Former Cypriot leader wiretapped
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 11, 2009 00:00
ANKARA - Former Turkish Cypriot President Rauf Denktaş was wiretapped by the alleged Ergenekon gang, the latest documents found at Ergenekon suspect Mustafa Özbek's house and office revealed.
"He started to pose a risk for Turkey," the documents read, in relation to Denktaş, who supported his own son, Serdar Denktaş, for the presidency post.
According to the documents, the alleged gang established a "supreme council" within itself and sent some of its members to northern Cyprus to manipulate the 1998 elections. As opposed to Denktaş’s support for his son, the Ergenekon gang considered then Prime Minister Derviş Eroğlu as the most appropriate figure to become president in 2000. Thus, the 1998 elections were critically important to pave the way for Eroğlu’s presidency. The documents showed that Özbek, the former president of the Turkish Metal Union, sent $20 million to the island to be used for election campaigning.
Ergenekon also established interception stations in northern Cyprus and wiretapped many names besides Denktaş. The documents at Özbek’s house included the details of Serdar Denktaş’s conversation with a general. "You cannot imagine what these people [related to the Ergenekon gang] can do. É
I will withdraw my support from you for my and your salvation," the general was quoted as saying in the documents. But Denktaş, who is the current leader of the Democratic Party in northern Cyprus, denied the existence of the phone conversation late Friday.
Upon the release of the documents, Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer demanded that prosecutors launch an investigation into Rauf Denktaş and Eroğlu upon claims that they had links to Ergenekon. Denktaş opposed the investigation, saying he is not an offender but a victim. Later, Soyer agreed with Denktaş, though he maintained his stance against Eroğlu, the leader of the National Unity Party, or UBP. "The UBP is the indictee," Soyer told reporters Friday.
Brief history of island
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, or its Turkish acronym KKTC, are the names used in Turkey and in the northern third of the island to describe the Turkish-controlled portion that declared its independence in 1983.
Internationally, the Greek administration in the south is recognized and the island is referred to as the Republic of Cyprus. After repeated outbreaks of violence between the Greek and Turkish populations, the military government of Greece launched a coup in 1974 seeking to annex the island to Greece. After a failed bid to gain UK intervention to turn back the coup, Turkey intervened itself. That division of the island has remained to this day.
For purposes of clarity, the Daily News generally uses the terms Turkish Cyprus and Greek Cyprus to refer to the two administrations.
According to the documents, the alleged gang established a "supreme council" within itself and sent some of its members to northern Cyprus to manipulate the 1998 elections. As opposed to Denktaş’s support for his son, the Ergenekon gang considered then Prime Minister Derviş Eroğlu as the most appropriate figure to become president in 2000. Thus, the 1998 elections were critically important to pave the way for Eroğlu’s presidency. The documents showed that Özbek, the former president of the Turkish Metal Union, sent $20 million to the island to be used for election campaigning.
Ergenekon also established interception stations in northern Cyprus and wiretapped many names besides Denktaş. The documents at Özbek’s house included the details of Serdar Denktaş’s conversation with a general. "You cannot imagine what these people [related to the Ergenekon gang] can do. É
I will withdraw my support from you for my and your salvation," the general was quoted as saying in the documents. But Denktaş, who is the current leader of the Democratic Party in northern Cyprus, denied the existence of the phone conversation late Friday.
Upon the release of the documents, Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer demanded that prosecutors launch an investigation into Rauf Denktaş and Eroğlu upon claims that they had links to Ergenekon. Denktaş opposed the investigation, saying he is not an offender but a victim. Later, Soyer agreed with Denktaş, though he maintained his stance against Eroğlu, the leader of the National Unity Party, or UBP. "The UBP is the indictee," Soyer told reporters Friday.
Brief history of island
The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, or its Turkish acronym KKTC, are the names used in Turkey and in the northern third of the island to describe the Turkish-controlled portion that declared its independence in 1983.
Internationally, the Greek administration in the south is recognized and the island is referred to as the Republic of Cyprus. After repeated outbreaks of violence between the Greek and Turkish populations, the military government of Greece launched a coup in 1974 seeking to annex the island to Greece. After a failed bid to gain UK intervention to turn back the coup, Turkey intervened itself. That division of the island has remained to this day.
For purposes of clarity, the Daily News generally uses the terms Turkish Cyprus and Greek Cyprus to refer to the two administrations.