of
PHOTO
The government passed a
reform to the tax code,
providing a 90 percent tax break to
companies engaged in research and
development. But Turkey also faces
challenges from neighbors Romania,
Hungary and Greece as alternative
manufacturers supplying to Europe.
Despite price hikes in raw materials
such as steel, the latest figures show
Turkey's automotive industry exports
rose 52 percent in the first four months
of 2008 over the same period of last year,
reaching $8.99 billion. Association of
Automotive Parts & Components
Manufacturers (TAYSAD) President
Erkut Özarman has said "they expect to
sell over 1 million vehicles to foreign
markets by the end of this year."
Özarman also noted that new vehicle
models are driving the market, while
production plants are operating with
extreme efficiency. "The capacity of auto
plants reached over 100 percent this
year, compared to 86 percent last year,"
he added.
While the auto industry is growing
both as an export base and in terms of
domestic consumption, the auto parts
sector is also expanding to meet the
need for spare parts for vehicles.
Automotive spare parts industry exports
also increased, by 44 percent to $2.69
billion in the January-April 2008 period
over the same period last year. Many
US, European and Asian companies
have invested in Turkey to provide spare
parts and subcomponents to the
SALÝH HAMURCU
Turkey becomes a base for
automotive exports
231,104 vehicles. Turkey's largest
conglomerate, the Koç Group, has
reported that its auto companies
recorded 13 percent growth despite
shrinkage in domestic demand last year.
Koç currently accounts for 46 percent of
Turkey's automotive production and 45
percent of exports. Its dominance in the
market has begun to decrease as new
car manufacturers exploring investment
options for Turkey.
The latest carmaker to enter the
Turkish market was China's Chery
Group, which aims to manufacture
100,000 cars annually in Turkey and
export half of them. Chery currently sells
cars in 64 countries worldwide. Zhou
Biren, the group's vice president of the
group, said at press briefing: "To be
successful in Turkey is for us also an
indication of being successful in Europe,
because the preferences of Turkish
customers are the same as the [that of
those in the] EU. This is why Turkey is
the first stop, right before the EU
market. If Chery prospers in Turkey, it
would be easier for us to move on to
Europe. Our aim is to reach Europe
through Turkey."
Malaysia's leading carmaker,
Proton, also plans to establish a
manufacturing facility in Turkey in order
to stage a return to the Turkish market
and provide a base for supplying
European markets. Proton will join other
foreign automotive companies operating
in Turkey, including names like Renault,
Fiat, Toyota, Hyundai and Honda. There
are also reports coming from the
Industry and Trade Ministry that an
TÜSÝAD complains about
expensive electricity for industry
Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen's
Association (TÜSÝAD) President Arzuhan
Doðan Yalçýndað has said electricity prices in
Turkey are too high and are hindering the
competitiveness of Turkish industry.
She said the implementation of a concrete
and practical energy strategy is only possible
through considering opinions expressed by the
private sector -- expected to make $100 billion in
investment in the field -- into consideration
regarding necessary reforms.
Yalçýndað gave a speech yesterday at the
"Electric Power Strategy" conference organized by
TÜSÝAD. She said the performance of the energy
sector, as energy is used heavily in all industries and
areas of production, directly affects a country's
economic performance. She asserted that in order
to increase the competitiveness of all sectors,
electric power should be provided at an optimum
price and efficiency. "However, we are facing
problems with this issue," she said, complaining
that the price of electricity was not cheap enough
for the competitiveness of industrial sectors and that
moreover, if necessary investments in the energy
sector were not completed as soon as possible,
energy supply shortages would become an issue.
Furthermore, Yalçýndað said the inefficiency of
energy consumption in Turkey was a reality, noting
that the energy consumed to create an additional
unit of added value in Turkey was more than
double EU averages.
She said Turkey's energy production rose by an
average of 8 percent annually and that even if
energy were to be produced at full capacity, Turkey
would face difficulties in energy supply security in
2009. The TÜSÝAD president also said it was a risky
year for the security of the system and that anxieties
over energy supply security were increasing.
Yalçýndað said energy investments must be
sped up to prevent any supply shortages, which
arise mainly from delays in the privatization
schedule in the Turkish energy market. She said
the privatization of the Turkish Electricity
Distribution Company (TEDAÞ), which had been
included in the government's privatization program
in 2004, was not yet complete. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman
TCDD to energize railway
transport with high-speed trains
The Turkish State Railways (TCDD) received its first
order of diesel raybuses, a Turkish term coined to
refer to high-speed trains, yesterday from South Korean
rolling stock producer Hyundai Rotem.
TCDD General Director Süleyman Karaman
accepted the first set of the trains, which will provide
interurban railway transportation, from Hyundai
Rotem Overseas Sales Team General Manager
Dong-Ik Woo in a symbolic ceremony at the
company's main production facility in Seoul.
Karaman had a test ride in the train, which can
travel at up to 140 kilometers per hour, and received
information on the other sets of trains being built
for the TCDD for use in Ýstanbul and elsewhere in
the country, especially on routes between cities
separated by short distances, such as Adana-Mersin,
Denizli-Ýzmir, Ankara-Kýrýkkale and KütahyaEskiþehir. Karaman said the Adana-Mersin line
would be the first to be put into service.
"The engines of these trains start fast and stop fast.
They are appropriate for passenger transportation. I'm
sure the Turkish public will like them," Karaman told the
Anatolia news agency in Seoul. He explained that
Hyundai Rotem will deliver 12 sets of trains, with two
carriages each, this year. He added that the TCDD is
opening a license tender for the production of these
trains in Turkey. A single carriage can hold 72 passengers
and each set costs 42 million euros.
"These trains have been designed for the
passengers' comfort. The have very good suspension
systems. The air-conditioning system is quite good,
too. The seats are ergonomically designed and safety
comes first in these trains," Karaman said.
In addition, television, Internet and radio services will
be available in the trains. Karaman said the trains feature
the most modern technology in the world, adding that
the trains distribute power to the carriages instead of
leaving the entire traction burden to the locomotive.
Hyundai Rotem's Woo said they are also providing
vehicles for the Ýstanbul metro system and that they have
received orders from Turkey totaling approximately more
than 500 million euros. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman with wires
CM Y K
unspecified auto industry giant is
preparing to invest $1.26 million in
Turkey's automotive industry, which
would create 5,000 jobs.
Birleþik Metal-Ýþ Sendikasý (United
Metal Workers' Union) SecretaryGeneral Mehmet Selçuk Göktaþ
acknowledges the growth in the
automotive
sector
and
the
corresponding increase in employment
opportunities. "Cheap labor is the
driving force that attracts foreign
investment here in Turkey," he said, but
lamented the fact that the industry
growth rate is not matched by an
equivalent increase in employment
opportunities. He also criticizes the
increasing workload on workers and
loopholes in the social security system
favoring employers.
Turkish Treasury
clears TMSF's debts
ERCAN BAYSAL ANKARA
The Turkish Treasury has cleared the debts of
the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) of
close to YTL 90 billion. The move by the Treasury
will not affect the future operations and
authorizations of the fund. The TMSF will continue
to transfer the money collected from public claims
on bankrupt banks after deducting its expenses.
The TMSF had paid back customers who had
lost money their savings in bankrupt banks from
Treasury resources after it took over these banks.
The Treasury recorded the fund as a debtor, and the
fund began to collect the public claims from the
bank owners and by selling the banks and then
transferring the money to the Treasury.
The TMSF management had said in previous
statements that it is making payments to the
Treasury but that the debt was not diminishing
because of the high level of interest being imposed.
"The debt should have been cleared," the
statement read. According to the Treasury's April
report, the TMSF had paid YTL 600 million in the
first three months of 2008. The Treasury gave an
update this month, noting that an additional YTL
75 million was paid on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, a bill with amendments to public
finance and debt management law was approved
by the Parliamentary Planning and Budgetary
Commission on Wednesday. Under the bill,
aside from the changes to the TMSF's functions
and liabilities, the organization expenses of the
World Bank Group and International Monetary
Fund (IMF) meeting that will take place in 2009
in Ýstanbul and the tenders for commodity and
service procurements for the meeting will not be
subject to the Public Procurement Law and
Public Financial Control Law.
The Treasury will be able to allocate funds to
Emlak Konut Real Estate Investment Partnership
for repayments to those hit by the aborted
Housing Provision Aid (KEY) system. The statecontrolled project had aimed at providing
housing for government employees, allowing
them to pay for homes in small installments
deducted from their paychecks over an extended
period; the program was cancelled and the
promised housing never materialized.
T08-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
19:17
Page 1
08 TODAY’S ZAMAN
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
Iraq aims to increase trade volume with Turkey to $5 bln
was pleased to be in Turkey for such an important event. He noted that relations between
the two countries were developing day by day
and that the Iraq fair contributed to this.
He stated that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdoðan and Foreign Trade Minister Kürþad
Tüzmen had played an important part in having the
fairs organized in Turkey. Sudani said the bilateral annual trade volume was around $3 billion and
that he expected this figure to reach $4-5 billion.
Unfortunately, he noted, Iraqi oil previously
could not be transported via Turkey. "We were
facing difficulties due to terrorist attacks. But now
Iraqi oil is transported to many countries via
Iraq aims to increase the annual trade volume between itself and Turkey to $5 billion from the current
level of $3 billion, the Iraqi trade minister has stated.
Iraq Trade Minister Abd al-Falah al-Sudani
and a delegation of chamber of commerce leaders
arrived yesterday in the southeastern industrial city
of Gaziantep to participate in the third Iraq
International Fair, which was organized by the
Gaziantep Chamber of Industry (GSO) and the
Iraq Ministry of Trade and which begins today.
Sudani and the delegation met with Nejat
Koçer, GSO president and Turkish Union of
Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB)
vice president. Sudani said during the visit he
own home, near their brothers," he stated.
He said relations with Iraq are crucial, noting that the ties between Turkey and Iraq go beyond commercial affairs. He also emphasized
the necessity of additional border gates to facilitate further trade between the two countries.
Koçer said the Turkish people are upset over the
problems and unstable environment in Iraq and that
they hope the Iraqi people will be able to emerge
from this situation and regain their wealth.
Koçer noted that Gaziantep is the gateway to and supply center for the Middle
Eastern and Iraqi markets for global brands
and companies. Gaziantep Today's Zaman with wires
Turkey," he said, adding that the problems in
obtaining transit passes for Iraqi cargo drivers
going through Turkey had also been removed.
Sudani emphasized that the Habur border gate
between Iraq and Turkey is not adequate for trade
and that increasing the number of gates is important for Iraq as its security problems decrease.
Sudani said there are more than 80
Turkish firms operating in northern Iraq and
noted that his government supports Iraqi
businessmen doing business with Turkey.
Koçer told the Iraqi minister he was also
glad to see the Iraqi delegation in Gaziantep.
"Our Iraqi friends should feel as if this is their
PHOTO
KÜRÞAT BAYHAN
Former CB head:
Turkey needs a new
economic program
ANNE ANDLAUER ÝSTANBUL
After seven years of dramatic changes sparked
by a financial crisis in 2001, the Turkish economy needs a new economic program, former central
bank head Süreyya Serdengeçti has said.
The top-flight economist, whose term started in 2001,
when the central bank was granted independence from the
government, and ran through 2006, addressed a crowd of
French and Turkish businesspeople yesterday.
Serdengeçti had been invited by the FrenchTurkish Chamber of Commerce to share his views
on the current global economic and financial crisis
and perform a risk evaluation for Turkey. The 45minute presentation started with a detailed overview
of the Turkish economy over the last 7 years.
"It all started with the central bank becoming independent after 31 years of hesitations and a crisis that
turned into an opportunity for our economy," Serdengeçti
said of 2001. The country engaged in a disinflation process
that bore its fruits in 2004, "when we started to see singledigit inflation rates again." He also mentioned "tight monetary and fiscal policies" and changes in the arena of currency, which benefited the country's export performance.
On the positive side, Serdengeçti also praised
Turkey's more-competitive economy, healthier banking system and favorable changes in foreign capital
inflows, such as foreign direct investment (FDI).
Serdengeçti further commented on the economy's strong
and sustained growth in recent years. "There used to be an illusion, which I have heard for 30 years, that inflation was a
bad thing that nevertheless produced growth," he said. "But
inflation did not bring growth … it destroyed growth." He recalled that Turkey's economy had grown by an average of 7.2
percent during the 2002-2006 period, at the same time that
inflation was being reduced. The former central bank head
devoted most of his comments to both standing and new
problems that are affecting the economy, citing the current
account deficit, unemployment, adaptation of the non-banking corporate sector and access to finance as his chief worries.
"New problems that emerged in the last two
years" included the subprime crisis -- encouraged by
"the many uncertainties in global markets today" -supply shocks that triggered inflation in the energy
and food sectors, as well as the deterioration of public
finances, in particular during the election year of 2007.
"What Turkey needs now is to sustain a high level of
growth to tackle unemployment and accelerate convergence
to the EU," Serdengeçti said. "A 4.5 percent GPD growth is
simply not enough to solve any of Turkey's problems."
A new economic program should aim at high
sustainable growth and focus on structural reforms to
enhance competitiveness and increase savings, he
concluded. "We also need new fiscal policy rules, a
strong EU anchor and an enhanced communication
policy to affect expectations about our economy."
CALENDAR
23-May
1
COREPER
home sales Index
Existing US
dence
Con. Confi
Germany
n - 2nd
Expectatio
Survey of
)
MB
(TC
term
Oýl hýts record for thýrd
straýght day, toppýng $135
Oil hit new peaks for a third
straight day on Thursday,
climbing to above $135 a barrel, before losing steam in response
to a stronger dollar.
London Brent crude soared to an
all-time high of $135.14, but by 1446
GMT was trading at $132.64, six cents
lower than Wednesday's close.
US crude struck a record $135.09
before eroding gains to fall by 47 cents
to $132.70. Oil prices have been driven
higher by a combination of worries
about tight stocks of refined products in
the near term and concern demand will
outstrip supply over the longer term.
A falling US dollar, which makes
dollar-denominated commodities relatively cheap, has also lured investors.
But on Thursday the dollar rose after
Yearly
Change (%)
YTD
Change (%)
MCAP
(million YTL)
1-Y
Av.Volum
40.752
-0,6%
-4,8%
-12,1%
-26,6%
207.038
1.290
İMKB-30
49.916
-0,9%
-6,8%
-13,5%
-29,2%
149.160
984
Nikkei 225
İMKB-IND
36.830
-0,1%
1,6%
-3,6%
-9,2%
74.365
361
Cac 40
Daily Monthly
Change (%) Change (%)
İMKB-BANK
75.916
-1,6%
-9,2%
-17,2%
-36,7%
78.621
690
DJIMT
11,35
0,0%
1,3%
-0,4%
-4,2%
114
0,54
FTSE 100
Country
Change
(%)
Level
H.Kong
-1,64
25.043,1
Japan
0,37
13.978,5
France
0,09
5.032,1
Germany
0,36
7.066,0
UK
0,16
6.208,2
USA
0,29
12.655,0
TurkDEX
NASDAQ
USA
1,03
1.977,0
US$/JP¥
S&P
USA
0,51
1.397,8
Brasil
-1,66
72.294,8
50.425
1,266
-0,49%
0,32%
Concerns about long-term supply
tightness have pushed prices for future delivery even higher than
prompt contracts. December 2016 US
crude reached $145.60.
The United States has repeatedly
called on the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC) to increase its output to try
to calm markets. Leading OPEC producer Saudi Arabia last week said it
had raised production by 300,000
barrels per day, but the news had
minimal impact on the market.
While OPEC has blamed factors
beyond its control for the record price
rally, US Energy Secretary Sam
Bodman on Wednesday said the market reflected tight supplies and strong
global oil demand. London Reuters
the number of jobless in the United
States fell, easing slightly concerns
about the strength of the US economy.
At the same time, the International
Monetary Fund said it was leaving
economic forecasts unchanged for
now in spite of rising oil prices.
Oil prices had begun their latest
move higher on Wednesday when oil
leapt by more than $4 after US weekly data showed crude stocks had declined by 5.4 million.
"Analysts had expected an increase and many believe oil still has
room to move higher. The combination of increasing demand and constricted supply will continue to keep
oil prices strong," Robin Batchelor,
manager of BlackRock's BGF World
Energy fund, said in a research note.
Hang Seng
DAX
EU€/JP¥
BOVESPA
29.68
22,3
6.82
9.2
Native
Foreign
Number of Shares
Native
M.cap
Daily
Close Change (%)
Number of Shares
M.cap
Ticker
Price
Daily Change (%)
Ticker
Volumes
Monthly
Change (%)
Yearly
Change (%)
US$/JP¥
104,04
7,56%
AKGRT
5,45
-4,39%
GARAN
112,8
5,8
-44,76
YTL / €
1,962
0,8%
-5,7%
11,0%
EU/JP¥
163,42
5,50
5,77%
BEKO
0,78
-3,70%
ISCTR
112,3
5,2
-26,75
YTL / $
1,245
0,6%
-4,7%
-5,3%
EU/US$
1,5708
GSDHO
1,29
3,20%
DYOBY
0,53
-3,64%
YKBNK
51,1
2,9
-28,64
YKSGR
13,50
3,05%
AEFES
11,50
-3,36%
AKBNK
40,8
5,9
-29,30
CIMSA
5,90
2,61%
ISCTR
5,15
-2,83%
VAKBN
38,6
2,3
-45,65
ÝMKB 100
Price (YTL) Yearly Change (%)
ÝMKB 30
ÝMKB IND
P.CHEM.
TUPRS
PTOFS
PETKM
AYGAZ
--
--
12.477,7
6.796,0
2.288,9
1.203,2
1.035,4
12,8x
12,8x
12,2x
8,2x
9,7x
12,0x
25,1x
3,2x
P/E 2007/06t
9,0x
11,5x
11,3x
5,8x
7,2x
8,8x
13,1x
1,7x
P/E 2007/09t
EV/EBITDA 2006/12
8,4x
8,2x
8,7x
8,5x
9,0x
7,9x
6,2x
6,8x
7,3x
7,6x
8,3x
5,1x
13,1x
6,6x
1,7x
5,6x
EV/EBITDA 2007/03t
7,7x
7,7x
7,1x
6,2x
6,5x
4,8x
5,0x
6,1x
EV/EBITDA 2007/06t
8,4x
7,3x
7,1x
6,4x
6,7x
4,9x
5,3x
6,5x
--
P/E 2006/12
CM Y K
REPORT
FAO says food prices to
stay high in next decade
Food commodity prices will remain high by historical
standards over the next decade but ease back to well
below current peaks, says a report to be published next
week by the OECD and the UN Food and Agriculture
Organisation. The report will offer little comfort to
some of the world's poorest countries, already hit this
year by riots and protests over the soaring cost of food
staples such as rice, nor to the urban poor in developed
countries, nor to the policymakers of countries struggling to contain inflation. Between 2008 and 2017,
growing demand will continue to keep prices above
historical levels even if well below current peaks, the
OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook, concludes, according to a document summarising the report's findings.
The full report is due to be released on June
29, but a document seen by Reuters contained
many of the main elements. "On average over the
coming 10-year period, nominal prices for cereals, rice and oilseeds are expected to be 35 percent to 65 percent higher than on average in the
past ten years," the document said. Paris Reuters
Study sees smoking drug
risk, Pfizer shares fall
Foreign
185,00
Price (YTL) Daily Change (%)
Farmers who are likely to be affected by drought this
year will be able to postpone payments on debts to the
government for one year with no interest. Minister of
Agriculture and Rural Works Mehdi Eker spoke about
the measures his ministry is taking against the drought
in nine cities in southeastern Anatolia with the Turkish
Radio and Television Corporation (TRT). Eker said they
had been monitoring rainfall across Turkey for a few
months and that they had determined the regions that
would face drought. He said they were going to initiate
the necessary measures and subsidies after determining the farmers' losses. He said the ministry would provide a fund for seed procurement and postpone the
farmers' obligation to repay debts to government agricultural institutions for one year. Eker said the ministry
pays close attention to the problems of farmers, adding
that they would not be providing blanket assistance for
any specific region, but that they will instead rely on
the meteorological data, which indicate that the
drought will mostly affect southeastern Anatolia.
Eker added that the likely decline in crop yields in
the Southeast would not cause a decline in Turkey's
general agricultural output, as they were expecting an
increase in yields in other regions. Ankara Today's Zaman
HEALTH
42.32
ZOREN
Mcap YTL
Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity
Exchanges
(TOBB)
President
Rifat
Hisarcýklýoðlu has said TOBB expects to see
more cooperation with Austrian-based firms
and more Austrian investment in Turkey.
The Turkish-Austrian Economic Forum, organized by the Turkish-Austrian Business Council,
which operates under the Foreign Economic
Relations Board (DEÝK), was held in Ýstanbul yesterday. Speaking at the forum Hisarcýklýoðlu said
foreign investments were important for Turkey's
development and that more than $50 billion in
foreign direct investment (FDI) had come into
Turkey over the last three years as a result of reforms improving the business and investment environment. He said Turkey had been named one
of the fastest reforming countries by the World
Bank and noted that Austrian investment in
Turkey had amounted to $1.5 billion over the last
two years, with 265 Austrian-based firms currently operating in Turkey and more on the way.
Austrian Federal Economic Chamber
President Christoph Leitl said their visit to
Turkey was exciting, interesting and extraordinary. "We have come to the end of the trip, but
we are not tired," he said, adding that the forum
was the highlight of his visit. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman
70.32
57.68
52.8
BAGFS
Ticker
TOBB aims for more
Austrian investment
Farmers' debt repayment
to be postponed a year
Dow
CE
AT A GLAN
FORUM
DROUGHT
İMKB-100
Close
BUSINESS
Price ($)
Light C. Oil
Gold
Copper
133,39
924,90
3,76
Way
Change (%)
0,17
-0,40
0,49
High
135,09
935,40
3,79
Low
132,65
920,90
3,74
P/E: Share price divided by earnings per share is a measure of the price paid for a share relative to
the income or profit earned by the firm per share.
EV/EBITDA: Enterprise value divided by earnings before interest, tax and amortization; “t” stands for
trailer and means the data over the last four quarters.
(*) Yesterday's closing (**) Updated at 6 p.m. by GMT+2
Disclaimer: The information in this report has been prepared by BMD, Bizim Securities from sources
believed to be reliable. All the information, interpretations and recommendations covered herein
relating to investment actions are not within the scope of investment consultancy. Therefore
investment decisions based only on the information covered herein may not bring expected results.
Hundreds of patients taking Pfizer Inc's anti-smoking
drug Chantix have reported serious accidents, vision
problems and heart trouble, researchers said on
Wednesday, sending shares of the world's largest
drugmaker to their lowest level since 1997. US aviation
regulators responded quickly to the research, saying
they would prohibit use of Chantix by private and
commercial pilots, while consumer advocates
called for stronger warnings on the drug's label.
Chantix, also known as varenicline, has already
been linked to depression and suicide, among other
problems. Researchers at the nonprofit Institute for
Safe Medication Practices, and Wake Forest University,
said they found hundreds of reported problems since
the drug's 2006 approval that included blurred vision,
dizziness, confusion and loss of consciousness. Chantix
works by targeting brain receptors affected by nicotine,
tobacco's addictive ingredient. Washington Reuters
T09-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
19:19
Page 1
CLOTHING
TODAY’S ZAMAN 09
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
Ottoman sultan’s robes
Hidden in the folds of history:
SELÝM ÝLERÝ*
I have always wondered how exactly the
costumes once worn by Ottoman sultans
were protected from disintegration or the
ravages of time. Take, for example, the red robes
worn by Sultan Ahmet I, who used to wear them
in the wake of any uprisings by the janissaries.
Traditionally, these red robes indicated the
sultan's wish to see blood spilled. But have
those red robes survived, or are they no more?
The opening of the Ýstanbul Hilton -- in fact not
just the opening, but the construction -- was an
event which generated shockwaves that took a long
time to die down. At the time, those who felt the
architecture of the new Hilton did not suit Ýstanbul
were in the minority, while those who embraced
the new Hilton and defended it were in the vast
majority. A popular magazine from the time,
Aydabir, even printed poetry in praise of the hotel!
People who expressed displeasure with the new
Hilton were reminded at the time that the way its
interior was decorated -- with local Turkish motifs -finally gave Ýstanbul a hotel suited to the history and
the fabric of the city. We all learned together from the
pages of magazines from the time, such as Hayat,
what the interior of the new Hilton looked like, how
such-and-such salon was carpeted with a certain
look, and how much of the design had been inspired
by the outfits of Ottoman sultans and princes.
In those years when color photographs were still
unusual, those pages of colorful coverage of the
Hilton's decor still remain alive in the mind, with their
detailed attention to accessories in various rooms of
the hotel, as well as the gorgeous textiles and details
in architecture. The reds, the blues, the yellows…
The story of the ascent to the Ottoman
throne by Mehmet III was one interwoven
with some of the most painful, horrible
moments in Ottoman history. The new sultan
had a full 19 of his brothers strangled. His father,
Sultan Murat III, had had many offspring. I have
always wondered what Mehmet III must have
felt when he had all of these brothers of his killed.
Historians provide us with the individual names of
all these fated princes. One of these 19 apparently
said, pointing to an uneaten plate of chestnuts sitting before him when his presumptive murderers
came, pleading with them "at least let me finish
my chestnuts…" This seems to me one of the
most extraordinarily painful of all these episodes.
Historian Þehsuvaroðlu talks about how
many of these original Ottoman outfits are left,
noting, "There are up to 27 of the outfits worn
by these leaders left today." He is counting
both inner and outer kaftans and loose robes
when he says this. (This quote is from 1953.)
Among the kaftans kept
at Topkapý Palace is one
made of güvez-colored
satin, with an inner
coat of cotton, the back
of which has rotted
away. Sultan Ahmet I
had a silk kaftan in the
color of dried rose,
bearing embroidered
moons. It appears that
his predilection for this
color was unending
Chinese inspired motifs
There is no use in pretending this didn't all look very
good to our eyes at the time. It wasn't until years later
that I was to learn that these motifs were in fact originally Chinese, and had come to the Ottoman Empire
by way of images depicting the Buddha. This impression on the world of the emperors began in the 16th
century. In fact, some of these motifs even started to
take the forms of Chinese dragons. One source I
spoke to even noted that at the time these Chinese
motifs were mixed with typical Turkish flower motifs.
My interest in the outfits of the sultans goes all
the way back to those first days of the Hilton. I have
had many opportunities to examine these imperial
outfits, during trips to Topkapý Palace and Yeni Saray.
Or what about the armor; the chain-mail outfit and
helmet that used to belong to Sultan Murat IV? How
painful it is that that both outfit and helmet were
destroyed by a fire at the Atatürk Cultural Center
(AKM) where they were being displayed at the time.
It is written that, on return from victory, Sultan
Murat IV wore an outfit featuring leopard skin.
Likewise, it is also noted that Murat IV would wear
highly ceremonial outfits when leaving for a special
journey or battle, like the very first Islamic martyrs.
Murat IV's father, Sultan Ahmet I, lived a life far
from the voyages and brave expeditions of his son. The
color that mostly emerges in the clothing of Sultan
Ahmet I is a kind of purplish red, called "güvez" in
Turkish. Among the kaftans kept at Topkapý Palace is
one made of güvez-colored satin, with an inner coat of
cotton, though the back of the kaftan has rotted away.
Ahmet I also had a silk kaftan in the color of dried rose,
with embroidered moons on it. It appears that his
predilection for this color never ended: There were
güvez-colored velvet and silk kaftans. And what
about the kaftans of a sort of yellowy-white material?
They called this "sugar" colored at the time. Too bad
we don't really use this color anymore in fashion.
Sultan Ahmet I, who ascended to the throne
when he was only 14 years old, was quite religious.
Many historians talk about how this sultan had his
own very special style of plumed ornament placed
his turban on Fridays and religious holidays.
Let's go further back into the past though. Sultan
Ahmet I was the son of Sultan Mehmet III and
Handan Sultana. It was on a very cold, snowy day in
Ýstanbul that Mehmet III came from Manisa to Ýstanbul
and learned there of the death of his brother, Murat III,
from his mother Safiye Sultana, who had hidden it
from him for weeks. After this, Mehmet III dressed all
in mourning black, and in this outfit, sat for the first
time on the throne for Ottoman pashas, covered also
in a black sort of rug or wrap called a "þemle." Reþat
Ekrem Koçu writes about the þemle, which means
"cover" in Arabic: "Plain black þemles were a traditional mark of mourning in the Ottoman palace. When a
sultan died, everyone who lived in the palace, including the women in the harem, would wrap their heads
in black þemle. The top-ranked members of state
would come to sultans' funerals with black þemle
wrapped around their turbans. After the traditional
three days of mourning, these black þemle would
be taken off, but only by order of the sultan."
For example, one inner kaftan: It is a cream-colored base with a güvez-colored velvet "potted flower"
design, long-sleeved, with a yellow inner lining and
borders of blue satin. Then there is an outer kaftan,
with shorter sleeves and decorated in green and
honey-colored velvet flowers. Yes, flowers made from
velvet -- stylized tulips, carnations and tiny poppies.
Well, I don't know whether or not Mehmet III
actually wore the red kaftan I talked about earlier.
I've found no traces of it in the historical texts I've
read. But I know he had a delicate, thin wool loose
robe made in yellowish white. The insides were
cotton, and the lining was white. It had short
sleeves. (While we're on the subject, let's not overlook the subject of these "entaris" or loose robes
worn by men at the time. While some might
think this word is derived from either Arabic or
Farsi, the fact is that it is actually Turkish.)
Some princes' entaris would be embellished
with tulips or carnations, with silk embroidery;
we have one example of these loose robes that
dates from the 17th century. Men would wear
these loose robes over their þalvar (loose pants).
Let's return though once more to Mehmet III;
his melon-colored satin kaftans, his dried-rose colored satin kaftans, his red satin kaftans: Yes, a very
rich collection of clothing. And his special shirt,
made from blue satin, which he wore while in battle
on the Tokay plains. I wonder what exactly Mehmet
III wore when he made the long trip to Ýstanbul
from Manisa during the wintertime? After all, history doesn't tell us anything about his clothing, just
that he "rounded up his good horses and some
distinguished helpers and got on his horse in the
snow and the flooding and set out on his road…"
* Selim Ýleri is an author.
CM Y K
20:05
Page 1
10 TODAY’S ZAMAN
ERUPTION
Indonesia raises alert
for volcano on Java
Indonesia has raised the alert level of one of the most
active volcanoes on Java, a volcanology official said
on Thursday. The volcanology agency in Bandung
raised the alert on Semeru mountain near Malang in
East Java late on Wednesday after it shot out some
500-800 degree Celsius clouds, the official said. "The
heat clouds slid three kilometers from the crater but
no evacuation is needed because people live quite far
from the crater," Surono, head of the agency, said.
People have been told to stay at least four kilometers
from the 3,676 meter-high mountain, which is also
popular among hikers. Seven people were killed
from the mountain's heat clouds in 1994. The volcanic dust from Semeru has not yet disturbed flights
in the nearest town of Surabaya because it is only 600
meters from the mountain's top. Jakarta Reuters
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
WORLD
UN chief sees devastation on Myanmar aid mission
UN chief Ban Ki-moon saw flooded rice fields
and destroyed homes during his mission on
Thursday to get large-scale foreign aid to 2.4 million
people left destitute by Cyclone Nargis.
On a helicopter tour of the Irrawaddy Delta and a
visit to one of the military government's relief camps,
the UN Secretary-General was told by officials that the
situation was under control. But Ban said his main
concern was to get his message across that the generals needed to open up to international aid.
"I am so sorry, but don't lose your hope," Ban told
one woman as he peered into a blue tent at the
Kyondah relief camp 75 km (46 miles) south of
Yangon. "The United Nations is here to help you. The
whole world is trying to help Myanmar."
Relief teams have reached only a quarter of those
in need after one of Asia's worst cyclones in decades
destroyed entire villages, leaving nearly 134,000 people dead and missing. Ban aims to convince the gen-
erals to accept more foreign expertise to distribute
aid and to support a joint United Nations and
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
donor-pledging conference in Yangon on Sunday.
For the trip by Myanmar military helicopter, Ban
changed from a business suit into a beige casual jacket, baseball cap and slacks. His 3½ hour trip included
flying over flooded rice fields, many covered with
brown sludge, to get to the camp. There was extensive damage to trees, homes and other structures.
Energy Minister Brig.-Gen. Lun Thi briefed Ban
at the camp, the same one diplomats were shown at
the weekend. "All efforts are being made towards
the relief of the victims and for the country to soon
return to normal," Lun Thi said. In the Thai capital,
Bangkok, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan
told reporters countries would be reluctant to commit money until they are allowed to assess the damage for themselves. Kyondah Relief Camp Reuters
AP
22.05.2008
PHOTO
T10-23-05-08.qxd
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, 2nd left, talks to a displaced Myanmar
family in their tent on Thursday in the Kyondah village.
ONSLAUGHT
Rebels attack Malian
army camp, 32 killed
Swedish police said on Thursday they had released
two men who had been held on suspicion of planning
to sabotage a nuclear power station. Police detained
two contract workers on Wednesday after one of them
was stopped in a security check at the Oskarshamn
nuclear plant, on the southeast coast of Sweden, with
traces of a highly explosive material thought to be
TATP. TATP, or triacetone triperoxide, is extremely
unstable, especially when subjected to heat, friction
and shock. Police issued a brief statement saying the
two would remain under suspicion until after technical
experts had concluded an investigation. "Both men
have been cooperative but they deny any wrongdoing
and waived the right to legal counsel," the statement
said. "There was no legal ground to hold them any
longer." Police were alerted early on Wednesday by
the Oskarshamn plant. Oskarshamn is jointly owned
by Germany's E.ON and Finland's Fortum.
Authorities sealed off a 300-meter (330-yard) area,
called in explosives experts and worked with plant officials to determine any security risks through the day.
Plant authorities have said investigators had not found
evidence of additional explosive materials beyond
what was discovered on Wednesday. Stockholm Reuters
REUTERS
Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili
will of the Georgian people," Saakashvili
said. No-one can raise their hand against
the will of the Georgian people.
Opposition coalition leader Levan
Gachechiladze said he would call 100,000
people onto the streets to claim victory. But
only about 4,000 gathered in central Tbilisi
and leaders said they would meet later on
Thursday to decide their strategy.
"The struggle against Saakashvili's
regime will continue every day until this
regime departs forever," Gachechiladze,
who once worked as one of Saakashvili's political advisors, told supporters in Tbilisi.
Saakashvili, who relies on Western support in his row with Russia over Moscow's
support for Georgia's two separatist regions
of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, said he
wanted a "beautiful" vote. On a trip to a
western region near Abkhazia,
Saakashvili called on Europe to stand up
to Russia, which last month deepened
ties with separatists in the two regions.
Georgia's booming $10 billion economy
lies at the heart of the Caucasus, where the
United States and Russia are jostling for influence over a key transit route for oil and gas
supplies from the Caspian Sea to Europe.
Saakashvili swept to power in the peaceful 2003 "Rose" revolution, promising market
reforms and a shift to re-orienting his country
towards Europe and the United States.
But the democratic credentials of the 40year-old leader were badly tarnished when he
sent riot troops to crush protests last
November. He won a snap January presidential election which critics said was rigged.
"The election day was the culmination of
falsification, the culmination of terror," said
David Gamkrelidze, one of the leaders of the
opposition coalition. But despite that the people supported the opposition and we won.
The Central Election Commission said
the vote was free and fair. Europe's leading
election monitor said before the election it
had found cases of intimidation by state
employees campaigning for Saakashvili's
party and that television news was skewed
in favor of the ruling party. Tbilisi Reuters
REUTERS
Swedish police release
two men after scare
Georgian President Mikheil
Saakashvili declared victory on
Thursday as early results showed his
ruling party was on course to win a majority
in a parliamentary election that the opposition said was rigged. The main opposition
coalition, which claimed victory in the election ten minutes before polls closed on
Wednesday, said the US-educated lawyer
had stolen victory and called for protests.
The West says the election is a test of
Saakashvili's commitment to democracy as
he steers his ex-Soviet Caucasus country towards the NATO military alliance, a policy
that has riled giant neighbor Russia.
"Even I was astonished by the big level
of support which we got in these parliamentary elections," Saakashvili said in an
address to the nation. With just over 20 percent of ballots counted, the main opposition
coalition bloc was in second place with 13.7
percent. The Christian Democratic
Movement was third with 8.1 percent and
the Labor Party fourth with 6.1 percent.
Saakashvili said his United National
Movement could get close to a constitutional majority -- or two thirds of the seats
-- in parliament. Partial results showed his
party won more than 61 percent of the vote.
He said the views of all political parties in
the new parliament would be taken into account. "Yesterday was the triumph of the
XENOPHOBIA
S. Africa army joins
battle to end attacks
South African troops prepared on Thursday to enter townships to help end xenophobic attacks that
have killed 42 people, and a top official of the ruling ANC criticized the handling of the crisis.
President Thabo Mbeki's call for the army's intervention was an acknowledgment of the seriousness of unrest since May 11 that has driven thousands of African migrants from their homes and
threatened to destabilize Africa's largest economy.
The deputy leader of the ruling African National
Congress, which ousted Mbeki as party leader in
December, criticized the police delay in responding
to the violence. "The delay encouraged people in
similar environments to wage similar attacks
against people who came from our sister countries
on the continent," Kgalema Motlanthe said at an
international media industry conference in
Johannesburg. More than 15,000 migrant workers
and their families have fled to refugee camps after
11 days of attacks by mobs armed who accuse the
African immigrants of stealing jobs and fuelling
crime. Several people have been burned to death
and scores of shacks looted and torched.
Motlanthe said the violence was an assault on the
values of South Africa's democratic society. He is a
close ally of ANC leader Jacob Zuma, who defeated
Mbeki for the party leadership. Johannesburg Reuters
An Islamic Jihad suicide bomber driving a
truck loaded with four tons of explosives
tried to ram a crucial crossing between Gaza
and Israel early on Thursday, the militant group
said, but succeeded only in killing himself.
The explosion was heard by Gazans
and Israelis miles away and shattered
windows in Netiv Haasara, an Israeli
community across the border. It came as
Gaza's Hamas rulers reported that the latest Egyptian efforts to pry a truce from
Israel and Gaza militants had failed.
An Islamic Jihad spokesman calling himself
Abu Ahmad said a 23-year-old militant drove
the truck, and that his target was the Erez
crossing in northern Gaza. He described the attack as a "successful martyrdom operation."
The truck exploded on the Gaza side of
the border, blowing a hole in a pedestrian
passageway leading out of the terminal and
into Gaza. But no pedestrians were there because it was still early, and the Israeli military said no soldiers were injured.
Shortly after the explosion, an Israeli helicopter fired a missile at a nearby jeep of a type
that often serves militants and the security
forces of Hamas, the group that rules Gaza, a
Hamas security official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the information
had not yet been released. There were no casualties in the missile strike, he said.
Israel's army regularly clashes with Gaza
gunmen who fire rockets at Israeli towns and
attack troops along the border. The crossings,
which militants see as hated symbols of Israeli
authority, are frequent targets. Gaza City AP
PHOTO
NUCLEAR
Palestinian
blows himself
up near crossing
Saakashvýlý leads
Georgýa electýon,
opposýtýon crýes foul
PHOTO
Tuareg rebels attacked an army camp in northeastern
Mali and 17 rebels and 15 soldiers were killed in one
of the bloodiest clashes to date in a revolt by the desert
insurgents, the government said on Thursday. Military
officers said the scale of the rebel attack late Tuesday
and early Wednesday against the garrison at Abebara,
150 km (90 miles) from Kidal, was a worrying escalation of the Tuareg revolt that has hit Mali's northeast
Saharan region. "They were two, three times more
numerous than on previous occasions. We think it's a
coalition of all the rebel bands," said one officer, who
asked not to be named. He added it was also believed
the attackers included nomadic fighters from neighboring Niger, where a Tuareg-led revolt over the last
year has killed more than 70 government soldiers,
mainly in attacks in Niger's northern uranium mining
zone. A Malian Defense Ministry statement said an
"armed band" had assaulted the Abebara camp,
where military sources said a unit of the army's desert
patrol corps was stationed. Bamako Reuters
Supporters of the main opposition coalition shout anti-government slogans during a rally in Tbilisi on Thursday afternoon.
CM Y K
US helicopter
strike kills 8
Iraqi civilians
A US helicopter airstrike on
Wednesday night killed eight civilians, including two children, north of
Baghdad, police officials said on Thursday.
Col. Mudhher al-Qaisi, police chief in the
town of Baiji, said the attack was on a group of
shepherds in a vehicle in a farming area.
Relatives said some of those killed were fleeing
on foot after the US military arrived in the area.
"This is a criminal act. It will make the relations between Iraqi citizens and the US forces
tense. This will negatively affect security improvements," Qaisi told Reuters. A US military
spokeswoman, Lieutenant-Colonel Maura
Gillen, said the helicopter fired on the vehicle
after observing "suspicious activity." She said
the driver had ignored warnings to stop.
The incident is the latest in a string of
US airstrikes in which civilians have been
killed. It comes at a bad time for the US military, which has been working hard to
soothe tensions with Prime Minister Nuri
al-Maliki's government over the shooting
of a copy of the Koran, the Muslim holy
book, by a US soldier earlier this month.
United Nations officials have expressed
concern at the number of civilians killed in
airstrikes in Iraq and said more care must be
taken in military operations to protect them.
The US military said the incident was under
investigation. "Coalition forces regret the loss of
innocent civilian lives," said Navy Captain
Gordon Delcambre in a press statement.
"Terrorists continue to show their disregard for
human life by endangering children with their
illegal and violent activities." Baiji Reuters
Page 1
TODAY’S ZAMAN 11
F R I DAY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
A fuel tanker crashed into a military convoy in northern
Nigeria late on Wednesday, killing 45 soldiers who had
just returned from peacekeeping duties in Sudan's
Darfur region, the Nigerian army said on Thursday. The
soldiers, who returned on Tuesday after six months in
Darfur, were traveling from the capital Abuja to their
base in the remote northeastern state of Borno when the
truck rammed into their convoy, army spokesman
Emeka Onwuamaegbu said. "The chief of army staff ...
announces with grief the untimely death of one officer
and 44 soldiers of the Nigerian army who lost their lives
last night in a motor accident along Bauchi-Potiskum
road," Onwuamaegbu said.An unspecified number of
soldiers injured in the crash were being treated in hospital, the spokesman added. Nigerian roads are among the
deadliest in the world because of cavernous potholes,
poorly maintained vehicles and dangerous driving. At
least 5,000 people die on the roads every year, most of
them at night. At least 33 people, 28 of them members of
the elite Mobile Police corps on their way to an assignment in the oil-producing state of Bayelsa, died when
their bus crashed at night into a truck in central Benue
state last June. Most Nigerian motorists have never taken
driving lessons as a license can easily be obtained -without a test -- for less than $50. Abuja Reuters
POLLS
British PM Brown faces
another political setback
Britain's opposition Conservative Party were gaining on
Thursday to gain a parliamentary seat in mid-term for
the first time in 26 years. The by-election in the northern
town of Crewe, triggered by the death of the constituency's member of parliament, is being closely watched as
an indicator of Prime Minister Gordon Brown's diminishing appeal 11 months after he took over from Tony
Blair. Brown's popularity ratings have collapsed since
last autumn after he backed away from calling an early
election. Some in his party are questioning whether he
is the best man to lead the ruling Labour Party into a
general election, due by 2010. Voters will choose who is
to fill a seat held for 34 years by Gwyneth Dunwoody, a
popular, no-nonsense Labour traditionalist who died
last month. Her daughter Tamsin, 49, is fighting to keep
the seat for Labour but Conservative Edward Timpson,
34, led by 13 points in a poll by the firm ComRes in
Tuesday's Independent newspaper. Voters in Crewe
said rising fuel and food costs were major concerns.
Rachel Harrison, 36, who recently became a single
mother, said: "Things are very tough. The shopping, the
petrol is ridiculous, just the basics like fruit," Taxi driver
Kevin Scott, a 40-year-old father of five, said: In the last
seven to 10 days, fuel in this area has gone up six pence
a liter. To taxi drivers this is a lot of money. Crewe Reuters
CONFIRMATION
Top Democrat signals
support for Petraeus
A top Democrat staunchly opposed to the Iraq war indicated Thursday that he supports President George W.
Bush’s decision to promote Gen. David Petraeus to
head US Central Command and Lt. Gen. Raymond
Odierno as the next commander of troops in Iraq. Sen.
Carl Levin, who leads the Senate Armed Services
Committee, said confirmation of the nominations
would enable unprecedented continuity of leadership in
Iraq by officers whose knowledge of the war effort is
unparalleled. “Regardless of one’s view of the wisdom
of the policy that took us to Iraq in the first place and
has kept us there over five years, we owe Gen. Petraeus
and Gen. Odierno a debt of gratitude for the commitment, determination and strength that they brought to
their areas of responsibility,” said Levin, a Democrat, at
the start of a confirmation hearing for the two generals.
“And regardless how long the administration may
choose to remain engaged in the strife in that country,
our troops are better off with the leadership these two
distinguished soldiers provide,” he added. Petraeus,
who has been leading troops in Iraq, is slated to be promoted to head of US Central Command. Washington AP
‘Civilian initiatives important in Turco-Russian relations’
CELÝL SAÐIR ÝSTANBUL
Yevgeny Primakov, a former Russian prime minister and the
president of the Russian Federation’s Chamber of Commerce,
has praised Turkish educational initiatives in Russia and said civil
society should be more active in improving bilateral ties, especially
in education and culture.
“I received an honorary doctorate at Fatih University today. I
saw quite a few Russian students there. This is a great thing. Those
students not only receive education here but also love for your culture and language. This is the same for the students who study in
schools in Russia,” Primakov said yesterday during a visit to Today’s
Zaman’s sister company, the Zaman daily.
A guest of the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and
Industrialists (TUSKON), Primakov pointed out that the trade volume between Turkey and Russia was expected to rise to $28 billion
this year from last year’s $22.5 billion. He said bilateral ties will increase under Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
“Our economic relations have been improving. We have
political contacts. We have a very positive dynamism in our relations,” he said, adding that Turkish companies have $4.5 bil-
Ex-Russian PM Primakov (L) evaluates Today’s Zaman during his meeting
with Today’s Zaman CEO Ekrem Dumanlý at the Zaman HQ in Ýstanbul.
lion of direct investment in Russia.
“Turkish construction firms signed $3.8 billion worth of contracts
[with Russian companies] last year. Russian companies’ investment
numbers have reached $3 billion in the Turkish economy. Two million
Russian tourists visit Turkey each year,” Primakov said.
Opposing the rift between “Muslims and non-Muslims,”
80,000 dead and missing
in China killer earthquake
The disaster has left some 5 million people homeless, leveling
buildings and schools in remote towns and villages near the epicenter. In
bigger cities, whole apartment blocks collapsed or are now too dangerous
to live in because of damage and worries about aftershocks
China said the toll of dead and
missing from last week’s powerful earthquake jumped to more
than 80,000, while the government appealed on Thursday for millions of tents
to shelter homeless survivors.
The confirmed number of dead rose to
51,151, up almost 10,000 from the day before, Cabinet spokesman Guo Weimin
told a news conference. Another 29,328
people remained missing and nearly
300,000 were hurt in the May 12 quake
centered in Sichuan province, he said.
No rescues of buried survivors had been
reported on Thursday or in the last 24 hours.
The disaster also left some 5 million people homeless, leveling buildings and schools
in remote towns and villages near the epicenter. In bigger cities, whole apartment blocks
collapsed or are now too dangerous to live in
because of damage and worries about aftershocks. “We need more than 3.3 million
tents,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang
said, renewing an international appeal from
the Chinese government. He said 400,000
tents have already been delivered to quake
victims. “We hope and welcome international assistance in this regard. We hope the
international community can give priority in
providing tents,” he told reporters.
Meanwhile, Commerce Minister Chen
Deming thanked foreign companies in China
for quake aid, rejecting criticism on Chinese
Web sites that called them “international misers” for failing to do enough.
Chen said foreign companies have given
1.95 billion yuan (US$281 million, 178 million
euros) in cash and supplies. In the effort to assure people the government was placing top
priority on relief efforts, Premier Wen Jiabao
returned Thursday to the disaster zone,
Xinhua said -- his second trip there following
a visit immediately after the quake.
The government is also grappling with official estimates of more than 4,000 children orphaned by the quake, and received hundreds
calls from people offering to adopt them.
Anger that so many children died because
their school buildings were poorly built continued to simmer online and in state media.
The Southern Metropolis News quoted a rescuer as saying that rubble from the Juyuan
high school, where more than 270 students
died, showed that no steel reinforcing bars
were used in construction, only iron wire.
Pictures posted online of Wufu town,
where some 200 students died when the
Fuxin No. 2 Primary School collapsed, showed
roads lined with wreaths. Piles of dusty school
bags were among the rubble.
“The children did not die because of a
natural disaster, they died because of a dangerous building,” read a hand-painted banner strung across a roadway. In Beichuan,
the smell of bleach was overpowering as
rescue workers in white safety suits sprayed
disinfectant in the area. Villagers were picking up medicine from stands set up by the
government. The town’s government offices
opened on Thursday at a hotel in neighboring Anxian county. “Our previous office
buildings collapsed, but our responsibilities,
never,” Ma Yun, head of the county’s administrative office, was quoted as saying by
the official Xinhua News Agency.
The military was still using helicopters to
evacuate survivors from the epicenter. Many
do not know if they will be able to return as
their homes have been destroyed. “Cracks are
everywhere in the house. We cannot continue
to live there anymore. There is no choice but
to live outside,” said Yu Yuanhong, a hospital
worker from Wenchuan who was flown to the
provincial capital of Chengdu. Beichuan AP
REVENGE
Russia to impose entry
ban on some Ukrainians
Russia’s Foreign Ministry started to impose entry restrictions on Ukrainian politicians on Thursday in retaliation for Kiev’s ban on Moscow’s mayor. The ministry immediately banned Ukraine’s first deputy justice
minister. “Regarding Ukraine’s decision to ban
Moscow’s Mayor Yuri Luzhkov from entering Ukraine,
Russia’s Foreign Ministry reports that the Russian side
has been forced to take adequate measures against
those Ukrainian politicians who damage the Russian
Federation by action or word,” the ministry’s statement said. Earlier this month, Ukraine banned
Luzhkov from the country after he called for Russia to
take ownership of the Black Sea naval port of
Sevastopol, which belongs to Ukraine. Russian Foreign
Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said Evhen
Kornichuk, deputy justice minister of Ukraine, had made
an insulting statement about Russian Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin. “Given what he said in public we suppose
that Evhen Kornichuk has no plans to travel to Russia,”
Nesterenko told Interfax news agency. Moscow Reuters
Primakov said he is pleased that Russia has been invited to join the
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) as an observer country.
Primakov said there are 17 million Muslims living in the
Russian Federation.
“As cultural ties improve, this will lead to the establishment
of a mutual world civilization,” he added.
Asked if Turkey has been perceived as a rival when it comes
to its close relations with the countries of Central Asia,
Primakov said: “Turkish policies have been changing in recent
years. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Turkey was actively engaged in the area. I can even say it was aggressively
engaged. However, we have passed that period, and today the
environment is beneficial for our parallel efforts in the area.”
Primakov also mentioned the shared history of Turkey and
Russia: “We have relations going back to the Turkish War of
Independence. Turkey received financial support from Russia at
the time. When Turkey was trying to establish its own industries,
it founded two of its factories with $25 million in interest-free
credit from Russia. [founder of the Republic of Turkey Mustafa
Kemal] Atatürk was a leader who was liked in the Soviet Union.
Our generation knows this fact better than the young people.”
AP
Crash kills 45 Nigeria
troops back from Darfur
PHOTO
ROAD DISASTER
Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary
Rodham Clinton smiles with her daughter Chelsea.
Hillary campaigns
as attention turns
to ‘Chelsea in 2016’
REUTERS
WORLD
PHOTO
20:07
HÜSEYÝN SARI
22.05.2008
PHOTO
T11-23-05-08.qxd
Chinese woman Jiang Hong grieves amid the debris of her collapsed house in quake-hit Douping village, in Kangxian, Gansu province.
CM Y K
The souvenir vendors outside Hillary
Clinton’s campaign appearances
have added a new button to their wares
that reads “Chelsea in 2016” with a picture of the former first daughter.
Attention, whether from button sellers
or the national media, is leaving the fading presidential candidacy of Sen. Hillary
Clinton behind as the former front-runner
faces what most see as impossible odds to
win the Democratic nomination.
Now in the spotlight is her rival, Sen.
Barack Obama, who has solidified his lead
among Democrats and is setting his sights
on Republican candidate John McCain in
the November election.
While Obama and McCain spar -- the
two clashed this week over whether the
United States should talk to leaders of hostile nations -- Clinton’s struggle to collect
votes in Florida that were cast months ago
but invalidated feels like a sideshow.
Obama’s milestone victory in Oregon
on Tuesday that gave him a majority of
pledged delegates to the Democratic
nominating convention graced front
pages of US newspapers.
Clinton’s simultaneous victory in
Kentucky, which did little to close her gap
with Obama, was a much smaller story.
“The shrinking candidacy of Sen.
Hillary Rodham Clinton all but vanished
from the television set,” wrote The New
York Times.
Even calls for the former first lady to
drop out have abated, whether because she
seems less of a threat to damage Obama or
because she paid them no heed. Despite a
campaign deeply in debt, she vows to compete through the last primaries on June 3.
After the mixed results in Oregon and
Kentucky, Clinton soldiered on this week
in Florida which, along with Michigan,
saw its January primaries invalidated because they were held earlier than
Democratic Party rules allowed.
Clinton won both primaries and wants
the votes counted and the delegates seated. She maintains she would lead Obama
in the popular vote if both states were
counted. Although delegates select the
party nominees, contenders such as
Clinton hope to win uncommitted superdelegates, who can back any candidate.
In Florida, Clinton’s speeches were part
civics lesson, part call to action and part
comparison to the state’s voting recount in
2000. Voting confusion in south Florida left
the contest between Republican George W.
Bush and Democrat Al Gore undecided, but
a controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision
resolved the race in favor of Bush. Gore won
the popular vote. Sunrise, Fla. Reuters
T12-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
14:21
Page 1
12 TODAY’S ZAMAN
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
EXPAT ZONE
That’s for me to know and for you to fýnd out
CULTURAL CORNER
CHARLOTTE
McPHERSON
declared earnings and tax contributions on the Internet. Italians
responded with outrage and the Web site was suspended.
Turkey, on the other hand, publishes a list of the top taxpayers. Turks are encouraged to pay their taxes and if you are
self-employed or are a business owner, you submit a tax declaration annually. Your reward, should you choose not to be
anonymous, is for your name and the amount of tax you paid
to be included on the published list of the highest taxpayers
for all to see.
A Today’s Zaman reader wrote the following reply to my
article printed on May 2, 2008, “It’s all about saving face”:
Dear Charlotte, in Turkish culture, it is an important value to
preserve dignity and save face. There is usually one family
member who earns a better salary than the others and everyone expects him (or her) to help them out financially. It is es-
pecially hard to refuse if when you were studying you depended on other members of the family to help you out financially. Even if you would like for people to not know how
much you earn, it is hard not to say. The honor of the family
is important. It goes to say that when a family member asks
for help, it is rarely declined. Turkish family members, regardless of where they live, all have particular responsibilities
within the family. This includes physical protection, economic
support and upholding the reputation of the family. Turks
believe the family is an economic and value relationship.
Turgay, Ýstanbul.
Dear Turgay, thanks for the information. You mentioned
two important points: honor and dignity. Foreigners new to
Turkey would not know that a large request will generally be
approached indirectly or through a third party. Visitors who
are used to being more direct must learn to not give straight
refusals and a frank “no.” Such direct replies cause the person who has made the request to lose face.
As an employer, I have always found that when asked a favor, it is best to give an answer that takes the embarrassment
from both the one asking and the one answering. It is advised
to put the blame on an outside cause. When refusing a request,
it can be done in a manner that avoids personal offense.
ASHLEY PERKS ÝSTANBUL
An
unexamýned
lýfe ýs not
worth
lývýng
Oxford University Press, which publishes a number of English-language
course books, such as Headway and
English File, have asked me to do a seminar/workshop at the upcoming ELT conference at Ýstanbul Bilgi University to be held
May 24-25. The theme of the conference is
teacher and student assessment. As a director
of studies for a major language school in Ýstanbul, both teacher and student assessment
form a major part of my daily work.
Readers of this newspaper, both in
Turkey and abroad, may well be either
English language students or, indeed, teachers of English in high schools, universities or
private language courses. So what are the
criteria for assessment? Should teachers be
informed in advance of the criteria the assessor is working from? Are students to be assessed according to exam marks, coursework
or both? It is an issue that I hope the key
conference lecturers will address and perhaps enlighten us about.
There is a major debate going on in
Turkey at the moment about the education
system and the method of examination that
leads to university entrance. According to an
article in this newspaper (May 14, 2008)
there is going to be quite a revolution in university entrance assessment:
“The president of the Higher Education
Board (YÖK) has announced plans to introduce a new testing system for students
seeking to pursue degrees in higher education in Turkey.
“Speaking to the Anatolia news agency
Professor Yusuf Ziya Özcan said the plan includes a test that would be offered several
times each year, instead of the current system of holding a Student Selection
Examination (ÖSS) just once every year.
About 1.2 million high school students take
the present test every year, with only a couple hundred thousand admitted. Özcan said
the test questions would be similar to the
current questions in the ÖSS system but that
students would be able to take the test more
than once in a year if their results were not
satisfactory. ‘We’re working on a system
based on success. It won’t matter which high
school students graduate from. But high
school level performance would matter, too,’
he said. ‘If a student gets 25 out of a total
score of 100, he or she would be able to take
This approach poses a problem for some Westerners who
find the use of a third party in making a request as being manipulative. Because Westerners value frankness and directness, they often interpret polite and indirect answers as being
dishonest. These two points can lead to cultural clashes between Turks and Westerners.
Stephen Kinzer, author of “Crescent and Star: Turkey
Between Two Worlds,” likens this process of understanding
Turkey to the pouring of the national drink: raký. It is clear in
the bottle and when it is first poured neatly into a glass, but
once mixed with water, its color changes to white and it becomes obscure. So it is with a foreigner faced with Turkey for
the first time. Issues seem very clear and simple at first, but
when we begin to dig deeper we realize this is only a superficial view and the waters of our understanding seem to be
muddied. It is only when we stay for longer, mix with Turks
in-depth and live here for up to a decade that we begin to savor and relish the complexities involved.
Note: Charlotte McPherson is the author of “Culture Smart:
Turkey, 2005.” Please keep your questions and observations coming: I want to ensure this column is a help to you, Today’s
Zaman’s readers. Email: [email protected]
the exam again in six months. Students
should be able to take the exams more than
once,’ he added. The Ministry of Education is
also working on plans to make the university
entry process more geared toward the abilities of the students.”
My seminar is entitled, “A life unexamined is not worth living.” It is a quotation attributed to Plato. Students all over the world
fret and worry about examinations and
some, unfortunately, are driven suicidal by
the pressure they feel themselves under both
from their teachers as well as their parents.
In Turkey, parental pressure is especially
acute. It is perhaps an anachronism, but exams remain an essential part of the education system’s method of assessing student’s
progress and ability. Western educationists
are gradually introducing up to 30 percent of
coursework in the overall final marks, in an
effort to reduce the overbearing influence of
exams on a student’s graduation assessment.
This seems to me to be a more equitable
method than a once-and-for-all grade hanging on a final exam result. The jury is still out
on the effectiveness of this system, but with
Turkey’s antiquated education system along
with the bizarre ban on headscarf-wearing
girls in universities creating so much controversy, major decisions need to be made
about the future of education in Turkey -and YÖK’s proposals seems to be a step in
the right direction.
What, however, should be the criteria
governing assessment of teachers? We can
all remember teachers in our past, either in
school or at university, and they are usually
the ones that stood out because of the way in
which they were able to bring the subject
taught to life. Apart from a profound knowledge of the subject, there is also the matter of
a certain charisma in the manner of presentation that can define the truly good teachers
from the adequate. But how can that be assessed? Traditional assessment forms seek to
address pedagogical techniques as well as
trying to interpret the dynamics between the
teacher and the students as well as among
the students themselves.
Teachers living and working in foreign
countries are often faced with a bewildering
set of assessment parameters that may be
quite different from what they have experienced in their home countries. That is just
something we have to learn to live with, but
some people argue that teachers should have
some kind of heads-up on what the exact
criteria the assessors are working to. The
problem with that is that teachers may teach
to the program in the same way as some education systems teach to the exam rather
than to inculcate knowledge and the ability
to think for oneself. A reader’s letter to The
Guardian (May 14, 2008) looks at the effect
of the national curriculum key stage tests
(Sats) on the English education system:
“The select committee report on Sats
(‘MPs warn that national Sats tests distort
education,’ May 13) has some important
things to say about the current education
system in England, but there is a much
more important lesson to be learned from
its work. The real tragedy of much decision-making about the education system in
England is the way in which successive
governments have ignored the advice of
professionals. All of the so-called unintended consequences of our current assessment regime were anticipated by an overwhelming majority of the responses of the
professional community in 1987, when the
proposals were first mooted in the consultation on the proposed education bill.
“Ignorance of ‘expert opinion’ has condemned our children to 20 years of unnecessary stress and misdirection; look back now
to the clearly articulated views about the value of formative assessment for learning and
the dangers of conflating this with highstakes testing for accountability and you will
see how much of the 1988 Education Act has
become the reason for each successive secretary of state’s litany of mea culpas.”
Turkey’s education system under the
auspices of YÖK is due to undergo significant reforms, and it is to be hoped that
some thought will be given to the experience of other major countries such as
England. The specter of exams and the
prospect of teachers being observed and assessed are both factors that add to students’
and teachers’ stress levels alike. I hope that
the ELT conference at Ýstanbul Bilgi
University will shed some new light on the
way that we assess teachers and students
and contribute to a more realistic methodology of assessment that will reduce tension
and stress for both hardworking students as
well as overworked teachers. Oscar Wilde
once famously said, “Examinations are
questions asked by fools that the wise cannot answer.” He may have had a point!
PHOTO
ÝSA ÞÝMÞEK
E X PAT VO I C E
Are you comfortable talking about your salary and health
with just anyone? Every culture has its own idea about what
topics are considered private and confidential.
Friendship, in Turkey, implies a deep commitment to and
concern for the other person. A friendship is different from a
casual acquaintance. There is an expectation to see each other
often and to be intimately concerned with one another’s life.
Don’t be surprised when your Turkish friend is more verbally
expressive than you may be used to. Turks tend to use flowery language so it is important to use phrases such as “missed
you a lot.” Foreigners are generally seen as “cold” if they do
not do this.
Westerners can be upset if they think that their privacy is
being invaded by their Turkish friend. Whereas Westerners
tend to avoid sensitive topics such as health and finances,
Turks may be more direct. Privacy is generally not understood:
A Turk would expect you to ask all of the details concerning
their recent doctor’s visit and would assume you did not care if
you didn’t ask what to you may seem like intrusive questions.
Westerners tend to not ask personal questions directed at
revealing salary details, rent, personal health and the cost of
items purchased.
In Italy the outgoing government published every Italian’s
ITV documentary seeking British expats to ‘test drive’ life back home
UK broadcaster Independent Television
(ITV) is preparing a documentary series on
British citizens living abroad.
The program, titled “No Place Like Home,”
is calling on British expats living in Turkey and
other countries to share their experiences. ITV
is interested in hearing from British families living abroad but now thinking about returning
home permanently. The main premise of the
program centers on the statistic that one in
three people who leave the UK return home after failing to settle on foreign soil. Michael
Hanney, a senior researcher with Fever Media,
the production company behind the show, says,
“Often this has nothing to do with the country
that they have moved to, but more to do with
personal circumstances.”
The purpose of the program is to offer Britons
abroad the chance to make an informed decision
by flying them back to the UK to “test drive” the
pros and cons of life in Britain. “Upon making
the decision to return, some find they fall back in
love with the country and decide to stay for good;
but others are surprised about how much has
changed since they left and end up ruing their
decision to return,” Hanney adds.
If selected, participants will spend a week
in the UK and be given the chance to catch up
with friends and family whilst exploring education and work opportunities. “We show them
some of the things they have missed about
Britain, whilst also highlighting the reasons
they moved in the first place,” Hanney notes.
“We hope by the end of the program our contributors will have either developed a new appreciation for what their adopted country offers
them or been inspired to return home.”
If you are interested in becoming a candidate
for the show, please e-mail [email protected]
or call (+44) 20 7428 4630 Ýstanbul Today’s Zaman
NOTE: Today's Zaman intends to provide a lively forum for expatriates living in Turkey. We encourage you to contact us at [email protected] and share your experiences, questions and problems in all walks of life for publication in Today's Zaman.
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CULTURE&ARTS
TODAY’S ZAMAN 13
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
PHOTOS
RUMEYSA KIGER ÝSTANBUL
A furniture design exhibition at Ýstanbul's Milli
Reasürans Art Gallery highlights a simplistic attitude in German industrial design, showcasing a
selection of pieces produced by designers coming from various parts of Germany over a period of 20 years between
the 1980s and 2000s. Titled "Conscious, simple -- consciously simple: The Emergence of an Alternative Product
Culture," it reflects the stages of development from the
conceptual approach to the actual design of the pieces.
Professor Volker Albus, the show's curator, explains
that the idea behind the exhibition is to do something
that is not stylish. "We did not want to show any contemporary or fashionable style. If you come from
Germany, a lot of people expect things like Adidas or
Puma, a very high level of design. That is what we did
not want to do," Albus said in an interview with
Today's Zaman ahead of the exhibit's opening last week.
He concludes that it is better to show something resembling the situation of young designers from the countries where the exhibition had been displayed. "This exhibition has traveled to some 30 different countries and not all
of these countries' economic level was on a par with that of
Germany. Our intention is to invite these people to develop
something authentic," says the curator, adding that all the
furniture in the exhibition was designed and created by very
young people. "They did it with the material that their
environment provided and used very simple techniques."
The exhibition, sponsored by the Goethe Institute,
tries to highlight the designers' common spirit. A lot of
young designers tend to think that "somebody will order
something and offer a lot of money," says Albus. "This
does not happen often. There are a lot of people who
BAHAR MANDAN
A consciously
simple
approach
to furniture
design
started from the very beginning, but with an idea and intelligence, you can make these pieces everywhere. This
exhibition shows that people of any age from Turkey,
Uzbekistan and Thailand can look at how these things
are done and transform them within their local means."
Beginning in the '80s, although it was possible to observe different movements in German furniture design,
all these varying movements shared a common tendency
for simplicity. This exhibition, which started in 1998,
showcases over 60 designs spanning from the '80s to the
present. Experimental and sculptural pieces belong to the
early years of the movement while simple house products such as shelves and tables, some of which became
mass products afterwards, were produced more recently.
"In the later period, designers abandoned including a
message in their designs and thereby left the artistic way.
They decided to make simple shelves, for example," says
the curator while elaborating on the slightly different tendencies among the exhibited pieces. "The artistic pieces
have very individual intentions." Pointing to a chair made
out of a shopping cart, he says: "This chair, for example,
has an irony and humor to it whereas other pieces, like
these shelves, have no irony to them. This is a shelf, that's
it," he says, adding that all the designs use the quality of
the material the piece is made of and simple construction.
"This chair [produced only from long iron bars] is very expressive in a sense and is very comfortable at the same time. It
uses the physical quality of the iron. From the very beginning
of the movement, designers used the power of expression,"
Albus says, also explaining the physical logic behind some
of the pieces. "These shelves, for example, are very simple.
If you put books on them, they will bend in the middle from
the weight. What the designer did is use a piece of wood
in the middle like a bridge. Doing this is a development."
When asked what the relationship is between art
and design, the curator says the artist asks himself,
"What do I want to say?" whereas the designer says,
"How can I make something?
"The artist uses a chair or a painting as a medium. He
never cares about meeting any special need, which is the job
of the designer. The artist says, 'I have a message and I want
to say this,'" he says, pointing to a piece made out of three
boxes. "This shelf is very close to art. It depicts a student rebellion that took place in May 1968. This was the time when
young people lived together in apartments and all used bookshelves resembling these boxes. It shows their being together,
and the combination is fragile, reflecting to a certain extent the
condition of the students themselves. Like the students, it
is not stable. These students intended to be this bookshelf."
Gathering pieces from 35 designers, the exhibition
also involves three videos and will be on display
through June 15. For more information, visit the
gallery's Web site at www.millireasuranssanatgalerisi.com
Hancock, Bley, Jarreau
to top jazz festival bill
Jazz greats Herbie Hancock, Al Jarreau, Carla
Bley and Marcus Miller will top the bill at this
year's Ýstanbul International Jazz Festival which, in
its 15th year, will be presenting around 40 performances, the festival's organizers announced Wednesday night at a news conference in Kuruçeþme.
The Ýstanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts
(ÝKSV) will unroll the 15th edition of the festival
from July 2-16, bringing prominent figures of
jazz, pop, rock, folk and world music to Turkey's
heart of entertainment. The festival will kick off
with a ceremony on the evening of July 1 at the
historic Esma Sultan Mansion on the Bosporus
coast, where Turkish jazz composer, pianist and
saxophonist Tuna Ötenel will be honored with
the festival's Lifetime Achievement Award.
Groundbreaking keyboardist Hancock will be
the artist in residence at this year's festival, performing at two special concerts early in the 15-day
festival. Hancock's first gig is scheduled for July 2
at the Cemil Topuzlu Open-air Theater, presenting his "River -- The Joni Letters" project -- last
year's Grammy-winning "Best Album" featuring
Hancock's interpretations of Joni Mitchell songs.
Hancock will be giving another concert with his
trio at the Cemal Reþit Rey Concert Hall on July 3.
World famous bass virtuoso Marcus Miller will
be on stage at the Cemil Topuzlu Open-air Theater
on July 3. One of the most important composers of
modern jazz, Carla Bley and her quartet will perform a special concert titled "The Lost Chords Find
Paolo Fresu" on the night of July 5 at the Ýstanbul
Archaeology Museum. The festival, in this year's
"New Folks" series, brings singer-songwriter Rufus
Wainwright to Hagia Eirene's stage for his first-ever
Ýstanbul appearance on July 8. Omara Portuondo,
the most important living member of the Buena
Vista Social Club, will be celebrating the 60th year
in her musical career onstage with her fans, presenting her latest project "Gracias" on July 9 at the
Sepetçiler Kasrý. The Jazz Boat, now a festival tradition, will maintain its course with a Bosporus tour
on July 6 while Street Concerts will continue to
spread the jazz fever to the streets of Ýstanbul.
The festival will end on a high note with the
seven-time Grammy winner Jarreau, who will perform his classics at the Cemil Topuzlu Open-air
Theater on the evening of July 16. Tickets for the
festival go on sale tomorrow at Biletix. For the full
program of performances, visit www.iksv.org/
caz/english/program.asp. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman
Topkapý porcelains on
display in Stockholm
Chinese porcelains from the collection of Ýstanbul's Topkapý Palace are currently being
exhibited in the Swedish capital of Stockholm.
Titled "Blue and White," a reference to the colors
dominating the porcelains, the exhibition runs until
Aug. 15 at the Medelhavsmuseet (The Museum of
Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities).
The 25 pieces of blue and white porcelain and
celadon pieces on display at the exhibition are on
loan from the Topkapý Palace Museum and the
Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Ýstanbul.
The rare porcelains in the exhibition, dating
back to the Yuan and early Ming dynasties around
the 14th and early 15th centuries, attract both
Swedish citizens and the Turkish community in
Sweden. A group of Swedish visitors to the exhibition said the collection took their breath away
and that with this show they had a chance to see
the magnificence of the Ottoman Empire. As the
museum is located very close to Sweden's Foreign
Ministry building, a number of foreign officials
visiting Sweden are also said to have toured the
exhibition, the Cihan news agency reported.
The first porcelain to have come to Europe is
also on display in the exhibition, according to the
Medelhavsmuseet's Web site. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman
Surrealism Manifesto
sold for 3.6 mln euros
ALBUM
CONCERT
Sinatra album opens at
No. 2 on US pop charts
Russia's Red Army Choir
to perform in Ankara
A greatest hits package from Frank Sinatra opened
at No. 2 on the US pop album charts, Billboard
magazine reported on its Web site. The music publication said the Sinatra collection, titled "Nothing
But the Best," sold 99,000 copies during the week
that ended May 18. It's been nearly 15 years since
Old Blue Eyes was this high on the chart, Billboard
said, adding that the new album was released to coincide with the 10th anniversary of Sinatra's death.
Russia's Choir Aleksandrov, better known as the
Red Army Choir, will be in Ankara next week for
two performances, slated for May 30-31 at the
Anatolia Show Center. The 120-member choir,
consisting of a male choir, an orchestra and a dance
ensemble, will perform a selection of Turkish songs
as well as songs from their wide repertoire that
ranges from Russian folk tunes to operatic arias and
popular music. Tickets at www.biletix.com.
EXHIBITION
Turkish contemporary
art on display all summer
Ýstanbul's Mine Art Gallery in Caddebostan opened
its 21st annual summer exhibition on Wednesday,
showcasing a selection of contemporary artwork by
34 Turkish artists. Paintings by Burhan Doðançay,
Ömer Uluç, Devrim Erbil, Adnan Çoker, Mehmet
Güleryüz, Ergin Ýnan, Zekai Ormancý, Tülin Onat,
Balkan Naci Ýslimyeli, Erol Akyavaþ and Bedri
Baykam are among the featured works at the exhibition, which runs until July 30. Tel.: (216) 385 1203
CONCERT
Silvia Droste to sing two
live gigs at Nardis club
German jazz vocalist Silvia Droste is scheduled for
two live performances next week at Ýstanbul's
Nardis Jazz Club. Droste is known for her colorful,
flexible and strong alto voice and her improvisations. Accompanied by Selim Benba on piano,
Kamil Erdem on bass and Ateþ Ezer on drums,
Droste will take to the stage on May 30-31 at 9:30
p.m. for her concerts, which are sponsored by
Emirates Airways. Tel.: (212) 244 6327
CM Y K
The only known manuscript of French poet
Andre Breton's "Manifeste du surrealisme,"
which had a profound influence on 20th century
art, was sold on Wednesday with eight other works
for 3.6 million euros ($5.67 million). Breton's 1924
text launched the Surrealist movement, which inspired generations of painters, photographers and
filmmakers of the caliber of Rene Magritte, Max
Ernst, Salvador Dali, Man Ray and Luis Bunuel.
Auctioneers Sotheby's in Paris said the
Manifesto was sold together with seven preparatory
notebooks for Breton's "Poisson soluble" ("Soluble
fish") collection of poems, and a manuscript of the
collection itself. The auctioneers had given an estimated price of 300,000 to 500,000 euros for the
Manifesto alone. At auction, bids for the text rose as
high as 740,000 euros before it was joined together
with Breton's eight other manuscripts. After a bidding battle, all nine texts were sold in one bloc for
3.6 million euros to a private association of book
lovers based in Paris who are expected to display the
works to the public. The Surrealists were inspired by
the work of the pioneer of psychoanalysis, Sigmund
Freud, on dreams and the unconscious. Paris Reuters
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14 TODAY’S ZAMAN
OPINION
‘Socýal contract’ through
judýcýary: a response to Köksal
Toptan’s ‘thýrd way’ proposal
Turkish Parliament Speaker
Köksal Toptan made a controversial proposal concerning
the closure case against the
Justice and Development Party (AK Party). In
what he calls a "third way," Toptan calls on the
parties in the dispute to bridge their uncompromising positions by exploring "gray areas" that
may provide a way out of the current deadlock.
Toptan, in particular, highlights the critical role
that the Constitutional Court could play at this
juncture. He invites the court to be mindful of the
political and economic consequences of a decision
to shut down the governing AK Party and to try
President Abdullah Gül. Rather than suggesting a
concrete roadmap for the court, Toptan calls on
experts, particularly legal scholars and political scientists, to come up with various alternatives to develop a formula in the gray zone.
Can and should the Constitutional Court play
this indispensable role in shaping the nation's future? I believe this proposal's success hinges on the
court using its prerogatives in a democratic and liberal manner. Granting the court such a privilege
without binding it through popular accountability,
however, based on the court's past record, has
many damaging consequences for democratic rule
and the future of the legislative branch.
A win-win solution in the gray area?
Toptan hints that, by a third way solution, he expects the court to render a verdict short of closure
in order to avoid a catastrophic outcome for the
nation. While this will alleviate some of the concerns of the incumbent party and those worried
about the stability of the country, a third way also
implies that the court will not let the AK Party
leaders off the hook without some punishment.
The lessons to be taught by the court could mellow the alleged radicalism and reactionary tendencies of the party, hence satisfying some of the
concerns of the secularist forces that initiated the
closure case in the first place.
To substantiate his claim about the quintessential responsibility he assigns to the court,
Toptan makes a very crucial point. To him,
through the precedents they set, constitutional
courts shape the future of contemporary nations.
He expects the Turkish Constitutional Court to
play a similar role by coming up with a decision
that also may establish a new precedent for
Turkish politics. Can the court draw a new social
contract for Turkey?
Precedent setting power:
beware the floodgates
First of all, Toptan's proposal empowers the court
to shape the political realm, hence the future of
the country. To the extent that it does so, this suggestion contradicts the spirit of the institution
Toptan is tasked to represent. As the speaker of
Parliament, it is understandable that he would
seek to prevent major crises that may undermine
the constitutional order and pit various sectors of
society against each other. However, he would be
better advised to seek a solution through expanding the scope of the legislative branch, rather than
inviting the court to step into the realm of politics
and legislation.
One of the reasons behind Turkey's governance crisis is the conflict between the representatives of the popular sovereignty and the
self-declared guardians of republican ideology.
This tension is reflected in various unwarranted
interference by bureaucratic institutions that are
unaccountable to the public in the jurisdiction
of democratic branches, Parliament and the
government. Turkey's activist judges were quite
content with using their precedent-setting
powers, at times in blatant disregard of the established legal rules, overstepping the jurisdiction of the legislative branch. The court's decision from the summer of 2007 on the presidential election quorum and the court's invention
on a ban of the headscarf through aggressive
uses of judicial review powers are only two notorious examples of how far the court can go in
setting precedents against not only popular will
but also the letter and spirit of the laws in place.
Through these and other acts, the court has already acted as a legislative body. It is unfortunate to see Toptan referring to the court's
precedent-setting function, which may very
well serve as a seal of endorsement for the previously de facto violation of the powers of
Parliament by extra-political actors. How can
we ensure that the precedent to be set by an affirmation of the court's role in shaping the future direction of the country will not open the
floodgates to subsequent judicial guardianship?
Why bother with judicial
interpretation if positive law exists?
The next question concerns whether there is a
need for such a precedent in the first place. As the
current controversy indicates, the Turkish political
community and society at large do not agree on
the legitimacy of the current Turkish rules governing the establishment, operation and dissolution of
political parties. If the real issue at stake is a lack of
consensus on what should be the proper rules and
standards on the closure of political parties, this is
essentially a political question and needs to be
handled through political avenues. As the representative of the "law-giver," if he believes that he
identified uncharted territory, Toptan should seek
to legislate it rather than further rendering it a gray
zone, only to be claimed and invaded by the judiciary. Toptan indeed would have delivered a better
service to both Turkish democracy and the Turkish
Parliament if he had sought ways to mobilize the
political actors behind a constitutional amendment
to Turkish laws pertaining to political parties. A solution to come out of this democratic process
would be better suited to "shape the future of the
country" than a verdict of an 11-member court,
whose credibility is dubious at best.
If it is believed that such a comprehensive
constitutional change is unwarranted, and the
current Turkish laws are not as restrictive on the
parties as they are claimed to be, then the issue
boils down to an interpretation of the court. This
is where Toptan's proposal for a path-breaking interpretation comes in. Before discussing the particulars of any particular proposal, however, the
question that needs to be asked is whether there
is a need to come up with a novel interpretation
on standards for party closure. The international
and European norms on the matter are out there.
As is underlined by various experts, guidelines on
prohibition and dissolution of political parties and
the proportional measures, adopted by the
European Commission for democracy through
law, or the so-called Venice Commission, already
establish standards applicable in this case. If the
court is truly democratic in its intent, it could draw
its verdict on those international norms, rather
than engaging in a novel interpretation. As a
Turkish expert, Ergün Özbudun, underlines; complying with these international norms is even incumbent on the court under Turkish positive law.
Legitimacy and vision of the court
Last but not least, we need to ask critically
whether the court has the vision and legitimacy to
act as such a precedent-setting institution and to
have a say in the nation's social contract. Does the
court have a vision to issue an interpretation that
will set a precedent for broadening political rights?
Judging from the basis of its past record, we see
that the court hardly came out in support of freedoms. Far from upholding basic rights, the
Turkish judiciary has opted for the restriction of
rights and liberties in order to "protect the state
and the constitutional order." Given its current
structure and composition, does the
Constitutional Court represent Turkey's social
and political reality, hence have legitimacy?
Most reasonable observers agree that at the
heart of the current crisis stands the undemocratic nature of Turkey's Constitutional Court
that isolates it from the changes in Turkish
society and the highly politicized nature of
the court and its advocating of parochial
interests. It is the least equipped civilian
institution to propose a social contract.
The real challenge that needs to be addressed is how to reform the judiciary
and enhance its democratic accountability, which will hopefully restore its
credibility and turn it into a more
representative institution. Granting
the judiciary the authority to shape
the nation's future will only derail
this goal, undermining further
democratization and attempts to
resolve the governance crisis.
Although Turkish courts in
principle had the power to assume such a pioneering and
precedent-setting role in society either through drawing on international conventions or through making bold, progressive
rulings at their discretion, they failed to do so.
On the contrary, they used those privileges in
contravention of political freedoms. Is there any
plausible reason to expect that the court will use
its prerogatives for setting a democratic and liberal precedent? The burden of proof falls on
those who assign the court such an historic role
and ask democratic sectors to endorse this right.
Short of this proof, we had better not let the genie out of the bottle.
*Þaban Kardaþ is an instructor at the University of
Utah, the chairman of the Middle East and
Central Asia Conference Committee and a
research assistant at Sakarya University.
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case is essentially a political question needing to be handled through political avenues
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COLUMNS
TODAY’S ZAMAN 15
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
Empathy, sympathy and antýpathy
Ehud Barak, one of Israel's leading politicians, once said: "If
had been born to a Palestinian family, I would throw stones
at Israeli soldiers just like Palestinian children are currently
doing. We must get rid of this Palestine burden. Palestinians
have been living in these lands for thousands of years."
Just like other Israeli administrators and politicians,
Barak, too, fought against Palestinians for years. He is the
former Israeli chief of General Staff, i.e., a high-ranking
Israeli who personally attended and commanded many military operations. He eventually came to a point where he
understood the Palestinians and their struggle.
Apparently, Barak felt empathy toward the Palestinians.
Empathy can be briefly defined as one person's effort to understand the other person by putting him/herself in the shoes of this
other person. Our Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him,
said, "You should seek for your brother what you seek for yourself." In the Islamic faith, "all human beings, i.e., the sons and
daughters of Adam and Eve, are equal in terms of their value as
human beings and their ontological essences." Being a Muslim
HÜSEYÝN
GÜLERCE
ALÝ
BULAÇ
[email protected]
does not give one the right to do injustice to a non-Muslim.
Everyone needs to understand others by feeling empathy toward them. If we can do this even occasionally, many social conflicts may be avoided. On the 60th anniversary of the establishment of their state, how many Israelis can feel such empathy toward Palestinians? Public opinion polls suggest that about twothirds of Israelis justify the cruelty the Israeli state has seen as fitting for the Palestinians in the lands it has occupied.
If we are supposed to understand and be tolerant of the
occupation of a land by a people, based on a claim that dates
back hundreds of years, and the violent seizure of houses,
gardens and other property in this process, and if this is ac-
cepted as a valid convention in the international arena, then
there will not be a single piece of land around the world
that is not claimed by someone else. For instance, Muslims,
noting that they ruled Spain for eight-and-a-half centuries
and Sicily for two centuries, may claim to be the rightful
owners of Spain and Italy and may attempt to occupy them.
Likewise, if a state claims to bring together everyone
whom they consider to be of their race -- a race considered
to be the founding reason for the state -- in Israel, wherever
they are around the world, then the question of how this will
be distinguished from racism will remain ambiguous.
There is also another important point. The world is progressing toward a certain point. Humanity has gone through great
pain. Democracy, human rights, rule of law, equal right to vote,
nondiscrimination of people based on religious, racial, regional or
class differences, everyone being bound by law, and other criteria
have evolved into universal ideals. Terrorism is a condemned
crime. The most prominent characteristic of terrorism is the killing
of innocent people for whatever purpose. Whether terrorism is
No Comment
HANWANG, AP
[email protected]
committed by people, organizations or states does not change
anything; when all is said and done, innocent people die.
Even so, one cannot understand or accept why these criteria
are not applied to the Israeli state and why Israeli administrators and politicians are seen exempt from these criteria.
For 60 years, Palestine has been suffering a great tragedy.
Millions of Palestinians have been displaced and about 5 million
Palestinians are living as refugees. Seventy-eight percent of the
historical Palestinian lands are under occupation, and the
Palestinians living in the remaining 22 percent are fragmented.
What's most tragic of all is that today about 2 million Palestinians
are living in the open prison of Gaza, like the Nazi concentration
camps. Hundreds of thousands of children, women, the old and
innocent people die, but Israel uses its international influence to
silence everyone. This does not bring sympathy for the Israeli
people. Instead, it breeds antipathy. Israelis should feel empathy,
and if they have decided to be a country in the region, they should
understand they that cannot find peace and solace through occupation, tyranny and fighting against the people in the region.
ETYEN
MAHÇUPYAN
[email protected]
AK Party’s
opponents ýn the US
Greatest obstacle
before democracy
Ali H. Aslan, a young columnist for Zaman and
Today's Zaman, is one of the most successful journalists taking the pulse of Washington. Yasemin Çongar,
who writes for the Taraf daily, is another colleague
who closely follows the transatlantic developments
despite having returned to Turkey. It is impossible to
find out what policy the Bush administration has
adopted vis-à-vis the closure case filed against the
Justice and Development Party (AK Party).
I talked to Turkish entrepreneurs (who are also
American citizens) in New Jersey. Turkish TV stations, including Samanyolu TV, broadcast here in the
US. The TV programs at Mehtap TV, "Akýl Defteri"
(Mind Notebook) and "Düþünce Günlüðü" (Journal
of Thought) get considerable attention here among
viewers. Our people are eager to follow what is going
on in their country despite living thousands of miles
away. They all ask the same question: Will the AK
Party be closed down? Citing the latest memo by the
Supreme Court of Appeals, I responded by saying
that some circles are determined it will be and are increasing their pressure.
Turkey is not alone in the world; considering that
global terror poses the greatest threat to the West,
Turkey stands out as an island of democracy in the
Islamic world.
Is it possible that democracy is undermined and
wounded in Turkey in an attempt to eliminate the AK
Party from the political stage? Washington's stance is
the number one factor that would determine the answer to this question.
The European Union described the closure process
as a judicial coup and further issued a strong warning
against the initiators of the process. It also gives
strong messages indicating that the recent process
may undermine Turkey's EU bid.
But this is not the case with the US administration.
The lobbies and power centers that have influence over
the Bush administration openly extend support for the
ultranationalist movement that seeks to eliminate the
AK Party. The magnitude of this cooperation is clearly
revealed in the articles and reports by Aslan and Çongar. US Vice President Dick Cheney and his team drew
a reaction from democratic circles because of this cooperation. Çongar noted that the advisers of Democratic
Party presidential candidate Barack Obama are aware of
what is going on: "Obama and his supporters are well
aware of the long-lasting cooperation between Turkey's
ultranationalist circles and the circle headed by Dick
Cheney, which became more influential recently.
Obama's team is also aware of which politicians, businessmen or civil society actors head to Washington to
make propaganda over a military coup and which
American or Turkish writers or opinion leaders carry out
a disinformation campaign consistent with these propaganda activities." (Taraf, May 20, 2008)
Aslan underlined that during this process, Bush
should at least once ignore Cheney, who has close
relations with and connections to anti-democratic
and Islamophobic circles. The process initiated to
close down the AK Party is a litmus test of democracy
for all countries, including the US. The US administration is currently undergoing a test of confidence
and trust in regards to Turkey.
Lack of trust in Turkey for the US administration
has hit a peak since the launching of bilateral relations. In the past, the American role in the coups remained unexplored. Today, this role is closely followed by the public. Former US Ambassador to
Turkey Mark Parris, in his article in The Wall Street
Journal, recalled that closure of the AK Party will have
a great impact on democracy in the region. This is not
an ordinary statement or an irrelevant warning.
In our country, the number of irresponsible power
centers is pretty high, but is this so in the US, which
presents itself as the superpower of the world? If so, it
will have serious problems and troubles. If Turkey loses,
the US will lose and so will the European Union.
Only one reasonable explanation could have been offered for
the following remark by a European politician made a decade
ago: "What is going on in Turkey bears great importance; we
will see whether a predominantly Muslim country will prove
that it is able to become a truly secular and democratic country." In terms of creating a democratic political regime, Islam
was generating problems and Muslims were having difficulties internalizing democracy. At that time, not only Europeans
but many domestic actors in Turkey upheld that the conservative section of society should have been held liable for the
lack of democratic improvement and progress in the country.
This line of reasoning suggested that the religious segment
was seeking to create a Shariah-based state; because of this
assumption, there were serious doubts as to whether they
would be able to adapt to the modern world. As a corollary
extension of this reasoning, the overwhelming majority held
that the secular segment in Turkey embraced the values promoted in modern democracies, balancing the impact of the
conservative segment of society. The same argument also underlined that the secular circles failed to fully democratize the
country and the overall political system simply because they
were a minority in their own country.
Today this situation has dramatically changed. To the extent that they have been able to get to know Turkey,
Europeans have developed a different perception of the
Turkish political landscape. As a consequence of the social
transformation in Anatolia in the last 15 years, a middle class
that relies on globalization to expand its sphere of liberties is
eager to integrate with the world and enjoys the public sphere
that has emerged. We are talking about a social environment
where money is spent locally, where the cities have gained
personalities and investment in children and education is encouraged. Naturally, this approach has paid off; the ruling
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) came to office owing to the support and energy of this nascent bourgeoisie. The
demands and preferences of the newly emerged middle class
were not similar to those that could be expected from the traditionally religious people. They were simply asking for bolder
reforms, civilianization of politics, expansion of the sphere of
liberties, rationalization of the state and a stronger emphasis
on Turkey's EU bid. More interestingly, a brand-new generation that pays attention to human rights in principle and embraces democracy as a value has emerged. Currently, at least
one-fifth of the supporters of the AK Party find the party's reforms insufficient to expand the sphere of rights and freedoms.
During the same period, the secular segment of society,
which was considered modern, was experiencing a different
fracturing and division. At a time when the conservatives constituted the majority and Western-oriented values made democracy more visible, the secular segment realized that it was unable
to rule the country alone. It came to the conclusion that the order which it mistakenly considered democratic actually included
a number of oligarchic elements, that the political order in
Turkey was designed as the privileged area of the secular segment and that the bureaucracy dominated politics as the protector of this sphere. In this situation, it was possible to go in two
different directions; thus the secular section was suddenly divided. On the one hand, there emerged a group of secularists who
put emphasis on democracy, viewed themselves as equal to the
conservatives and favored reforms and fundamental freedoms.
On the other hand, another group of secularists emerged that
wanted to maintain the previous system, promoted non-integration with the Western world and the EU and sought to rely on
the public sphere as a tool to preserve their old entitlements.
This second group was open to manipulation; the price for this
was paid in coup dreams and attempts and victims of murders.
Today, making Turkey a democratic and secular country
requires the elimination of resistance by the second group of
secularists -- not the resistance of the conservatives. This
group remains the only obstacle before democracy. In this situation, the question by José Manuel Barroso as to whether "a
predominantly Muslim country will be able to become a truly
secular and democratic country" depends upon the ability and
intention of the secular segment of society to abandon authoritarian approaches and to embrace social values.
Ironically, the secular segment that used to refer to other
members of society as the "Muslim part of the country" now
realizes that they are considered a type of religious people.
Peace dývýdends
NICOLE
POPE
[email protected]
Can peace be measured? The Global Peace Index,
which ranks 140 countries according to the relative
peace of their environment, attempts to do just that. For
skeptics who believe that a concept as elusive as peace
can only be promoted by bearded peaceniks or latterday hippies, let me add that the list was compiled by the
business-oriented Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).
The exercise is premised on the idea that peace is
not just an absence of conflict. It is a state of social
balance that can be measured by a complex set of factors that range from the level of trust among citizens
to the ratio of security personnel to population, from
respect of human rights and gender equality to criminality. In all, 24 qualitative and quantitative factors
were taking into account in this survey, which brings
out the economic dimension of peace.
Who are the winners and losers? Topping the list as
the most peaceful nations are Iceland, Denmark and
Norway. At the very bottom: Iraq, Somalia and Sudan.
Turkey, in 115th place, figures in the lower 20 percent. In the wider central and eastern European region,
extended to include Central Asia, Turkey only ranks 24th
among 25 countries, followed by Russia. Turkey's relatively poor performance is due to simmering internal issues, political tension, a still less-than-satisfactory record
on human rights and a high level of militarization.
The political turmoil of the past year has also caused
Turkey to be listed among countries that have experienced the most negative evolution between 2007 and
2008. Reasons cited include "an increase in internal and
external conflicts, a rise in the number of internal security
officers and police, increased political instability and a reduction in the measure of respect for human rights."
That a business publication should worry about
peace shows that in our increasingly interconnected
and globalized world, stability, sustainability and
ethics are increasingly perceived as going hand in
hand with prosperity and growth. The aim is not to
point the finger at the laggards that populate the
lower ranks of the index, but to try and identify the
drivers of peace and highlight their dividends.
A detailed analysis of the survey and the economic
impact of peace, produced by the Institute for Economics
and Peace, makes interesting reading in the Turkish context, as the economic costs of political uncertainty become
increasingly obvious. The study argues that business
communities have a role to play to promote a more
peaceful global environment, not just for altruistic reasons
but because the private sector is directly affected by the
absence of a peaceful environment. Many Turkish businessmen would agree with this conclusion.
To prove their point, the authors underline the
striking fact that per capita gross domestic product
(GDP) "increases on average by approximately $3,145
for every 10 places a country increases on the Global
Peace Index." Countries where risk is lower attract
more foreign direct investment, capital flight from
stock markets is reduced and interest rates decrease.
Also, countries that feel more at peace tend to devote
less capital to military expenditure and spend more
on human development and education.
In 1999, the UN launched a program to develop
a "culture of peace" around the world by teaching
children to reject violence "to try and prevent conflicts by addressing root causes and solve problems
through dialogue and negotiation."
The results of the Global Peace survey indicate that
investing in integrating these values in education would
be a worthwhile outlay with long-term benefits.
CM Y K
T16-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
14:24
Page 1
16 TODAY’S ZAMAN
LEISURE
tv guýde
Gregorian Calendar: 23 May 2008 C.E. Hijri Calendar: 18 Jumada al-Awwal 1429 A.H. Hebrew Calendar: 18 Iyyar 5768
[email protected]
Today marks the Declaration of the Bab in the
Bahai religion. The Bab was the forerunner of
Baha’ullah, the prophet of the Bahais. This day
is the anniversary of the Bab’s declaration of his mission in 1844 and thus marks the beginning of the
Bahai faith, the Bahai era and the Bahai calendar.
Today is World Turtle Day, declared in the year 2000 by
the American Tortoise Rescue, a rescue organization founded
movýe guýde
in 1990 and run from Malibu, California. World Turtle Day is
celebrated worldwide, especially among those for whom the
turtle is a symbolic animal. Some people, such as the turtlerelated group known as The Goffles, may celebrate World
Turtle Day in a variety of manners, some of which are dressing up as turtles or saving turtles caught on highways.
Today is the birthday of the Federal Republic of
Germany. On this day in 1949, the three World War II occu-
E2
08:00 Rachael Ray Show
10:00 The Martha Stewart Show
12:00 Ellen DeGeneres Show
13:00 Two and a Half Men
13:30 Rachael Ray Show
15:30 How I Met Your Mother
16:00 My Name is Earl
16:30 Ellen DeGeneres Show
17:30 The King of Queens
19:00 Cheers
20:00 Comedy Night / Richard Jeni
21:00 Cold Case
22:15 Til Death Do Us Part
23:00 Late Night with Conan
O’Brien
24:00 Comedy Night / Ellen
DeGeneres
01:00 South Park
02:00 Cold Case
03:00 The Tudors
04:00 Two and a Half Men
04:30 The King of Queens
pation zones of France, the UK and the US were merged to
form the Federal Republic of Germany. On Oct. 7, 1949, the
Soviet zone established the German Democratic Republic.
Today is Labor Day in Jamaica. This day originally
celebrated the activities of the trade union movement,
but since 1972 it has been a day for community service,
which includes repairing roads, painting schools and
planting trees and decorative shrubbery. By Kerim Balcý
‘Wicker Park’
THE THREE ROBBERS
Davýd Cook rocks the
‘Idol’ vote on fýnale nýght
WICKER PARK
For an “American Idol” season so flat and lifeless,
the end sure rocked: Ex-bartender David Cook virtually body-slammed teen prodigy David Archuleta
in a surprising landslide, capping an energized finale filled
with big stars and polished performances. All that, and the
imperious Simon Cowell was reduced to apologizing to
Cook for casting him as an also-ran to Archuleta the night
before. Turns out Cowell’s critique of Tuesday’s performances had limited influence: Cook, 25, from Missouri,
swamped Archuleta, 17, of Utah, by a margin of 12 million
votes out of the record 97.5 million cast by viewers.
Cook was overcome with emotion, bending toward
the stage after his name was announced. When he stood
up, his eyes were filled with tears, the second time in as
many nights that the scruffy, grainy-voiced belter had
broken down. “The ride here has been pretty nuts,”
Cook said to a roomful of reporters backstage.
For the final performances Tuesday, Cook refused to
bow to the conventional during his three-song set, with
Collective Soul’s “The World I Know” as his pick for a closing song. He also sang U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What
I’m Looking For” and the power ballad “Dream Big,” his
choice from the songwriting competition’s non-winning finalists. British judge Simon Cowell declared that those
choices had sunk him, and told Archuleta that he’d scored a
“knockout” in the boxing-themed performance finale.
But just before the winner was announced, Cowell uncharacteristically backtracked. He offered Cook an apology
and said that the competition “wasn’t quite so clear cut as
we called it” -- even letting on that, for the first time, he
felt either finalist would have been a worthy winner.
While Archuleta was showered with praise by the
judges all season, online bookies and observers kept the
faith with Cook. One Web site, which tracks busy signals on the separate phone lines dedicated to each contestant, projected him the winner correctly Wednesday
morning. By strict “Idol” standards, being rebellious
turned out to be worth the gamble for Cook, whose hip
and scruffy style and ability to work the camera with a
soulful gaze also proved to have overwhelming appeal.
Archuleta was the prodigy who consistently dazzled
the show’s judges and thrilled screaming young fans. He
I'M NOT THERE
ÝSTANBUL: Beyoðlu: 12:00 15:00
18:00 21:00 Maçka G-mall: 12:00
15:00 18:00 21:00 Fri/Sat: 24:00
NEVER BACK DOWN
ÝSTANBUL: Niþantaþý Citylife: 11:30
14:00 16:30 19:00 21:30 Fri/Sat: 24:00
Kadýköy Nautilus: 11:45 14:15 16:45
19:15 21:45 Fri/Sat: 24:00 ANKARA:
Arcadium: 11:50 14:20 16:50 19:20
21:50 Fri/Sat: 24:00 ÝZMÝR: Konak
Passtel: 11:15 13:45 16:30 19:00
21:30 ANTALYA: Lara Prestige:
11:45 14:15 16:45 19:15 21:45
DECEPTION
ÝSTANBUL: Beyoðlu Emek: 12:00
14:15 16:30 18:45 21:15 Caddebostan
AFM: 11:10 13:40 16:10 18:40 21:10
Fri/Sat: 23:40 ANKARA: Ata On
Tower: 12:00 14:15 16:45 19:15 21:45
Fri/Sat: 24:00 ÝZMÝR: Konak Pier:
11:00 13:30 16:00 18:30 21:00 Fri/Sat:
23:30 ANTALYA: Laura: 11:45 14:30
17:00 19:30 21:45
O... ÇOCUKLARI
ÝSTANBUL: Beyoðlu CineMajestic:
11:30 13:00 14:00 15:30 16:30 18:00
19:00 20:15 21:30 Kadýköy Nautilus:
11:30 14:00 16:30 19:00 21:30 Fri/Sat:
24:00 ANKARA: Ata On Tower: 11:00
13:15 15:45 18:15 19:30 20:45 22:00
Fri/Sat: 23:00 24:00 ÝZMÝR: Konak
Pier: 10:30 13:15 16:00 18:45 21:30
Sudoku
PHOTO
ÝSTANBUL: Levent Kanyon: 11:30
14:00 16:30 19:00 21:30 Fri/Sat: 24:00
Suadiye Movieplex: 11:45 14:15 16:45
19:15 21:45 Fri/Sat: 24:00 ANKARA:
Bilkent: 11:45 14:15 15:15 16:45
19:15 21:45 Fri/Sat: 24:15 ÝZMÝR:
Çiðli Cinecity Kipa: 11:45 14:30 17:00
19:30 22:00 Fri/Sat: 24:30 ANTALYA:
Migros: 14:30 17:00 19:30 22:00
Hallmark
“American Idol” winner David Cook (2nd r) is surrounded by fellow contestants onstage at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles.
would have been the youngest “Idol” ever if he’d won,
beating last year’s winner Jordin Sparks by mere days. The
teenager seemed to find the attention the show brought
him overwhelming, often appearing to be speechless in
the face of praise, but he was consistently professional onstage, with dulcet tones and poise that belied his shyness
and tender age. Archuleta made the most of his smooth
voice Tuesday with Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go
Down on Me,” the inspirational ballad “In This Moment”
and a reprise from earlier in the season of John Lennon’s
“Imagine.” After learning Wednesday that he’d lost,
Archuleta appeared cheerful and unfazed. “I just believe I
made it this far. I didn’t think I would make it past the first
round, for Pete’s sake,” Archuleta said. Asked about his
plans, the teenager said he will try to keep education in
the mix because of the uncertainty for anyone of a lasting music career. “People can have a few years of performing” then have to turn to something else, he said.
During the show, viewers got songs from runnersup including Syesha Mercado, who dueted with Seal on
his song “Waiting for You,” and a solo on “Hallelujah”
by dreadlocked Jason Castro. George Michael wrapped
up the night, and was joined onstage by all 12 finalists
for a medley of his hits. Cook said it was an honor to
share the stage with Archuleta, who Cook said has more
talent at 17 “than I know what to do with at 25.” What
does Cook think the “Idol” win will bring him? “I actually walked into this with no expectations and I’m walking out of it with no expectations. This show is a springboard,” he said, “but it’s still a crapshoot.” Los Angeles AP
Cem Kýzýltuð
HARD
469
[email protected]
1 7 9 5 3 6 8 4 2
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Across
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1 Risk hostility following goal (8)
6 Waste of regular income in the
London area? (6)
9 Mountain in France and not in
Scotland (4)
10 Paintings that are experienced in
school? (3,7)
11 Flashily ignoring this may gain
you points — seventy, at most
(5,5)
13 Authentic German dramatist, not
British (4)
14 Having separate patches aids
crop rotation? (8)
16 Note Jack Sprat in relation to his
wife with too much fat (6)
18 Only extremely animal? That’s
about right (6)
20 One meddling group of industry
(8)
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EASY
1
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1
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HOW TO PLAY? : The objective of the game is to fill all the blank squares in a game with
the correct numbers. There are three very simple constraints to follow. In a 9 by 9
square Sudoku game:
Every row of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order
Every column of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order
Every 3 by 3 subsection of the 9 by 9 square must include all digits 1 through 9
26
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Yesterday’s Solution
EASY
7
469
Crossword
1
travelers’
s.o.s
3
8
Comedymax
08:00 Cavemen
08:30 What I Like About You
09:00 For Your Love
09:30 Out of Practice
10:00 Two Guys and a Girl
10:30 Everybody Loves Raymond
11:00 Ugly Betty
12:00 America’s Funniest Home
Videos
12:30 The Game
13:00 Still Standing
13:30 American Dad
14:00 Cavemen
15:00 For Your Love
15:30 Out of Practice
17:00 Ugly Betty
18:00 America’s Funniest Home
Videos
18:30 The Game
19:00 Still Standing
19:30 American Dad
20:00 Cavemen
22:00 Ugly Betty
23:00 Entourage
23:30 American Dad
00:00 Cavemen
TRT Tourýsm Radýo
8
8
6
07:30 Hidden Places
09:15 McLeod’s Daughters
10:00 A Storm in Summer
11:45 Mary and Tim
13:30 Hidden Places
15:15 McLeod’s Daughters
16:15 A Storm in Summer
18:00 Mary and Tim
19:45 Sea Patrol
21:00 Inspector Morse
23:00 The Devil’s Arithmetic
00:45 The Murders in the Rue
Morgue
02:30 The Devil’s Arithmetic
radýo guýde
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Goldmax
06:55 The Color Purple
09:25 The Asphalt Jungle
11:15 Oh, God! Book II
12:50 The Day After Tomorrow
15:00 All Over the Guy
16:35 Protocol
18:15 Dead Heat
20:00 Heart and Souls
21:50 The Ten Commandments:
The Musical
23:55 Captain Ron
01:35 Freddy’s Nightmares: Dream
Come True
02:25 Body Count
Movýemax
HARD
2
8
18:10 My Name is Earl
18:50 Smallville
20:00 24
22:00 Ghost Whisperer
23:00 Masters of Horror
24:00 Family Guy
00:30 Cold Case
01:15 CSI: NY
02:00 24
08:15 The Greatest Game Ever
Played
10:20 Scenes of a Sexual Nature
12:00 Jade Warrior
13:50 Ice Age: The Meltdown
15:25 The Riverman
17:00 Snow Wonder
18:40 Cheaper by the Dozen 2
20:30 Pan’s Labyrinth
22:40 Aeon Flux
00:20 Jekyll + Hyde
01:50 Venom
Mr. DýploMAT!
3
Cnbc-e
REUTERS
(All showings in Turkish) ÝSTANBUL:
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ANTALYA: Migros: 11:45 13:45 15:45
17:45 19:45
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22 Rogue almost achieved fraud (4)
24 Seeking the best, I lay down cards
— I refuse more, discarding king
(10)
26 Recess in loft wherein one may
put post (10)
28 Showing enthusiasm for just four
out of 17 (4)
29 Philosopher’s singular skill with
religious subject (6)
30 Log hut built in hawthorn wood
(8)
Down
2 Whereon Handel may have written a version of Partenope (9)
3 A tangle over Europe lacking professionalism (7)
4 Increase by a fifth in trawlers is
threatening sound (5)
5 Free journey that never ends (3)
6 Gladiator catches up, with a sharp
point mostly (9)
7 Artist showing some power over
water at Giverny (7)
8 Make alterations to right waist
measurement (5)
12 Disturbing horse cut by hansom,
perhaps (7)
15 Key union? Hardly (9)
17 Not good being on 23, perhaps, in
this game (9)
19 Temperature unusually set for
rough weather (7)
21 Son and relatives are in error
playing in the street (7)
23 Church in area such as Dresden,
perhaps (5)
25 Parasite left tree without its
crown (5)
27 Unit regularly brought in for
home (3)
A L
A
R D
E
O T
T
I E
S T
I
U N
W
E A
R
ME
Ambulance: 112 Fire: 110 171 Police: 155 156 Maritime: 158 Unknown numbers: 118 Turkish Airlines: 444 0 849, U.S. Embassy: 0312 455 5555 U.S.
Consulate: 0212 2513602-3-4 Russian Embassy: 0312 439 2122 Russian Consulate: 0212 244 1693-2610 British Embassy: 0312 455 3344 British Consulate:
0212 293 7540 German Embassy. 0312 455 5100 German Consulate: 0212 334 61 00 French Embassy: 0312 455 4545 French Consulate: 0212 292 4810-11
Indian Embassy: 0312 438 2195 Pakistani Embassy: 0312 427 1410 Austrian Embassy: 0312 419 0431-33 Austrian Consulate: 0212 262 9315 Belgian Embassy:
0312 446 8247 Belgian Consulate: 0212 243 3300 Egyptian Embassy: 0312 426 1026 Egyptian Consulate: 0212 263 6038 Israeli Embassy: 0312 446 3605
CM Y K
00:00 Identification and
Programming
00:25 Music
07:25 Identification and
Programming
07:30 Music
08:30 News (English, French,
German)
08:40 Live Broadcast (English,
German, Russian)
German, Greek, Russian)
German, Russian)
12.45 Live Broadcast (English,
German, Russian)
German, Russian)
French)
Greek)
23:58 Identification
Broadcast Areas:
Alanya FM 94.4
Ankara FM 100.3
Antalya FM 92.1
Ayvalýk FM 101.1
Bodrum FM 97.4
Fethiye FM 103.1
Ýstanbul FM 101.6
Ýzmir FM 101.6
Kalkan FM 105.9
Kapadokya FM 103.0
Kuþadasý FM 101.9
Marmaris FM 101.0
Pamukkale FM 101.0
Trabzon FM 101.5
22.05.2008
19:24
Page 1
CONTINUATION
TODAY’S ZAMAN 17
F R I D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 0 8
TURGUT ENGÝN
T17-23-05-08.qxd
PHOTO
He said the statement was an appropriate way for the judiciary to defend its dignity
and independence.
Bahçeli also called on the president to intervene in the political scene to avoid a regime crisis.
"Top representatives of the executive, legislative
and judicial branches should get together under the
leadership of the president," Bahçeli suggested.
The MHP leader said Turkey was undergoing
a very dangerous phase of polarization and that
common national and spiritual values were being
turned into instruments of political exploitation.
In a quick reply yesterday, President
Abdullah Gül said he was ready to consider stepping in to alleviate the tension. "Following the
polarization of Turkish society along the lines of
religion, belief and ethnicity, this polarization has
reflected itself in public institutions. Recent developments indicate that constitutional institutions
are next in this process," Bahçeli said.
Bahçeli accused Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdoðan and his AK Party of having launched an
"illegal and immoral campaign of harassment,
threats and terror" against the Turkish judiciary.
He claimed that the AK Party had declared a
"personal jihad" against the judiciary. Bahçeli also said the AK Party had trampled on Turkey's
dignity and pride in the pursuit of its political ambitions, claiming that the government was seeking help in "foreign capitals" to put pressure on
the Constitutional Court.
Also on Thursday, the Board of Chairmen
of the Council of State stepped into the row.
A statement released by the board said
The Young Civilians, a civil society organization, stage a demonstration at Ankara's Güvenpark
in protest of a statement issued by members of the Supreme Court of Appeals yesterday.
Ufuk Uras, also commented about the statement
on Thursday, saying the judiciary should remain
impartial in "these matters." He said, "Members
of the judiciary should not be acting like political
parties or deputies."
The Young Civilians youth organization
protested the court's statement yesterday. In a
press statement three spokespeople from the
group delivered at Ankara's Güvenpark, the
Young Civilians recommended that the Supreme
Court of Appeals set up a political party. In
tongue-in-cheek comments, the group also advised the court that a good, threatening communiqué should not be longer than a couple of
pages to avoid "smothering the message."
Also yesterday, a petition addressing members
of the judiciary posted on the Internet called for the
full independence and impartiality of the judiciary.
Çiçek's words had caused irritation, forcing
them to convene yesterday.
"We would like to say that there is nothing
politically motivated in a judicial organ making
a statement about issues that directly concern
organs of the judiciary," it said, accusing the
government of attempting to open the legitimacy of the high judiciary to debate.
Some members of the Supreme Court of
Appeals have expressed irritation about a statement the court's board of chairmen issued on
Wednesday that accused the government of attempting to create a pro-government judiciary.
Motherland Party (ANAVATAN) head Erkan
Mumcu said the judiciary had the right to condemn the recent pressure and criticism directed
at all of Turkey's judicial institutions. The leader
of the Freedom and Democracy Party (ÖDP),
The letter, posted on a Web log (blog) titled "do not decide in my place," was undersigned by ordinary citizens, although some academics and writers, including Professor
Mustafa Erdoðan, Ýhsan Daðý and Emre Uslu,
could also be seen on the list. The authors of
the letter remained anonymous because, they
said, they wanted the focus to be on the petition itself and not on who is behind it.
The petition read: "As an individual who
deeply believes in the ideal of a 'democratic,
secular and social state of law,' who has adopted
the fundamental principles of the republic, who
owns up to these principles and who makes
great effort to protect and elevate these principles; I ask of you not to decide in my place if you
are not going to make any contribution to solving the problems of the judiciary; if you are going to use the posts you occupy as instruments
of expression of your own political views; if you
are going to try to block a political party elected
on the promise of drafting a new constitution
from drafting a new constitution." The statement is posted at http://benimadimakararverme.blogspot.com
The recent tension between the government
and the high judiciary first surfaced when an indictment was filed with the Constitutional Court on
March 14 by the chief prosecutor of the Supreme
Court of Appeals on the grounds that the AK Party
had become a "focal point of anti-secular activity."
The prosecutor's indictment also calls for a five-year
political ban on 71 people, including 33 AK Party
deputies, President Abdullah Gül and Prime
Minister Erdoðan. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman
PHOTO
PHOTO
TARIK ÖZTÜRK
ANAVATAN leader Erkan Mumcu
PHOTO
MEHMET KAMAN
DYP leader Süleyman Soylu
BBP leader Muhsin Yazýcýoðlu
DSP leader Zeki Sezer
while the ÖDP did. Another party that did not
participate in the elections was ANAVATAN,
which had unsuccessfully attempted to merge
with the DYP under the roof of the Democrat
Party (DP) before the elections.
Under the Political Parties Law, a political
party that has not entered two consecutive general elections must be closed down by the
Constitutional Court. Thus, ANAVATAN, the
DSP, the BBP and the DYP will be closed down
if they do not participate in the next general
elections. But running in general elections is in
itself no easy task, and for a number of reasons,
including funding problems, closure is a real
threat for these four parties.
This might have important consequences in possible early elections, political
analysts argue, as these parties will refrain
from cooperating with other parties.
It is very unlikely that the BBP will cooper-
DP leader Süleyman Soylu has recently called
on former Prime Minister Tansu Çiller, onetime leader of the DYP, to return to the DP,
which further complicated the possibilities for
a merger with ANAVATAN. Similarly, a
group within ANAVATAN has invited their
former leader, Mesut Yýlmaz, to return to the
party. If Çiller and Yýlmaz assume their previous posts in their respective parties, the two
parties will never merge, it is said.
Following the initiation of the closure case
against the AK Party, the DP has increased its
calls for Çiller to return to the party and she has
stated that she will return to active politics. The
DP is now expected to hold an extraordinary
party congress at which the party's leadership
will change hands from Soylu to Çiller. It is said
that Çiller may once again be at the helm of the
party by the end of August.
Yýlmaz, on other hand, is trying to unite the
center right in a major political formation that
will bring together four main political strands in
much the same manner as the former ANAVATAN (then-ANAP) leader, the late President
Turgut Özal, did. To this end, he is holding talks
with social democrats, conservatives, nationalists and liberals for this big project. Yýlmaz is not
expected to return to his party without first seeing whether this project will hold or not.
Subcontracting system, lack of occupational safety blamed for Tuzla deaths
Minister of Environment and Forestry
Veysel Eroðlu said yesterday in
Parliament that a number of factors, including
lack of occupational safety measures, were behind the accidents and deaths that have been
plaguing the Tuzla shipyards for years.
"There are no risk analyses, no educational
programs, no health checks, no teams to combat fires, no checks of electrical systems, no use
of personal safety equipment, no classification
of areas prone to explosions," said Eroðlu during yesterday's Parliament meeting.
At the same meeting, Republican People's
Party (CHP) deputy Mehmet Sevigen said the
Tuzla shipyards have become a "graveyard"
and accused the ruling party deputies of not
taking action to prevent the deaths.
"Why don't you go to the prime minister and tell him there is something wrong?"
Sevigen asked, while also blaming Minister
of Labor and Social Security Faruk Çelik for
the work-related incidents.
Replying to Sevigen, Eroðlu said there
are a number of problems, including long
work hours, inadequate occupational safety
measures and having unqualified workers
employed by subcontractors.
"Before 2002, there were 32 companies, now
there are 43. Prior to 2002, there were almost no
subcontractors but now there are 563," Eroðlu said.
Eroðlu indicated that a surge in worldwide demand for cargo ships of every kind
has greatly benefited Turkey as an "emerging
shipbuilding country" in recent years, infusing the country with significant amounts of
foreign cash and providing an abundance of
employment opportunities to local markets.
He noted that 20,000 people are registered as working at Tuzla shipyards today
compared to 4,000 prior to 2002.
The tragic deaths of two workers at a Tuzla
shipyard last week prompted unions and civil
society organizations to call on the government
to take swift action in regulating the industry.
Since 1983, when shipyards began operating in
Tuzla, 74 workers have died from work-related
accidents. The total number of accidents also
shot up to 227 last year from 73 in 2002.
A subcontracting system that was set up to
help the industry develop further and become
competitive has now turned into a major
headache for the government as it tries to implement stringent occupational safety regulations within the industry. Over 90 percent of
orders are being completed through the subcontracting system, which works very much in
favor of ship owners and continues to be the
major source of negligence and violations.
Unions argue that ship owners and builders try
to evade accountability by delegating responsibility to small and medium-sized contractors.
Necip Nalbantoðlu, president of a union (Dok
Gemi-Ýþ Sendikasý) for workers in the shipbuilding
CM Y K
Following their meeting, the visiting Austrian president poses with Prime Minister Erdoðan for press photos. Erdoðan
is wearing sunglasses owing to a minor eye ailment.
Austrian president meets
Erdoðan, visits Bartholomew
Austrian President Heinz Fischer, who is in
Turkey on an official visit upon an invitation
from President Abdullah Gül, traveled yesterday
from Ankara to Ýstanbul, where he first visited the
Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate.
The president was greeted by an impromptu welcoming committee of 10 Austrian tourists who had
heard about their president's scheduled visit and
were waiting for him outside the patriarchate. When
the president's car arrived, the tourists ran to it, saying, "Welcome Mr. President!" in German.
The president shook hands with the Austrian citizens and had a brief chat with them. After this unexpected meeting with his fellow countrymen, he entered the patriarchate, where he was greeted by
Metropolitan Mihail Staikos of Austria.
Fischer met with Fener Greek Patriarch
Bartholomew for half an hour and then visited the
church in the yard of the patriarchate. After this visit, he
attended a meeting of the Turkish-Austrian Council of
the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEÝK) held in
the Çýraðan Hotel. Fischer also met privately with Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan. Bayram Kaya Ýstanbul
ate with the MHP in the elections. The DSP has
already announced that it will not cooperate
with the CHP and ANAVATAN has suspended
its merger talks with the DYP. The DTP will enter the elections, but this will be symbolic, as it
will employ the independent deputy strategy
once again. Moreover, there is already an ongoing closure case against the DTP and, if it is
closed, the DTP deputies will establish a new
party to enter the elections.
Çiller returns, Yýlmaz undecided
PHOTO
While the ruling Justice and
Development Party (AK Party) and
the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society
Party (DTP) are under threat of closure
pending rulings by the Constitutional Court,
four other political parties will be shut down
if they fail to enter the next elections.
The True Path Party (DYP), the Motherland
Party (ANAVATAN), the Grand Unity Party
(BBP) and the Democratic Left Party (DSP) will
be automatically closed down if they do not participate in the elections as distinct parties.
Under Turkish election law, a political party
cannot participate in elections under alliances
with another party. For this reason, election alliances in Turkey must be established "under
the table," with one party allocating spaces on
its nomination list for members of the other
party. Due to Turkey's election threshold of 10
percent -- the highest in Europe -- many political parties cannot secure seats in Parliament.
Only three of the 13 parties that participated in
last year's July 22 general elections managed to
pass the threshold: the AK Party, the
Republican People's Party (CHP) and the
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
The DSP decided to enter the elections not
on its own, but by using the deputy seats allocated to it by the CHP. Another strategy for
overcoming the threshold obstacle is for a party's deputies to run as independent candidates,
thus bypassing the threshold, which does not
apply to independent deputies. This strategy
was used by the DTP, which managed to secure
20 seats in Parliament in the July 22 elections.
Using the same strategy, BBP leader Muhsin
Yazýcýoðlu and Freedom and Democracy Party
(ÖDP) leader Ufuk Uras got seats in
Parliament. The BBP did not enter the elections,
TARIK ÖZTÜRK
ERCAN YAVUZ ANKARA
ONUR ÇOBAN
Four parties face risk of automatic closure
PHOTO
ALÝ ÜNAL
Politicians, civil society groups criticize judicial declaration
business, said out of 61 deaths, 60 were workers
employed by subcontractors. Speaking yesterday at
Parliament's Human Rights Investigation
Commission's subcommittee looking into the fatal
accidents, Nalbantoðlu blamed the subcontracting
firms that employ unskilled workers.
"When there is a need for, say, 20 workers at a Tuzla shipyard, a subcontracting company is found to bring workers right out of
villages. These workers have never seen a
ship in their lives," Nalbantoðlu said.
On the other hand, Murat Bayrak, chairman of
the board of directors of the Turkish Shipbuilders
Assocation (GÝSBÝR), said at the same the commission is not right in blaming subcontracting firms,
which are used everywhere in Turkey.
"There need to be more inspections at the
shipyards. Occupational safety departments should
be established outside of the shipyard as an entity
under the Ministry of Labor and Social Security,"
stated Bayrak. Ýstanbul Today's Zaman with wires
Greek Embassy honors
airborne firefighters
Greek Ambassador to Turkey Fotios Jean Xydas
yesterday honored two pilots, one Greek and one
Turkish, with medals for their valiant effort during last
summer's devastating forest fires in Greece.
Xydas offered medals to Greek pilot Vasilios
Papaanastasiu and his Turkish colleague Mehmet Atalay
at a ceremony held at the Greek Embassy in Ankara. The
ambassador also thanked Turkey for sending a firefighting
airplane in a bid to contribute to emergency assistance
provided by the international community last summer.
"Turkey, which experiences similar disasters during
the summer season and knows about the grief caused
by the destruction of natural life by fires, is sensitive
about forest fire disasters in neighboring countries as
well. Our country, which had earlier lent support by allocating airplanes and helicopters during forest fires in
Georgia and Macedonia, hopes the disaster in Greece
will finish as soon as possible," the Turkish Foreign
Ministry said at the time. Mehmet Kaman Ankara
Þemdinli sergeant
arrested over murder case
A military sergeant, a suspect in the 2005 bombing of a
bookstore in Þemdinli, and two other suspects were arrested in the southwestern city of Isparta on Thursday on
charges of the attempted murder of a construction worker who
disappeared in the same city in late March. According to a
statement released by the Isparta Police Department yesterday,
Sgt. Tanju Çavuþ was sent to Isparta's E-type closed prison on
Thursday along with two other defendants in connection with
the disappearance of Sali Uçar, 35, a construction worker who
arrived in Isparta on March 26 to complete the necessary paperwork to sell his car to Caner Altan. Uçar's whereabouts are
still not known, the statement said. Isparta Today's Zaman
Furnished rooms for rent from
female owner
please contact:
0532 234 61 77
Your tour guide in Ýstanbul
0532 234 61 77
PRIVATE CITY GUIDE
32F
0532 281 80 41
T18-23-05-08.qxd
22.05.2008
16:48
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22.05.2008
19:22
Page 1
SPORTS
Brazilian Kaka may need knee surgery
Brazil and AC Milan playmaker Kaka may require an operation
on his left knee, Globo television reported. The World player
of the Year will be examined today by Brazil team doctor Jose
Luis Runco in Rio de Janeiro to decide whether he will have to
undergo surgery, Globo said. Rio de Janeiro, Reuters
SOCCER
Turkey, Portugal to be
first Euro 2008 arrivals
Van der Sar the hero ýn
Man U’s shootout trýumph
PHOTOS
REUTERS
Turkey and Portugal will be the first teams to arrive
at their base camps for next month’s UEFA Euro
2008. Group A rivals Turkey and Portugal will arrive
at their bases in Neuchatel and Geneva, respectively, on June 1. Teams preparing for the finals in
Austria, Poland (Bad Waltersdorf) and Italy (Baden
bei Wien) will arrive on June 2. Under UEFA Euro
2008 regulations, every team must arrive at its team
base camp at least five days before its first match.
Spain will be the last of the 16 nations to arrive at its
Tyrol headquarters on June 5. The referees will
check into their hotel in Regensdorf near Zurich on
June 2. Most training sessions will be held behind
closed doors, but 14 of the 16 teams may abide by
the UEFA's recommendation to open at least one
training session to the public. Ýstanbul Today’s Zaman
GOLF
McGinley boosts Ryder
hopes with fast start
Irishman Paul McGinley, who resigned as
Europe's Ryder Cup vice captain last year, boosted
his qualification hopes by taking the early first
round clubhouse lead at the PGA Championship
on Thursday. McGinley stood down as captain
Nick Faldo's right hand man in September in order to play his way into the team and showed belated signs of doing so by firing a seven-underpar 65 at the European Tour's flagship event at
Wentworth. The Irishman, who holed the 2002
Ryder Cup winning putt in the first of three consecutive victories he's played in, lies 32nd on the
European points list to qualify for the Sept. 19-21
match against the US. “I have struggled most of
the year with poor first rounds and I'm thrilled to
get away to a good start in the tournament as its a
long time since I have done that,” McGinley
told reporters after his round. Virginia Water Reuters
Agony for Terry as penalty
miss costs Chelsea trophy
Ten days ago John Terry was carried off the
pitch with a dislocated shoulder but that will be
nothing compared with the pain he will be feeling after missing the chance to win the
Champions League for Chelsea. The script had
fallen perfectly for the hugely popular club captain as he strode up to take his team's fifth
penalty of Wednesday's shootout in the final
against Manchester United. Michael Ballack,
Juliano Belletti, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole
had all scored and with Petr Cech saving from
United's Cristiano Ronaldo, Terry merely had to
score from 12 meters to win the ultimate prize
for the London club for the first time.
However, the center-back, playing with a
protective strapping on his damaged shoulder,
slipped on contact and watched in despair as
his penalty clipped the outside of Edwin van der
Sar's left post and flew wide. Moments later
Van der Sar saved Chelsea substitute Nicolas
Anelka's effort and United were the champions. “As always, in such situations, everybody
leapt to Terry's defense, led by Lampard,
who had earlier scored to cancel out
Ronaldo's opening goal for United. Moscow Reuters
BASKETBALL
Bryant leads LA
Lakers past Spurs
Kobe Bryant scored all but two of his 27 points
after halftime, including a go-ahead, 10-foot
jump shot in the lane with 23.9 seconds remaining, and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from a
20-point deficit to beat the San Antonio Spurs
89-85 on Wednesday in Game 1 of the Western
Conference finals. Game 2 will be played tonight
before the best-of-seven series shifts to San
Antonio for the third and fourth games. The
Lakers are 7-0 in the postseason at Staples
Center, where they've won 13 straight games
overall. Bryant's jumper put the Lakers ahead for
good after two free throws by Manu Ginobili
with 1:22 remaining and a follow shot by Tim
Duncan with 41 seconds left tied the game at 85.
Ginobili then missed a 3-pointer, and Sasha
Vujacic made two free throws with 7.3 seconds
remaining to complete the scoring. Los Angeles AP
Man United players celebrate with the cup after they defeated Chelsea to win the UEFA Champions League final match at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.
Manchester United were crowned kings
of Europe for the third time on
Wednesday night when they beat
Chelsea 6-5 on penalties after a breathless allEnglish Champions League final had finished 1-1
after extra time. United's 37-year-old goalkeeper
Edwin van der Sar, appearing in his third final 13
years after his first with Ajax Amsterdam, saved
the decisive spot kick from substitute Nicolas
Anelka. The victory completed a famous double
for the Old Trafford team who pipped Chelsea to
the Premier League title 10 days ago.
It was an emotional triumph for United, coming 50 years after the Munich air disaster, and there
was a huge cheer for one of the survivors, Bobby
Charlton, when he joined the team at the presentation of the trophy he lifted in 1968 before Alex
Ferguson led the team to a second success in 1999.
“We've had fate on our side all season and I felt
BASKETBALL
Shock prevails after
tight WNBA 4th quarter
Deanna Nolan hit the go-ahead jumper with 2:01
left as the Detroit Shock beat the Indiana Fever
76-71 in the WNBA on Wednesday. Kara Braxton
scored a career-high 22 points for the Shock, and
Nolan finished with 14 points and eight assists.
Katie Douglas had 26 points to lead Indiana,
which couldn't overcome 27 turnovers. Detroit
coach Bill Laimbeer left the mercurial Braxton out
of the starting lineup, and the move paid off early
as she came off the bench to score eight points
in the first period, and Indiana turned the ball
over 10 times in the quarter. Auburn Hills, Michigan AP
AP
Amanmuradova upsets
Petrova in Ýstanbul Cup
Sixth-seeded Akgul Amanmuradova of Uzbekistan
upset third-seeded Nadia Petrova on Thursday in
the quarterfinals of the WTA Ýstanbul Cup.
Amanmuradova beat the 25th-ranked Russian 7-6
(0), 1-6, 6-4 in the clay-court tournament, a
warm-up event for the French Open. Secondseeded Agnieszka Radwanska rallied to defeat
Andreja Klepac 1-6, 6-2, 6-4. Ýstanbul Today’s Zaman
over Michael Carrick's follow-up drive. Chelsea
had shown little but leveled when Essien's longrange shot was deflected into the path of
Lampard, who duly dispatched it from six meters.
The Londoners looked much more energized in the second half as Michael Essien and
Michael Ballack fired shots just over. The patient, European-style approach of the opening
quarter had been replaced by football with a
Premier League trademark -- high-paced and
physical, with a sprinkling of errors and battered
bodies littering the temporary turf. Didier
Drogba was among them 12 minutes from time,
but as he has so often before, made a miraculous
recovery to curl a 20-meter shot against a post.
Ryan Giggs, the only survivor from United's
treble-winning 1999 final team, came off the bench
in the 87th minute for his 759th appearance,
breaking Charlton's club record. But he could not
Hamilton sets the pace in Monaco
PHOTO
TENNIS
that fate played its hand with John Terry slipping,”
Ferguson said of the Chelsea captain's penalty miss.
It was a heartbreaking night for Terry, who had the
chance to take the trophy to Stamford Bridge for
the first time but sent what would have been the
winning penalty against the outside of the post.
“John Terry's a man's man, not many center-halves
will stand up and say I will take the last penalty because everybody knows that's the thing it can hang
on,” said Frank Lampard, whose equalizer had
cancelled out Cristiano Ronaldo's opener.
United's Portugal winger had been inexplicably left unmarked to head home a curled rightwing cross from fullback Wes Brown for the 42nd
goal of his all-conquering season. The goal
brought the game to life as Van der Sar prevented
a Rio Ferdinand own goal with a terrific instinctive save while Chelsea's Petr Cech kept out
Carlos Tevez's stooping header and then tipped
Lewis
Hamilton
McLaren's Lewis Hamilton turned the
tables on Ferrari with the fastest lap in
Thursday's Monaco Grand Prix practice. The
23-year-old Briton, runnerup in the
Mediterranean principality in a McLaren
one-two last year, showed his mastery of the
tight and twisty streets with an afternoon lap
of one minute 15.140 seconds.
His friend and rival Nico Rosberg, also running on the softer tires, was second quickest in a
Williams. Ferrari's world champion Kimi
Raikkonen, seven points clear of Hamilton and
his own Brazilian teammate Felipe Massa after
five races, had set the pace in the morning with a
CM Y K
time of 1:15.948. He was third in the afternoon.
Despite Ferrari having won four of the season's
five races to date, McLaren are strongly fancied
to win on Sunday at a circuit that has favored
them more than any team in recent years.
Brazil's Felipe Massa, winner of two of the
last three races, was fourth for Ferrari in both sessions but the Brazilian is no fan of the most glamorous race on the calendar. “There is nothing to
explain, I don't like it and that's it,” he said on
Wednesday. I prefer tracks like Turkey, Spa, with
quick corners. Real tracks. I don't like Monaco.
I am not having fun driving here but that doesn't
mean I can't be competitive.” Monaco Reuters
fashion a repeat of the storied last-gasp victory of
that year and the game went into extra time.
Chelsea maintained their momentum and
Lampard scooped a shot against the bar within
four minutes of the restart but they needed Terry
to deny Giggs a fairytale goal by heading the
winger's shot over the bar with Cech beaten.
As the clock ticked down -- towards 2am local
time -- tempers boiled over and Drogba was sent
off for slapping Nemanja Vidic. The shootout first
went Chelsea's way as Ronaldo, who had missed a
penalty early in the semifinal against Barcelona,
saw his effort saved. Ballack, Juliano Belletti,
Lampard and Ashley Cole all scored for Chelsea
but when Terry failed the momentum shifted.
Anderson and Giggs netted for United and, although Salomon Kalou was on target for Chelsea,
Van der Sar blocked Anelka's effort to secure
the giant silver trophy once again. Moscow Reuters
Telekom to face
Fener in TBL finals
Türk Telekom beat Beþiktaþ Cola Turka 7571 in game three of their men’s Beko
Turkish Basketball League playoff semifinal series
at Ankara’s Atatürk Sports Hall on Wednesday
night for a 3-1 lead and a berth in the finals. Türk
Telekom started the series with a 1-0 lead, having beaten Cola Turka at home and on the road
in the regular season. Telekom’s final opponent
will be defending champion Fenerbahçe Ülker,
which pounded Efes Pilsen 3-0 in the other
semifinal series. Beþiktaþ led 17-14 in the first
period. However, Telekom rebounded in the
second period to take a 40-33 and then went
on to win the thrilling game. Ýstanbul Today’s Zaman