Turkey press scan
Güncelleme Tarihi:
These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in Turkish press on December 3rd, 2005. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET
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DISCUSSION REGARDING ANA PLANE
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's journey to New Zealand and Australia by an A319 ANA plane caused some discussions. Turkish Airlines (THY) asked the Civilian Aviation Directorate Generalto allow ANA plane to fly to New Zealand and Australia, but the directorate general said that medium-range ANA plane is not suitable for transoceanic flights and its pilots are not eligible for such flights. Later, a new route which keeps ANA plane closer to airports on the way to New Zealand was set.
PLANE TURBULENCE
13 passengers including four crew members were injured when a Turkish Airlines (THY) Airbus 321 plane, en route from Dusseldorf to Istanbul, hit turbulence and plunged several thousand feet. There were 113 passengers and five crew members aboard the plane.
MILLIYET
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THIS SHIP WRITES HISTORY AGAIN
Dr. Cemal Pulak from Texas University examined ruins of a ship which was found in Yenikapi (district of Istanbul) during tunnel excavation for Marmaray project. Pulak said that such a ship, belonging to 11th century, is seen for the first time.
ERDOGAN'S CALCULATION MISTAKE
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who defends that Justice & Development Party (AKP) municipalities obey rules of the Constitution regarding sale of alcoholic beverages, said that 80 percent of traffic accidents are caused by drunk drivers. However, Security Department stated that only 3,690 of 459,734 accidents are related with alcohol this year. Thus, the ratio is 0.80 percent, not 80 percent.
SABAH
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10 PEOPLE INJURED DURING TURBULENCE
Turkish Airlines (THY) plane en route from Dusseldorf to Istanbul hit turbulence over (northwestern city) Tekirdag. Strong turbulence caused panic aboard the plane and 4 crew members and 6 passengers were injured. Those who were wounded did not fasten safety belts.
LAWSUIT AGAINST 5 JOURNALISTS
A lawsuit was filed against journalists Hasan Cemal, Ismet Berkan, Haluk Sahin, Murat Belge and Erol Katircioglu due to their articles against the verdict of the court which postponed Armenian conference. The journalists will be tried on charges of attempting to influence fair jurisdiction.
VATAN
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INFLATION TARGET ACHIEVED
Consumer prices rose by 1.4 percent while producer prices dropped by 0.95 percent in November 2005. Annual inflation as of November was 7.61 percent in consumer price index (TUFE), and 1.60 percent in producer price index (UFE).
FIVE JOURNALISTS TO BE TRIED
Five journalists; Hasan Cemal, Ismet Berkan, Haluk Sahin, Murat Belge and Erol Katircioglu, will be tried as they criticized the court verdict which postponed Armenian conference that was scheduled to be held at Bogazici University in Istanbul.
CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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BE READY FOR SHOCKS
International Monetary Fund (IMF) Turkey representative Hugh Bredenkamp said that it was not the time for Turkey to be in lassitude and noted that Turkish Finance Ministry and the government should be cautious about possible shocks. Meanwhile, Association of Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen (TUSIAD) Chairman Sabanci warned against current account deficit.
RELIGION LESSON AT MOSQUE
Justice & Development Party's (AKP) plan for practical religion lesson at mosques, which was withdrawn due to reactions, was implemented in northwestern cities of Yalova and Istanbul. The Religion teacher brought students of Yalova Ataturk Elementary School to mosque and make them perform namaz (prayer).
RADIKAL
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SEZER'S INSTRUCTION ON IRAQ
Policies about a 'federal Kurdish state' which is acquiring a shape in Iraq were discussed in the meeting of National Security Council (MGK) that was held in Ankara on November 24th. The meeting focused on two issues; one of them is that Iraq will be a new country after elections on December 15th and the other is that if Turkey recognizes this new country, it will also have to recognize federal status in Iraq. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer said in the meeting, “it is obvious that Turkey should adopt a new policy”. His statement was approved both by the Turkish government and Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok.
TODAY INTERNATIONAL DAY OF DISABLED PERSONS
Several activities will be held in the country today on the occasion of the International Day of Disabled Persons, December 3rd. A photograph exhibition on disabled persons' problems and difficulties will open in Armada Shopping Mall in Ankara today.
TURKIYE
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STREETS FULL OF CRIME
Homeless children in Turkey are the target of terrorist organizations, street gangs and organized crime gangs. According to statistics, 98,000 children committed crimes last year and 28,000 children were involved in several crimes in the first four months of 2005. There are nearly 500,000 homeless children in Turkey.
FENERBAHCE 2 - TRABZONSPOR 2
After winning the last 12 Turkcell Super League 2005-2006 season matches, leaders Fenerbahce drew 2-2 with Trabzonspor in yesterday's match at their home ground, Sukru Saracoglu Stadium in Istanbul.
ZAMAN
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VIRTUE PARTY WITHDRAWS LAWSUIT
The lawsuit, which was filed by Virtue Party (FP) against Turkey at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), was withdrawn. Recai Kutan, deputy chairman of the Felicity Party, said, “after its decision on Leyla Sahin's headscarf case, it was understood that the justice of ECHR is unreliable.”
CERRAH: PKK SUPPORTS SNATCH & RUN GANGS
Police launched a broad operation against drug and snatch & run gangs in Istanbul and (southeastern city) Diyarbakir. Istanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah said, “it was revealed that the gangs were supported by terrorist organizations.”
YENI SAFAK (CONSERVATIVE)
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RUNWAY NOT SUITABLE, PLANES FIT FOR RUNWAY
Interesting solutions were found for the 3rd runway of Istanbul's Ataturk Airport which cannot be used due to the height of 300 buildings in the near-by neighborhood Sefakoy. Planes are making cuts in their cargo weight and passenger numbers, and they took off from the runway 500 meters behind the normal take-off point.
CIA PLANE LANDS TWICE
Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim said that U.S. plane which is called 'CIA plane' landed in Turkey twice, on October 30th and November 15th, and stayed for 21 hours.