06 Alevis say they will apply to the

Socialist International for the CHP’s

06Demirta: If government sends the
right message, we guarantee that
19
Okur-less Utah Jazz
subdue Hedo’s Raptors

exemption from the organization violence will end within 3 months

Yo u r Wa y o f U n d e r s t a n d  n g T u r k e y
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009 WWW.TODAYSZAMAN.COM TL 1.50

page07 Civil servants to go on strike on Nov. 25

INJUSTICE DARK PLAN AGAINST MINORITIES

Hotline highlights
anti-Turkish
practices in EU
visa issuance
E. BARI ALTINTA, STANBUL
A hotline set up for Turkish citizens to re-
port difficulties and perceived injustices
faced in the process of acquiring Schengen vi-
sas, needed to travel to European Union mem-
ber countries, has within two days of its estab-
lishment already provided significant evidence
of the arbitrariness of EU visa officials when it
comes to issuing the visas to Turks.
The hotline, set up on Nov. 17 as a joint ef-
fort of the Economic Development Foundation
(KV), the Turkish Union of Chambers and
Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) and the
European Citizen Action Service (ECAS), re-
ceived 57 complaints in its first two days of going
into service. KV President Haluk Kabaliolu says
the complaints will serve to document difficulties
faced by what he referred to as “visa victims.”
Complaints shared with the hotline include
a call from three academics whose invitation to
a conference in Greece was declared “invalid”
by the Greek Consulate. When their counter-
parts in Greece resent the invitation, the consul-
ate issued them visas. But the academics missed
the first two days of the three-day conference.
“Even the professors in Greece were deeply sur-
TODAY’S ZAMAN, AL ÜNAL
Junta planned to dscredt AK Party
wth non-Muslm assassnatons
A CD seized in the office of retired Maj. Levent Bekta, an Ergenekon suspect, revealed that a junta nested
within the Naval Forces Command detailed a plan, called the Cage Operation Action Plan, to assassinate
prominent non-Muslim figures and put the blame for the killings on the governing AK Party
An anti-democratic formation within the Naval
Forces Command planned to destroy the gov-
erning Justice and Development Party (AK
Party) by assassinating prominent non-Muslim figures
in Turkey and putting the blame for the killings on the
party, Taraf daily reported in its headline story yesterday.
The plan was detailed in a CD seized in the office
of retired Maj. Levent Bekta, who was arrested in
April for suspected links to a large cache of munitions
unearthed during excavations on land owned by the
stek Foundation in stanbul's Poyrazköy district. That
discovery came as part of the investigation into
Ergenekon, a clandestine gang whose suspected
members are currently standing trial on charges of
having plotted to overthrow the government.
Police raided Bekta's office shortly after the discov-
ery and seized a large number of documents and CDs. A
technical analysis showed that a sinister plan against the
country's non-Muslim population was detailed in one of
the CDs, called the “Cage Operation Action Plan.” The
plan was signed by Lt. Col. Ercan Kireçtepe and was
planned to be put into operation by a team of 41 mem-

prised,” the caller said. Another complaint bers of the Naval Forces Command. The hoped-for re-
showed that the EU's desire to keep Turkish cit- sult from the assassinations of prominent non-Muslim
izens out might easily be exploited as a means figures and propaganda and would be an increase in in-
to serve the corrupt ways of petty officials and ternal and external pressure on the AK Party, leading to
even extortion. In this case, a businessman from its demise in politics, according to the plan.
stanbul, G.Y., applied for a Schengen visa to The action plan would be implemented to lend
the Belgian Consulate, which redirected him support to the suspects arrested so far as part of the
to an intermediary agency. CONTINUED ON PAGE 17 Ergenekon investigation; render ineffective so-
called psychological warfare waged by the AK Party
and its supporters (against the military); change the
PHOTO

ECONOMY course of the agenda in Turkey; boost the morale of

the junta within the Naval Forces Command; and
Second closure Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoan and Chief of General Staff Gen. lker Babu held their weekly meeting at the Prime Ministry win the appreciation and support of the public. The
blame for each of the assassinations by the junta
yesterday. The meeting lasted for one hour and 35 minutes. SEE STORY ON PAGE 17
case rumors lead to would be put on the AK Party. CONTINUED ON PAGE 05

massive MKB drop ‘CAGE ACTION A devious plan by a group of members of the Naval Forces Command
ERGENEKON PROBE The investigation into an alleged illegal network known as
to intimidate the country's non-Muslim population by assassinating Ergenekon has revealed that a civilian who was formerly employed
The stanbul Stock Exchange's (MKB)
benchmark index (MKB-100) has taken a PLAN’ PUT INTO some of their prominent figures, and in this way undermine the power
of the ruling party, had been put into operation, recent incidents in
EXPOSES SURVEILLANCE by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) had collected detailed informa-
tion on Turkey's ethnic Armenian population. Ergenekon investiga-
three-day-long dive due to political developments
within Turkey, a 6.4 percent dip that has scared OPERATION IN stanbul's Kurtulu neighborhood and Adalar district suggest. The plan
was exposed at a police raid on the office of retired Maj. Levent Bekta
OF ARMENIAN tors found that Fatma Cengiz, who is currently a suspect in the case
against Ergenekon, collected various dossiers regarding the Armenian
investors into thinking that this might be a sign of
a double-dip recession. The index, which hit
KURTULU, ADALAR as part of a probe launched after the discovery of a large arms cache in COMMUNITY community in Turkey. The file included a list of subscribers to the bi-
the Poyrazköy district in April. By EMNE DOLMACI CONTINUED ON PAGE 05 lingual Armenian weekly Agos. By BÜRA ERDAL CONTINUED ON PAGE 05
51,380.65 in the last week of October, setting a
three-month high, had plunged to 46,244.43 at
the end of the first session of trading yesterday.
According to experts this plunge has its roots in
political occurrences within Turkey, especially
Ergenekon
17 defendant 06 beacon 17 Ergenekon
the recent introduction of the democratic initia- Democratic move Ar sponsors pro-
tive in Parliament and the rumored possibility Balbay of hope for meeting
of a second closure case against the ruling
denies accusations exiled writers at US Congress
reform

conference
trial

Justice and Development Party (AK Party).

Recent warnings from experts that the global The Cumhuriyet daily's Kurdish intellectuals The Ar Foundation, a civil
recession could be a double-dip recession and a Ankara representative, and artists forced to leave society organization previ-
warning from Templeton Emerging Markets Fund Mustafa Balbay, who is Turkey in the aftermath of ously known for its liberal
President Mark Mobius that the MKB might fall accused of “inciting the peo- the country's 1980 coup stance and contributions to
in the short run due to “necessary corrections” led ple to armed revolt against d'état are hopeful that the the normalization of civilian-
to the MKB's decline to a two-month low on the government” as a mem- AK Party government's military relations, has organ-
Thursday. According to Ersagun imek from Tera ber of Ergenekon, has denied democratization initiative ized a conference at the US
Stock Brokers "increasing political risks are adding all charges directed will pave the way for Congress, criticizing the
to the pessimism" in the markets. CONTINUED ON PAGE 07 against him. their return. investigation into Ergenekon.

Featuring news and articles from

‘ 02 TODAY’S ZAMAN

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

‘ Q U O T E O F T H E D AY
‘ FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009

WORDS OF WISDOM
PRESS REVIEW

colu m ns
We are on a path and a process There is nothing I can give to my An animal’s eyes have Democratic initiative
where I would anticipate that people, so I should quit. My decision is the power to speak a changing everyone
Guantánamo will be closed next year. clear: I will not run in any elections. great language. SABAH MAHMUT ÖVÜR
The “democratic initiative,”
US President Barack Obama Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Martin Buber much criticized by oppositi-
on forces as being “empty on
the inside,” has, since it spilled
over into Parliament, begun
to shake and change many
things in Turkey. Perhaps we are not enti-
rely aware of these changes as we are living
CROSS READER amidst them, but the fact is that everything
and everyone is undergoing change, from
FATMA DL ZIBAK
pr ess rou n du p our political institutions to our military, and

AA, HÜSEYN HASKAN

f.zibak@todayszaman.com from the justice system to civil society or-
ganizations.Turks are learning more about
Kurdish matters, of which they did not much
know much. As for the Kurds, they are dis-
cussing how to create a shared life for them-
Unarmed forces selves without separating from Turkey.

at work agan The regime had

PHOTO
On Wednesday lawyers registered at the stanbul Bar As-
sociation held a demonstration in stanbul’s Taksim Squa- Atatürk lived…
re to protest the alleged wiretapping of the telephones of BUGÜN NUH GÖNÜLTA
some members of the judiciary despite statements from
In the days that ultimately led Turkey to the
Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin dismissing the wiretap-
Feb. 28 [1997] process, Hasan Mezarc once
ping allegations. The lawyers taking to the streets remin-
said, “Turkey is being directed from the grave.”
ded everyone of similar protests in 1997, which led up to
Following this statement, Mezarc was lynched
the Feb. 28 post-modern coup, and the fact that their past
by the whole Feb. 28 media. But in fact, does the
record of silence in the wake of anti-democratic and ille-
whole ongoing conversation about “Had Ata-
gitimate military moves have raised suspicions about their
türk lived…” not prove Mezarc right? Whene-
motivation to hold such a demonstration.
ver either the ruling administration or the op-
Sabah’s Nazl Ilcak, who is among the witnesses of
position is in trouble, they turn to words, “Had
the Feb. 28 process, says, “We are faced with an attempt at
Atatürk lived…” So what sort of regime, what
psychological warfare,” again relying on her experience. She
sort of order are we looking at? We have an “If
says instead of pursuing the case of Col. Dursun Çiçek, who
Atatürk were alive now” regime. When Nec-
undersigned a military plot to destroy the government and
mettin Erbakan was prime minister, he once
who was released from jail after he was briey arrested last
asserted that “Atatürk would be a supporter of
week, and instead of making an effort to uncover the junta
the National View if he were alive.” The res-
within the military, they point a nger at the government as
ponse to these words was supplied by the Hür-
the perpetrator of wiretapping cases. “In brief, the unarmed
riyet daily: “If Atatürk were alive, would you re-
forces are at work again. Supreme Court of Appeals Chief
ally have been able to become prime minister?”
Prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalçnkaya taking action against
the government and some members of the judiciary taking
Members of the local Human Rights Council in Silifke,
to the streets with the excuse of protesting the ‘illegal wire- Mersin, yesterday listened to Yörüks (Turkish nomads) Turkish-Armenian
tapping cases’ have caused me think this way,” says Ilcak.
Criticizing the bar associations in Turkey, Star’s Ergun
who sought their help because they want to leave the normalization: Borders,
Babahan says bar associations and their heads are among mountains before the onset of winter. hearts need to open up!
the most respected institutions and people in the world,
while it is not possible to say the same thing for the bar as- MLLYET HASAN CEMAL
sociations and their heads in Turkey. In his view, the le- star: When his party decided to defend Republican who had talks with several senior Turkish ofcials during a Of course the creation of new
gal wiretapping of individuals where there is evidence that People’s Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Onur Öymen, one-day visit to Ankara on Wednesday, requested the bio- diplomatic relations and the ope-
they committed certain offenses should please bar associa- who drew widespread criticism last week by defending metric data of all suspected terrorists using land, air and sea ning of borders between Turkey
tions because such a move will maintain justice. the violent suppression of the Dersim Rebellion in 1937 in transportation in Turkey. He said by sharing the information and Armenia are very important.
Talking about the many shortcomings in Turkey’s ju- the predominantly Alevi city of Tunceli, Kemal Klçda- of these suspects, the US will easily pursue suspected terro- And we need to recognize and
dicial system and the anti-democratic and illegal steps ta- rolu, CHP parliamentary group deputy chairman, who rists traveling through Turkey. Ankara rejected the FBI’s re- commend the “political determi-
ken in the country thus far, Star’s Mehmet Altan nds it earlier called on Öymen to resign, changed his mind, re- quest, saying it goes against Turkish and international law. nation” on this front displayed by both Ankara
strange that the bar associations have not yet taken to the ported the daily in its main story yesterday. “I am not dis- and Yerevan. But still, this is not enough.
streets to protest these shortcomings, such as the exis- turbed about what happened. I am thinking of resigning sabah: A front-page story in the daily reported yester- As the borders open, hearts, too, must open
tence of a military council of state in Turkey, which exists [in the wake of Öymen’s resistance]. This issue has been day that the prosecution demanded 24 years for Cem Gari- up. And when this happens, we must move be-
nowhere else in the world, a coup-product Constitution, closed,” said Klçdarolu, who is also an Alevi. polu, who killed and decapitated his girlfriend, Münevver yond being beholden to all the genocide deba-
the military violating laws by releasing a memorandum Karabulut, in March, and a life sentence for his father, Nida tes. There is one more point I would like to add
against the government in 2007, etc. “Why did the law- radikal: “Shocking request from the FBI,” the daily Garipolu, for helping his son in the murder. Since Cem was on this particular front: I believe the creation of
yers march yesterday? To protest the legal wiretapping of said in the headline of its main story yesterday, saying head a minor when he committed the murder, the prosecution co- more “shared platforms” with regard to history
some members of the judiciary who have suspected links of US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Robert Mueller, uld not demand a life sentence for him, said the daily. would work to speed up normalization in re-
with the Ergenekon terror organization. This is what I call lations between both Turkey and Armenia as
judicial sensitivity. Well done,” quips Altan. well as with Turks and Armenians.

RIXOS PREMIUM RIXOS SUNGATE RIXOS PREMIUM SHERATON HOTEL RIXOS GRAND HYATT REGENCY WOW ÝSTANBUL RAMADA PLAZA
BELEK BODRUM ANKARA ANKARA ÝSTANBUL Hotels&Convention Center ÝSTANBUL
ENJOY TODAY ’S ZAMAN AT THESE TOP HOTELS

Phone: +90 242 710 20 00 242 824 00 00 Phone: +90 252 337 11 22 Phone: +90 312 457 60 00 Atatürk Bulvarý No:183 Phone: +90 212 368 12 34 Phone: 0 212 468 50 00 Phone: +90 212 315 44 44
Belek / Serik / Antalya Beldibi / Kemer / Antalya Bodrum / Muðla www.sheraton.com/ankara Kavaklýdere 06680 ANKARA istanbul.regency.hyatt.com Yeþilköy / Ýstanbul www.ramadaplazaistanbul.com
www.rixos.com www.rixos.com www.rixos.com Tel: 0 312 410 55 00 www.wowhotelsistanbul.com

RIXOS TEKÝROVA RIXOS KONYA ADAKULE HOTEL KORUMAR EPHESIA HOLIDAY CHARISMA TITANIC PORT HOTEL
RIXOS BELDÝBÝ HOTEL DE LUXE BEACH CLUB DE LUXE HOTEL

Phone: +90 242 821 40 32 Phone: +90 242 824 97 00 Phone: +90 332 221 50 00 Phone: +90 256 618 11 43 Phone: 0 256 618 15 30 Phone: 0 256 622 11 80 Phone: +90 256 618 32 66 Phone: +90 212 413 70 00
Kemer / Antalya Beldibi / Kemer / Antalya Ýstanbul Yolu Selçuklu / Konya Kuþadasý / Aydýn Kuþadasý / Aydýn Kuþadasý / Aydýn Kuþadasý / Aydýn Bakýrköy / Ýstanbul
www.rixos.com www.rixos.com www.rixos.com www.adakule.com www.korumar.com.tr www.ephesia.com www.charismahotel.com www.titanic.com.tr

RESIDANCE AKTÝF METROPOLÝTAN GOLDCITY TOURISM DEDEMAN ANKARA L'ETOILE BEACH HOTEL KARBEL HOTEL SEYHAN
HOTELLINO
GAYRETTEPE HOTEL ANKARA COMPLEX HOTEL

Phone: +90 212 288 95 90 Phone: +90 312 295 45 45 Phone: +90 242 510 02 00 Phone: +90 312 416 88 00 Phone: +90 252 455 35 70 Phone: +90 252 617 00 13 Phone: +90 212 513 12 12 Phone: +90 322 455 30 30
Gayrettepe / Ýstanbul Balgat / Ankara Kargýcak / ALANYA Ankara Ýçmeler / Marmaris Ölüdeniz / Fethiye Sirkeci / Ýstanbul Seyhan / Adana
www.residencegayrettepe.com www.metropolitanhotel.com.tr www.goldcity.com.tr www.dedeman.com www.letoilehotel.com www.karbelhotel.com www.hotellinoistanbul.com www.otelseyhan.com.tr

GRAND TANER HOTEL SEKA PARK OTEL HOTEL MINA SULTANHAN HOTEL CLUB FAMILIA GÜNEÞ HOTEL ELEGANCE RESORT HOTEL MONEC
HOTEL YALOVA

Phone: + 90 252 617 01 22 Telefon: 0262 325 23 19 Phone: +90 212 458 28 00 Phone: 0212.516.3232 Phone: +90 232 722 22 22 Phone: +90 212 483 30 30 Phone: 90 (226) 465 66 22 Phone: 0312 491 30 30
Ölüdeniz / Fethiye http://www.otelsekapark.com Sultanahmet / Ýstanbul Sultanahmet / Ýstanbul Çeþme / Ýzmir Merter / Ýstanbul ALTINOVA / YALOVA Oran - ANKARA
www.grandtaner.com ÝZMÝT/KOCAELÝ www.minahotel.com.tr www.hotelsultanhan.com www.clubfamilia.com www.guneshotel.com.tr www.eleganceresort.com.tr www.hotelmonec.com.tr

CMYK
 NATIONAL F R I D A Y, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9 TODAY’S ZAMAN 03

STANBUL 16° KONYA 13°

ANKARA 13° ÇANAKKALE 18°
ZMR 21° DYARBAKIR 14°
ANTALYA 25° SAMSUN 12°
ADANA 21° BURSA 18°
ERZURUM 4° GAZANTEP 16°
EDRNE 18° ESKEHR 14°
TRABZON 11° MALATYA 11°
KAYSER 12° KOCAEL 17°

Turkey guest of honor BÜLENT

TODAY’S ZAMAN, BRAHM OKUR

at French education fair KENE
Turkey is the guest of honor of an education fair
b.kenes@todayszaman.com
that opened in Paris on Thursday. French Na-
tional Education Minister Luc Chatel inaugurated the
European Education Fair yesterday at the Versailles Ex-
hibition Hall. Turkey is the honorary guest at this year’s
fair as part of the ongoing “Season of Turkey in France”
activities. Information on Turkey is available to anyone
Jenkns s rght, the emperor
seeking to improve their knowledge of the country or to
visit as part of the EU’s ERASMUS student-exchange
really has no clothes
program. French citizens living and working in Turkey I think being a journalist in a foreign coun- nations and cases of social conict are at their

PHOTO
were also present to share their experiences with visi- try should be like this. Being a journalist in
tors to the fair, which will be open for four days. Turkish a foreign country, it seems, gives one the
educational institutions were also present to provide right to strip oneself of all journalistic quali-
information on their programs. The “Season of Tur- cations and act like a lawyer, a prosecutor
key” activities began in France at the beginning of July and even a judge in the face of the largest
with a Fire of Anatolia dance group show and a concert ever investigation and trial in that country.
by Mercan Dede. Turkey will be promoted by over 400 I’m talking about Gareth Jenkins. You may
artistic and cultural activities in more than 70 cities in know him as the British journalist who has
France for nine months. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires long worked in Turkey as a journalist.
Jenkins gave speeches at a meetings orga-
nized by the ARI Foundation, a Washington-
based extension of the ARI Movement, which
CHAN, ORHAN FIRAT
lowest level, and that “the most frightening
period” was the time when such murders and
assassinations were at their peak.
Now, let us look at what happened in
Turkey as Jenkins was talking nonsense in
Washington, and let us read from yesterday’s
headline story of the Taraf newspaper, which
Jenkins frequently criticized in his speeches.
“Prosecutors pursued the Ergenekon’s arsenal
uncovered in Poyrazköy and discovered that
the junta within the Naval Forces Command
prepared the Cage Action Plan in March 2009

was inspired by the ideas of former President
Turgut Özal and intended to promote liberal-
ism, individual rights, freedoms and a free-
market economy. Thus, we can conclude that
the ARI Movement and its supporters have
From left to right, the late Mehmet Zahir Korkmaz’s, son, Yusuf, widow, Hamide, and daughter, Fatma. The family now concluded that free enterprise, the rule of
is receiving state support thanks to the efforts of President Gül following Korkmaz’s killing in a terrorist attack.
law, rights and freedoms and democracy can
be realized in this country only through the
PHOTO
in order to nish off the AK Party by using
non-Muslims. The plan penned by the Spe-
cial Operation Forces Command, consisting
of a 41-member cell within the Naval Forces
Command, was undersigned by Lt. Col. Er-
can Kireçtepe, who is under arrest as part of
the Ergenekon investigation. According to
the ve-stage plan, assassinations will be con-

Presidency comes
agency of the Ergenekon terrorist organization.
This is the logical conclusion one can arrive at
seeing how they organized a meeting to spread
disinformation. Had it not been so, they would
ducted against non-Muslim minorities living in
Turkey and bombs will be detonated in neigh-
borhoods where they live in order to increase
internal and external pressure on the AK Party.

to aid of family struck

Tommy Hilfiger examines an updated version of the not have exerted any effort to promote the “According to the plan prepared by Lt.
Ottoman kaftan at a textile technology contest at TÜ.
ravings of Jenkins, who had written a report Col. Kireçtepe, these actions will be con-
decorated with baseless claims with a view to ducted by active and retired military ofcers
Hilfiger ranks sultan’s discredit, dilute and distort the truth about Tur- of the Naval Forces Command who are un-
kaftan first in fashion
design contest
ORHAN FIRAT STANBUL
by terrorism key’s most important legal investigation, ap-
parently acting in line with the instructions he
gets from those shadowy structures. Also, they
would never afford to sully their reputation,
der arrest as part of the Ergenekon investi-
gation. The plan clearly shows what ofcer
is located in which cell. Twenty-seven mili-
tary ofcers have reportedly testied to Er-
which they built with great labor. In any case, genekon prosecutors in connection with this
BRAHM OKUR DYARBAKIR that the pain in our hearts can begin to ease.”
Famous designer Tommy Hilfiger chose a we’re not interested in the ARI Movement, but plan during the last two weeks.”
Fatma Korkmaz, who lost her father when
modified version of the kaftan, the traditional in Jenkins’ fantasy world and illusions. The plan, dated March 2009, under the
President Abdullah Gül has extended she was 7 years old, says that she has a sur-
garb of the Ottoman sultans, as the winner of in- Sharing his fantasies during a meetings, heading “General,” reads: “A public percep-
a helping hand to the victims of a pro- prise planned for the president. Currently a
house design contest this week at stanbul Technical titled “Between Fact and Fantasy: Turkey’s Er- tion that Turkey’s non-Muslims are being
vocative attack in Hakkari’s emdinli fifth grader, Fatma says that for years she has
University’s (TÜ) department of textile technology. genekon Investigation” and held in connection targeted by reactionary groups in the country
district four years ago in which taxi driver cried every time report cards were sent home
Hilfiger selected from among eight finalists with the Ergenekon investigation at the Ray- can be created after operations against Catholic
Mehmet Zahir Korkmaz (29) was killed by a at school as all of her friends immediately ran
Nihan Topalolu’s “Timeless Allure” design as the burn House Ofce Building and the Central priest Father Andrea Santoro, the Zirve Pub-
hand grenade thrown at a bookstore while he to show their fathers their grades. “I would al-
winner of the competition after confessing to hav- Asia-Caucasus Institute (CACI), Jenkins said: lishing House in Malatya and Hrant Dink.
was walking along the sidewalk in front of it. ways cry. When there are parent-teacher con-
ing some difficulties in picking an overall winner. “The emperor has no clothes; the investigation But the AK Party, with support from opposi-
Upon Gül’s direction, the Hakkari Gover- ferences, my uncle always comes instead of my
“I want to work with young, intelligent and has no clothes. There is no organization called tion media, conducted intense propaganda
nor’s Office, the emdinli district governor’s father. I would cry all night into the morning
smart brains. This advances the value of the brand,” Ergenekon. The US should ask Recep Tayyip campaigns, saying these incidents were orga-
office and a social aid foundation are to coordi- every time I got a report card. This time I’m go- Erdoan, ‘What do you think you are doing nized by Ergenekon.” The report further em-
Hilfiger said at the award ceremony, adding: “When
nate in meeting the needs of Korkmaz’s widow ing to take the report card to the president. He’s behind closed doors?’” phasizes that in order to reverse the course of
I first started this job at the age of 18, the point I’ve
and children. The two children’s educational my godfather now,” she says in appreciation of In connection with the investigation into events, campaigns will be organized to instill
now reached was just a dream. But I have worked
expenses are being paid and in additional to aid the aid her family is receiving now. Fatma’s lit- the Ergenekon terrorist organization, whose fear among non-Muslims, adding: “In order
very hard and am very ambitious. This is teamwork.
already provided to the family, work is in prog- tle brother, third-grader Yusuf, says that when involvement in an attack on the Council to lend support by the Special Operations
The best thing I did is work with qualified people.”
ress on ensuring that a regular salary be paid to he grows up and does his military service, he of State and a bombing of the Cumhuriyet Forces Command to those arrested under the
Noting that it was very difficult to choose the
the family and a home bought for them. wants to catch the people who killed his father newspaper has been proven and which we Ergenekon investigation and render useless
best work, Hilfiger stated that he noticed the disci-
Widow Hamide Korkmaz has tears in her and bring them to justice. are almost sure masterminded the murder of counter psychological warfare activities of the
pline, teamwork, professionalism and talented aca-
eyes when she speaks of the attentiveness with According to Hakkari Governor Muammer Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and AK Party and its supporters, and to change the
demics behind the successful designs. “The work by
which her family is now being treated, saying: Türker, in the first phase of aid after the president the massacre of missionaries in Malatya, Jen- agenda, distract attention, boost the organi-
Nihan Topalolu is really impressive,” he added.
“For years there was nobody to help me. I thank sent out a directive to help the Korkmaz family, kins continued to repeat his famous arguments zation’s morale and win public support, fear-
Topalolu said that she examined every kaftan
the president for standing up for us; may God be TL 500 in cash was provided to ensure the chil- of pro-Ergenekon circles, as if no assassination instilling campaigns will be conducted against
model on display at Topkap Palace and created a
pleased with him. I am waiting for my husband’s dren remain in school, and they are continuing to or conspiracy plots had surfaced and as if hun- non-Muslims. Black propaganda will suggest
modified design to give the kaftan a modern ap-
killers to be dealt the necessary punishment so speak with the family to determine their needs. dreds of weapons and bombs to be used to cre- these activities are being conducted by the AK
pearance. Her prize includes a three-month intern-
ship at the offices of Tommy Hilfiger in Amsterdam. ate chaos in the country had not been seized. Party and its evil supporters.”
Claiming that the people who were detained Part of the most frightening “action” part
under the Ergenekon investigation had no of the plan said: “Bombings will be arranged
common characteristic other than being op- in various neighborhoods on islands near
ponents of the ruling Justice and Development stanbul. People who fervently advocate about

Prosecutors: 24 years for Cem Garipolu, life for father Party (AK Party), Jenkins maintained that these
people were well known to the general public
and had important positions, thereby making
the rights of minorities will be assassinated.
Percussion bombs will be detonated in desig-
nated places, such as near the Agos newspa-
Two separate indictments have been ined by the stanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Karakayal and Ahmet Batur for a period
CHAN, MÜHENNA KAHVEC

prepared against the suspects in the
murder of Münevver Karabulut (18), who
was allegedly murdered by her boyfriend
Cem Garipolu in March of this year at
his home in stanbul’s Bahçeehir district.
In the first indictment Cem Garipolu, the
main suspect in Karabulut’s murder, will
be tried at stanbul’s 1st Juvenile Court as
he was under 18 years of age at the time of
the crime. If found guilty, Garipolu faces
Office. Karabulut’s decapitated body was
found in a bin in Etiler in March. Garipolu
surrendered to police in September after
more than six months on the run.
The indictment demands between
18 and 24 years’ imprisonment for Cem
Garipolu on the charge of the premedi-
tated murder of Münevver Karabulut. The
penalty was reduced from life imprisonment
because he was a minor when the murder
them unlikely members of such an organiza-
of between six months and five years on tion. Despite the fact that the investigation and
charges of helping the suspect evade police. the trial are still under way, he did not hesitate
Prosecutors are going to request the impris- to issue a judgment as if he were a judge: “Fif-
onment of Garipolu’s mother, Tülay Mak- teen to 20 of the defendants may be guilty. Fifty
bule Garipolu, as she allegedly destroyed, to 60 are ultra-nationalist hard-liners, but they
hid and tampered with evidence. have committed no crime. The rest are com-
Meanwhile, the Garipolu family’s pletely innocent.” Responding to a question,
lawyer, Rezan Özdemir, speaking to NTV, Jenkins was smart enough to note that his life
stated that she finds the indictments gen- is now under threat due to the report he wrote.
erally “positive” and added that there
PHOTO
per. Packages that appear to be bombs will be
planted in various places, and the police will be
notied of them so that they keep busy with
this. Bombings will be conducted on the docks
of ferries shuttling between stanbul and the
islands. Provocative attacks will be conducted
against non-Muslim cemeteries. Some of the
famous non-Muslim businessmen and/or ce-
lebrities will be kidnapped. Arson attacks will
hit houses, workplaces and cars belonging to

between 18 and 24 years in prison.
The second indictment, prepared for the
other six suspects, was accepted yesterday by
the stanbul 7th High Criminal Court, which
then sent the file to the stanbul Chief Pub-
lic Prosecutor’s Office to decide which court
should hear the case. The indictments were
prepared by public prosecutors Faruk Esen
Ylmaz and Mustafa Öztürk and were exam-
took place. If convicted, Cem Garipolu’s
father, Mehmet Nida Garipolu, faces ag-
gravated life imprisonment on the charge of
taking part in the premeditated murder of
Münevver Karabulut.
Furthermore, the second indict-
ment seeks the imprisonment of Hayy-
am Garipolu -- who is the uncle of
Cem Garipolu -- Habib Kurt, Mehmet
should be a debate as to whether the
sentences demanded are just or not. “If
someone who is over the age of 18 com-
mits such a crime, the sentence is life im-
prisonment, but since Cem was under 18
he will be sentenced to between 18 and 24
years in prison,” she added, implying that
this punishment is the maximum possible
under the law. stanbul Today’s Zaman
There is no sign that Jenkins and his like
are in danger, but there are a great many peo-
ple who have lived under immense threat in
this country. In other words, the emperor re-
ally has no clothes, but not in the sense Jenkins
means. Although he did say “I have lived there
for 20 years, and this is the most frightening
period I have ever seen,” I think he, too, will
Cem Garipolu faces 18-24 years in concede that we are currently living in a time
prison if convicted of murder. where unsolved, mysterious political assassi-
non-Muslims. Similar attacks will be conduct-
ed in cities with a considerable non-Muslim
population. In coordination with the special
plan cell leader, these acts of sabotage, kidnap-
pings, and assassinations will be ascribed to
some reactionary organizations.”
I now have a simple question for Jenkins:
What part of this plan -- which also envisages
black propaganda -- do you see yourself in
with your report and your speeches?

CMYK
 04 TODAY’S ZAMAN
Sarkozy’s Middle East aspirations facing hurdles
CUMAL ÖNAL CAIRO
A rare rift between traditional allies the
United States and Israel over Jewish settle-
ments is apparently encouraging France’s ambi-
tious leader Nicolas Sarkozy to work harder to
expand France’s inuence in the Middle East, but
the task seems to be a daunting one because of Arab
suspicions that he may not be an impartial mediator.
Sarkozy, who has aspired to make France a key
actor in the Middle East since he came to power in
May 2007, is now trying to revive peace talks be-
tween Israel and Syria, bring Israeli and Palestinian
leaders together and nd a role for Paris in efforts
to solve Lebanon’s internal tensions. This month he
offered to host an international summit in Paris to
break the deadlock in the Middle East peace pro-
cess. Sarkozy rst raised the proposal in his meeting
with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last
week, then with Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The
proposed conference’s participants do not include
Turkey, which mediated indirect talks between Syria
and Israel until they collapsed because of a deadly
offensive by the Israeli military in Gaza, which killed
US assures Turkey of assstance
n capturng top PKK leaders
ERCAN YAVUZ ANKARA
Turkey has received significant re-
assurances from the United States
that it will support efforts to cap-
ture commanders of the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers’ Party (PKK), who are largely based
in northern Iraq and subject to extradition
warrants, a top government official has said.
Robert Mueller, the director of the US
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), was in
Ankara on Wednesday. He met with Deputy
Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek, Justice Minis-
ter Sadullah Ergin and Ouz Kaan Köksal,
the head of the Security General Directorate,
during a one-day visit to the Turkish capital.
Turkish newspapers suggested on Thursday
that Turkish ofcials asked Mueller for US sup-
port for the extradition of Murat Karaylan, the
head of Kongra-Gel -- another name for the
PKK -- and high-ranking PKK members Ali Rza
Altun and Zübeyir Aydar. All three were subject
last month to a decision of the US Department
of the Treasury’s Ofce of Foreign Assets Control
which is expected to deal a signicant blow to the
nancial resources of the PKK. The US nancial
sanctions targeted three senior PKK leaders after
designating them narcotics trafckers.
“Why should we just ask for three of them?
We want all of them,” Deputy Prime Minister
Çiçek told Today’s Zaman on Thursday, deny-
ing the aforementioned news reports.
“America is now our neighbor in Iraq. Iraq
is now under US control and expecting such
assistance [concerning PKK leaders] is our
most natural right since the US is an ally that
listed the PKK as a terrorist organization before
all other countries in the world. It also stated
that it will help us in that,” Çiçek, who also
serves as the government’s spokesperson, said.
Çiçek ruled out arguments over sending
PKK leaders in northern Iraq to a third country.
“We told our counterparts that we want all 113
[commanders], not just three of them. Consid-
ering that PKK is a terrorist organization and
its members are terrorists, we want all of them
to either be tried in the country where they are
Erdoan’s Parliament speech resonates among Iraqi Kurds
HEMIN H. LIHONY SULAIMANIYA
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoan’s pop-
ularity has been boosted among Iraqi Kurds in
northern Iraq after a speech he made at Parliament
last week in defense of his government’s initiative to
expand rights for Turkey’s Kurds.
“When I see the premier of Turkey speak-
ing about our sister country’s caring attitude in
Parliament, it is similar to the happiness I experi-
enced the day Saddam Hussein fell in Iraq,” said
Bahez Kamil, a university student in Sulaimaniya.
The government, which vows to address the
Kurdish problem through democratic reforms,
sought lawmakers’ support for the initiative in a
special session in Parliament on Friday. Following
speeches from his Justice and Development Party
(AK Party) and opposition deputies, Erdoan de-
livered a long address to the lawmakers, in which
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad does not want French leader Nicolas Sarkozy to mediate talks with Israel.
about 1,400 Palestinians in December and January.
Sarkozy’s attempts to establish France as a
key player in the Middle East are at the expense of
Turkey, a country which has a growing reputation
for being a credible mediator in the Middle East
due to its open criticism of Israel while still main-
taining close ties with the US and Europe. Thus,
when he attempted to bring Israeli Prime Min-
ister Netanyahu and Syrian President al-Assad
Robert Mueller, the director of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, had talks with Turkish officials in Ankara on Wednesday.
captured or extradited to Turkey in order to be
tried. No one is saying our demands are unfair,
but we want action on this.”
In December 2005 Mueller visited Turkey
to discuss al-Qaeda and PKK-related activi-
ties in the country. Since then, bilateral coop-
eration between the two countries against PKK
activities has increased considerably.
Biometric information
A news report in the Turkish Radikal daily,
meanwhile, said Thursday that Mueller had
asked Turkish ofcials to share biometric in-
formation of everyone who uses ports and air-
ports in Turkey -- a request that was rejected
by Turkish ofcials, according to the report.
he gave details about the content of the initiative
and urged the skeptical opposition to support it.
In his speech, Erdoan tried to frame the debate
in an all-inclusive approach mentioning most eth-
nic groups represented in the country. The initiative
doesn’t only aim at solving the Kurdish problem but
also aims at addressing other democratic issues in
the country, boosting the hopes of many, including
religious minorities and ethnic groups in the country.
Erdoan’s speech, translated into Kurdish
and broadcast live on various local channels
in northern Iraq resounded among the Iraqi
Kurds. “This brave speech deserved analysis
and coverage,” said Arif Qurbani, editor-in-
chief of the Aso daily newspaper, which cov-
ered the issue on its front page. “The bravery
of Erdoan should be a lesson for the Iraqi Kurdish
leaders to embrace the Turkmens,” Qurbani added.
Relations between Iraqi Kurds and Turkey
together in Paris earlier this month, al-Assad said
France could help the peace efforts by pressur-
ing Israel to return to Turkish-mediated talks.
Netanyahu, on the other hand, signaled readi-
ness for a French role in talks with Syria.
Even in Lebanon, a former French col-
ony, Paris’ influence over resolving a crisis
due the presidential elections and the troubled
process of forming a government was limited.
While asking for information regarding
all suspected passengers’ route, destination
and date of travel, Mueller also asked for the
collection and sharing of all biometric data
of passengers who travel through Turkey as
part of counter-terrorism activities.
Yet, the Turkish side rejected this request
since legislation in Turkey and international trea-
ties to which it is party, including EU legislation
with which Turkey is trying to harmonize its laws
as a candidate country, is not comfortable with
such data collection methods, Radikal said.
“We cannot share people’s personal in-
formation with other countries just on the
grounds of suspicion,” Turkish officials told
Mueller, the daily said. In February 2008, the
deteriorated sharply following the US-led inva-
sion of Iraq in 2003. Turkey accused the Kurdish
administration of harboring the outlawed Kurd-
istan Workers’ Party (PKK), which launched at-
tacks on Turkish targets from its bases in northern
Iraq, and threatened to declare war if the Kurds
attempted to seize control of the disputed city of
Kirkuk -- home to a sizable Turkmen population.
But tension is now being replaced by a dra-
matic rapprochement, and the government’s
Kurdish initiative is further strengthening the
positive trend in ties. In a speech delivered to
the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European
Parliament earlier this month, Kurdish leader
Massoud Barzani welcomed the progress made
in Turkey’s relations with the Kurdish admin-
istration and described Turkey’s initiative to
solve its decades-long Kurdish issue as “Prime
Minister Erdoan’s brave Kurdish peace initia-
CMYK
F R I D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9
REUTERS
As for the Israeli-Palestinian track, Paris seems
to have limited room to maneuver because the US
is seen as the only country that can exert inuence
over both Israel and the Palestinians. Arab observers
PHOTO
say France is not the most popular choice for Pales-
tinians either because of Sarkozy’s perceived bias for
Israel. Palestinian group Hamas and some members
of the more moderate al-Fatah believe that France
cannot be an impartial mediator with Israel.
Erdoan doubtful about French role
Speaking in Rome on Wednesday, Prime Minis-
ter Recep Tayyip Erdoan said he did not think al-
Assad would accept a French role in mediating with
Israel. “Now France is trying to take up the role
we had,” Erdoan said. “I’m not sure what kind of
stance Bashar al-Assad will take, but from what I’ve
heard from him, they’re not going to accept some-
thing like this.” Erdoan also said Turkey was ready
to resume mediating talks between Israel and Syria,
but added that Israel does not trust Turkey. Erdoan
singled out Netanyahu for failing to trust Ankara,
unlike his predecessor Ehud Olmert. “Former Israeli
Prime Minister Olmert trusted Turkey, but Netan-
yahu doesn’t trust us. That’s his choice,” he said.
AA, MEHMET KAMAN
PHOTO
FBI announced an award of a $1 billion, 10-
year contract to Lockheed Martin to develop
what is expected to be the world’s largest
crime-fighting computer database of bio-
metric information, including fingerprints,
palm prints, iris patterns and face images.
At the time, FBI ofcials said the system
would not expand the categories of people
whose prints are collected: known criminals,
known or suspected terrorists, or foreign visi-
tors to the United States who have been con-
victed of a crime or an immigration violation.
But additional types of biometric data, such as iris
scans and face images, will be collected from crimi-
nals and terrorists, the ofcials had said. The system
has been subject to criticism by privacy experts.
tive.” Barzani further added that the Kurdish
authorities will support Turkey in its efforts to
end the conflict with the PKK.
The relations between Iraqi Kurds and
Turkey reached its “golden era” after the his-
toric visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutolu to Arbil late last month. During the
visit, Davutolu met with Barzani and Barham Sa-
lih, the new prime minister of the Kurdish region.
Salih’s return to northern Iraq after many
years of service in Baghdad is likely to be a
further advantage for better ties with Tur-
key. “He will be an excellent partner for
our government’s ‘democratic initiative’,”
Turkish journalist Cengiz Çandar said in a
recent interview with the Kurdish media.
“We should support Turkey and
Erdoan’s democratic battle,” Khlaid Su-
leiman, one of Salih’s advisers, said.
NATIONAL
AA
PHOTO
Al-Hakim met with President Gül in stanbul on Wednesday.
Iraqi Shiite leader holds
talks in Ankara, stanbul
Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) Chair-
man Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim was in Ankara on
Thursday to hold talks with Prime Minister Recep Tayy-
ip Erdoan as part of a several-day visit to the country.
While in Ankara, Hakim also attended meetings
held at several think tanks. Hakim was in stanbul on
Wednesday to speak with both President Abdullah
Gül and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutolu.
Gül’s meeting with Hakim was an opportunity for
the president to once more express that Turkey has been
keeping an equal distance from all segments of Iraqi so-
ciety, the Anatolia news agency reported, citing sources
from the president’s ofce. In line with this stance, Turkey
attaches great importance to engaging in dialogue with all
segments of its neighboring country, Gül told Hakim.
Iraq has entered a critical period with its upcoming
elections, Gül said, expressing condence that Iraq will
emerge from these elections stronger than before.
For his part, voicing pleasure over Turkey’s constant
support for Iraq, Hakim cited the recent postings of Tur-
key’s new consul-generals in Mosul and Basra as a sign
of the importance attached by Turkey to Iraq. Turkey has
so far played a constructive role in Iraq and Iraq wants to
see a continuation of this role, Hakim also said. Earlier on
Wednesday, following talks with Hakim, Davutolu under-
lined the significance of the upcoming Parliamentary elections
scheduled for January, 2010, in Iraq. Ankara Today’s Zaman
US needs Turkey’s
voice in eastern
world, says ATC chief
Former US National Security Advisor and out-
going American Turkish Council (ATC) Chair-
man Brent Scowcroft has said that Turkey’s deep
knowledge of the eastern world will be useful for its
NATO ally, the United States.
Earlier this week, Scowcroft, along with Ambas-
sador Richard Armitage -- who will succeed Scow-
croft as chairman in January -- had talks in Ankara
with senior Turkish ofcials including President
Abdullah Gül, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan,
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutolu, Defense Minis-
ter Vecdi Gönül and Energy Minister Taner Yldz.
The ATC is a business association dedicated to en-
hancing the promotion of US-Turkish commercial, de-
fense, technological and cultural relations. Wednesday
evening, the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEK)
and the Turkish-American Business Council (TAK)
jointly hosted a dinner in stanbul in Scowcroft’s honor.
“We need a voice that will help us in the East. We
need a voice like Turkey in a region which we are not
able to understand as much as you can,” Scowcroft said.
Bilateral relations between Turkey and the Unit-
ed States have passed through many ups and downs,
Scowcroft noted, highlighting his condence that a more
stable era will develop with these relations from now
on. By the completion of his current term on Dec. 31,
Scowcroft will have served nine years as chairperson
of the board of the ATC. stanbul Today’s Zaman
Christofias: Peace
deal still not in sight
Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christoas said on
Thursday that a deal to reunify the ethnically split
island of Cyprus is still not in sight despite more than a
year of peace talks with the Turkish Cypriots.
Christoas said “important differences” still divide
both sides on several key issues. Turkish Cypriot positions
conict with an envisioned federation between a Turkish
Cypriot north and a Greek Cypriot south, he argued.
Cyprus was divided in 1974 when Turkey inter-
vened after a coup by supporters who wanted union
with Greece. The dispute is undermining NATO and
European Union cooperation on security and hinder-
ing Turkey’s bid for EU membership.
Both sides still disagree on how to settle claims by
owners of property lost during the war and about grant-
ing Turkey military intervention rights. But Christoas said
he remains “cautiously optimistic” that an accord can be
reached with Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat.
“We sincerely hope that the Turkish Cypriot side will
rectify its stance by submitting more reasonable positions
in order to pave the way to an agreed solution,” Christoas
said. Talat said the talks have produced “signicant prog-
ress” but repeated a call for more active UN involve-
ment to speed up the process. He also endorsed a pro-
posal by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoan
for a summit of the two sides joined by Britain, Greece and
Turkey. Christoas rejected the idea, insisting an agree-
ment must be Cypriot-born. Ankara Today’s Zaman with AP
 NATIONAL
Ergenekon investigation exposes surveillance of Armenian community
contnued from page 1
In addition, there were lists of names and
members of Armenian foundations and churches,
which were classied as “active” or not, as well as
the balance sheets of Agos.
Cengiz had been in the limelight before af-
ter claims that she gave information to brahim
ahin, a former deputy head of the National
Police Department’s Special Operations Unit,
to establish “S-1 and S-2 teams” to assassinate
intellectual leaders in society.
According to sources, Cengiz also tracked the
names of academics, writers and journalists who
participated a two-day academic conference held
on Sept. 24-25, 2005, at Istanbul Bilgi University
titled “Ottoman Armenians during the Decline of
Naval forces junta planned to undermine
AK Party with non-Muslim assassinations
contnued from page 1
The plan was divided into four phases;
“Preparation,” “Raising Fear,” “Shap-
ing Public Opinion” and “Action.”
As part of the “Preparation” phase, the
names and addresses of the country’s promi-
nent non-Muslims would be determined. Then
it would be ascertained to which newspapers
and magazines they subscribe; which schools
non-Muslims work for or send their children
to; which associations or foundations they are
members of; which places of worship they fre-
quent; and where they hold their religious cel-
ebrations and rituals.
Then the action plan would jump to the
second phase, which consisted of posting the
subscribers of a Turkish Armenian biweekly,
Agos, on a number of Web sites, especially the
“reactionary” ones. The editor-in-chief of Agos,
Hrant Dink, was shot dead in 2007 by an ultra-
nationalist Turkish adolescent. Letters that in-
cluded threatening messages would be sent to
Agos subscribers, and they would also receive
threatening phone calls. Similar messages would
be written on a number of walls of buildings in
the Adalar district, which is home to hundreds of
non-Muslim families.
In the “Shaping Public Opinion” phase, the
list of Agos subscribers would make its way into
some newspapers, and fabricated reports on the
list would feature in those newspapers. TV debates
would focus on the reports and columnists would
be urged to write columns on them. The AK Party
government would be accused of ignoring the “ap-
proaching threat” to the country’s non-Muslim
population in the debates. Media would recall the
Sept. 6-7, 1955 incidents, a state-sponsored cam-
paign designed to transfer capital from minority
businessmen to Muslim Turks and to intimidate
non-Turkish communities into leaving their home-
land to clear the way for a homogeneous Turkish
state. Several Web sites would be established to
disseminate propaganda against the AK Party and
criticize its domestic policies. The Web sites would
have such names as “www.tehditaltindayiz.com”
(We are under threat) and “www.agosasahipcika-
lim.com” (Let’s protect Agos).
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009
the Empire: Issues of Scientic Responsibility and
Democracy.” The conference openly disputed the
ofcial Turkish account of the Armenian massacres.
In the les allegedly belonging to Cengiz, who
is also known as Asena Öztürk, there are several fa-
mous names, with notes next to their names: Halil
Berktay, “professor, he had publicly said that Ar-
menians were massacred”; Kazm Aknc, “secret
Armenian, he applied to a court to change his re-
ligion after Dink [Turkish-Armenian editor Hrant
Dink who was assassinated by an ultranationalist
teenager in 2007]”; Ece Temelkuran, “she said that
if something happens to her the prime minister is
responsible for it, she is a graduate of the Ankara
faculty of law”; Herkül Milas, “he is not an Arme-
nian”; Sevan Nianyan, “writer at Taraf, maybe
In its headline story on Thursday, the Taraf daily reported on an anti-democratic formation within the Naval Forc-
es Command seeking to damage the government by assassinating prominent non-Muslim figures in Turkey.
The most appalling phase of the plan, “Ac-
tion,” would include the assassination of promi-
nent non-Muslim gures. As part of this phase,
bomb attacks would be launched in Adalar;
gures who defend the rights of non-Muslims
would be assassinated; percussion bombs would
be planted in places close to Agos; boats carry-
ing passengers to the Adalar district would be
bombed; prominent non-Muslim businessmen
and artists would be kidnapped; and their homes
and ofces would be set on re. Individuals
would claim responsibility for the incidents on
behalf of “reactionary terrorist organizations.”
from Agos, needed to be investigated”; Markar
Esayan, “Taraf writer, information regarding him
will come together with Etyen Mahçupyan”; Aytaç
lhan, “he might be a student in Idr, he should
be investigated, he had applied to change his reli-
gion”; Baskn Oran, Adalet Aaolu and Elif afak.
Investigators have also found a PowerPoint pre-
sentation which was allegedly prepared by Cengiz,
who signed it as Asena Öztürk. In that presentation,
pictures of ahin and Korkut Eken, a former ofcer
of the TSK Special Operations, are placed side by
side. There is also a photograph of former Chief of
General Staff Gen. Yaar Büyükant, in addition to
the expression “Everything is for the country,” writ-
ten in blood on a background of weapons and the
Turkish ag. stanbul Today’s Zaman
At that point, propaganda would step in,
pointing to the AK Party as the cause of the in-
cidents. The party would be accused of falling
short of ensuring the security of non-Muslims in
the country. The action plan dened Prime Min-
ister Recep Tayyip Erdoan as an “enemy.”
The action plan called the killings of Arme-
nian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, Catholic
priest Andrea Santoro and three Christians in
Malatya an “operation.” The group aimed at
fomenting chaos in society with those killings,
but complained that the plan failed when large
groups protested the killings in mass demon-
CMYK
TODAY’S ZAMAN 05
‘Cage action plan’
put into operation
T O D AY ’S ZAMAN , MU ST AF A K  RAZL I
in Kurtulu, Adalar
contnued from page 1
Called the “Cage Operation Action Plan,”
the desired result from the intimidation of Tur-
key’s non-Muslims and the assassination of
prominent ones, was that an increase in internal
and external pressure on the Justice and Devel-
opment Party (AK Party) would ensue, leading
to diminishing public support for the party.
A series of incidents that Kurtulu residents ex-
PHOTO
perienced in August suggest that the plan was put
into operation by “dark powers.” The neighbor-
hood is home to dozens of non-Muslim families.
Hrant Dink On Aug. 7, 2009, some non-Muslim residents
of the neighborhood found colored stickers on the
doors of their buildings, which sparked increased
fear among the residents. Police launched an inves-
tigation into the stickers, but failed to nd out who
was responsible. The stickers disappeared “myste-
riously” at night the very same day, leaving unan-
swered questions behind as to who took them away.
Ahmet Günel, the mukhtar or neighbor-
hood head, said the stickers aimed at foment-
ing unease and fear among the neighborhood’s
non-Muslims. Selami Meleme, a lawyer who is
also a resident of Kurtulu, said the “sticker cam-
paign” had achieved its objective. “The stickers
managed to provoke fear among our residents. I
do not think those stickers were placed on doors
in Kurtulu ‘just by coincidence.’ Some circles
strations. “The operations created a large public
did it on purpose,” Meleme added.
outcry that non-Muslims in the country were the
The action plan has sent shockwaves across
target of reactionary groups. But society stood stanbul’s Adalar district, which is home to hun-
by non-Muslims with a ‘We are all Armenians’ dreds of non-Muslim families. Raf Hermon Araks,
campaign. Now, we will continue the propa- the chief adviser to the mayor of Adalar in charge
ganda, showing that the cause behind the kill- of cultural and arts affairs, said some non-Muslims
ings was the AK Party and reactionary organiza- in the district had receive threats to their lives for
tions,” read the plan. the past few months. “We experienced such inci-
The plan also revealed that the anti-demo- dents in Heybeliada, Knalada and Büyükada. We
cratic formation within the Naval Forces Com- thought these were separate incidents, but when
mand was being led by three admirals, identied we saw the Cage plan, we understood that they
with their initials F.Ö., K.S. and M.F.. Retired were all part of a detailed plot,” Araks remarked.
Maj. Levent Bekta, Lt. Col. Ercan Kireçtepe, A non-Muslim resident of the district, who
retired Col. Levent Gökta and Maj. Emre Onat wanted to remain anonymous, said he had been
also worked for the junta. All of them were ar- told several times by people he did not know to
rested as part of the ongoing Ergenekon probe. leave the country. “They told me the places I be-
Among other members of the formation were long to. ‘You do not belong to this place. Muslims
sergeant majors Halil Cura, Saddetin Doan, will send you away. The order has changed,’ they
Feridun Arslan; Maj. Emre Sezenler; and Maj. told me. I was very afraid. My neighbors and rela-
Emre Günay. All of them were employed at the tives experienced similar incidents. We do not wish
Marmara Regional Command. Other members to experience another Sept. 6-7 trauma,” he added.
at the same command were identied by their The Sept. 6-7, 1955 events started after a
newspaper headline said Atatürk’s home in
initials, sergeant majors D.E, T.V.A., H.D. and .B.
Greece had been bombed by Greek militants.
Among the members of the group at the Mar-
In revenge, Turkish nationalists attacked the
mara Regional Command were Col. M.S., Col. Lev-
houses and business places of non-Muslims,
ent Gülmen, Maj. Erbay Çolakolu, Maj. A.A.S.,
destroying 5,300 businesses and houses owned
Capt. B.A., Lt. Gen. B.Ç., Sgt. Maj. M.A., Sgt. Maj.
by Greeks, Armenians and Jews.
M.A., Maj. G.Y., Capt. Ü.Ö., Capt. B.K., Sgt. Maj. Etyen Mahçupyan, editor-in-chief of the Agos
D.M., Sgt. Maj. H.E., Sgt. Maj. M.I. and Sgt. Maj. A.B. weekly, said the names of the country’s minorities,
The group also had members from the Black Alevis and Kurds will be mentioned in many other
Sea Regional Command, including Capt. I.Z.T., action plans unless Turkey embraces a stronger de-
Capt. .L.O., Maj. Ö.E., Sgt. Maj. T.D., Sgt. Maj. mocracy. According to Mahçupyan, the Cage Op-
M.A. and Sgt. Maj. M.K. eration Action Plan is a strong indication of a war
between “good Turks” and “bad Turks.” “What I
Ammunition excavated in Poyrazköy mean is, there is a difference and quarrel between
Ten light anti-tank weapons, 20 percussion bombs, those who have a statist and totalitarian mindset
three other bombs, 250 grams of C4 explosives, 19 and those who are pro-freedom and democrat,”
emergency ares, 10 hand grenades, 800 G3 bullets he said and added that such action plans have a
and a large number of cartridges for revolvers were single aim: to destroy the AK Party. “To attain this
found on the stek Foundation land. The discovery target, non-Muslims get killed; clashes are sparked
followed the unearthing of similar underground between Sunnis and Alevis; Turks and Kurds are
weapons caches in January during digs based on made to ght; and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party
maps found in the homes of two suspects -- former [PKK] is lent support,” he remarked. Fethiye Çe-
Deputy Police Chief brahim ahin and Mustafa tin, a lawyer representing the family of Turkish-
Dönmez, a lieutenant colonel who turned himself Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was assassi-
in a few days after a warrant for his arrest was is- nated in 2007 by a young man strongly inuenced
sued. stanbul Today’s Zaman by ultranationalism, said the Turkish military sees
some of the country’s citizens as an “enemy” and
produces plans against them. stanbul Today’s Zaman
 06 TODAY’S ZAMAN FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009 NATIONAL

‘Either Onur Öymen or Alevis should leave the CHP’
Alevi associations based in Europe have con-
tinued expressing their reactions to Republi-
can People’s Party (CHP) Deputy Chairman Onur
Öymen’s remarks about a 1937 rebellion in the Al-
evi town of Tunceli depicting a massacre in which
90,000 were killed as an anti-terror campaign.
Europe-based Alevi organizations the Alevi
Unions Federation (AABF), the European Dersim
Associations Federation (FDG) and the European
Koçgirliler Union (AKB) released a joint press
statement at the AABF headquarters in Cologne
yesterday.
In the statement, the groups said that they
would apply to the Socialist International (SI)
for the CHP’s exemption from the organization.
“The CHP is an obstacle in the path of democra-
tization,” the statement said.
AABF Second President Ali Ertan Toprak, Sec-
retary-General Hüseyin Mat, FDG Chairman Yaar
Kaya and AKB President Kudrettin Çimen joined
the conference. Their joint statement noted that
Öymen had extended a “half-hearted” apology,
which they did not nd sincere.
“The CHP administration has seen Alevis as
a voter base for years, and has made no efforts
to meet their rightful demands. Onur Öymen is
the representative in our day of Nurettin Paa the
Bearded who administered the Koçgiri massacre
[against Alevis] and Nurettin Paa’s son-in-law
Abdullah Alpdoan who administered the Der-
sim massacre. Onur Öymen, who has praised the
Dersim massacre, should step down as a member
of Parliament. Öymen’s crime is not one commit-
ted against the people of Dersim and the Alevi
community alone, but one against humanity. No
person who so openly defends massacres in his
country can continue to serve as a parliamentary
deputy anywhere in the world. The CHP should
apologize to the people of Dersim and all the Al-
evi/Kzlba community both for the massacre of
1938 and for Öymen’s remarks. We, as European
organizations, will be making efforts to bring this
to the attention of both the European Union, the
SI and European parliaments.”
At home in Turkey, more calls asking for Öy-
men’s resignation came with the Mersin branch of
education sector union Eitim-Bir-Sen joining the
long list of organizations voicing this demand. The
Mersin branch laid a black wreath in front of the lo-
cal CHP ofce. A statement made here by a spokes-
person for the group referred to Öymen’s statements
as a “dark stain on the history of Parliament.”
Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arnç also re-
buked Öymen for his remarks yesterday, speaking
in Adyaman where he was visiting for the day. “The
issue here is about legitimizing incidents that oc-
curred in Dersim in 1937 and 1938. Onur Öymen’s
words mean only one thing. ‘Bloodshed should
continue, and if mothers cry, let them cry. Because
that is what happened in Dersim. This is what we
did then, and we want to do the same thing today.’
This is what he said in plain Turkish; there is no
need to embellish this in diplomatic language. We
now need to see how people with conscience will
stand in the face of this.”
Meanwhile, Tunceli-born CHP deputy Kemal
Klçdarolu, who had earlier called on Öymen
to resign but then backpedaled after CHP leader
Deniz Baykal’s apparent support for Öymen, re-
leased a statement yesterday. In the statement he
called on CHP members to be alert against what
he called the Justice and Development Party (AK
Party) and Democratic Society Party (DTP) col-
laboration, topped with the provocation of the
“pro-government media.” He said a “systematic
attack” against the CHP was part of the AK Party’s
efforts to instill fear across the country and sup-
press all opposition. He also claimed that the reac-
tions shown by Alevis to Öymen were supported
by “foreign forces.” stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires
German NGO
to dissect
civilian-military
relations in Turkey
MUSTAFA GÜRLEK STANBUL
A German nongovernmental organiza-
tion will examine civilian-military rela-
tions in Turkey at a conference to be held this
weekend in stanbul.
Conference organizer Ulrike Dufner, a
representative from the Heinrich Böll Stif-
tung Turkey ofce, said the conference,
“Türkiye Siyasetinde Ordunun Rolü: Asker-
Sivil likileri, Güvenlik Sektörü ve Sivil De-
netim” (The Military’s Role in Turkish Poli-
tics: Military-Civilian Relations, the Security
Sector and Civilian Supervision), is going to
help break taboos in Turkey.
“Institutions established by the military
tutelage in Turkey do not exist in any Euro-
pean country. Institutions such as the Na-
tional Security Council [MGK], the Supreme
Military Council [YA], the Turkish Armed
Forces Assistance Center [OYAK] and sepa-
rate civilian and military judiciaries are the
biggest obstacles in front of democracy as

DTP condtonally ready to talk they are also examples of interference in

politics,” she said.
She noted that people on Turkey’s streets

TODAY’S ZAMAN, AL ÜNAL

AYE KARABAT ANKARA
Selahattin Demirta, the parliamentary group leader
of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP),
said it would be easier for the DTP to take respon-
sibility during the democratization process if the govern-
ment sent the message that “it is taking steps for the sake
of the people and the elimination of violence, not only for
the elimination of the [outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party]
PKK,” which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey,
Demirta claimed that the government should recognize would denitely know that lker Babu is
the cultural rights of the Kurds instead of acting as though the chief of General Staff of the Turkish mili-
their main aim is to eliminate the PKK.
tary. But this is not the case in Europe.
“How can you eliminate something? Either you kill it, or
“If it is not part of one’s special interest
it surrenders. They are saying that their aim is to eliminate the
area, no one in Europe would know who the
PKK and they are asking to the DTP to cooperate in this elimi-
chief of general staff is,” she added.
nation process. To ask the DTP to cooperate in eliminating the
In Turkey’s military-dominated society,
PKK actually means telling the DTP to climb up to the gallows,
she said, it is possible to see marks that past
put a noose around its own neck and kick away the stool. We
coups d’état left on the society. She recalled
are a political party, we are not an association created to support
that they had previously organized a confer-

the United States and the European Union.
“If government sends the right message, then we guarantee
that within three months violence will be removed from Turkey’s
agenda,” he told to Today’s Zaman in an exclusive interview.
In July the government launched a democratization ini-
tiative which aims to solve Turkey’s decades-old Kurdish
question. Since the beginning of the process there have been
many topics under discussion, but one of the hottest topics is
addressing the issue of whom and under which conditions,
which party or side should talk to.
The government frequently underlined that it will never
consider discussing the issue with the PKK, saying the only
party with a voice in this process is the nation itself.
The opposition parties -- the Republican People’s
Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
-- claimed that the government is discussing the issue with
the PKK. Meanwhile, the DTP was criticized for not taking
a leading role in the process, instead saying the government
should discuss the initiative with the PKK.
Demirta, while explaining the reasons for their stance, said
that rst of all there is not even implicit acceptance the DTP
should be considered to be party to talks during the process.
“The government is not telling us that ‘you might not con-
sider yourself to be the representatives of the PKK, they do not
consider you to be their representatives either, but still, by talk-
ing to you and by asking for your opinion regarding the solu-
tion to the Kurdish question, we will pretend that we are talk-
ing to the PKK.’ The government is not telling us that whatever
we say, they will be considered our comments to be the words
of the PKK, they are not saying that whatever they say to us
would be the same as if they were talking to the PKK.”
the AK Party [Justice and Development Party],” Demirta said.
According to Demirta, the crucial question is if the pro-
cess is aiming to eliminate the PKK or solve the Kurdish
question. “If the aim is to solve the Kurdish question, we as
the DTP have suggestions to help achieve this. We suggest
strong local administrations, a new Constitution and educa-
tion in the mother tongue. If we are listened to on these mat-
ters then the DTP can take the responsibility alone, without
making the PKK intervene in the process. If we are listened
to then the PKK will lay down its arms. This is what we are
saying and we are even giving guarantees on this. We are
that sure, we are that self-condent. If the government takes
these steps and if the PKK still talks about an armed struggle
then the PKK will have no support bases,” Demirta argued.
According to Demirta, if the government takes steps to
give more rights to Kurds, the side effect will naturally be the
elimination of violence, not only the elimination of the PKK.
“The government should talk about eliminating violence
as a whole, not only the PKK, because many Kurds consider
themselves to be the ones who were called ‘terrorists’. If the
government says it aims to eliminate violence it will not ir-
ritate Kurds because this is what they want anyway,” he said.
Demirta underlined that if the government makes giv-
ing Kurds the rights they deserve as human beings their pri-
ority, the natural outcome will be the elimination of violence
and then the DTP will be a party the government can talk to.
“If the aim is the elimination of the PKK then we are
saying that under these conditions the party to talk to is the
PKK. Despite this, in order to not to block the process, we are
saying we only support the part of this process which gives
people more rights,” he said.
PHOTO
ence in zmir when the military issued an
“electronic memorandum,” or the e-ultima-
tum of April 27, 2007, to express its reserva-
tions during the presidential election.
“We saw at the conference that partici-
pants who had experienced the 1980 coup
suddenly felt sick” -- as if they had been trau-
matized by their past experience, she said.
Regarding Turkey’s process of democrati-
zation, she said it is an opportunity for Turkey
and marks the end of an era of coups in Turkey.
“Apparently, the government is follow-
ing a good strategy as the democratic initia-
tive has been discussed at all levels and at
Parliament,” she said.
Dufner also mentioned the sins of the
ruling Justice and Development Party (AK
Party) as it did not take more steps to change
the Constitution of the 1980 military era. In
addition, she said, the government should
have done more in the case of assassinated
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink,
who was fatally shot outside his ofce by an
ultranationalist teenager.
She also touched upon the emdinli
bombing and the government’s silence.
In 2005 two noncommissioned ofcers
were caught red-handed by residents of
The pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party’s Selahattin Demirta spoke to Today’s emdinli, in Hakkari province, while plant-
Zaman in an exclusive interview about the government’s democratization initiative. ing a bomb at a local bookstore owned by
a former Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)
member. The land forces commander at the
time praised one of the ofcers, saying, “I
know him, he’s a good kid.” Four years af-
ter the incident, it appears that the two men

Democratic initiative beacon of hope for exiled writers
TANJU ÖZKAYA STANBUL
Kurdish intellectuals and artists forced to leave
Turkey in the aftermath of the country’s 1980
coup d’état are hopeful that the government’s democ-
ratization initiative will pave the way for their return.
Despite the disapproval of opposition parties,
the details of the ruling Justice and Development
Party’s (AK Party) democratic initiative to solve the
long-standing Kurdish problem were discussed
in Parliament last week, months after the govern-
ment announced its intention to formulate the plan.
Along with the revelation has come increased hope
on the part of Kurdish writers, politicians and artists
-- and their requests to return to their homeland are
back on the agenda. Speaking with Today’s Zaman,
Kurdish intellectuals and artists expressed a desire
to return home and said they were looking to the
democratic initiative to make this possible. Why
shouldn’t we, who were declared guilty and stripped
of our citizenship due to the things we wrote and
said, be allowed to return to our country, they ask.
The road to exile for many Kurdish writers con-
victed of disseminating terrorist propaganda be-
cause of the lyrics to a song or poem they wrote or
recited passed through Diyarbakr Prison, now infa-
mous for the torture inicted upon its inmates. Fol-
lowing their time there, they were forced by varying
circumstances to ee the country. Among them are
writers, politicians, intellectuals and artists, names
such as Kemal Burkay, Ylmaz Çamlbel, Günay
Aslan, ükrü Gülmü, Vildan Tanr Kulu, Garip
Dost and ivan Perver -- and most of them are still
Kemal Burkay
waiting for the right time to return to their country.
Kemal Burkay, an important Kurdish political
gure who lives in Sweden, draws attention to the
legal roadblocks preventing their return, saying: “I
certainly want to return to my country. If the nec-
essary conditions were only in place, I would have
returned long ago. Our political work was pacist;
we weren’t involved in any violence. But we were
still outlawed. Because of our views and demands,
we were under the threat of heavy punishment. For
this reason, we were forced to go abroad.”
Ylmaz Çamblbel, who lives in Germany,
wants Parliament to amend laws to allow people
like himself to return to Turkey. He spent six years
at Diyarbakr Prison following the 1980 coup and
becomes emotional when he speaks about his
longing to return to his home province of Ar.
The 75-year-old writer says his greatest desire is
ivan Perver
to see Ar again before he dies. “I try to alleviate
the longing I feel for my home, which I’ve been
away from for 23 years, with pictures. This longing
has settled into my subconscious, so much so that
I dream about Ar, about Mt. Ar, the shak Paa
Palace, the tomb of Ahmet-i Hani…” he says. “No
matter how comfortable life is here, a person still
wants to return to their own country.”
‘AK Party’s initiative a good move’
Another Kurdish writer living in Germany for the
past 30 years, Vildan Tanrkulu, says it is the most
natural right for Kurdish intellectuals to be able to
return to their homeland of Turkey and says the AK
Party’s democratic initiative is a step in the right
direction. “I think the democratic initiative the AK
Party started is valuable, and it gives us hope. The
Kurdish intellectuals [in Europe] will return to Tur-
key with great social and cultural contributions to
offer. This will speed up the initiative’s progress.
The anxiety-free return of intellectuals to Turkey
from Europe will strengthen the AK Party’s hand as
much as it will promote peace,” Tanrkulu says. “At
the end of the day, we’re all underneath the same
sky, and there’s enough room for all of us.”
“Of course, I want very much to return to Tur-
key. A life in exile is no different from living in an
open-air prison. I’m not asking for a pardon from
anyone, and I’m not asking for help from anyone
because I’m not guilty,” says Kurdish politician
Yaar Kaya, who currently lives in Iraq. Referring
to members of deep-state crime gangs responsible
for innumerable atrocities committed against Kurds
in Turkey over the years, Kaya added: “Those who
have committed crimes are the Ergenekonists, the
JTEM members and the perpetrators of unsolved
crimes. My yearning is for Turkey. It’s the shared
homeland of Turks and Kurds.”
Striking the same note on the nature of the
crimes and allegations against Kurdish intellectuals
that prevent their return to Turkey, ükrü Gülmü,
a Kurdish writer living in Sweden, says: “The in-
tellectuals living abroad aren’t people convicted of
murder. They have been convicted or accused due
to their writings or speech. There should be an an-
nouncement made that says, ‘The Kurdish diaspora
in Europe and everyone whose distance [from Tur-
key] is attributable to political conditions may re-
turn.’ There’s only so much a government can do;
the AK Party is doing what it can. Legal changes are
necessary to allow such returns.”
are still on active duty, despite being in and
out of court over the intervening period.
During the process, Van Prosecutor Ferhat
Sarkaya, who prepared the indictment, was
disbarred for indicting then-Land Forces
Commander Gen. Yaar Büyükant.
Dufner also pointed out that some op-
position parties in Turkey do not display a
democratic stance. She said the opposition
Republican People’s Party (CHP) is not per-
ceived as a socialist or leftist party in Europe.
“Our European friends know the CHP
as a nationalist party which protects the sta-
tus quo,” she said. About CHP leader Deniz
Baykal, she said he seems to be a dictator
who cannot accept the fact that there might
be alternatives to him. She added that Tur-
key needs a democratic opposition.
She emphasized that most civil society
organizations in Turkey are under the direc-
tion of the military, which uses universities
and the media to create an environment suit-
able for a military coup.
In the conference, to be held Nov. 21-22
at the Larespark Hotel in Taksim, partici-
pants will discuss how military control over
civilian politics has established itself and
how it is changing. Among the participants
are writer and academic Ali Bayramolu,
writer and journalist Cengiz Çandar, so-
cialist monthly Birikim Editor-in-Chief
Ömer Laçiner, human rights activist Ylmaz
Ensarolu, senior advisor to Sabanc Univer-
sity’s stanbul Policy Center Joost Lagendijk,
former diplomat Akn Özçer and journalist
and writer Lale Kemal.

CMYK
 BUSINESS
Life to halt one day next week as civil servants stop working
Many Turkish civil servants are set to take
part in a work stoppage next Wednesday
ahead of Eid al-Adha, in a move meant to
warn the government of the need to listen to
the demands of its civil servants.
Turkish Public Workers’ Labor Union
(Kamu-Sen) President Bircan Akyldz an-
nounced that civil servants will not work on
Nov. 25 “to cause life to stop for one day,” so
that the government understands how serious
the civil servants’ demands, including higher
wage increases and improved social welfare
conditions, truly are.
Akyldz called a press conference yesterday
in Ankara with Kamu-Sen managers and repre-
‘MKB is
inflated,
real sector
stagnant’
Turkish Exporters Assembly
(TM) President Mehmet Büyü-
keki has said a signicant recovery
would not take place within the nan-
cial sector or stock exchange without a
serious improvement in the real sector.
Speaking on Thursday at a meeting
of the Independent Industrialists and
Businessmen’s Association (MÜS-
AD), Büyükeki stated that the stan-
bul Stock Exchange benchmark index
(MKB-100) increased from around
23,000-25,000 to above 50,000 and that
the Turkish lira gained value. Now,
Turkey, like the rest of the world, is
considering adopting the same polici-
es of the last six to seven years despite
the absence of any real recovery taking
place in the real sector, he remarked.
“The bourses are inating, even tho-
ugh there is no improvement in eco-
nomic indicators like industry produc-
tion, exports, capacity utilization or the
unemployment rate.”
Büyükeki recalled that the compa-
nies which made the most prots were
the banks in the third quarter of this
year with a 30 to 60 percent increase in
prots, while the real sector suffered a
loss in prots in the same period.
MÜSAD Chairman Ömer Cihad
Vardan speaking at the meeting said
Turkey won the approval of several
countries for its economic performan-
ce during the recent crisis compared to
its performance in the previous crises
of 1994, 1999 and 2001. The increasing
trend experienced in the country’s ex-
port levels in terms of both value and
quantity played an important role in
this performance, he remarked.
Turkey’s exports, which were once
about $30 billion, managed to increa-
se to some $130 billion; however, with
the crisis this gure declined to some
$100 billion, Vardan stated, stressing
that recovery from the crisis has star-
ted to take place. “Turkey’s foreign
trade strategy in line with its recent
foreign affairs policy has undertaken
a very important role in this recovery
process,” he said, continuing that in
previous terms Turkey’s exports were
dependent on European Union co-
untries with nearly 60 percent of the
country’s total exports going to Euro-
pe. This situation then resulted in the
loss of Turkey’s foreign trade elasticity,
he remarked, adding that now diversity
has been achieved and that 48 percent
of Turkey’s exports go to the European
Union. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires
imek: Constitution must reflect strict stance on taxes
Minister of Finance Mehmet imek has exp-
lained the administration’s tough stance of
refusing to forgive tax debt, adding that the punish-
ment for tax fraud was not sufcient to prevent the
commission of such a crime.
Speaking at a panel titled “Tax Administration,
Tax Justice and Reform” at TOBB Economics and
Technology University, organized by the Turkish
Strategic, Social and Economic Research Foundati-
on (VAKIF 2000), imek stressed the importance of
Mehmet not creating incentives by pardoning tax obligations,
imek adding that “even though we currently need the ag-
F R I D A Y, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9
sentatives of Kamu-Sen member unions to pro- for civil servants but to struggle for their rights
vide details about the labor action. in the streets, Akyldz argued. “The knife has
Akyldz said, “The failures of inept govern- reached the bone [a Turkish idiom meaning the
ments and the fecklessness of evil-minded ma- last straw]. The words have come to an end,
nagers have burdened civil servants for years.” our leniency has been ignored with no proper
Civil servants come under criticism both in response and the dialog between the govern-
times of crisis and during economic prosperity, ment and civil servants has sustained a harsh
he claimed, and accused the government of bre- blow. Now this action is our last resort. We are
aking its promises made during earlier collective organizing on Nov. 25 to express our rights, to
bargaining and dodging its obligation to fulll remind the government of the fact that Turkey
the decisions made in the mutual talks. “At the is a democracy and the basis of democracies lies
current point, civil servants have lost condence in the protection of the rights of all segments of
in the government entirely,” he asserted. society and in ensuring a fair allocation of the
Despite earlier attempts to nd common state’s resources among the people,” he said.
ground, the government has left no alternative He said the government will need to assume
AA, FIRAT YURDAKUL
PHOTO
Economy Minister Ali Babacan (R) is shared his assessments of the economy on Thursday during his presentation of the 2010 budget of the Trea-
sury undersecretary at a parliamentary Planning and Budget Commission meeting. The meeting was also attended by Kemal Madenolu.
Babacan says economy to start
growng agan n fnal quarter
Economy Minister Ali Babacan said cic polices favoring the labor market as set
the contraction in the Turkish eco- out in the government’s Middle-Term Eco-
nomy will likely continue in the third nomic Program, Babacan claimed employ-
quarter but that the economy will begin to grow ment levels will steadily rise again.
again starting with the last quarter of 2009. “Recent developments point to a mo-
“We forecast that Turkey’s gross do- derate recovery in the global economy,”
mestic product (GDP) will grow 3.5 percent the minister argued, but didn’t forget to
and 4 percent in 2010 and 2011, respecti- call on politicians and businessmen to re-
vely, and the economy will grow by 5 per- main cautious by recalling past experien-
cent in 2012,” Babacan said. ces with recoveries lasting long after such
The minister shared his assessments of deep nancial crises.
the economy on Thursday during his pre- Babacan also mentioned the
sentation of the 2010 budget of the Treasury government’s plans to increase the effecti-
undersecretary at a parliamentary Planning veness of state economic enterprises (KTs)
and Budget Commission meeting. by introducing a new governance method
Along with the growth of the economy, for these corporations. Within this context,
unemployment will also start gradually decli- the government will determine priorities
ning by 2010, the minister asserted. Unemp- among public investment projects and al-
loyment, which was 11 percent in 2008, will locate public expenditures accordingly, he
probably end this year at 14.8 percent due to said. “We will complete the legal infrast-
the harsh conditions of the global economic ructure for well-operating cooperation bet-
crisis, he estimated. However, thanks to spe- ween the public and private sectors in 2010,
reement of a qualied majority within the ministry to
pardon tax debts, I still think this isn’t enough. Maybe
we need to add it to the Constitution under the unc-
hangeable articles that tax pardons will not be given.”
imek continued by noting that to increase
adherence to tax laws, there need to be heftier pu-
nishments for tax fraud, noting that they’ve inc-
reased the time in prison for tax fraud from one
year to one-and-a-half years and that it would no
longer be possible to pay only a ne.
The minister also spoke about his position on tax
fraud, saying that he didn’t view it as a nancial offense
CMYK
responsibility for the hitches and problems that
may arise due to the lack of civil servants’ servi-
ces on the action day.
Akyldz threatened that “the trains will halt
with all other public transportation and com-
muting vehicles, teachers will not go to schools,
planes will not take off, bridge tolls will not open
and no tax will be collected” on the action day.
Legally, civil servants do not have the
right to strike for any reason, and such an
action is grounds for ring. In light of this
fact, the civil servants are using tactics such
as taking a day of casual leave for a variety
of reasons including illness or a relative’s
death. Ankara Today’s Zaman with wires
to increase the volume of investments and
accelerate them,” Babacan asserted.
Babacan claimed that the adverse ef-
fects of the global economic crisis on the
Turkish economy remained restricted and
the structural reforms of public nance and
regulations in the banking sector imple-
mented after 2002 played an integral role in
the resilience of the economy.
“Turkey, which has the 15th largest
economy in the world, possesses the ade-
quate infrastructure and equipment to re-
ach a higher level of prosperity in the pe-
riod ahead. What really matters now is to
be aware of the potential Turkey has and to
implement policies to stir and develop that
potential. I believe the policy framework
that we have recently shared with the pub-
lic in the Middle-Term Economic Program
and the Middle-Term Fiscal Plan will sig-
nicantly help in realizing this potential,”
Babacan noted. Ankara Today’s Zaman with wires
but rather a “crime against public order.” imek conti-
nued: “Tax fraud is a crime against public order because
it leads to budget decits, public debt, the weakening of
the Turkish economy and other problems for the Tur-
key. … This is my perspective on the issue, and thus I
view tax fraud as something that needs a heavier pu-
nishment.” On this note, the minister added that they
have taken the rst steps to solve the issue of tax fraud
but that more is needed to completely solve the prob-
lem. He added that the punishment for tax fraud should
be more onerous, which will help curb any incentives
to commit tax fraud that may exist. Ankara Today’s Zaman
TODAY’S ZAMAN 07
CarrefourSA
plans further store
openings in Turkey
CarrefourSA, a French retail cha-
in working in partnership with
Turkey’s Sabanc Holding, is planning
further growth through opening new
stores and by capitalizing on all potenti-
al opportunities presented by acquisiti-
ons in the Turkish domestic market.
Guillaume Deruyter, the director ge-
neral of CarrefourSA Supermarkets, said
on Thursday that the company will open
three supermarkets along with a hundred
express markets in 2010, all of which will
offer work for 5,600 more people.
Deruyter spoke with the Anatolia news agency during
a visit to Tarsus, Mersin province, to inaugurate the 160th
CarrefourSA store. CarrefourSA opened 55 express mar-
kets and four supermarkets in Turkey in 2009. Carrefour
owns 58.2 percent of shares in CarrefourSA while Sabanc
Holding controls a 38.8 percent stake. The rest of the sha-
res are traded on the stock market.
The third-largest food retailer in Turkey, rst in Europe and
second in the world, the Carrefour group has over 15,500 sto-
res, either company operated or franchised. Deruyter said Sa-
banc Holding has always offered full support in opening new
stores. “We want to acquire companies if we encounter proper
opportunities,” Deruyter noted. “We want to grow more and
increase our share in the market. Our aim is to be number one
in every area we are involved in.” He also said the company
aims to increase its number of employees in Turkey to 19,000
from the current 7,600 by 2012. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires
Second closure
case rumors lead to
massive MKB drop
contýnued from page 1
Political concerns, such as the heated arguments in
Parliament regarding the recent democratic initiative put
forth by the AK Party and a “legal investigation of politi-
cal parties” by Chief Prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalçnka-
ya that could lead to another closure case against the AK
Party, have scared away investors, according to experts.
While Russia’s stock market rose by 0.78 percent on
Wednesday along with other increases in global markets,
the MKB-100 dropped by nearly 2 percent in a single day.
The rst session of Thursday’s trading closed at 46,244.43,
a 10 percent drop from the three-month peak. The unex-
pected drop in US home construction and residential bu-
ilding permits, revealed yesterday, also sent US and inter-
national stocks plunging. Experts say that this drop along
with the weak performance of European stock markets
had a detrimental effect on the MKB index. imek has
stated that investors need to be “vigilant” regarding their
investments and that there are “vague implications” for
an economic recovery. stanbul Today’s Zaman
TCDD bids for
operation of Mecca-
Medina high-speed rail
Turkey’s state-owned railway company is set to sub-
mit a bid in a tender to operate a Mecca-Medina high-
speed train, Turkish railway ofcials said on Thursday.
A Turkish State Railways (TCDD), Siemens and
Saudi BinLadin Group consortium is one of the four
consortia competing to sign a deal for the superstruc-
ture project of the railroad. The railroad’s substructure
is being constructed by a Chinese rm.
The consortium will offer a technical bid for the project
in January and a nancial bid will be presented in June,
said the ofcials. According to the plan, Siemens will set
up the signalization system, the Saudi BinLadin Group
will undertake the superstructure construction and the
TCDD will operate the high-speed train for a period of 12
years on a 450-kilometer track from Mecca to Medina, an
area only Muslims can enter. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires
 08 TODAY’S ZAMAN F R I D A Y, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9
BUSINESS

Communication needed to resolve longstanding problems Gulf capital head-to-

Turkey has entered a period of rapid growth
and should best benet from this period by
focusing on solving its longstanding problems
with the use of much more communication, State
Minister Cevdet Ylmaz said on Thursday.
Delivering a speech at the Regional Devel-
opment and Governance Symposium, jointly
organized by the Economic Policy Research
Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV) and Middle East
Technical University’s (ODTÜ) social policy de-
partment yesterday, Ylmaz noted that Turkey
should achieve a rapid growth rate and assure
sustainable growth while ensuring that the dis-
tribution of growth in different regions and seg-
‘Incentives
head with co-ops in
ments of society will be equal. close this gap, which is actually accurate, the ing that this situation should be resolved, con-
Ylmaz stated that the process of develop- minister said, adding, however, that the new tinued by saying: “Turkey is entering a period of sugar refineries bid
ment cannot be completed solely with growth concept of “regional competitiveness” has also rapid growth. It will be a bright era in both the Yesterday was the last day to submit bids on
but should also take into account social and en- started to gain importance. The power of com- middle and long term. In order to best benet state-owned Turkish Sugar Reneries Cor-
vironmental dimensions. Otherwise, he added, petitiveness should be increased in the country from this growth, we should focus on resolving poration (TÜRKEKER) facilities in Kastamonu,
the reection of growth on social welfare will as a whole, Ylmaz said, adding that this can the longstanding problems of the country by Krehir, Turhal, Yozgat, Çorum and Çaramba, in
be limited. “Our primary goals are to raise the only be achieved by mobilizing local dynamics. making use of more communication.” a privatization auction that attracted interest from
quality of life and boost social welfare. In order The minister went on to call for the creation World Bank Turkey Director Ulrich Zachau, both Gulf interests and local cooperatives.
to achieve these goals we should create policies of a platform to coordinate participation at the speaking at the symposium, noted that Turkey Offers for the reneries, which are being sold
to pursue. We should implement these policies national and regional level, noting that commu- has large regional discrepancies and the country as part of a larger plan to privatize 25 TÜRKEKER
at both the national and local levels.” nication is key to effective governance. is exerting signicant efforts to overcome this reneries, were being accepted through last night.
Regarding regional policies, there is a tradi- Behind all of the longstanding problems of situation. Zachau expressed approval of projects TÜRKEKER’s total production for 2010 is expected to
tional mindset that there are large inequalities Turkey lies either a communication failure or an currently under way in the southeastern Anato- be 10.4 million tons of sugar; however, only 61 percent
between the regions of Turkey, and we should institutional conict, he asserted. Ylmaz, stress- lia region. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires of the reneries’ capacity is expected to be utilized.
The Turkish Agriculture Credit Cooperative
Central Union (TTKKMB) will make a joint offer
with Saudi Arabian-based Savola Group and Nes-
ma Holding, also a Saudi company. The partner-
ship, if the offer is accepted, would give the TTKK-
REUTERS, CHARLES PLATIAU

MB and Savola Group 40 percent ownership of the

reneries apiece, with Nesma Holding receiving 20

needed to percent. The Savola Group currently holds a 68 per-

cent market share in the Saudi sugar industry, while
Nesma Holding has a diverse portfolio, including
reinvigorate business activities in advertising and logistics.
The bid has drawn criticism from many groups,

auto market’ especially from the individual reneries them-

selves, which have raised concerns about foreign-
PHOTO

ers buying Turkey’s sugar reneries. Ali Özk,

Nissan Otomotiv A Deputy Director Gener- chairman of the Kayseri Sugar Reneries, which
al klim Sancaktarolu has said that the auto- are also being privatized in a separate lot, claimed
motive market has started to suffer from a recession that “[these foreign companies] would not be
after the expiration of a cut in private consumption able to meet the needs of our farmers.” To make
taxes (ÖTV) that was introduced in March and was a counteroffer for the lot, the S.S. Beet Farms Co-
in effect until the end of September. operative Union (PANKOBRLK) joined forces
Speaking in Antalya, where he attended with other sugar reneries and farming coopera-
Auto Show 2009, Sancaktarolu said that tives in the Central Anatolian region to form the
while demand for private cars was relatively Northern Anatolia Sugar Reneries Joint Ven-
high, the amount of commercial vehicles sold ture. They hope to buy the reneries on offer with
had decreased by some 15 percent compared their own capital. stanbul Today’s Zaman
to last year’s gures. Noting that as the sector OECD Chief
had entered a slowdown with the expiration of Economist
the tax incentives, Sancaktarolu stated that Jorgen
the sales gure was 21,000 last month and that Elmeskov Technology does not
the projected gure for November was some
30,000. “We were predicting approximately kill jobs, academic
100,000 automobile sales for the last quarter of
the year, however sales have decelerated.”
study shows
Expecting a contrac-
tion in the market
in the year ahead,
OECD: Recovery n global The negative impact that technological
change has on employment is being coun-
teracted by another effect -- an increase in pro-
Sancaktarolu
said that the
Automotive
economy gatherng pace duction, Associate Professor Aykut Lenger of Ege
University’s department of economics has said.
Speaking during a seminar held to promote his re-
Recovery in developed econo- and public policy interventions. It is impor- -- especially China -- and the stabilization cent study, “Analysis of Inter-industry Effects of Tech-
Distributors As-
mies will accelerate next year due tant that these fat margins do not just end up of the housing market, the OECD said. It nological Change on Employment,” at the Foundation
sociation will
to “substantial improvements” in as higher bonuses, dividends or buybacks.” predicted unemployment will start to ease for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA),
present a plan to
nancial markets and fast-growing Asian While banks have started to loosen lend- after peaking in the rst half of 2010. Lenger said: “The rst perception is that technological
the government en-
countries, but is likely to remain fragile, ing conditions -- a vital condition for the The OECD predicts the US economy will change increases unemployment. However, there is an-
visioning cuts in taxes
the Organization for Economic Coopera- economy to grow again -- there are still some expand at a rate of 2.5 percent in 2010, up from other mechanism that replaces the negative impact of
along with decreasing vehicle costs.
tion and Development said Thursday as it concerns about the health of their balance a June forecast of 0.9 percent. It also expects a technological change on employment: Decreasing costs
According to the situation, the market value of
doubled its 2010 growth forecast. sheets and their ability to provide credit to smaller contraction this year: a 2.5 percent fall lead to an increase in production. Employment created
the sector will increase to $1 million, he said.
The Paris-based watchdog’s chief econ- fund the economy, he said. in output compared with an interim Septem- by increasing production cancels out the loss of labor
The number of vehicles sold in Turkey remains
omist, Jorgen Elmeskov, told a news confer- The OECD more than doubled its esti- ber forecast of a 2.8 percent drop. due to technological change,” he told Today’s Zaman.
low due to the relatively low average income,
ence that the recovery has been mostly driv- mate for 2010 growth in its 30 member coun- In Europe, the economies of the 16 When asked about how this positive impact seen
and Sancaktarolu warned that the sector will
en by government stimulus measures and tries -- which include the US, Japan, Germany countries sharing the euro are now expected in one sector inuences other sectors, Lenger respond-
have no option but to contract by some 20 per-
interest rate cuts. Those beneted nancial and the United Kingdom -- to 1.9 percent, to grow by 0.9 percent next year compared ed, “As inter-industry relations are not very strong in
cent in 2010 unless an incentive is introduced.
markets, whose recovery is “considerably compared with 0.7 percent forecast in June. to a June forecast of zero growth. However, Turkey, I found in my research that this positive impact
In order to ensure continuous auto production,
faster and stronger” than anticipated in the The projections are based on the assumption the OECD predicts a greater contraction of remained limited to only the sector where the techno-
the domestic market should be kept alive, he
June economic outlook, he said. that by the middle of next year, nancial con- 4 percent this year, more than the 3.9 per- logical change took place.” Even though production in
said. Recalling that the sector was about to stop
Still, the recovery will remain modest next ditions will have returned to normal. cent it calculated in September. Unemploy- Turkey is mostly labor intensive, the country still has
operations at the beginning of this year he said
year, with the US and Japan outpacing Eu- The OECD publishes its economic ment is not set to peak before the end of a serious unemployment problem, Lenger said, add-
that the sector managed to overcome this situ-
rope, the OECD report said. outlook twice a year, although it updated 2010 or the beginning of 2011, and is likely ing that this situation has given rise to questions such
ation by the help of the incentives introduced
Elmeskov warned banks not to use the some 2009 forecasts in an interim assess- to sap the strength of recovery, the OECD as whether adopting a more technology-intensive
in March.
“fat margins” they have accrued thanks to ment published in September. said. Elmeskov said central banks should production model would lead to increased unem-
Nissan managed to raise both its sales and
government policies designed to keep mon- The US economy has been boosted keep interest rates low and should beware ployment. “However, we can say that technological
market share despite the crisis, Sancaktarolu
ey owing to the real economy to line their by stimulus measures, improving nan- of the dangers of deation, while govern- change, by increasing production, eliminates its nega-
said. Nissan’s current share in the overall auto
own pockets. He said the margins “are the cial conditions, demand from the fast- ments should work on plans to reduce debt tive impact on employment,” he explained, calling on
market is 1.5 percent, and this gure is expect-
result of both weak competition in the sector growing non-OECD economies of Asia levels as the economy recovers. Paris AP rms to invest more in technology. Ali Aslan Klç Ankara
ed to be increased to 2.5 percent in the near
future. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires

Turkmenistan seen
as top gas supplier
for Nabucco
Daily Monthly Yearly YTD MCAP 1-Y Country Change Level Energy-rich Turkmenistan could become a top
Close Change (%) Change (%) Change (%) Change (%) (million TL) Av.Volum (%)
supplier to ll a Western-backed natural gas pipe-
İMKB-100 46.420 -1,7% -1,6% 97,6% 72,8% 269.478 1.544 Hang Seng H.Kong -0,32 22.840,3 66.33
İMKB-30
line aimed at reducing Europe’s dependency on Russian
58.595 -1,8% -1,7% 95,3% 67,4% 219.632 1.171 Nikkei 225 Japan -0,55 9.676,8 51.9 52.97
İMKB-IND 34.066 -1,6% -2,4% 83,7% 72,2% 72.114 478 Cac 40 France -0,18 3.822,1 47.03
gas, a top executive on the project said Thursday.
İMKB-BANK 103.125 -2,0% -2,0% 118,7% 84,2% 126.209 724 DAX Germany 0,12 5.785,1 The planned7.9 billion euros Nabucco pipeline
33.67
DJIMT 10,05 -2,0% -2,0% 57,0% 41,6% - 0,44 FTSE 100 UK -0,09 5.341,1 26,4
would run 3,300 kilometers from to Turkey through
Dow USA -0,37 10.360,0 8,6 9.7
TurkDEX NASDAQ USA -0,83 1.797,1 Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and end in Austria, circum-
US$/JP¥ S&P USA -0,48 1.105,0 Native Foreign Native Foreign venting Russia. “We hope and expect Turkmenistan to
58,925 -1,67%
EU€/JP¥ 1,4925 -0,13% BOVESPA Brasil 0,16 67.513,8 Number of SharesM.capNumber of SharesM.cap
be one of the main suppliers of gas to various markets
AT A GL ANCE
CALENDAR through Nabucco,” consortium Vice President Johann
pected Gallistl told an investors conference in the Turkmen
No data ex Daily Monthly Yearly
Ticker Price (TL) Daily Change (%) Ticker Price Daily Change (%) Ticker Volumes Price (TL) Yearly Change (%)
Close Change (%) Change (%) Change (%) US$/JP¥ 89,20 capital, Ashgabat. The remarks highlighted the crucial
EGGUB 64,00 12,28% GRUND 0,52 -7,14% ISCTR 93,7 5,5 50,94
TL / € 2,200 0,0% EU/JP¥ 133,47 role that Western politicians and energy executives see
SASA 0,55 12,24% AEFES 15,50 -2,52% GARAN 73,2 5,6 116,07 TL / $ 1,473 -0,1% EU/US$ 1,4961
the isolated Central Asian nation playing in ensuring Eu-
CLEBI 13,10 9,17% IHLAS 0,50 -1,96% VAKBN 45,8 3,4 192,31
AFYON 1.510,00 2,37% KRDMD 0,56 -1,75% KOZAA 38,8 4,9 456,82
ropean energy supplies over the coming decades.
High Low
Construction of a trans-Caspian pipeline could be
AKGRT 4,54 2,25% RYSAS 3,42 -1,72% AKBNK 29,5 8,6 83,46 Price ($) Way Change (%)
Light C. Oil 79,71 0,9% 80,11 79,17 indenitely stalled by differences on how to divide the
Gold 1146,00 1,3% 1146,00 1146,00 sea between ve littoral nations, including Russia and
Copper 313,50 0,9% 317,20 309,45
ÝMKB 100 ÝMKB 30 ÝMKB IND RETAILER BIMAS CARFA BOYNR KIPA Iran. Talks have dragged for years without an end in
Mcap TL -- -- -- 6.657,2 4.592 1.205 100 760 P/E: Share price divided by earnings per share is a measure of the price paid for a share relative to the sight. Gallistl said alternative options included mov-
P/E 2006/12 income or profit earned by the firm per share.
P/E 2007/06t EV/EBITDA: Enterprise value divided by earnings before interest, tax and amortization; “t” stands for
ing gas through Iran, liquefying it, and then transport-
14,4x 13,6x 11,5x 242,4x 63,8x -89,1x 15,9x -20,4x
P/E 2007/09t 10,3x 9,8x 8,7x 300,2x 56,9x -507,7x 6,2x -10,5x trailer and means the data over the last four quarters. ing it by sea. He also suggested it might be possible to
(*) Yesterday's closing(**) Updated at 6 p.m. by GMT+2
EV/EBITDA 2006/12* 9,9x 9,5x 8,7x 327,9x 50,7x -193,4x 5,2x -9,1x deliver gas from offshore Turkmen elds to Azerbai-
Disclaimer: The information in this report has been prepared by BMD, Bizim Securities from sources believed
EV/EBITDA 2007/03t* 6,3x 5,0x 7,7x 29,1x 42,2x 14,8x 6,3x 41,5x
to be reliable. All the information, interpretations and recommendations covered herein relating to jan, which lies across the Caspian from Turkmenistan.
EV/EBITDA 2007/06t* 7,0x 5,6x 7,7x 30,6x 39,3x 17,9x 5,7x 74,7x investment actions are not within the scope of investment consultancy. Therefore investment decisions
6,7x 5,4x 7,7x 27,9x 37,2x 18,4x 5,0x 35,7x based only on the information covered herein may not bring expected results.
Other potential suppliers for Nabucco could include
Azerbaijan, Iran and Iraq, Gallistl said. Ashgabat AP

CMYK
 TRAVEL FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009 TODAY’S ZAMAN 09

e quite
Lome ar atures

O
n d

G
oll ar ou t. It fe

O
as you str a marke

T
d
you see ich is the Apatu sorts of prepare

-- a rk e ts

D
city m o f w h n d a ll on

L
n s a ti
The ope the most famou clothing, shoes ut by eye estima
in te re s ti

NT CHI
ng,
h, fruits,
v e g e ta b le s,
ld by we
ight h ere,b

ERS
E
dried s Foods are not so

REUT
SI
foods .

A’S

TOS
IC

PHO
AFR
an em-
s neither s At-
hich ha
nation w which ha its
t African te r Togo,
is a W es u ca n en Faso as
-- Togo rkey. Yo Burkina
LOME ate in Tu nin, and
a consul G hana, Be .
bass y no r
astline s an d bo rd er r by the
cean co visa at its se and then late
lantic O ng a $20 ue tion was
or s, by purchasi d by th e Portug ig n coloniza -
neighb lonize te of fo re for exam
as rst co French. This fa Ghana,
Togo w though tions
an d then the ia te ne ighbors, w ith many na
German
s
go’s imm
ed nd as fcult
ed by To stead. A ith the di
one shar British in to deal w
ni ze d by the To go has had d m uc h chaos.
co lo e past , an
ple, was zed in th , coups its ofci
al
e coloni l unrest , though
that wer uded civi in 1960 amount
of
has incl
rm at h, which de pe ndence , a si gn icant
afte eved in In fact en ch .
ac hi ch . in Fr has
Togo Fren ucted
remains e cond ate, Togo o
ge still ports ar phosph w
langua
tr ad e and im t pr od ucer of $3 60 . Thirty-t
ign th larges around
its fore ld’s four of just y level.
e w or co m e ve rt At-
Th capita
in w the po ne along the
nal per es belo astli ing.
a natio tion liv meter co of earning a liv e
popula ilo ts at th
percent
of its
has a 56 -k
t means and Merchanh market
, which eir nets
importan
tis
In Togo is an ni ng with th odossewa fe
cean, fis
hing the mor Ak
lantic O early in g for a
catch.
get thro
wn
ad out y waitin
boats he nets that .

AN
Fishing pa rt of the da bu si ne ss: The to pu ll them in
good easy 5 people

ORH
spend a is not an ast 14-1 event th
em
se, this ed at le ore to pr
Of cour aters ne on the sh om the
ean’s w to trees nets in fr

SAM
oc d lli ng ,
into th e
nets ar e tie
waves.
Just pu e ca ht ug
es these e sh ar
Sometim too far by hours. After th right
in g pu lled out a- ha lf ld . Th is occurs
d- so

TOS
from be to one-
an they are
kes up d before rally. for the
water ta and cure ht, gene percent ations
are caug , with 65

PHO
smoked re they in Togo ffee and g celebr used
they are in e w he in co m e
cacao, co
e durin ,” (this
th e shorel so ur ce of rt of be in Lom om ise Day wer
next to
re is th em ai n
nd . Th e ex po
o ts . u h ap pen to
an d C om pr
th e ri se to po
la
Agricultu e working the l export
pr capi- If yo “Peace sary of you will
k forc To go’s tota er an d the Togo s tl y re named th e anniver r 38 years), and
w or t of rd en rece n ation of led fo s
of the percen hana bo ent, citiz e celebr who ru parade
ake up 40 een the Togo-G tal agreem e border to be th ident, military Faure
cotton m ce betw to go vernmen rd s at th ev io us pres . Th ere are pr esident,
st an ks ca ite a pr ts se
The di
ry short.
Than ow iden
tity
is also qu of the azing si
gh
rrent To
gole e city.
me is ve ly to sh So there me am le of th
tal of Lo have on h, sell- see so d the cu e peop e cer-
e other. and fort ches, an t to wave to th ing thes
and Togo e country to th rs back cial mar rs watch g in the
of Ghana from on
e of this ; vi si to
er ywhe re . of fi
gb e, co m es ou
Fr ench so ld ie
rs mar in ch
a me
os sing ca us ds ev as si n e ar e so ld ie idered ol in Lo
when cr e border
be
yelling,
crow Gn that ther y bearde
d
is cons ish scho
aos at th outing, We note so notice man d man their at a Turk
bit of ch
th ei r wares, sh s. W e al at as a bearde ar ds grow on of S tudents
ie th be
ers carryi
ng
coast ro
ad emon derstand iers let with lots
l coast nd 1,200,000. Theaches, palm parade and un any sold e stage, course.
here, m s take th
beautifu strength , dancer ag, of
Togolese urs in Togo
Lome’s tion of Lome is arulevard. There areocean stretching symbol offter the military show
ou be
of th e
la A h w av ing tr ep rene e
The po
pu fu l bo of th e
e middl
e of chin s. and m uc ish en is Lom
t beauti s vista d music by Turk front. Th
e’s mos e endles ds in th ainst color an opened ing in d boasts
is Lom co urse, th at ue that stan gh ting ag rk is h school escent ag wav l year an
trees an
d, of
can see.
A st
died w
hi le  A Tu
ar and
cr
007 educ
at io na atio l na
the eye own st e Intern
ose who e has its e 2006-2 called th ked
as far as m em orates th de pe nd ence.
ou nd Lome ar en ed up for th ho m e. It is is sc ho ol is stoc
the city
com their in stroll ar mar- school
op
ing as
its hich th ief time,
ch to declare yo u se e as you is th e Apatua d de rf ul build go od s with w in a very br go.
on nd To
the Fren city mar
kets which , shoes
an aw ll of the erseas.
A
r itself in
mous of , clothing this open hool. A from ov name fo
The open g, the most fa getables at Burç Sc ought in to make a good here.
re st in ui ts , ve ’t  nd en br or ki ng e in
quite in
te
ied sh
, fr
ng you
won
not sold
by have be anaged achers
w
inuenc
atures dr foods. Somethi ods are ol has m ish and local te h of an of
ket. It fe ar ed a scale. Fo y your onions
or the scho th Tu rk t had muc si gn icance
of pr ep , is e bo s no th e
all sorts in Togo u can bu rhaps There ar rkey ha is why
or an y like it tim at ion. Yo t a fe w, or pe O f co urse, Tu ye ar s, which m et hi ng.
market, t by eye
es
r you w
an
prepared : the
.
nds ov
er the quite so
here, bu the selle already here is
weight by telling the seller has ts these la school
matoes en marke ady Turkish well-
your to th e ba gs
ie s at these op ar e al re th is new e most
of pharmac s
picking
out one
 nd roving w ho se use-
by date
to ointmen
ts
fe re n t tribes es in Togo, and reth. Each of these Comprom
ise Day
You can
also
medicin
es, som
e of rs
pain kille out boxes. Of 37 dif 37 different tr e, Mina and Kab e. Around half
ib
during Pe
ace and
ts up er yt hi ng from es w ith e ar e e Ew cu lt ur . ipan ts
seller se ev icin n they Ther e are th distinct religions hs Partic
n nd and med out whe of thes ge and l tribal
d you ca in boxes ation ab gh this known n langua practices loca yout
past, an edicines no inform tes, thou s its ow is to see
ere are m out boxes have e-by da , es- ibes ha pulation g in Togo e small
here. Th ith ei r us th em tr se po tra ve lin e fo r on
the ones
w ssed th m buying gole while e pric
course, have pa ople fro r than of the To common sight e of the
road. Th nd $2.
keep pe h cheape Another for arou
doesn’t e so muc armacy. by the sid g of crabs goes me road
nc e they ar a ph gs of crabs st rin is the sa
al ly si
ight nd
in e selling st rin la rg er go vi lle phalt
peci
es you m can be met
at thes , while a e to To . The as
medicin if of cr abs is $1 s fr om Lom th en Nigeria will
er ne eds fo r ex am pl e, lo t
ro ad th at he ad
ds Be ni n an d
w ar ds Togoville
Oth arkets; The ge
there is u towar urney to this villa
s of open m ph on e call, d w ou ld take yo
st of your jo gi ng you to to fall
so rt ake a stop an that the re ely br in Togo
to m ca n , an d tim at sp ot in
you ha
ve
where
you
50 “cef
a,” road en
ds
dirt road
, ul
was the
rst ermans
a spot ute for e on a goville as the G
always one min take plac 500 people. To ed, it w the
ch arriv built by
phone, ancs. nd 8, the Fren e church the
use the ican C FA fr
ot of in te re st of ar ou
za tion. Be fo re
18 50 . A la rg
n stan at .
ds
t A fr r sp lo ni in g in za tio
or Wes anothe rant set under co go, arriv an colo
ni
is church
g Lome, air restau nized To period of Germ sited th
In tourin the op en istr y of who co lo
the Pa ul II vi To as
go
might be the Min s during pe John ken from
for you e next to onal German 1985, Po were ta people
e sh ady grov so rt s of traditi To go ville. In e pe ople who there are many
Togo. In
LU

th l ” of th
up in n nd al “akume, center many of in Haiti,
y. You ca cluding said that en now s left from s made
NO

Econom re , in in to It is ai ti. Ev ith st ra in

food he been gr
ound ere sent
to H -- w sacrice que
Togolese at has ith slaves w -- Vodou practiced, with ices at a mos
maize th rved w religion ese sacr l prayer
HATU

ater, se actice a strongly of life. Th rationa

FACTS]
which is ix ed with w k st ew s. who pr ca l re ligion is re nt aspects on ly. If you ha
ve
Congreg
m ic lo ffe m
[QUICK
d ly th , ect di t com place
our an e actual rprise Togoville who prot ats, mos that take
which ar may su
MRE

ts that us gods ns or go monies

“sauces” the sigh around to vario of chicke e religious cere music. Lome
One of standing in the form of th he ar much Capital: ge: French ty demo-
US E

ds e be y d
go is th
e cr ow
to read
th ca n s an
to witnes e lots of dancin
g an langua multipar
e chance Official der transition to
you in To an ds , trying
ng th ere. th u w ill se ic un
YUN

er st st stan
di ville, yo ent: Re
publ le
newspap foot ju ed; it in Togo Governm cratic ru GNASSINGBE
ers on happen
newspap ssarily t: Faure meters
has nece the new
s. Presiden 85 square kilo 7 *
MAP

th in g to ge t ,7
No, no trying Area: 56 lation: 6,019,87 .13 billion**
ju st th e crowd Po pu (PPP) $5 lam (20
is t
produc (29 percent), Is t)
mestic en
Gross do ns: Christianity liefs (51 perc
re ligio us be
Main indigeno
percent), ate
09 estim
*July 20 estimate
**2008

CMYK
 10 TODAY’S ZAMAN FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009 WORLD

CONFERENCE Russian court

‘NATO must not extends moratorium
forsake Afghanis’
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmus-
sen said on Thursday the alliance must not turn its
back on Afghanistan as this would raise the threat
Kosovo stll poor on death penalty
Russia’s Constitutional Court extended
a 13-year-old moratorium on the death
from al-Qaeda and lead to insecurity throughout
central Asia. “I have absolutely no doubt that if we
were to walk away and turn our backs on Afghan-
istan al-Qaeda would be right back,” Rasmussen
and dle, despte penalty on Thursday, just weeks before it was
due to expire. Russian society is divided between
those who back complete abolition of the death
penalty those who believe it deters serious crime.
Capital punishment remains part of
told a conference in Budapest. ”And if we were to
walk away, just imagine the pressure on nuclear-
armed Pakistan and the way instability would
spread like wildre through central Asia.” Ras-
mussen said that, although the cost of the NATO
bllons n ad
Thaci came to power in 2007 promising jobs, less poverty, better roads, 24-hour
Russia’s criminal code but it has observed
a moratorium since 1996.
“A sustainable constitutional legal re-
gime guaranteeing the rights of a person to
not be subjected to the death penalty and
operation in Afghanistan might appear high, the power and water. But while Kosovo elected local ofcials on Sunday in its rst vote aimed at the gradual abolition of capital pun-
cost of walking away would be far higher. NATO
wants more troops to be sent to Afghanistan to since independence from Serbia in 2008, many are pessimistic about the future ishment has formed in Russia,” the Constitu-
step up training of Afghan forces so they can take tional Court said in Thursday’s ruling.

REU T ERS, H AZI R REK A

over responsibility for security, a process NATO For the death penalty to be abolished,
the Duma, or lower house of parliament,
hopes to start in some areas next year. Rasmussen
must ratify it. The last formal obstacle in
said Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who was
bringing back capital punishment will be
sworn in on Thursday for a second ve-year term,
cleared at the beginning of next year.
should use his new mandate to pursue reforms
On Jan. 1, Russia’s turbulent Chechnya
and ght corruption. Budapest Reuters
region, on the country’s Muslim-dominated

POLL
Berlusconi’s party
stronger despite split
Silvio Berlusconi’s conservative People of Free-
dom (PDL) coalition has bolstered its popular-
ity despite judicial problems dogging the Italian
prime minister and splits among its leadership,
according to an opinion poll on Thursday. The
survey, carried out for the pro-government
newspaper Libero by the respected Piepoli in-
stitute, showed the PDL increasing its share of
voting intentions to 38.5 percent, versus the 35.3
percent it garnered in July’s European elections.
The poll was carried out before this week’s talk
of early elections. Pollster Nicola Piepoli said,
however, that when the poll was taken political
parties were focused on regional elections due in
March. The main opposition Democratic Party
(PD) also saw its popularity rise to 27.5 percent
from 26.1 percent. The main losers were smaller
coalition partners on the left and right and in-
dependent parties, according to the survey. The
gures contrasted with a survey by pollsters
ISPO, published in late October in Corriere della
Sera newspaper, which showed the govern-
ment’s popularity slipping. Rome Reuters
SECURITY
Air gun found at
Taiwan leader’s event
Taiwan authorities arrested a man who tried
to take a BB gun, a type of air gun, into a cam-
paign event led by President Ma Ying-jeou, the
president’s ofce said on Thursday. Authorities
at a late Wednesday campaign rally in south-
ern Pingtung county, where Ma’s ruling party
seeks to unseat the opposition in an election for
magistrate next month, found the gun during a
routine security check shortly before the presi-
dent arrived, his spokesman Tony Wang said. A
19-year-old man who brought the gun was ar-
rested, he said. A BB gun shoots small metal balls
with enough force to puncture the skin and eyes.
“He might have had the intent to kill or injure,”
Wang said. “We need to do further checks.” Ma
was unfazed by the incident and grateful for
event security’s early detection, he said. Elected
last year on pledges to improve relations with po-
litical rival China, Ma has angered citizens who
support Taiwan’s formal independence. China
has claimed sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan
since 1949 and vowed to bring the island under
its rule, by force if necessary. Taipei Reuters
DISMISSAL
Medvedev sacks
A Kosovo Albanian cycles through the ruins of the Roma Mahala, which was destroyed after the 1998-99 war, in northern Kosovo in this May 5, 2005, file photo.
FATOS BYTYCI DRENICA VALLEY
Nezir Jonuzi sips black tea, stares at
Prime Minister Hashim Thaci’s boy-
hood home and wonders whether he can get
a job to feed his family.
Thaci came to power in 2007 promis-
ing jobs, less poverty, better roads, 24-hour
power and water. But while Kosovo elected
local ofcials on Sunday in its rst vote since
independence from Serbia in 2008, many are
pessimistic about the future.
In the heartland of the ethnic Albanian re-
bellion against Serb rule 10 years ago, people like
Jonuzi and his ethnic Albanian family are among
the 15 percent of Kosovo’s two million people
living in extreme poverty, making less than 93
cents a day, according to the World Bank.
“I know there will be nothing, no work
during the winter,” said Jonuzi, 42, who has
done odd jobs at construction sites.
For decades the poorest part of socialist
Yugoslavia, Kosovo is weighed down by the
destruction of the 1998-99 war and a legacy of
waste and corruption, illustrating the limita-
tions of international help.
Over the past decade it has received 3 bil-
lion euros in aid, according to the World Bank,
and is expecting another billion by 2011. Yet
ofcials in Pristina say they may need more.
The government has talked with the In-
ternational Monetary Fund about a loan of
$200 to $300 million and hopes to conclude
a deal this month, according to the central
bank governor. In Kosovo, unemployment is
40 percent and average per capita income is
1,760 euros. That compares with average job-
lessness of just under 10 percent in the Eu-
Two Albanian brothers collecting scrap metal sit in a horse-drawn cart in the town of Mitrovica. The World
Bank says half of Kosovo’s population live under the poverty line and 15 percent are “extremely poor.”
ropean Union and an average salary of about
24,000 euros ($35,930). The government
hopes big public projects will pull the roughly
45 percent of the population who earn up to
1.42 euros a day out of poverty.
“If nothing improves in the next two years
there will be social unrest from those who
have no jobs and those working in the public
sector but are not paid well,” said Alban Ha-
shani, an economist working for development
and research group Riinvest.
Its lack of exposure to nancial markets,
the unilateral use of the euro, scal stabil-
ity and a balanced budget has saved Kosovo
some of the woes of the global economic crisis.
Deputy Economy Minister Bedri Hamza
says energy, roads and the private sector will
fuel future growth. The country is expected to
grow 4 percent in 2009, down from 5.4 in 2008.
But years of high growth will be needed
PHOTOS
southern fringe, will become the last re-
gion to replace traditional panels of judges
in courts with juries, a requirement for the
death penalty to return.
Surveys show that between 65 percent
and 74 percent of Russians favor resuming
executions, carried out before the morato-
rium by a pistol shot to the back of the head.
Russia committed itself to scrapping the
death penalty in 1996, when it signed a pro-
tocol to the European Convention on Human
Rights but it has never ratied the document,
citing public opposition. St. Petersburg Reuters
Serbs bid farewell
to Patriarch Pavle
Hundreds of thousands of people
joined a somber funeral procession
Thursday for Patriarch Pavle, who led the
Serbian Orthodox Church through its post-
Communist revival and the bloody Balkan
ethnic conicts in the 1990s.
White-robed church elders led funeral
prayers in Belgrade’s Saborna Curch, where
Pavle’s body covered by green-and-gold em-
broidered cloth lay surrounded by ickering
candles in an open casket.
Pavle, a highly popular patriarch known
for his modesty and humility, died over the
weekend after being hospitalized for two
years with heart and lung problems. He had
led the 7 million-member church since 1990.
The casket was placed on a hearse-drawn
caisson as crowds joined Serbian leaders and
clergy in a solemn procession to the St. Sava
Temple, the biggest Orthodox Christian church
in the Balkans. The nal liturgy, led by stanbul-
based Patriarch Bartholomew I -- the spiritual
to gain ground on even the poorest EU states.
leader of world’s Orthodox Christians -- was
“To reduce poverty and unemployment we
held there. The state TV estimated that about
need to have economic growth of more than
half a million Orthodox believers, many from
8 percent for the next six or seven years,” said
neighboring Bosnia and Montenegro, attend-
Hamza. Economists are skeptical. An invest-
ed the funeral procession through downtown
ment boom, widely expected after indepen-
Belgrade as bells tolled from churches.
dence, has not materialized.
Pavle is to be buried later Thursday at a
This week Kosovo abandoned a project
monastery in a Belgrade suburb in a private
to build a 2,000 megawatt power plant due to
ceremony attended only by church leaders and
lack of investor interest, a problem in a coun-
Serbian ofcials. “I come to bid last farewell
try where water and power shortages happen
to the best man who ever lived,” said Gojko
every day. With a budget surplus, privatiza-
Ljubovic, 53-year-old teacher from the south-
tion and pension revenues this year, Kosovo
ern town of Vranje. “He has done so much for
has a billion euros in unused cash, but ofcials
the Serbian nation.” The frail-looking Pavle,
are unsure how to use such funds effectively.
known here as “the walking saint,” had called
Hashani said government should use it to cre-
for peace and conciliation during the Balkan
ate jobs. ”The country with the highest unem-
wars. But critics say he had failed to openly
ployment rate in Europe has a surplus? This is
condemn extreme Serb nationalism of former
an economic phenomenon that does not hap-
President Slobodan Milosevic, which triggered
pen anywhere in the world,” he said. Reuters
the clashes with Catholic Croats and Bosnian
and Kosovo Muslims in the 1990s. Belgrade AP

his senior adviser

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has dis-
missed an inuential Kremlin media adviser for
breaching government rules, the rst such sack-
ing of his presidency, local media reported on
Thursday. The Kremlin announced the departure
At least 19 killed in courthouse bombing in NW Pakistan
of Mikhail Lesin, who founded Russia’s main
REUTERS

TV advertising company in 1990 and held senior
posts in news, television and the government, on
Tuesday in a terse statement saying Lesin left “at
A suicide bomber killed at least 19 people on
Thursday outside a courthouse in northwestern
Pakistan, the latest attack in an onslaught by extremist
militants ghting back against an army offensive in the
senior minister of the North West Frontier Province.
The army launched its offensive against the Pakistani
Taliban in South Waziristan in mid-October. It has retak-
en many towns in the region, but the militants say they
PHOTO

his own request.” But Interfax news agency, cit-
ing an unidentied Kremlin ofcial, reported that
Lesin was sacked for using “his position to re-
solve questions not related to his ofcial duties.”
It quoted the Kremlin ofcial as saying Lesin, 51,
had breached discipline and rules on state ser-
vice. Other Russian newspapers also ran stories
on Thursday saying Lesin, who looked after
media, information technology and intellectual
property issues in the Kremlin administration,
was sacked for conicts of interest with his own
businesses. A Kremlin spokesman refused to
comment on the reports but the inuential Kom-
mersant newspaper said such harsh comments
are rarely made by senior Kremlin ofcials with-
out the president’s permission. Moscow Reuters
nearby Afghan border region.
The bombing was the seventh attack in less than two
weeks in and around Peshawar, the largest city in the
northwest. The attacks have killed more than 80 people.
The bomber, who arrived in a taxi, was being
searched by police ofcers at the gate of the city’s lower
court when he detonated explosives on his body, gov-
ernment ofcial Sahibzada Anees said.
Several damaged motorbikes were strewn about
the site, and reghters sprayed water on a charred,
smoking white car.
Dr. Saib Gul of the city’s Lady Reading Hospital
said 19 people were killed in the attack and 51 had been
wounded. At least three of the dead were police. “These
attacks will not deter us in our ght against these beasts
who are killing our children,” said Bashir Ahmad Bilour,
avoided ghting and will now begin a guerrilla campaign.
The United States has welcomed the assault, but
wants the army to do more against the insurgents in
the border area blamed for violence across the border
in Afghanistan. Pakistan ofcials agged the offensive
in South Waziristan several months before it actually
began, something Bilour claimed allowed the militants
to escape and plan the current wave of terror.
“Unfortunately the announcement of the opera-
tion in Waziristan prior to the actual operation caused
this problem,” he said. “They [the militants] are hiding
in villages surrounding Peshawar and make their way in
despite security.” Since the beginning of October, more
than 300 people have been killed in bombings and mili-
tant raids on government, civilian and Western targets in Policemen and rescue workers stand near a vehicle which was damaged by a suicide bomb
the country, most of them in the northwest. Peshawar AP blast outside a court house in Peshawar on Thursday.

CMYK
 WORLD F R I D A Y, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9 TODAY’S ZAMAN 11

Palestne US warns Iran of consequences over nuclear standoff

after Abbas?

AP, AHN YOUNG-JOON

World powers could have a package country of most of its rened uranium stock. unlimited amount of time, likening the
of measures against Iran “within Under the plan brokered by the UN Iranian nuclear issue to years of stop-
OPINION weeks,” US President Barack Obama said nuclear watchdog, Iran would ship some 75 and-start negotiations with North Korea
on Thursday, warning Tehran of conse- percent of its low-enriched uranium to Rus- about its nuclear ambitions.
Daoud Kuttab
quences for its failure to respond to an of- sia and France, where it would be converted “We weren’t going to duplicate what
TODAY’S ZAMAN fer of a nuclear deal. into fuel plates for a Tehran reactor that has happened with North Korea, in which
But Iranian Foreign Minister Ma- makes isotopes for cancer treatment. talks just continue forever without any ac-
RAMALLAH –- A political leader’s decision not to seek re- nouchehr Mottaki dismissed talk of further “Iran has taken weeks now and has tual resolution to the issue,” said Obama.
election usually triggers fervent discussion about potential punitive sanctions, saying the West had not shown its willingness to say yes to this He has advocated a policy of increased

PHOTO
heirs. Yet, President Mahmoud Abbas’s withdrawal from learnt from past failures. Iran on Wednes- proposal ... and so as a consequence we engagement, rather than confrontation,
the presidential election scheduled for Jan. 24, 2010, has day rejected a deal to send enriched ura- have begun discussions with our interna- on thorny international issues. In appar-
produced nothing of the kind in Palestine -- not because nium abroad for rendering into fuel for tional partners about the importance of ent response to Obama’s comments, Iran’s
of a dearth of leadership or a reluctance to mention possible medical purposes in Tehran, defying world having consequences,” Obama said at a President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiter-
successors, but because the presidency of the Palestinian powers which regarded the offer as a way to joint news conference with South Korean ated in a speech in Tabriz that Iran would
Authority (PA) has become irrelevant. delay Iran’s potential ability to make atomic President Lee Myung-bak in Seoul. respond positively to a change in big pow- US President Barack Obama speaks to American soldiers at
Abbas’s withdrawal comes at a time when Palestinian bombs by at least a year by divesting the He said Iran would not be given an ers’ policy. Seoul/Manila Reuters Osan Air Base in Osan, South Korea, on Thursday.
frustration with the political process has rendered suspect
the entire rationale behind the PA, established in the mid-
1990’s, following the Oslo Accords. The main component
of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s (PLO) agreement
with Israel was a ve-year interim period during which ne-
gotiations were expected to lead to an independent Pales-
tinian state alongside Israel.
Sixteen years later, it has become clear that the Is-
raelis have made no effort to come to terms with Pales-
tinian national aspirations -- and that no effective effort
has been made to convince them. The number of illegal
Karzai sworn in as Afghan
Jewish settlers in Palestinian areas has doubled, leaving
Palestinians increasingly convinced that negotiations
are a waste of time. Many recall the preferred strategy of
former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir: “I would
have conducted negotiations on autonomy for 10 years,
president, vows to fight graft
and in the meantime we would have reached a half-
million people in the West Bank.”
Karzai was sworn in as Washington decides whether to send tens of thousands more troops to ght an increasingly
Initially, the ve-year interim agreement called for unpopular war. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was among foreign ofcials at the ceremony
the election of a Palestinian Legislative Council and
an executive leader whom the Israelis wanted to call a Afghan forces should be ready to take troops can leave. There are nearly 110,000 foreign were fake. While Karzai had been expected to

REUTERS
“chairman,” spurning the word “president.” Because over security in Afghanistan in ve troops in Afghanistan, including 68,000 Americans, win anyway, the extent of the fraud in his favor
Arabic makes no distinction between chairman and years, President Hamid Karzai said more than half arriving this year. Despite an an- severely damaged his credibility at home and
president, the Israelis accepted use of the Arabic word at his inauguration on Thursday, and pledged nouncement this week that Afghanistan would set among Western and other nations with troops
rayyes in the ofcial English text. to tackle graft which has left his reputation in up an anti-corruption unit, Clinton, in her rst visit ghting to support his government.

PHOTO
Palestinian refugees in exile and other Palestinians tatters. Karzai was sworn in as Washington as secretary of state, earlier criticized Karzai for not He has since faced tough pressure from West-
living in the diaspora were not allowed to vote. East Jeru- decides whether to send tens of thousands taking enough measures to combat graft. ern leaders to clamp down on widespread corrup-
salem Palestinians were allowed to vote only at the post more troops to ght an increasingly unpopular “They’ve done some work on that, but in our tion and replace former guerrilla leaders and cro-
ofce or at booths outside the citty limits. war. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was view, not nearly enough to demonstrate a serious- nies with able technocrats in his new government.
Abbas’s withdrawal merely conrms the obvious. among foreign ofcials at the ceremony. ness of purpose to tackle corruption,” she told re-
Another such election in the near future, including the Karzai, 51, also called for a “loya jirga,” a tradi- porters en route to Kabul on Wednesday. Streets deserted
one set for January, is unlikely to occur, mainly owing tional grand assembly, which under Afghanistan’s Karzai had been set to take on former foreign Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu
to the continuing rift between the PLO and Hamas, constitution can take precedence over all govern- ‘Very dangerous issue’ minister Abdullah Abdullah in a Nov. 7 run- (R) talks with US Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton after Karzai was sworn on Thursday.
which controls Gaza. ment institutions, including the presidency itself. Clinton said Washington would support the off before his opponent withdrew, citing more
Hamas participated in the 2006 legislative elections
which followed Israel’s military withdrawal from Gaza.
His inauguration for his second ve-year term came
against the backdrop of a rising Taliban insurgency,
new government but expected serious results
in building an “accountable, transparent gov-
fraud fears. Despite pressure from the West for
a power-sharing deal, Abdullah has ruled out
Davutolu
But for years Hamas and other radical Palestinian doubts over his legitimacy after an election tainted ernment.” Karzai said corruption was “a very joining Karzai. “I have no intention of taking attends Karzai’s
groups have rejected the Oslo process, on the grounds
that free elections under Israeli occupation would be
by fraud, and complaints his government is riddled
with corruption and mismanagement.
dangerous issue” and pledged to appoint com-
petent and professional ministers.
part in Karzai’s government,” Abdullah told
Afghanistan’s Tolo television on Thursday.
inauguration
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutolu rep-
absurd. Hamas has the power to stymie the vote and “We are determined that by the next ve A decision by US President Barack Obama Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, the
resented Turkey at a ceremony in Kabul
has indicated that it would do so. years, Afghan forces are capable of taking the on whether to send up to 40,000 troops to com- most prominent foreign leader at the ceremo- where Afghan President Hamid Karzai
Moreover, Abbas has not given up his positions as lead in ensuring security and stability across the bat a resurgent Taliban partly depends on whether ny, watched Karzai’s inauguration with foreign was sworn in for a second term, after
head of the PLO and leader of its biggest faction, Fa- country,” Karzai said. He said Afghanistan’s se- Karzai can be trusted to press ahead with reforms. ministers from Britain, France and Turkey. Ka- being returned to power despite a fraud-
tah, which remains in control in the West Bank. Abbas curity forces should be able to assume responsi- Obama said on Wednesday he sought to bring the bul’s streets were deserted early on Thursday tainted poll in which more than a quarter
bility of unstable areas in three years. conict to an end before he leaves ofce. with armored vehicles blocking off major roads. of his votes were invalidated. Karzai was
cannot resign from his post for the foreseeable future,
returned to power after election officials
lest the Hamas-backed speaker of the Palestinian Leg- US ofcials say Afghan forces must be able to A UN-backed probe found that nearly a Security ofcers even stopped people from
cancelled a needless run-off vote that
islative Council take over. At the same time, no PLO take over security across the country before foreign third of votes for Karzai in the Aug. 20 election walking on the streets. Kabul Reuters was to be held on Nov. 7. A UN-backed
ofcial is likely to seek the presidency without Abbas’s probe had earlier invalidated tens of thou-
approval, which he will withhold until a new mecha- sands of his votes from the Aug. 20 bal-
REUTERS, JERRY LAMPEN

nism for ending the occupation is found. lot. World leaders have since congratulat-
ed Karzai on his win, but the fraud-marred
The PLO will likely gain much from Abbas’s decision,
poll has hurt his reputation among West-
because it de-emphasizes the status of the PA president ern countries that have nearly 110,000
and raises the prole of his post as chairman of the PLO’s troops defending his government from a
executive committee. That shift, in turn, clears the way for growing Taliban insurgency.
a generational change in leadership -- and, more impor- Earlier this month, Ankara congratu-
tantly, a transition to post-Oslo politics. lated Karzai on his re-election, with the For-
eign Ministry expressing hope to see that
The PLO’s old guard -- men like Yasser Arafat and
those groups who opposed Karzai in the
Abbas, who led the liberation organization from exile elections will support the new administra-
PHOTO

and returned home with the Oslo Accords -- dominat-
ed the Palestinian political landscape up to now. After
they depart the scene, Palestinian leaders who were
born under occupation and spent time in Israeli prisons
will most likely ll the vacuum.
The most prominent such gure is Marwan Barghouti,
the leader of the student movement at Birzeit University in
the 1980s and one of the main organizers of the First Inti-
fada, resulting in his deportation by Israel in the late 1980s.
In 2002, he was arrested and sentenced to a long prison term
on charges that he led the Second Intifada, which had begun
two years earlier, and ordered some of its military attacks.
Despite being imprisoned, Barghouti was recently
elected to Fatah’s central council, and a number of others
who spent time in Israeli prisons will join him. One is Jibril
Rajoub, imprisoned for 19 years and deported in the First In-
tifada, only to return to lead one of the security services after
the PA was established. Another is Mahmoud Dahlan, also
an ex-prisoner and former security ofcial, although the loss
of Gaza to Hamas, for which many Palestinians hold him
partly responsible, has dimmed his leadership prospects.
Finally, there is Nasser al-Qudwa, the former PLO rep-
resentative at the United Nations. Qudwa is a dark-horse
candidate to succeed Abbas -- a possible compromise gure
who has never been directly involved in security or military
activities. For many Palestinians, Qudwa, a soft-spoken,
multi-lingual nationalist (and Arafat’s nephew), presents an
acceptable face for Palestine both locally and internationally.
The coming months will reveal whether we are, indeed,
witnessing the dawn of the post-Oslo era in Palestinian pol-
itics, and whether a new leader, with new supporters, will be
required to revive the Palestinian cause. Whoever emerges
on top will have to present an effective strategy to end four
decades of military occupation and bring about a truly inde-
pendent state that a majority of Palestinians can embrace.
*Daoud Kuttab is an award-winning Palestinian journal-
ist and former professor of journalism at Princeton Uni-
versity. © Project Syndicate, 2009
Afghan President Hamid Karzai (C) is flanked by his vice presidents Mohammad Qasim Fahim (L) and Karim Khalili, as he takes the oath in Kabul on Thursday.
Spanish opposition queries alleged
ransom payment to Somali pirates
Spain’s conservative opposition called on
Thursday on the country’s intelligence chief
to testify over whether ransom was paid for the
release of a hijacked Spanish trawler by Somali pi-
rates. Popular Party spokeswoman Soraya Saenz
de Santamaria said they want the director of the
National Intelligence Center, Felix Sanz Roldan,
to testify behind closed doors at parliament. The
Spanish trawler Alakrana was released on Tuesday
after an alleged ransom payment of $3.3 million.
Somali pirates held the ship and its 36-member
crew for 47 days. The Spanish government refuses
to say if a ransom was paid, although Prime Minis-
ter Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has done little to
deny it, saying the government “did what it had to
do.” The Popular Party has refrained publicly from
criticizing the alleged payment, but it has assailed
the government’s handling of the crisis. “We
want to know what happened in order to take
measures and help in any way we can,” Saenz de
Santamaria said in a television interview. She was
answering a question as to whether she thought
the government or the ship’s owner had made the
reported ransom payment. The party said Zapa-
tero has ignored repeated calls from it and other
parties for troops be stationed on Spanish shing
boats in the Indian Ocean after a series of hijack-
ings or attempts over the past year. Madrid AP
Palestinian leader Barghouti
wants popular, diplomatic action
Peace talks with Israel have failed and
the Palestinians must launch popular and
diplomatic campaigns to achieve statehood,
Marwan Barghouti said in an interview from his
prison cell. Still popular and articulate despite
ve years behind bars, the 50-year-old activist
is seen by some as a Palestinian Nelson Man-
dela, the man who could galvanize a drifting
and divided national movement if only he were
set free by Israel. With US peace diplomacy at a
standstill, Barghouti said, there is no justication
for the split between the Fatah movement he
belongs to and the Hamas Islamists who control
Gaza. “I do not see that there are fundamental
tion. Ahead of the inauguration, Davutolu
attended a breakfast meeting hosted by
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clin-
ton for foreign ministers of the countries
which have supported the NATO-led Inter-
national Security Assistance Force (ISAF).
Davutolu was scheduled to visit the Ka-
bul Regional Command later in the day. Tur-
key had already been supporting ISAF with
around 800 non-combat troops in Afghani-
stan, but gradually increased this number
to 1,600 after assuming the Kabul Regional
Command’s rotating leadership. Turkey has
constantly voiced its determination to refrain
from sending any combat troops to Afghani-
stan. Ankara Today’s Zaman with wires
political differences between Fatah and Hamas,”
said Barghouti, a leading gure in the two In-
tifadas, or uprisings against Israeli occupation,
waged by the Palestinians since 1987. Convicted
of murder for his role in attacks on Israelis, Barg-
houti was jailed for life by Israel in 2004 during
the second Intifada, which broke out in 2000.
From his prison cell he responded in writing to
questions from Reuters delivered by his lawyers.
Before his arrest, Barghouti had been seen as a
contender to succeed Yasser Arafat as Palestin-
ian leader -- a position assumed by current Pal-
estinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas
after Arafat’s death in 2004. Ramallah Reuters

CMYK
 12 TODAY’S ZAMAN
Parent of a chld wth specal needs
Parents raising their children in another culture often feel overwhelmed
with all the challenges. A few Turks have made comments to me, saying
they think that resident foreigners have a superiority complex and try
to transplant their own culture in the host country by their choices of
where they live and how their children are educated.
Education is a particularly touchy subject for most parents, re-
gardless of nationality. Turks who can afford to do so also send
their children to private Turkish schools where they are sure their
children will receive the best education they can afford.
Often Turks seem to observe that foreign kids are sent to in-
ternational private schools where children may only enroll if they
hold a foreign passport. Although these schools range in price,
they are usually the most expensive ones.
Not every foreigner who lives in Turkey is someone who
basically thinks that if you keep out of my life, I’ll keep out of
yours and is somebody who feels no obligation to integrate into
the host culture’s way of life.
Many foreign parents would like for their children to make friends
with local children and learn about the host culture, but their primary
concern has to be about the quality of education that their children
receive. They want to be sure that their children can go back to their
3-year-old linguists
ALISON KENNY ANTALYA
“Hello. What is your name?” How many times had
I heard these words from kids of all ages during
my years of traveling through Turkey? Then, when
I nally moved to downtown Antalya some four years ago,
no prizes for guessing the rst question I was asked by the
neighborhood kids! I soon learned that while it was ne to
give a straight “My name is…” reply, anything else would
bring nothing but the blank look of incomprehension. The
English most kids learned here was by rote -- which is all
very well when answering teachers’ questions or marking
the correct answer in a multiple-choice test -- but next to
useless out on the street when faced with a real live for-
eigner. I’d been taught French at school in exactly the same
way, so I could easily empathize with the exuberant neigh-
borhood kids. It meant, though, that I started my new job
in an Antalya crèche with some trepidation. How could I
succeed in helping my class of multinational 3-year-olds
learn to speak a new language uently?
Firstly, all kids need to be motivated. In the UK, praise
for a child’s efforts, making learning a fun and positive expe-
rience and, as a last resort, dishing out reward-stickers was
usually sufcient. But here I had a much more powerful tool
-- my own very obvious inability to speak their language --
whether it be Turkish, Dutch, Russian, Hebrew or whatever.
This proved a fantastic incentive. The kids soon learned that
if they wanted to communicate with their teacher and their
classmates they would have to learn English -- and fast!
The rst job was to establish some familiar and catchy
rhymes and songs with which to gain their attention and
encourage some listening skills. My rst attempt was to
launch into a rendition of “Baa baa black sheep, have you
any wool,” etc. Needless to say this was met with a wall
of total blankness -- even after I had found the toy sheep
from the farm box and some wool with which to explain
the lyrics. I fared better with the “Five Little Monkeys” --
especially with the chosen few acting out the monkey parts.
NOTE: Today’s Zaman intends to provide a lively forum for expatriates living in Turkey. We encourage you to contact us at voice@todayszaman.com and share your experiences, questions and problems in all walks of life for publication in Today’s Zaman.
CULTURAL CORNER
CHARLOTTE
McPHERSON
homeland and not be different from their peers at university.
For one reason or another, not every child adjusts to other
cultures. Mom and dad have expressed concerns that when they
moved as a family overseas they wanted to encourage their chil-
dren to get involved in extracurricular activities such as sports and
music. They also say it is important that they talk with their chil-
dren at the end of each day and recognize that parental involve-
ment with the school is essential. Parents who have children with
special learning disabilities face an even greater challenge:
Here is a letter from one parent who requests to remain
anonymous:
In every area of
Circle games such as “Ring a Ring of
learning, children
Roses” and “The Farmer’s in His Den” progress at their
became popular, too. But what sense
could these children possibly make of
own speed, but I
any of these, where the language and have learned that
allusions are beyond the comprehen-
sion even for native speakers? Ask any certain factors make
English 3-year-old to sing “Twinkle,
Twinkle Little Star” and they will --
a big difference to
and they’ll even be able to tell you that how quickly a child
it is about a star. But what’s in it for a
child who, initially at least, has no idea
acquires a new
what the song or rhyme is about? language. Those who
Well, there’s the rhyme, the
rhythm, the simple tunes and the learn the quickest
joy of communal singing. They soon are those who are
learned to love these and many more
rhymes and songs, belting them out already bilingual
with an ever increasing gusto. “What
is a bobbin?” asked the mom of one of my charges at my
rst parents’ consultation. I was a little taken aback un-
til I realized where she’d picked up that rather obscure
English word -- from the rhyme “Wind Your Bobbin
Up.” Her child had been singing it incessantly at home,
probably driving them, if not to drink, at least in search
of a dictionary. (A bobbin, by the way, is a small reel on
which threads such as cotton or wool are wound.) Having
been alerted to the problem, I began to send copies of the
words to each rhyme/song home with the children.
Next strategy -- repetition -- and lots of it. Within a
week, all the children understood the “Go to the toilet and
wash your hands” phrase, along with the “Tidy up time,”
“Change your shoes” and “Line up” instructions. With the
three meals and three trips to the garden per day, these were
generally the rst English words the parents would hear
their offspring utter. Not only did the kids quickly learn these
phrases, they very soon understood them and would echo
my words and pass the instruction on to those who hadn’t
F R I D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9
Dear Charlotte: We have a daughter in year 5 at a private school.
She suffers from a learning disability -- dyslexia. Before we knew it was
this, we were told by the school that our child should be held back in
school and placed into a class with students a few years younger, which
would help her do better. There was concern for her low self-esteem
and low self-condence. We were aware of these traits because we had
read that this can be a symptom of dyslexic children. We did not feel
comfortable with the school’s recommendation that our child, age 9,
should be in a class with children that young. We refused.
Because private schools are not just an educational institu-
tion but also have to operate as a business, we believe that the
lack of feedback on our child’s performance in her earlier years
has now created a worse problem for us to deal with. We have
paid the school a fortune. We are disappointed that we have not
been given more advice and support. We can’t help but think
that they were more concerned in keeping us as their customer
than risk telling us something that we may have not wanted to
hear. The scary thing is that if sufcient help is not available in
private schools I cringe to think what happens to children in
government schools who have special needs.
We have taken our child out of the school and are now
TODAY’S ZAMAN, MEHMET YAMAN
PHOTO
heard my requests rst time around.
The rest was relatively simple -- I
taught as I had always taught in the
UK: topic-based work with lots of
stories, games, creative activities and
play, the only difference being a mas-
sive use of exaggerated gestures, tone
of voice and play-acting. And yes, the
children did progress through the
language learning stages. Firstly, they
quietly absorbed a growing vocabu-
lary, then they began to repeat my
words and next my phrases. Before
long they were able to answer ques-
tions with an appropriate word and
soon to combine two or three words.
At last came the eureka moment --
they were able to string enough words
together to express their own ideas.
Of course, there are many blips in the learning process. For
example, rather than answering my question “What color
is this?” with “Red,” “blue” or “green,” some kids will just
parrot back, frustratingly, my own question.
In every area of learning, children progress at their own
speed, but I have learned that certain factors make a huge
difference to how quickly a child acquires a new language.
Those who learn English the quickest are those who are al-
ready bilingual; unfortunately, this is not an option for most
kids. But almost as important is the attitude of the parents to
other languages -- the more positive the better.
The ability of young children to learn never fails to
amaze and fascinate me. Young children, given the right
motivation and input, can learn a whole new language in a
relatively short period of time. The satisfaction and pleasure
of hearing these children speak to me in English, together
with their parents’ delight, never fails to give me a huge
buzz. So despite my initial worries and lack of condence,
my new career has been a hugely rewarding experience.
CMYK
EXPAT ZONE
homeschooling her.
Dear Anonymous: You are very courageous. Many schools may
have a speech and linguist specialist on staff, but most schools are
not equipped to offer a diagnosis of dyslexia as this should be done
by a certied professional. Although it seems that usually Turkey is
later than others in forming specic organizations to support and
help in special cases, in this case, you will be glad to know that
there is an organization in Turkey based in Lefkosa, called North
Cyprus Dyslexia Association and approved by the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP), who are determined to help
teachers and parents better understand dyslexia.
There are many Web sites to help parents learn more about dys-
lexia. I was impressed with one that provides a good denition of the
learning disability and spells it out by age groups. You can visit it at:
http://www.psychnet-uk.com/dsm_iv/dyslexia.htm
“Anyone can give up, it’s the easiest thing in the world to do.
But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you
fell apart, that’s true strength.” -- Christopher Reeves
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: c.mcpherson@todayszaman.com
[ EXPAT VOICE ]
stanbul from the
one-meter and
below perspectve
JOHN FOSTER STANBUL
It is said that Muhammad liked cats.
He said dogs, hearing the word of man, obeyed him; but cats,
hearing God’s word, would not obey man, only God.
Dogs are purported to be un-Islamic. Don’t tell that to most
Turks. They love their dogs, dogs are everywhere, well-cared for,
even the strays. That blue chip you may see in a stray’s ear means
someone’s seeing to it that that dog is getting his shots. You see
Turks walking their dogs all the time. They will not let them in the
house, wanting the house clean and it is ritual to forbid dogs from
the home, but many Turks OWN dogs, they just keep them out-
side, in kennels. Not dog houses -- fenced-in multi-dog apartment
dwellings. But the strays are always around too, especially at night,
so around 2 a.m., it’s like listening to all the late-night bark shows.
“My next guest [single dog, running through woods, is an-
nounced from a kilometer away], ROWR ROWR ROWR, my next
guest ROWR is, well you all know him, he’s the sultan of the neigh-
borhood, cur of the caddesis, a big WHOOF warm stanbul welcome
BARK BARK BARK for Mehmet!” And the entire local dog audience
erupts from multiple homes, RAWR RAWR BARK BARK ROWF
ROWF RAWRF RAWRF BARK! Until 10 minutes later, when after his
gig, Mehmet runs to his SECOND show of the night, ROWR ROWR
ROWFFF! and it starts all over again. I hardly notice it anymore.
stanbul’s cats, they are everywhere, many very beautiful and
striped. Most of ‘em look contented and will come over if you ask,
although they’ll be annoyed if you don’t have food. Or if they want
petting and you try and stop, “MRRRowll!” Hey, petting to continue,
please! If you’re a hit, the cat will follow you. A big orange tabby, he is
my new friend by the gym; I like that cat. I would say there’s mutual
interest. I am doing a heck of a lot better with cats than with women,
although the similarities are obvious. The cats are a comfort, and they
encourage me in the other. Except I know how to talk to a cat.
That’s been true as long as I can remember; with cats and dogs,
I get them to come over when no one else can, and then they don’t
want to leave. Some part of me is always amazed not everyone knows
how to talk to dogs and cats. I once made new friends in a bar with
this acquaintance’s roommates’ dog; he was dogsitting. The guy was
there with his German boss. Poor little girl, a young orange pit bull,
she was neglected and lonesome, and we talked about it a long, long
time and I let her tell me her whole story. Much petting and cud-
dling and looking her in the face, she whined, she was so sad. I let her
know we were pals. We wrestled some on the oor. The German fel-
low, who’d been formal and stiff when we were introduced, stared in
amazement. “What is zis? You say he does not know ze dog? That is
ridiculous! He does not know the dog? But look at him! He … the dog
… obviously he knows zis dog, anyone can see it, or how … how is it
like this then with the dog?” I didn’t want to interfere with the boss-
employee meeting, but I had to answer. “She’s just lonely,” I said.
TODAY’S ZAMAN, MEHMET YAMAN
PHOTO
Stray cats and dogs make up a sizeable community in the city of stanbul.
 CULTURE&ARTS
Onay Akba’s Lyon exhibition, featuring 23 canvases, represents a continuation of the concepts behind his previous exhibitions in stanbul and Ankara. Altogether, the series is an outcome of three years of work.
Onay Akba confronts demons and angels
RUMEYSA KIGER STANBUL
Turkish artist Onay Akba, who has
been living in Paris for the last 21 ye-
ars, is currently exhibiting a collection
of his paintings as part of the Season of Tur-
key in France.
Titled “Mes inachevés,” the show repre-
sents a continuation of the concepts behind
his previous exhibitions in stanbul and Anka-
ra. Altogether, the series is an outcome of three
years of work. The current show includes 23
canvases that are both thematically and aest-
hetically parallel to his earlier paintings.
Every artist and artwork has its own ad-
venture and story, Akba says in an interview
TODAY’S ZAMAN
PHOTO
Prominent Turkish
author Ömer Lütfi
Mete dies
Ömer Lüt Mete, a 59-year-old journa-
list, author and scriptwriter, passed away
on Wednesday due to heart failure.
Mete experienced a heart attack last year
and had since been in outpatient care. Upon
going into cardiac arrest on Tuesday at his
house, he was taken to Acbadem Kadköy
Hospital’s intensive care unit, where he died
on Wednesday.
Mete worked as an editor, manager and
author at Sabah, Bizim Anadolu, Tercüman,
Türkiye, Yeni Haber, Orta Dou, Yeni afak,
Ayyldz and the Yeni Binyl dailies. He also
contributed numerous articles to the Türk
Edebiyat, Boaziçi and Çarm journals.
Mete was buried yesterday at the Çengel-
köy Cemetery in stanbul, following a funeral
prayer at the Marmara lahiyat Vakf Mosque.
Parliament Speaker Mehmet Ali ahin
released a statement offering his condolen-
ces over Mete’s death. “Mete, having long
served our media as a journalist, also cont-
ributed to Turkish cinema by writing scripts
for lms and television shows. I believe Mete
will live in the heart of our public through his
works,” he noted.
Professor skender Pala, author Mahir
Kaynak, journalist and poet Olcay Yazc, aut-
hor Dursun Gürlek, journalist and author Ab-
durrahman en, and journalist and author Be-
ir Ayvazolu also expressed their condolen-
ces over Mete’s death.
Highlighting that Mete is an irreplaceable
artist, Pala said, “His death is a loss for Turkey.”
Stressing that Mete will live another life-
time through his works, Gürlek said he knew
Mete for over 30 years and added he was a
productive author.
Yazc, who worked with Mete at a journal
of Turkish literature, said Mete created his own
style by synthesizing the East and the West. No-
ting that Mete was also a prominent scriptwriter
and an intellectual, he added: “He was not an ad-
mirer of foreign cultures like other intellectuals.
He was aware of the values of the soil where he
was born.” stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009
with Today’s Zaman. “In this adventure, your
own existence and studies accompany you. My
paintings also have their own stories, of cour-
se. The ground of art consists of challenge, but
despite rejecting the art that came before, con-
temporary art is nevertheless constructed on
it. Thus, it is not a result of tradition. My cal-
ling myself ‘the spoiled kid of the history of art’
is also related to this. It is an important thing
if a student who received a classical education
in the academy challenges this education and
nds his own authentic artistic language. This
was also my story,” he explains.
Akba was born in Turkey’s Black Sea regi-
on and graduated from the department of pa-
inting of Marmara University in stanbul. The
45-year-old artist eventually moved to Paris
and still continues his work there. “In the be-
ginning, it was all because of curiosity and in
order to go on an adventure,” he says about his
move to Paris. “Our generation and the previ-
ous generations were washed in French cultu-
re and art and Paris was an inevitable directi-
on of our 150 years of modernization. Of cour-
se I was affected by all these and I was 24 years
old at the time. I believe that I am now living in
a city that helps its residents in their existential
challenges, having all the possible cultural faci-
lities, such as museums, galleries, libraries and
collectors; a place that is totally integrated with
the century and a cultural and economical cen-
ter. I believe all these things keep an artist more
CMYK
TODAY’S ZAMAN 13
alive and lead him to question himself and the
things around him,” he emphasizes.
Akba notes that his work has gone thro-
ugh various periods, starting with a baro-
que period and then passing into an impres-
sionist period marked by a strong relationship
with nature. Then he passed on to a new type
of representation related to comic art, though it
lacked the third dimension and failed to integ-
rate space, which is very important in painting.
Asked about his creative process, Akba
says he has to have a reason in order to paint.
“I am not one of those people who wake up
in the morning and say, ‘I have to paint today
and feel better.’ Even if I acknowledge the the-
rapeutic aspect of painting, the tendency of art
is an intellectual one, I believe,” he stresses,
adding, “It is an act of releasing demons and
angels in the deepest parts of your existence.”
He continues: “I pick a concept that I think su-
its the time and start working on that concept
inch by inch. From all these studies I produ-
ce sketches, designs and compositions, and I
do not touch the canvas in this process until I
am psychologically, philosophically and tech-
nically ready to paint.” Despite this rigorous
process, not everything is under his control,
the painter confesses. “I do not really know
what I am supposed to do. It is a time open to
all kinds of surprises.”
“Mes inachevés” will run through Dec. 12
at Galerie Regard Sud in Lyon.
Ezel Akay’s movie
premieres at
Bursa festival
The Turkish premiere of Ezel Akay’s
latest movie, “Yedi Kocal Hürmüz”
(Hürmüz’s Seven Husbands), was held on
Wednesday during the fourth Bursa Interna-
tional Silk Road Film Festival.
The premiere brought together the
movie’s director, Akay, cast members Gülse
Birsel, Erkan Can, Müjdat Gezen, Öner Er-
kan, Aral Seskr and several members of the
crew with cinema lovers at the Korupark Ci-
netech movie theater. The premiere was at-
tended by a large audience, who applauded
the lm enthusiastically.
“This movie was miraculous for me. We
wanted to make something different and we
wanted to show this movie to an audience for
the rst time in a place other than stanbul,”
Akay said before the premiere.
Noting that they had fun during the ma-
king of the movie, actress Birsel said: “The
three weeks were so fun. The cast and crew
were in harmony and the director was not
tense, no matter what happened on the set.
I already loved the play version [of Hürmüz’s
Seven Husbands]. It was a nice experience.”
Erkan Can, an actor in the movie who
was born in Bursa, said the movie’s script was
already quite old but it would retain its popu-
larity even after 100 years.
“Hürmüz’s Seven Husbands,” featuring
prominent Turkish actors including Nurgül
Yeilçay (as Hürmüz), Haluk Bilginer, Meh-
met Ali Alabora and Cengiz Küçükayvaz,
will open in Turkish theaters today. The mo-
vie tells the story of Hürmüz, who marries
six men illegally and then falls in love with a
doctor. stanbul Today’s Zaman
stanbul and Venice
exhibition opens
An exhibition highlighting the interaction
between stanbul and Venice from the 15th
century to the 1990s in the diplomatic, military,
commercial and artistic spheres opened yester-
day at Sakp Sabanc Museum in stanbul.
Titled “Osmanl Döneminde Venedik ve s-
tanbul: Nam- Dier Ak” (Venice and stanbul
During the Ottoman Era: In Other Words, Love),
the exhibition showcases items from a number of
museums in Venice and stanbul, including the
Topkap Palace Museum, the Museum of Turkish
and Islamic Arts, the Pera Museum and the Yap
Kredi Vedat Nedim Tör Museum.
Speaking at the opening event on Wednes-
day, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutolu said
the exhibition on stanbul and Venice tells the
love story of water with nature and history. “We
will get the chance to see different examples of a
centuries-old cultural relationship between Italy
and Turkey,” he added. Davutolu’s Italian co-
unterpart, Franco Frattini, thanked the organi-
zers of the exhibition. stanbul Today’s Zaman with wires
 14 TODAY’S ZAMAN
-3
STS TT
URK
EY
[SIL NALI
E N
T IO
NA
Many justications may be found to defend a counter argument,
but how Turks perceive the notion of “nationalism” (milliyetçi-
lik) is different from the widely accepted denition of national-
ism and from the popularly held idea of racism. Perhaps that’s
why nationalism is so widely accepted by the general public. This
strand of nationalism, which is predominantly based on patrio-
tism, can also coexist peacefully with Islamic sentiments. In other
words, this nationalism is not built on any sort of racism. Since
this main strand of nationalism, which preaches such sentiments
as love of country, respect for the ag, etc., does not approve of
xenophobia, it is wrong to equate it with today’s neo-nationalism
or regard the people who consider themselves to be nationalists
-- particularly in Anatolia -- as racists, and this is an observation
made from a strong outsiders’ perspective . The fact that people
can assume nationalist, conservative and religious identities all
at the same time indicates that nationalism, in its general sense,
does not correspond to a racist or fascist mindset.
Islam strongly prohibits racism, and this prohibition
has been implemented in practice since the advent of
Islam, tailoring nationalism into a more reasonable and
more mature form. It is this group of nationalists who opt
for silence in this muted Turkey. In other words, it is the
main strand. The groups who today regard themselves as
neo-nationalist and Kemalist and secular, etc., at the same
time have nothing do with Anatolia’s nationalist vein.
Nationalism has recently suffered two major breaks. The rst
and the most tragic of these occurred in 1980. The oppression of
the idealist (ülkücü) young people at the hands of the military
rule of Sept. 12 was not something that one would expect in re-
turn for their toil for the good of the country. The urge to “protect
the country against threats,” which peaked in the aftermath of
the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, had garnered sym-
pathy among the general public toward the nationalist struggle.
The terrible fate of Afghanistan might become true also for Tur-
key; therefore, it was necessary to “protect the state” and “ght
against the collaborators within.” This mentality also sought to
“protect the country” and to “do services to the state.” It was a
generation of dynamic young people who would not criticize the
army in the least and would carry signs reading “The army, the
nation hand-in-hand” during rallies. The military coup of Sept.
12 not only devastated these childish feelings but also caused
major trauma. The young people who strove for the “survival of
the state” were tortured by the most cruel and degrading meth-
ods. This great disappointment was translated into a self-critique
of “what was our mistake” among the nationalist groups, and
Thýnk tank cafe´
Established on January 16, 2007 NO: 0920
Friday, November 20, 2009
Owner on Behalf of Feza Gazetecilik A.Þ
ALÝ AKBULUT
Chief Executive Officer
EKREM DUMANLI
Editor-in-Chief
BÜLENT KENEÞ
Managing Editors OKAN UDO BASSEY
FATMA DEMÝRELLÝ
EMRAH ÜLKER
Ankara Representative ABDULLAH BOZKURT
Business News Editor ÝBRAHÝM TÜRKMEN
Culture & Arts Editor YASEMÝN GÜRKAN
Features Editor PINAR VURUCU
Chief Copy Editor HELEN P. BETTS
General Manager FARUK KARDIÇ
Chief Marketing Officer YAKUP ÞÝMÞEK
Brand Marketing HAYDAR DURUSOY
Responsible Manager and
Representative of the Owner ALÝ ODABAÞI
Public Relations Contact Information: Publication Type: Periodical,
Daily Headquarters: Today’s Zaman, 34194 Yenibosna, ÝSTANBUL. Phone Number:
+90 212 454 1 444 Fax: 0212 454 14 97, Web Address: http://www.todayszaman.com,
Printed at: Feza Gazetecilik A.Þ. Tesisleri. Advertisement Phone: +90 212 454 82 47,
Fax: +90 212 454 86 33. Ankara Bureau Phone: +90 312 207 42 02
Today's Zaman abides by the rules of press ethics.
EKREM
DUMANLI
e.dumanli@todayszaman.com
they arrived at the conclusion that “the state could protect itself,
but it chose to use and then discard us.” Indeed, after the coup,
these groups gave a big, unexpected “no” to the requests from
the state to conduct some illegal work “for the sake of the state.”
Another break was experienced in the 1990s. The idea of
fusing and coexisting with Islam that started in the 1980s was
being discarded 20 years later. Of course, not among the base.
This alienation, observable among the politicians of this mental-
ity, signied a certain distancing away from the “Turko-Islamic
idea” discourse and from the “Dervish and veteran,” or “Alp-
eren,” characterization. At the peak of this alienation, the Red
Apple (Kzl Elma) alliance was proposed. The tight-knit rela-
tions between certain gures that were considered “problem-
atic” for the nationalist groups, such as Dou Perinçek and lhan
Selçuk, disturbed mainstream nationalists. This was a serious
shift in orientation. The people who cautioned that it was too
risky to ally oneself with the groups who politically tended to
lend support to military coups or juntas and who regarded na-
tionalism as an enemy were not heeded, and when the allied
teams -- who were rst said to be retired military ofcers and
then corrected to be retired public servants -- attempted to
conduct an operation inside the Nationalist Movement Party
(MHP), this led to the separation of many nationalists from
the party. And this was a good development. Otherwise, they
would send the idealist (ülkücü) youth to the streets to use
them as a tool for their operations and make them part of the
psychological warfare “to pave the way” for their ends.
At this point, the resistance conducted inside also intended
to maintain authority and balance therein. Could the neo-na-
tionalism virus be contained without contaminating the main
body? It is not easy to give a quick “yes” to this question. Unfor-
tunately, the aftershocks of the Red Apple alliance still continue,
and there is a serious shift in orientation in the political movements
which claim to represent nationalism. More clearly, nationalism in
some groups is shifting toward neo-nationalism and coming
closer to the left wing and Kemalism. In other words, the Islamic
side of the nationalism and religion scale is being emptied out.
As such, we can witness a series of chain reactions ranging from
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009
CIHAN, BURÇN SELÇUK DOKGÖZ
PHOTO
the support of Ergenekon to a cold attitude toward Islam.
The masses, who have long regarded themselves as “na-
tionalist, patriotic, conservative,” etc., tend to remain silent
in the face of these developments and wonder what the out-
come of this alienation will be among the elites. The break-
ing away of the constituencies that are regarded as typical
“strongholds of nationalism” such as Erzurum and Yozgat
from the party elites is the rst sign of things to come in Ana-
tolia. Nationalism’s shift toward neo-nationalism has driv-
en some political parties from Anatolia and toward coastal
regions where the Kemalists left are traditionally stronger.
There is also an added danger: The rise of the MHP in the cit-
ies receiving an inow of people migrating from the South-
east and the concerns that some reactions in these cities may
be translated into racism imply that the progression is toward
an unhealthy structure where social peace may be violated.
Nationalism is under the threat of neo-nationalism.
Neo-nationalism referred to such values as “homeland,
country, national assets,” but at the same time, it advocated
xenophobia. In this structure characterized by ultra-national-
ism and militarism, the cold stance toward Islam did not go
unnoticed. It was not without reason that senior members of
Ergenekon worked hard to provoke nationalists while seek-
ing peace at the Turkish Orthodox Church (a group whose
members include some Ergenekon suspects), and longing for
the pre-Islam era of Turks was for a reason.
The minds of the people who regard themselves as auto-
matically nationalist since they are patriotic were confused in
the face of these intricate relations because the neo-national-
ist wave transmitted some dirty information to these people.
There is a strong link between the popularity of conspiracy
theories and the penetration of pro-coup neo-nationalists
among nationalists. There were developments that created
concerns among the religious people --religious communi-
ties, religious orders, civil society organizations -- whom they
treated with sympathy in the past and which would sympa-
thize with them. The mainstream nationalists have not severed
their ties with Islam or with devout Muslims, while the political
elites within this group are increasingly distancing themselves from
devout Muslims through both their harsh rhetoric and aggressive
discourse. The ability of the current elites to understand the main-
stream nationalists, who in the past garnered everyone’s sympathy
for their dignied and sincere struggle for the good of the home-
land, is dependent on whether they have come to the current
position from among the grass roots. CONTINUED ON PAGE 17
CMYK
OPINION
ORHAN KEMAL
CENGZ
o.cengiz@todayszaman.com
Fat accompl
strategy aganst
non-Muslms
Michel Foucault says you can understand a society from
what it excludes. We generally tend to look at what a soci-
ety includes, what they are willing to embrace. But Foucault
draws our attention to a different angle. I agree with him.
When it comes to Turkey, I believe, not only what it ex-
cludes but also how it does this are important factors to look
at in order to have a better understanding of this country.
What does Turkey exclude? Without any doubt it excludes
non-Muslims. This non-Muslim identity is rejected by secular
state elites who are the founders of the Turkish republic. This
is another tricky part which confuses outsiders and they have
a serious difculty to understand. In Turkey so called “secular
people” have a much stronger allergy towards non-Muslims
than devout Muslims have towards non-Muslims. This is im-
portant to understand because of the complex policy towards
non-Muslims developed by the secular elites and so called sec-
ular state apparatuses. Today’s so called “secular elites” are just
the inheritors of the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP)
which orchestrated massacres against Armenians. If devout
Muslims could play a quite dynamic reformist role in Turkey,
they can do that because they do not have any historical linkage
with this political movement. On the contrary, the same politi-
cal movement has always oppressed them in Turkey.
While the Ottoman Empire was collapsing, the CUP decided
that they should create a homogenous society in the remaining
part of the empire. Because they believed if they did not do that
they would have lost more territory, even Anatolia would be bro-
ken into smaller pieces. On the orders of Talat Pasha, in 1915, Ar-
menians were forcefully expelled to the Syrian deserts, massacred
and all their belongings were seized. Turkey’s history of getting rid
of non-Muslims is also the history of the Turkication of capital. It
is not a coincidence that the richest Turkish families in Turkey are
from the cities and regions in which the biggest massacres were
carried out; Adana, Kayseri and so on. This may also explain
why we have such an obedient bourgeoisie in Turkey.
After this initial and brutal blow, a certain policy was vigorously
and relentlessly applied towards non-Muslims during the Repub-
lican era in Turkey. If you look at the history of non-Muslims, you
can clearly see the repetition of certain patterns. Sudden and un-
expected attacks followed certain periods of inaction and after a
while, another unexpected attack followed this inactive period. This
is called a ‘fait accompli’ strategy. A fait accompli strategy works
like this: You want to get something. You take it without discussion
or warning and you give your enemy/opponent a choice, they will
either ght back or accept the loss. You also act upon the conser-
vative attitudes of your opponent; you know that they will act to
protect what is left to them rather than ghting for what has been
taken from them. After a while what you have taken becomes a
part of the status quo. Sooner or later you take something else from
your opponent, but again they do not react believing that they have
a lot to lose if they ght back. These actions and waiting periods
follow each other; after a while your opponents start to see the pat-
tern, but this time, if they react, they would have lost most of their
material possessions and freedoms when you set out for a new at-
tack; they think it will not be worth ghting back because they
did not ght while most things were taken from them.
This is exactly what happened to non-Muslims during the
republican era. They were scared away with pogroms. They were
condemned to poverty by wealth taxes. Their properties, their
foundations were taken from them one-by-one by carefully calcu-
lated legal tricks. They were never given any legal status and they
suffered from this ambiguity. Their schools were closed and so on.
Attacks followed inaction. Inaction was followed by new attacks.
The so called Lausanne minorities suffered from these policies a
lot and they have come to the verge of extinction. I have already
explained the plight of the ecumenical patriarchate in this column
before. And as I said earlier, minority groups are also a part of this
game with their submissive and passive attitude. They never suf-
ciently use and benet from existing remedies; they have never
developed any strategic litigation to gain new rights to loosen the
noose around their necks. This fait accompli strategy has been ap-
plied on automatic pilot since the republic was established. Its aim
is obvious. It will be repeated until non-Muslims completely vanish.
This strategy is one of the biggest stumbling blocks to democracy in
this country. We need to develop awareness, an understanding
of it rst and then a serious struggle for its eradication can be
started. There is no place for fait accompli in any democracy!
Daðýstan Çetinkaya
dagistancetinkaya@todayszaman.com.tr
 COLUMNS F R I D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9
Turkey’s new axs
Turkish-EU relations feed on a tradition of mutual uneasiness.
The establishment’s adventures in this country are character-
ized by the events that led to the creation of a great distrust to-
ward the West. Still, the real reason is the lack of sincerity in the
attitudes of both sides toward each other. This, in return, can be
attributed to the remnants of the anti-Christian foreign policy
of the Ottoman Empire on one side, and to the colonialist and
domineering policies of the Western powers on the other. The
emotional perception in Anatolia is that “Westerners will never
accept ‘us’ among themselves” and that “they will never favor
‘our’ good.” In addition, there is an established reference to
“barbarism” based on years of experience, and the expectation
that potential harm can be expected from the East and “Turks.”
Therefore, relations between Turkey and the EU cannot be dis-
cussed with reference to a simple mechanism of accession. There is
a confrontation at hand that goes deeper than the tension between
France and Germany or the repressed conict between the UK and
continental Europe. So, we can safely argue that if it were not for
Turkey’s candidacy for EU membership, bilateral relations would
be much softer and the parties would treat each other with much
more understanding and tolerance. However, when the ancient
“other” came closer and the distance between them decreased
with the likelihood of it becoming part of the same identity, this
created discomfort on both sides which is hard to dene.
YAVUZ
BAYDAR
y.baydar@todayszaman.com
‘Fcton of cton’
and ‘the deep state’
Those who read the latest shocking story in daily Taraf yesterday would
possibly not have been able to help smiling ironically. While the attempts
to inject further confusion amongst ill-informed, distracted and already
confused “Westerners” -- particularly those in Washington, D.C. --
about the Ergenekon trial seemingly intensify, Taraf revealed why dozens
of naval ofcers a short while ago were arrested and interrogated: A large
cell within the navy -- Taraf describes it as a “junta” -- has been planning
a comprehensive action plan with Turkey’s non-Muslims as the target.
The plan (decoded from the contents of a CD belonging to a mayor
who is a detained suspect of Ergenekon) called “kafes” (cage) contains, in
four phases, a large set of directives, including the ling of non-Muslims’
whereabouts -- work places and where their children study, community
registers, etc., -- and identities; the systematic exposure of them in public
places and on the Internet; the massive usage of media with the aim of
discrediting the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) as “indiffer-
ent” to those secret threats and accusing the government of being the
culprit of all these campaigns. In the nal phase, called “action,” it gives
details of bombings on the Princes’ Islands near stanbul (where the non-
Muslim density is higher) and kidnappings and assassinations on which
the responsibility will later be claimed by fundamentalist organizations.
As of the Malatya slayings of Christian missionaries (a key case which
contains all the elements of how the Ergenekon network operates), Priest
Santoro’s murder in Trabzon and Hrant Dink’s assassination, this plan
(which also contains allegations of assassination plans to murder a former
commander of the navy, and a commander of the eet) has aimed to kill
two birds with one stone: it would scare the hell out of the non-Muslim
minorities by telling them, simply, “you have no place in this country” and,
more importantly, it would send the “strong” message to the world that
“Islamo-fascism is now on the full offensive” in Turkey.
The shocking details in this deep investigation may be yet another
slap in the face for those who desperately try to make us believe that
Ergenekon is closer to ction than fantasy.
For people like Ahmet Aras, it is an insult. An elderly Kurdish social-
ist, a staunch anti-Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) gure, who served as a
founding member of Turkey’s Workers’ Party (TP) in the sixties and suf-
fered massive oppression, Aras welcomes all the revelations with pleasure.
I had invited him onto the TV program “ROTA” that I present to talk
about the Dersim uprising/massacre (during which some 15,000 Alevi
Kurds were indiscriminately slaughtered in 1937). Almost in tears, he told
me: “I had never imagined that I would live to see these days, where a
prime minister speaks of crimes of humanity and incredible cruelty.” After
years of prison and exile, Aras lives in zmir, researching Kurdish history.
“I am also very, very glad to see now who was serving Ergenekon and
who was not,” he said, referring to his “leftist” comrades. “Some were
not leftists or socialists at all, they were only disguised Kemalists; they
were part of the big lies that were repeated, year after year.”
It is clear why people like Aras, who had once believed that the
struggle of the left could be conducted though free elections and paid
dearly (his party, elected to Parliament in the mid ‘60s, was forced out
of the political scene by constant physical harassment), feel truly in-
sulted when one mentions the efforts to discredit the “real content” of
Ergenekon. They feel closer to justice, more than ever before.
Meanwhile, as I predicted, Deniz Baykal, leader of the Republican
People’s Party (CHP), taking Onur Öymen under his protective wing,
without blinking an eye, continues as if the latter’s Dersim gaffe has no
signicance. The “pale hope” of the party, deputy Kemal Klçdarolu
of the same party, who also happens to have his origins in Dersim, also
switched his rhetoric, saying “the case is closed.”
I asked a knowledgeable retired military judge what the “deep
state” (the state within) in Turkey actually is: “It is the chief of general
staff and the higher judiciary” was his brief and swift response. He
went on: “The executive power, the governments, have never had con-
trol over the higher judiciary and never will. Everyone should keep this
in mind. The issue is, therefore, to separate forever the higher judiciary
from the generals and move it to its independent and impartial posi-
tion, as is necessary for any democracy.”
Today, Turkey may look as if it is sinking deeper into a crisis. It
could very well be to the contrary, at the end of the day. What will hap-
pen is this: All the dirty linen is put on the table for cleaning, taboos
are broken (the latest approaching rmly to that of Atatürk himself),
a nasty struggle is staged in order to separate and “liberate” the judi-
ciary from “the state within” mentality and the “politicized” military is
pushed back to its barracks, possibly out of the cities.
ETYEN
MAHÇUPYAN
e.mahcupyan@todayszaman.com
Thanks to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK
Party), Turkey is quickly overcoming this uneasiness. This is
because having its roots in social groups with increased Islamic
sensitivities, the AK Party has pursued policies that are openly
pro-EU, and this has greatly mitigated the anti-Western at-
titudes of the conservatives in the country. Yet, the main dy-
namics are on the reverse. The new middle classes of Anatolia,
who seek to integrate with the world and who have become
secularized while preserving their religiosity, no longer regard
the West as the “other.” This is mostly attributable to the self-
condence that the religious groups have built since the 1990s
as modernity began to lose its luster.
As the salient elements of this foreign policy, we can list the
new dynamics of the global world, the room for maneuver in
this world, and the dialogue-based method for settling issues
-- which was embodied by US President Barack Obama, and in
general, extensions of a democrat mentality. On the other hand,
No Comment
An openng for chldren, too?
NICOLE
POPE
n.pope@todayszaman.com
Nov. 20 marks the 20th anniversary of the Conven-
tion on the Right of the Child. All around the world,
children still suffer numerous forms of abuse, but I
thought this anniversary was a good opportunity to
look at the situation of children here in Turkey.
It seems particularly timely since one of the most
egregious violations of the convention activists complain
about bears a direct connection to -- and appears to be
in agrant contradiction with -- the democratic opening
promoted by the government to solve the Kurdish issue.
Turkey is party to the convention, which came into
force in this country in 1995. But since the counterter-
rorism legislation was amended in 2006, hundreds of
children -- dened as under 18 -- have been arrested,
prosecuted and sentenced as adults for taking part in
demonstrations in the Southeast.
A report published by the Justice for Children organi-
zation in April mentioned a gure of 500 children aged be-
tween 12 and 18 who had been charged for “making pro-
paganda on behalf of an illegal organization” or “being a
member of an organization.” Further charges are frequently
added for throwing stones or damaging public property.
Amendments have been introduced as part of the
recent democratic initiative to allow sentences to be sus-
pended or converted into nes. But when I recently spoke
to Canan Atabay, a lawyer from Diyarbakir who specializes
in children’s rights, she told me that 80 percent of the teens
who are being prosecuted remain outside the scope of this
new provision because they face cumulative charges.
Here is the irony: On the one hand, the government
CMYK
I would also like to note that the AK Party has moved away
from the Turkish Republic’s ethnicity-oriented vision and come
closer to the Ottoman Empire’s multi-cultural mindset.
The Western world, on the other hand, has not yet been
able to come up with a perspective to understand Turkey. West-
ern observers, though they are EU members, still have nation-
state-based analytical perspectives. Accordingly, they fail to
grasp the real changes as they try to place every development
on the past’s typical foreign policy framework. In this case, they
cannot realize that the new relations Turkey established with
its neighbors are prerequisites of “global harmony” and rather,
they tend to view it as an “axis shift.” Those who want to un-
derstand Turkey should never forget this simple truth: Turkey
seeks to become a global player in the world and to this end,
it is eager to fulll attitudes, behaviors and actions that being a
global player requires, and more. While doing this, it also tries
to integrate two different understandings: its proximity to reli-
gious identity and to the Muslim world on the one hand, and
the democratic politics and the opportunity to become a global
player thanks to this, on the other. In the past, the merger of
the two was not possible. For many Westerners, this is probably
still not possible. This is because although the great majority
of Westerners are the natural carriers of globalization -- and
perhaps due to the convenience this has created -- they are far
EMRE ÖZDEMR
e.ozdemir@todayszaman.com
is encouraging militants to lay down their weapons, and
some of them have been released upon their return to
Turkey. At a time when Turkey is discussing the rehabili-
tation of former Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) ght-
ers, it seems strangely counterproductive to create a new
generation of militants by putting youngsters behind
bars. Children should simply not be tried as terrorists.
Revisiting the Convention on the Rights of the Child is
also needed in other areas. Turkey must be one of the few
countries in the world that celebrates Children’s Day. Al-
though under 18s are feted on April 23, it is not always obvi-
ous in everyday life that adults see them as worthy interlocu-
tors who have a right to express their views and be consulted.
Too often, young people are simply not heard in this society.
States have a responsibility to promote the provisions
of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, but the notion
that parents or elders know best and youngsters should just
follow their orders still holds rm. In fact, the Civil Code
even contains an article stating that children have to obey
their parents. Although corporal punishment is banned in
schools and state institutions, incidents are still frequently
reported. At home, it is not banned and surveys suggested
parents use is widely. Many young girls stay at home to
look after siblings or are forced into early marriage.
Progress has been reported in several areas. School
attendance, of girls in particular, has increased. The So-
cial Services and Child Protection Agency (SHÇEK) is
working on improving the situation of children in state
institutions but many challenges remain.
According to a report published last year by NGOs moni-
toring implementation of the convention, more than 3,850,000
million children are working, more than half a million of them
between the age of 6 and 14. In rural areas, they are often hired
out for back-breaking labor during the summer months and
face not just exploitation but also potential abuse.
In short, on the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the
Rights of the Child, Turkey still has plenty of homework to do.
TODAY’S ZAMAN 15
from the democratic mentality that today’s world requires. As a
result of the modernist perspective, they think that secularism
is a categorical constant and, and what’s worse, they nurture
the non-secular assumption that the Muslim identity cannot be
categorically secularized.
Yet, the success of the dynamics of change in Turkey is not
independent from the developments in the West. The current
amalgamation of Muslim sensitivity with democratic politics --
which would have been impossible in the past -- is still attrib-
utable to the emerging critique of modernism in the West and,
more concretely, the collapse of the Bush world.
Many people are uneasy about Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdoan’s position about Iran’s nuclear energy policy. The Turkish
prime minister does not think it is ethical to block Iran from devel-
oping nuclear power while allowing every other country to do so.
Still, his position cannot be explained by merely resorting to solidar-
ity among Muslims because Turkey is as uneasy as any other West-
ern country concerning how Iran will use this power. But there are
ethical norms which we want to dominate the world of the future.
These days, the world is being re-established. Not every
country may feel this renewal at the same rate. The societies
that have Western Europe’s established political culture, and its
habits may not even be aware of such a change. But in Turkey,
we can feel this new world to our core because we live in it.
AL
BULAÇ
a.bulac@todayszaman.com
Turksh
modernzaton
and lacsm
Most probably, for the rst time man, in reliance with the
thoughts of the Enlightenment and modernity that is based
on its fundamental assumptions, has assumed the inherent
right to interfere with religion. At least the classical era of the
Enlightenment period provides concrete examples of this. Said
interference is still in effect in Turkey in an exaggerated form;
this interference is embedded in the legal and educational sys-
tem as well as daily culture. Strangely, this policy attracts sup-
port from politicians, scholars, writers and intellectuals. Serdar
Turgut, at a time when he was serving as a columnist at the
Hürriyet daily, responded to complaints from individuals re-
garding restrictions over religious freedom by stating that they
had no option but to change their religion.
After pointing out this fundamental matter, it is possible to
argue that the Turkish style of laicism is actually based on such a
conceptual framework because of some historical reasons. I think
this is closely related to the Turkish modernization project.
Turkish modernization is not a recent phenomenon; it did
not come to the forefront with the arrival of a republican re-
gime. It was formulated in the 19th century rst. The Turkish
modernization project designed by Mahmud II seemed to ap-
pear as the choice of the state; it was subsequently dened as
Westernization and based on a non-religious concept. The three
basic assumptions of the Turkish modernization project may be
summarized as follows: It emerged as the preference of the state,
and because of this, the state and state actors acquired a domi-
nant position in the determination of its content. This also led
to the ignorance of the democratic rights of the masses and the
people. Maybe modernization was a requirement and a need,
and maybe it is still able to respond to some important needs.
But this is the case because the state makes its choice towards
this end. Modernization was the choice of the administration in
the Ottoman era and then it became the preference of the state.
Secondly, modernization was viewed as purely a West-
ernization attempt, and this attempt sought to make sure that
social life was adapted to the Western lifestyle. This was the
primary assumption of Mahmud II. This is the leading factor
that led to the perception of modernization as a moderniza-
tion process. Modernization has always been seen as a form, a
formal change and a combination of symbols.
Within the context of modernization policies, the state
assumed a dominant position and mission to impose mod-
ernization by relying on this position.
Thirdly, modernization was seen as a non-religious pro-
cess. Attributing the retreat of the Ottoman state in the elds of
military, economy and politics to religion is the primary reason
for the negative stance of the ruling elite vis-à-vis religion. The
state elites viewed religion as contrary to development, prog-
ress and modernization. In consideration of this assumption,
they sought to make religious scholars ineffective in the ad-
ministration of the state and replace them with a new group of
intellectuals. In other words, according to the jointly held con-
viction of state actors and intellectuals, religion was against de-
velopment and modernization; for this reason, it should have
been purged from not only public affairs but also from daily life.
At this point, a problem fairly different from the one en-
countered in the West should be recalled: In Islam, there is no
clearly dened boundaries of a religious clergy and a church
representing the body of God. Islamic theology rejects refer-
ence to an organized class of religious clergy and a body of
religious leaders. Because it lacks a class of religious clerics
that constitute the fundamentals of historical theocracy, the
secularist claims have turned into a program to purge religion
from social and individual life. The historical dichotomy that
created laicism led the state to look for an enemy or opposition
in the absence of two different and opposite actors (church
and state); and in such a case, the state found its enemy in
religion that it held responsible for underdevelopment and
lack of progress. In conclusion, if laicism fails to acquire demo-
cratic content, the historical clash that Turkey has been going
through for over a century will repeat itself in the Middle East,
in case Turkey seeks to present itself as a model to this region.
 16 TODAY’S ZAMAN F R I D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9
LEISURE

move gude
“The Watercolor”
2012
STANBUL: BEYOLU AFM FTA 11:00
12:50 14:30 16:20 18:00 19:45 21:30
23:30 MAÇKA CNEBONUS 11:30 12:15
14:45 15:30 18:00 18:45 21:15 22:00 00:15
CADDEBOSTAN AFM 10:30 12:15 14:00
15:50 17:40 19:30 21:20 23:10 ANKARA:
ATA ON TOWER 11:00 12:30 14:00 15:30
17:15 18:45 20:30 22:00 23:00 00:00
BLKENT CNEBONUS 10:45 12:15 13:55
15:30 17:10 18:45 20:25 22:00 00:00
ZMR: CNEBONUS KONAK PER 10:30
12:00 13:45 15:15 17:00 18:30 20:15 21:45
23:45 ANTALYA: CNEBONUS MGROS
10:45 12:15 14:00 15:30 17:30 19:00 20:45
Oscars pck drector, unvel
22:15 00:00 14:45 18:15 21:45
Gregorian Calendar: 20 November 2009 C.E. Hijri Calendar: 03 Dhul-Hijjah 1430 A.H. Hebrew Calendar: 03 Kislev 5770 tv gude
calendar@todayszaman.com
E2
08:00 Gossip Girl
Today is Universal Children’s Day as observed by the neiro, this day commemorates the beheading of Zumbi dos On this day in 1985, Microsoft released its first version 10:00 The Martha Stewart Show
11:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show
United Nations and the UN Educational, Scientific Palmares (1655-1695), a legendary fugitive slave settlement of Windows. This 16-bit graphical operating environ- 12:00 Desperate Housewives
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). In 1954 the UN leader. Zumbi was regarded by the fugitive slaves as an im- ment was the first attempt to implement a multitask- 14:00 The Martha Stewart Show
15:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show
declared that this day be observed as a day of worldwide mortal leader who was ordained to free all black slaves. ing graphical user interface-based operating environ- 16:00 Gossip Girl
fraternity and understanding between children. Since Today is Revolution Day in Mexico. This day com- ment on the PC platform. 18:00 The Martha Stewart Show
19:00 The Ellen DeGeneres Show
then, several critical UN resolutions relating to children memorates the Mexican social revolution that was started Today is the anniversary of the birth of Edwin Powell 20:00 Family Guy
have been passed on this day, including the 1959 Declara- by Francisco I. Madero in 1910. This revolution lasted until Hubble (1889-1953), the American astronomer who made 21:00 Heroes
22:15 Later With Jools Holland
tion of the Rights of the Child and the 1989 Convention on 1917 and cost the lives of more than 1 million people out the “most spectacular astronomical discovery” of the 20th 23:00 The Tonight Show With
the Rights of the Child. of a total population of 15 million. century. Hubble discovered and developed the concept of Conan O'Brien
24:00 Later With Jools Holland
Today is Africa Industrialization Day, declared by the UN Today is the anniversary of the start of the Nuremberg an expanding universe. Out of appreciation for his contri- 01:00 Family Guy
in 1989. The day is intended to mobilize the commitment of War Crime Trials. The first session of the trials was held in butions to the field of astronomy, an asteroid, a crater on 01:30 The Jay Leno Show
02:30 The Tonight Show With
the international community to the industrialization of Africa. Berlin against 24 former Nazi leaders. Later sessions were the Moon and a space telescope were named after him.
Conan O'Brien
It also serves as a reminder that more than 30 of the world’s held in Nuremberg, starting on Nov. 20, 1945. It took 10 On this day in 1916, the Turkish cities of Adakl
48 least-developed countries are located in Africa. months to finish the trials, at the end of which 12 defen- and Ki (Bingöl) were liberated from Russian occupa- CNBC-E
17:55 How I Met Your Mother
Today is Black Consciousness Day (or Zumbi Day) in dants were sentenced to death. tion. Also, the city of psala (Edirne) was liberated from 18:50 The Jay Leno Show
Brazil. Observed in the states of Sao Paulo and Rio de Ja- Today is the birthday of Microsoft Windows 1.0. Greek occupation on this day in 1922. 20:00 Merlin
21:00 One Tree Hill
22:00 The Host
00:45 The Jay Leno Show
01:45 Merlin
02:30 One Tree Hill
GOLDMAX
07:00 One True Thing
09:10 Once Upon A Forest
10:25 The Godfather III
13:10 Good Morning, Vietnam
15:15 Doctor Zhivago
18:30 Wild West Comedy Show
20:15 Lolita
23:00 Emily Bronte's Wuthering

BORNOVA BORNOVA
STANBUL: Ataköy Galleria Prestige
11:00 13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 20:00 22:00
documentary shortlst Heights
00:50 The People vs. Larry Flynt

MOVIEMAX
06:00 The Architect

REUTERS, GARY HERSHORN

07:25 Standing Still
00:00 Beyolu Alkazar 12:00 14:00 16:15 Oscar organizers joined the MTV paired comedian Steve Martin and comic actor 08:55 Pauly Shore is Dead
18:45 21:00 Maçka Cinebonus 11:00 13:00 generation on Wednesday, nam- Alec Baldwin to boost the laughter. 10:20 Surf's Up
15:15 17:30 19:45 22:00 00:15 Altunizade 11:50 El Aura
Capitol 11:00 15:30 17:40 19:50 22:00
ing Hamish Hamilton as director of Mechanic’s co-producer Adam Shank-
14:10 21x
00:10 Ankara: Bilkent Cinebonus 11:00 March’s movie awards ceremony, and they man, who directed “Hairspray,” said Hamil- 16:20 Ratatouille
13:10 15:20 17:30 19:40 21:50 00:00 also unveiled their shortlist of films vying for ton “will bring enthusiasm, experience and a 18:25 Taking Chance
Cinebonus Panora 11:00 13:00 15:15 20:00 Drillbit Taylor
a best documentary nomination. fresh eye to the table.” 21:55 Fifty Dead Men Walking
17:30 19:45 22:00 zmir: Afm Forum
Bornova 11:00 13:10 15:50 18:30 21:00 British-born Hamilton, 43, is a first-time Organizers also unveiled their list of 15 00:05 Scar
Oscar director, but he is a veteran of nu- films that will vie for a best documentary 01:35 Mulberry Street
23:45 Cinecity Kipa Çili 11:15 13:15 15:15
17:15 19:15 21:15 23:45 merous live-event programs including this nomination, including well-known titles MGM MOVIES

PHOTO
year’s MTV Video Music Awards, and the such as “Food, Inc.”, which looks at the food 07:25 The Private Files Of J.
THE WATERCOLOR MTV Europe Music Awards and Victoria’s industry, and “The Cove,” about the capture
Edgar Hoover
stanbul: Esentepe Cinebonus Astoria 09:20 Twelve Angry Men
11:00 12:45 14:30 16:15 18:00 19:45 21:45 Secret Fashion Show in 2008. of dolphins in Japan. 11:00 The Gunfight At Dodge
23:45 Maçka Cinebonus 11:30 13:30 “His approach definitely won’t feel like The other 13 documentaries up for con- City
15:30 17:30 19:30 21:30 23:30 Kozyata 12:25 Dead Man's Gun Season
‘business as usual;” said one of the show’s sideration are: 2/1: Ties That Bind
Cinebonus Palladium 11:00 13:00
15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 Ankara: Bilkent co-producers, Bill Mechanic. “The Beaches of Agnes” 13:15 Dead Man's Gun Season
2/2: The Judgement of Joe Dean
Cinebonus 11:30 13:30 15:30 17:30 19:30 The Oscars, given by the Academy of “Burma VJ” Bonner
21:30 23:45 Cinebonus Gordion 11:00 Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, are the “Every Little Step” 14:05 The Delinquents
13:00 15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 zmir: second most-watched US television show “Facing Ali” 15:20 Thieves Like Us
Balçova Cinebonus Kipa 11:00 12:45 15:30 Yellowbeard
14:30 16:15 18:00 19:45 21:30 23:15 after professional football’s Super Bowl. “Garbage Dreams” 17:10 The Man In The Moon
The ceremony also is seen in some 200 “Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors 18:55 Wanda Nevada
THE TOURNAMENT countries worldwide. Without Borders”
20:45 The Siege Of Firebase
Gloria Short
stanbul: Bakrköy Cinebonus Capacity
But viewership has been in a general decline “The Most Dangerous Man in America: 22:25 Avanti!
11:00 13:00 15:15 17:30 19:45 22:00 00:50 Interiors
Esentepe Cinebonus Astoria 11:15 13:15 for many years due to the growing number of Daniel Ellsberg and The Pentagon Papers” 02:25 The Closer You Get
15:15 17:15 19:15 21:15 23:15 Kadiköy honors programs, among other reasons. As a re- “Mugabe and the White African”
Cinebonus 11:00 15:30 17:30 19:45 22:00 sult, Oscar organizers have tried to liven up their “Sergio” COMEDYMAX
00:15 Ankara: Cinebonus Panora 11:00 08:30 The Middle
show, especially for younger movie fans. “Soundtrack for a Revolution” 09:00 The Cosby Show
13:00 15:15 17:30 19:45 22:00 00:00 zmir:
Balçova Cinebonus Kipa 11:00 13:00 For February’s show, they brought on song- “Under Our Skin” 09:30 The Cosby Show
10:00 According to Jim
15:00 17:00 19:00 21:00 23:00 and-dance man Hugh Jackman to host, and for “Valentino The Last Emperor” 10:30 According to Jim
the upcoming program on March 7, they have “Which Way Home” Los Angeles Reuters Host Hugh Jackman speaks on stage during the 81st Academy Awards in Hollywood on Feb. 22. 11:00 Everybody Loves Raymond
11:30 Everybody Loves Raymond
12:00 The Office
12:30 The Office
13:00 The Game
13:30 Ugly Betty

Crossword Mr. DploMAT! Cem Kzltu

c.kiziltug@todayszaman.com
14:30
15:00
The Middle
The Cosby Show
15:30 The Cosby Show
940 16:00 According to Jim
ACROSS Bloom Japanese 39 Like easily 16:30 According to Jim
1 Easily 43 Ashtray fill ancestry repaired 17:00 Everybody Loves Raymond
carved gem 44 Division into 11 Vertical tie in things
5 Harts and parts a roof truss 40 Food fish 17:30 Everybody Loves Raymond
does 47 Helped with 12 Sandwich 42 Letter made 18:00 3rd Rock from the Sun
10 640 acres a line with cheese with two 18:30 The Game
(Abbr.) 48 Jazz players, 13 Targets of fingers 19:00 The Cosby Show
14 Body lotion e.g. social reform 43 Bounce to 19:30 Ugly Betty
ingredient 52 Bagpiper, 18 “___ Hilda” the surface 20:30 The Middle
15 Available for often 24 Variety of 45 Type of funds 21:00 According to Jim
occupation 54 Quick poker 46 Money
16 “Clan of the impression 26 1051, to Nero earned 21:30 Everybody Loves Raymond
Cave Bear” 58 Web address 28 Ready for 49 Draw out 22:00 The Office
author feature anything 50 Chopper 22:30 The Office
17 Hockshop 59 Forbidden 29 Tropical spinner 23:00 Californication
proprietor perfume? forest vine 51 Smelled to 23:30 Weeds
19 Dudley Do- 60 South African 30 Brilliant high heaven 00:00 The Middle
Right’s girl Nobel Peace display 52 “Go no
20 Pigged out Prize winner 31 Stock- further!” 00:30 Ugly Betty
21 Go to the 62 South side? exchange 53 Birthday 01:30 The Game
mat, hillbilly 63 Wings hit membership party staple 02:00 3rd Rock from the Sun
style “___ In” 32 Commits a 55 Debarking
22 Tennis units 64 Touch- faux pas point
23 South screen image 33 “Boo” 56 Spanish 101
Africa’s
Mandela
65 Bell
emanation
accompani-
ment
word
57 Letters on
rado gude
25 Revenuers, 66 Eliminate 34 Wind in a pit baseball
for short 67 Corporate 35 Large scoreboards
27 Astronomical
phenomenon
33 Utter
benefit
DOWN
1 “The Mikado”
venomous
snake
61 Word of
advice Sudoku TRT Toursm Rado
00:00 Identification and
Programming
nonsense locale PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER 00:25 Music
36 Chinese fruit 2 Get ___ start HARD EASY 07:25 Identification and
(Var.) (run behind)
HARD

2 7 9 4 5 8 1 6 3 Programming
37 “... ___ the 3 Carpenter’s
fields we go pin 2 7 1 4 3 2 5 8 1 8 4 3 7 6 5 9 2
07:30 Music
08:30 News (English,
...” 4 Evening, in
38 “How much an ode
3 6 5 9 2 1 4 7 8 French, German)
am ___?” 5 2007-08 8 1 5 6 5 1 8 4 7 7 4 8 2 6 3 9 1 5
08:40 Live Broadcast
(auction NBA Rookie (English, German, Russian)
9 2 3 5 1 4 7 8 6
query) of the Year 10:30 News (English, French,
39 ___-mouthed 6 TV dep- 1 8 5 8 9 2 6 6 5 1 7 8 9 3 2 4 German, Greek, Russian)
(insincere) uty from 10:45 Live Broadcast
4 3 7 6 9 2 8 5 1
40 “Terrible” Hazzard (English, German, Russian)
title
41 “___ of
7 “Benevolent
& Protective”
8 5 9 4 5 1 6 8 4 7 2 3 9
12:30 News (English, French,
8 9 2 1 3 5 6 4 7 German, Greek, Russian)
Frankenstein” group
42 “High Plains 8 Walk dizzily 12.45 Live Broadcast
Drifter” 9 Like elastic
1 9 5 7 9 6 5 1 4 7 8 3 (English, German, Russian)
EASY

© 2009 Universal Uclick 8 5 6 2 3 7 1 4 9

actress 10 American of www.upuzzles.com 15:00 News (English, French,
German, Greek, Russian)
5 1 4 9 3 2 9 4 6 1 5 8 7
15:15 Live Broadcast
1 4 7 8 9 5 3 2 6
(English, German, Russian)
2 9 1 7 5 4 6 3 8 18:30 News (English, French,
6 9 3 9 8 7 6 4 5 4 7 5 6 8 3 2 9 1 German, Greek, Russian)
18:45 Live Broadcast
6 3 8 9 1 2 4 7 5
7 6 8 3 2 6 9 7 1 4 5 2 8 9 6 3
(English, French)
21:30 News (English, French,
5 6 2 3 7 9 8 1 4 German, Greek, Russian)
1 7 7 4 8 9 3 1 2 9 8 3 1 4 6 7 5 2
21:45 Live Broadcast
(English, Greek)
23:58 Identification

HOW TO PLAY? : The objective of the game is to fill all the blank squares in a game Every row of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order Broadcast Areas:
Alanya FM 94.4
with the correct numbers. There are three very simple constraints to follow. In a 9 Every column of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order Ankara FM 100.3
by 9 square Sudoku game: Every 3 by 3 subsection of the 9 by 9 square must include all digits 1 through 9 Antalya FM 92.1
Ayvalk FM 101.1
Bodrum FM 97.4
Fethiye FM 103.1
stanbul FM 101.6
travelers’

Ambulance: 112 Fire: 110 171 Police: 155156 Maritime: 158 Unknown numbers: 118 Turkish Airlines: 444 0 849 U.S. Embassy: 0312 455 5555 U.S. Consu- zmir FM 101.6
Kalkan FM 105.9
late: 0212 2513602-3-4 Russian Embassy: 0312 439 2122 Russian Consulate: 0212 244 1693-2610 British Embassy: 0312 455 3344 British Consulate: 0212
s.o.s

Kapadokya FM 103.0
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 Kuadas FM 101.9
Marmaris FM 101.0
Embassy: 0312 438 2195 Pakistani Embassy: 0312 427 1410 Austrian Embassy: 0312 419 0431-33 Austrian Consulate: 0212 262 9315 Belgian Embassy: Pamukkale FM 101.0
Trabzon FM 101.5
0312 446 8247 Belgian Consulate: 0212 243 3300 Egyptian Embassy: 0312 426 1026 Egyptian Consulate: 0212 263 6038 Israeli Embassy: 0312 446 3605

CMYK
 CONTINUATION
Ergenekon defendant Balbay denies accusations
The Cumhuriyet daily’s Ankara representati-
ve, Mustafa Balbay, who is accused of “inciting
the people to armed revolt against the government”
as a member of Ergenekon -- a clandestine network
accused of plotting to overthrow the government --
has denied all charges directed against him. Giving
his defense testimony yesterday to the judges of the
stanbul 13th Higher Criminal Court, which is hea-
ring the Ergenekon trial, Balbay said the indictment
was riddled with inconsistencies. He said, “I deny all
accusations. I haven’t incited people to revolt unar-
med, let alone inciting them to armed revolt.”
Stating that he is a secular democratic journa-
list, Balbay claimed that the prosecutors had failed to
nd anything linking him to any terrorist organiza-
Ar sponsors pro-Ergenekon
conference at US Congress
AL ASLAN WASHINGTON
The Ar Foundation, a civil society
organization previously known for
its liberal stance and contributions
to the normalization of civilian-military re-
lations in Turkey, sponsored a conference
on Wednesday at a US Congress ofce buil-
ding, criticizing the investigation into Erge-
nekon, a gang classied by prosecutors as a
terrorist organization that attempted to sta-
ge a coup against the government.
Ergenekon is known as a terrorist or-
ganization in Turkey, suspected of count-
less atrocities, all committed in the hope
of overthrowing the democratically elected
Justice and Development Party (AK Party)
government, but its supporters are trying
to brand the trial of suspected Ergenekon
members as the government’s attempt to
suppress its opponents.
The Ar Movement, known up till now
for its liberal mentality favoring freedoms,
may be joining these efforts on an interna-
tional level, as its afliated Ar Foundati-
on, based in Washington, D.C., sponsored
a discussion on the Ergenekon investigation
at the Rayburn House Ofce Building of the
US Congress on Wednesday.
A keynote speaker attending the conferen-
ce was British journalist Gareth H. Jenkins, the
author of a report on Ergenekon titled “Betwe-
en Fact and Fantasy: Turkey’s Ergenekon In-
vestigation.” Jenkins’ report has been found by
many pundits to be too one-sided in its criti-
cism of how the investigation is being handled.
On the same day, Jenkins talked at the Cent-
ral Asia-Caucasus Institute (CACI), part of the
Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced Internatio-
nal Studies (SAIS) of The Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity at a forum titled “From Rhetoric to Re-
ality: Prospects for Turkey’s Future and the
AKP’s Authoritarian Tendencies.”
In his speeches, of which Today’s Za-
man had a Turkish translation, Jenkins defen-
ded the idea that the US administration sho-
uld pressure the AK Party regarding Ergene-
kon. “It’s pretty much like a children’s story;
the emperor has no clothes. The investigation
has no clothes. The emperor is naked. There is
no such organization,” Jenkins said, claiming
that Ergenekon was not real.
He said he believed 15 or 20 of the sus-
pects might be guilty of certain crimes. He
declared his verdict saying, as translated into
Hotline highlights anti-Turkish practices in EU visa issuance
contnued from page 1
He paid TL 45 in fees for this agency,
which demanded TL 400 for a health report
that it said had to be obtained from the Ger-
man Hospital in stanbul. “Why are they seeing
this as a way to make prot? Why don’t they
trust Turkish doctors? Do they think the Tur-
kish public is that stupid? Why is the health re-
port under the monopoly of a single hospital,”
G.Y. asked in his complaint.
A.G., a senior executive at an stanbul-
based construction company, in his call said:
“I got an invitation from the Austrian Central
Bank, from which I am trying to take out a loan.
I took the invitation and applied to the Austri-
an Consulate, which demanded 23 separate do-
cuments for my application, including an ‘inter-
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009
tions in the over 5,000 essays and 23 bo-
oks he has written. He also accused the
prosecution of holding back documents
that the prosecution used as evidence in
the indictment against him.
Balbay also said that journal entries
allegedly kept by him had been modi-
ed, claiming the entries were not written Mustafa Balbay
in the order in which they were listed in
the indictment. He said the media was acting as a
court. “The indictment is, in a sense, an execution
warrant,” he said. Using Turkish wordplay, he said,
“If I say this courtroom is too narrow [which sounds
like the Turkish word for ‘coup’], they will say, ‘Oh,
here he said it, he wants a coup’.” He said he was
Gareth H. Jenkins
Gareth H. Jenkins, the author of “Between Fact and Fantasy: Turkey’s Ergenekon Investigation,” which many pundits find to be too one-sided,
spoke yesterday at a conference in Washington on the Ergenekon trial sponsored by the Ari Foundation.
Turkish, “Fifty to 60 are ultranationalists, but
they have not really committed any crimes.
And the rest are completely innocent.”
Jenkins said Turkey has a long history of
secret organizations, dened as “deep state”
structures and Gladio-like organizations, but
said there was no evidence to back the allega-
tion that Ergenekon was part of the “deep sta-
te.” He said most of the perpetrators of tho-
usands of killings -- organized by an illegal
and secret organization inside the gendarme-
rie known as JTEM -- of Kurds in the Southe-
ast in the 1990s have not been apprehended as
part of the Ergenekon investigation.
In both of his presentations, Jenkins sta-
ted that the indictments against the Ergene-
kon suspects were poorly drafted; adding his
opinion that the evidence presented was ina-
national birth certicate.’ I decided to not go to
Austria in protest of this. Do they think Turkey
is a banana republic? The Austrian bankers ex-
pecting my arrival were also surprised.”
A businessman who called from anlurfa
identied by the hotline ofcials as M.T. was de-
nied a visa he needed to visit a professional fair
in Hanover, Germany. “They denied me a visa
without citing a reason despite the presence of
previous Schengen visas in my passport.”
Germany tops blacklist
Melih Özsöz, the coordinator of the project,
says Germany ranks rst on the list of count-
ries most complained about, followed by Fran-
ce, England, Belgium and Greece. According to
Özsöz, 30 of the callers complained that their
going to present his defense statements
in two parts; one focusing on the legal
aspect and the other one focusing on the
specics of his profession. “A journalist
is the witness of the age he lives in. The
prosecutors want to turn me into a sus-
pect of the age. These notes [entries] are
the professional bedroom of a journa-
list. They never have any value as docu-
ments. They have been kept by the journalist to al-
low him to recollect things. These entries in no way
are qualied to be evidence in a trial. They have been
clipped and tweezed out and put together in a spe-
cial way. There is nothing I cannot account for as a
journalist,” Balbay said. He also accused the prose-
dequate. He said for this reason, Turkey had
missed the opportunity to have its own “clean-
hands,” the name of an extensive corruption
operation into the remnants of the Gladio in
Italy carried out in the 1990s.
He also expressed the opinion that it is
not Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoan’s
government that is the driving force behind
the trial, but the Gülen movement. He also
criticized the Zaman and Taraf newspapers,
which have provided extensive coverage of
plots against democracy. Jenkins claimed
that the “main factor” in the Ergenekon in-
vestigation was to “damage the reputation of
the government’s opponents.”
During the conference held at SAIS, the
institute’s research director, Svante Cor-
nell, raised the question of what the US co-
visa applications were rejected. Twenty-two of
these individuals were not informed of the rea-
son why they were denied a visa. The eight pe-
ople who received statements citing the rea-
son for visa denial had to apply to translators, as
these notications were not served in Turkish.
Other complaints received include the lengthi-
ness of the list of documents needed for visa
applications and questions of visa-issuers about
intimate details of a person’s life -- which visa
applicants feel is a violation of human rights.
Özsöz told reporters on Thursday that the
data from the hotline would be relayed to the
EU Commission as well as to Turkish authori-
ties. Stating that the highest number of calls to
the hotline came from stanbul, followed by An-
kara and anlurfa, Özsöz said: “Honestly, we
CMYK
cution of smearing Cumhuriyet as the headquarters
of a terror organization in the indictment. “In the in-
dictment, Cumhuriyet is a terrorist base and lhan
Selçuk and Balbay are its chiefs. My contacts with
10th President Ahmet Necdet Sezer are included in
the indictment. There is no evidence to prove that I
have ever relayed Sezer’s messages to [Ergenekon]
suspects. The indictment implies that the Presidency
was in control of a terrorist organization. I have had
11 meetings with Sezer. The president occupies the
highest rank in the state. If he is to send a message
to an agency, he can do so without using an inter-
mediary. Meeting with the president is the power of
a journalist. I would not think in a million years that
this would be counted a crime.” stanbul Today’s Zaman
AL ASLAN KILIÇ
PHOTO
uld do to reverse the situation in the Ergene-
kon case. In response to this question, Jen-
kins said the US administration openly criti-
cizing the Ergenekon trial could be “twisted”
and lead to new conspiracy theories, sugges-
ting that the best way to talk to the Turkish
government was behind closed doors, and
not directly to Erdoan -- who he said, ac-
cording to what was translated into Turkish,
is a “short tempered” character -- but to ot-
hers who are more likely to listen.
Dr. Cornell also spoke at the SAIS me-
eting. In his speech, he said there was no
system of checks and balances in Turkey to
prevent the AK Party from developing aut-
horitarian tendencies.
Jenkins said he was deeply worried abo-
ut the future of democracy in Turkey.
weren’t expecting such strong interest when we
set the hotline up. The more people know abo-
ut the hotline, the more complaints we get.” The
highest number of complaints so far has been
from businessmen, followed by students, acade-
mics and housewives.
The fact that there is a signicant number of
applicants for tourist visas shows that the EU is
also being hard on Turkish tourists. Coordina-
tor Özsöz, who pointed out that embassies and
consulates are creating superuous difculties
for applicants, said EU visa-issuers gave the most
difcult time to applicants who would like to vi-
sit an EU country for business or on a family visit.
The EU visa hotline is active between 9
a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays. It can be reached
at 0 (212) 324 51 88 and at 0 (212) 324 51 99.
TODAY’S ZAMAN 17
‘Government does not
pressure judiciary
through Justice Ministry’
Claims that the government is pressuring the judiciary
through Justice Ministry inspectors are not true, Justi-
ce Ministry statistics have shown. According to statistics from
the last 11 years, Justice Ministry inspectors handled only
2,180 of the 25,515 complaints about judges and prosecutors
between 1999 and 2009, and the rest of the complaints were
handled by senior judges and prosecutors.
In 2003, senior judges and prosecutors handled 3,103 in-
vestigations into judges and prosecutors while Justice Mi-
nistry inspectors handled only 208. The gures were simi-
lar in 2009, as senior judges and prosecutors handled 2,431
investigations into judges and prosecutors while Justice Mi-
nistry inspectors handled only 202. When there was a closu-
re case against the Justice and Development Party (AK Party)
in 2007, only 155 complaints were investigated by Justice Mi-
nistry ofcials compared to 2,204 complaints investigated by
senior judges and prosecutors. Judges and prosecutors who
are being investigated can also appeal the decisions of Justi-
ce Ministry inspectors. According to Justice Ministry statistics,
judges and prosecutors who were being investigated led 217
lawsuits in 2005-2009 against the ministry’s inspections.
The statistics also showed that the Justice Ministry did
not launch an investigation into all of the complaints abo-
ut judges and prosecutors. In 1999, the Justice Ministry did
not start an inspection process for about 77 percent of the
complaints, which totaled 1,636, while this gure was 47
percent in 2005 when the number of complaints reached
3,655. The number of complaints was 4,530 in the rst 10
months of 2009, while the percentage of inspections rema-
ined at 47 percent. In 2007, the year the AK Party closu-
re case occurred, 47 percent of 4,151 complaints about jud-
ges and prosecutors were not inspected. In 2005, a change
in Article 97 of the Judges and Prosecutors Law made ling
a complaint about judges and prosecutors harder in order
to reduce pressure on those professionals. Duygu Koç stanbul
‘No evidence that Deniz
Feneri misused funds’
A prosecutor’s ofce has declined to investigate the
directors of the Deniz Feneri charitable foundation in
response to a criminal complaint by the Republican People’s
Party (CHP). The Bakrköy Prosecutor’s Ofce on Oct. 7 de-
cided that there is no reason to open an investigation into
the issue due to a lack of evidence showing the foundation
uses its income for purposes other than for the public good.
Main opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal had led a
complaint alleging Deniz Feneri misuses its funds.
In September of last year a German court convicted
three Turks of funneling $26 million in charitable contri-
butions raised by Deniz Feneri to conservative compani-
es in Turkey. The case sparked a bitter polemic between
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoan and Baykal, who
accused the government of pressuring the Capital Mar-
kets Board (SPK) to suppress a case against the conser-
vative Kanal 7 television station, which was accused of
being one of the companies Deniz Feneri’s funds were
illegally forwarded to. Baran Ta stanbul
Erdoan, Babu
hold weekly meeting
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoan and Chief of Ge-
neral Staff Gen. lker Babu held their weekly meeting at
the Prime Ministry yesterday. The meeting lasted for one hour
and 35 minutes. Erdoan and Babu were expected to discuss
the latest developments on Turkey’s agenda such as the Justice
and Development Party (AK Party) government’s Kurdish ini-
tiative, which aims to resolve Turkey’s Kurdish problem. The
initiative came to Parliament’s oor last week despite adverse
reaction from the opposition parties. Another item which was
supposed to be on the agenda of the Erdoan-Babu meeting
was a letter sent by an unnamed military ofcer to prosecutors
last week, which included subversive military plans to destroy
the government. The letter came with a CD attached contai-
ning numerous condential military documents which showed
that the generals were plotting to damage the AK Party’s ima-
ge in the eyes of the public. Ankara Today’s Zaman
SILENT TURKEY (3)
Nationalists
contnued from page 14
Jacobean elites may fail to decode the all-embracing,
peaceful nationalism of Anatolia, but it is not a hard gu-
ess for the silent majority of grass roots to realize that a re-
turn to the nationalism of Nihal Atsz is nothing but a bre-
aking way from the nation. This conclusion is already be-
ing implemented, which partially accounts for the silen-
ce of the majority. This is because the young people who-
se nails were removed in torture during the military rule
of Sept. 12 tend to adopt a realistic stance to today’s deve-
lopments, and they see that it is a grave sin to turn one’s
back to the nation in return for some shadowy connecti-
ons. They know best that the entrenched problems of the
country cannot be solved by just shouting or making no-
ise. They also know that seeking shelter in mere heroism
without offering any feasible solution to problems carri-
es a big price. It is important not only for those who base
their policies on nationalism but also for everyone who lo-
ves this country to lend an ear to the scream of this silent
majority because there is no fault line that can withstand a
third shock here. Otherwise, the resulting earthquake will
be a great one, with the aftershocks being alienation giving
way to the militarism and racism of marginalized groups.
Tomorrow: Conservatives.
T18-20-11-09.qxd 19.11.2009 15:03 Page 1

18 TODAY’S ZAMAN F R I D AY, N O V E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 0 9 TODAY’S LEARNING

10th & 11th GRADERS

TODAY’S ZAMAN, CEM KIZILTUÐ

* QUOTE OF THE DAY

Purchase not friends by gifts; when thou ceasest to
give, such will cease to love.
Thomas Fuller

LAST WEEK’S SUCCESSFUL

ESSAY SUBMISSION

AP
ILLUSTRATIONS

PHOTO
Nothing but working
Man constantly runs after his goals on this field-like
world. Besides, that's the reason why he was created.
There is always something to succeed in and something
to help him achieve this.
Yet, the greatest helper -- except God -- is he, him-
self. If he waits for someone's help, it means he will wait
too long. Because of this, man has to create his own op-
portunities by working hard. As I am a student, I have to
struggle to accomplish my own goals. The more I study,
the more I will gain. For another example, if you are an
archeologist, you have to get an education, determine the
place of excavation and excavate with patience. So, it
means you have to work hard. Who on earth could men-
tion that it is possible by chance? As it is said: "The fa-
vorites of the Goddess of Chance are those who are hard-
working."
I want to summarize by saying that it will not be a re-
al matter whatever our profession or our situation is. If

IS LEARNING ENGLISH DIFFICULT?
Q: Is learning English and grammar
difficult?
A: English is an easy language to start
learning because:
It has no genders. Apart from people, all
objects are "neuter," neither "masculine" nor
-- there are no different endings to learn.
The singular and plural pronoun "you"
is the same. There is no need to decide
whether to use a polite form, or an inti-
mate form.
Q: What are the most difficult aspects
we have a target -- that of course we have -- we must try
determinedly. Remember: no pain, no gain!
(Some minor corrections have been made)
words came from many different sources.
English came from two main sources - Emre GÜRBÜZ -- 11 Language A
- old French and old Anglo-Saxon. There Yüksel Ilhan Alanyalý Teacher Training High
is a very large vocabulary of words. Watch School Kartal, Istanbul
out for words that seem similar. They may
have come from your language and mean

"feminine." So you say "it" for such things,
and do not need to learn any genders.
It usually has easy verb endings. Apart
from a few "irregular" verbs, verb endings
of learning English?
A: The most difficult things about
learning English are:
Spelling and pronunciation -- the
REUTERS
the same; these are called cognates, or
they may have different meanings, these
are false cognates.
Idioms -- native English speakers use a

PHOTO
are easy and hardly change. spelling of a word may not show what the lot of idioms; that is, words used in a way
Adjectives remain the same for all words pronunciation is. This is because English which is not their obvious meaning.

WEEKLY ESSAY COMPETITION

This week’s essay question:
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using tech-
nology today. (Talk about television, cell phones, the
AP

Internet, etc. in you essay)

PAIRS OF WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED Requirements of essays:
PHOTO

3. affect / effect Maximum number of words: 250

1. stationery / stationary
stationery (n.): the items needed for writ-
ing, such as paper, pens, pencils and en-
velopes
e.g.: The students spend most of their
money on stationery.
stationary (adj.): not moving, or not
affect (v.): to have an influence on some-
one or something, or to cause them to
change:
e.g.: Both buildings were badly affected by
the fire.
effect (n.): the result of a particular influ-
ence:
e.g.: I tried taking tablets for the headache
but they didn't have any effect.
4. past / passed
past (adj.): 1. used to refer to a period of
time before and until the present:
e.g.: I've been walking three miles a day
for the past 30 years.
2. [before noun] having happened or ex-
isted before now:
e.g.: I know from past experience that you
can't judge someone by their appearance.
passed (pass) (v.): 1. to go past some-
thing or someone or move in relation to it:
Essay format and use of formal written English
Must be submitted by the following Thursday of each
week's English Corner
Must have student's full name, school and city
SOME COMMON CONTRACTIONS
TRIVIAL PURSUIT WITH EXAMPLES AND NOTES
1. What is the strongest muscle in the body?
2. Who lives longer, left-handed or right-handed people? Did you - didja or 'dja: How didja do it? How 'dja' do it?
3. Which hand do polar bears use, left or right?
NOTE : When followed by a word beginning with the
4. How many taste buds does a catfish have?
letter "e," or "a" 'dja is commonly contracted to ‘dj' :
5. Which living creature tastes its own feet?
Did you eat yet? - 'dj' eat yet?
6. Which bird's brain is smaller than its eye?
Did you ask her? - 'dj' ask 'er?
7. Which fish does not have a brain?
Does she - dushi : Dushi speak English?
8. Which animal kills more people a year than any other animal?
Don't know - dunno : I dunno where you live.
9. What are most dust particles in your house made of?
For - fer : He works fer his father.
CÝHAN

changing: e.g.: I passed him on the stairs this morn-

e.g.: The rate of inflation has been station- NOTE : This also applies to the following words :
ing.
ary for several months. Forgive - fergive forget - ferget
2. to be successful in an exam, course, etc:
PHOTO

2. sensible / sensitive
sensible (adj.): based on or acting on
good judgment and practical ideas or un-
derstanding:
e.g.: I think the sensible thing to do is
phone before you go and ask for direc-
tions.
sensitive (adj.): easily upset by the things
people say or do, or causing people to be
upset, embarrassed or angry:
e.g.: Her reply showed that she was very
sensitive to criticism.
e.g.: Guess what? I've passed my driving Give me - gimme : Gimme that
test! Going to - gonna : I'm gonna give him a present.
5. economic / economical
economic (adj.): relating to trade, indus-
try and money:
e.g.: The country has been in a very poor NE’ER CAST A CLOUT
economic state ever since the decline of its TILL MAY IS OUT
two major industries.
economical (adj.): not using a lot of fuel, Early spring in Britain often turns warm for a few days. But if
money, etc: you start leaving off clothes you will run a risk, as it may be-
e.g.: What's the most economical way of come very cold again -- right up to the end of May. "Cast a
heating this building? clout" is an old way of saying "leave off clothes."

Last week’s answers: 1 William Wallace, 2 Apartheid, 3 Cambuskenneth in 1297, 4 The Confederate States of America, 5 Joseph Stalin,6 A net, 7 George Bush, 8 Christopher Columbus, 9 Anne Boleyn, 10 China

CM Y K
 SPORTS
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009
AA
PHOTO
Hami
Mandral
No cause for
alarm, Hami says
after U-21s held
The Turkish Under-21 national soc-
cer team, beaten 3-1 by leader Swit-
zerland in their 2011 UEFA European Un-
der-21 Championship Group qualifying
match in Trabzon last Saturday, drew 0-0
with Estonia in a lackluster game at the
Yeni Rize Stadium in Rize on Wednesday.
Going into this match, only one point
separated Turkey (9) and Estonia (8), and so
nothing changed for the two teams after their
match ended exactly the way it started.
The result has only served to strengthen
the position of the Swiss, who beat Georgia
1-0 at home position, in the group whereas
Turkey’s hopes of qualifying seem to be hang-
ing by a thread. Turkey coach Hami Mandral
agrees that the going had gotten tougher after
his team dropped four precious points in two
home matches. But the former Trabzon and
Turkey striker is still optimistic nonetheless.
“As you can see, we wanted to appease
our fans and so tried to play good soccer but
our opponent [Estonia] wouldn’t let us as they
resorted to anti-soccer. We had glaring chanc-
es but failed to convert them,” he lamented.
“Against the Swiss in Trabzon we domi-
nated the one-sided match from the begin-
ning to the end, but lost. Today against Es-
tonia, we did not succeed as a team though
there were some commendable individual
efforts. Estonia is not a strong team and there
is no team we cannot beat. But at times things
just don’t go your way,” he further stated.
“All in all, it has been a week not to re-
member. Yes, we are down but by no way
out. We have only garnered one point out
of a possible six [in two matches], but there
are still four games to go and as many as 12
points at stake. And we are still capable of
making the impossible possible,” he added.
These are words of consolation
from a frustrated coach, but the fans
are not happy one bit with what is go-
ing on. And they made their dissatisfac-
tion abundantly clear by staying away
from Wednesday’s match. Only 2,500
fans were in attendance at the Yeni Rize
Stadium even though no gate fees were
charged. Saturday’s loss to Switzerland
had dampened fan enthusiasm, to say
the least. Okan Udo Bassey stanbul
France leads 5
more qualifiers
AP, STEVE C WILSON
into World Cup
France, with a controversial extra-
time goal from William Gallas,
squeezed into the World Cup finals de-
spite failing to beat Ireland in Paris while
Slovenia upset Russia on a nailbiting
night of qualifiers on Wednesday.
PHOTO
France progressed after a 1-1 draw with
Ireland gave the 2006 nalists a 2-1 aggre-
gate victory but they needed Gallas’s close-
range goal -- after a blatant Thierry Henry
handball in the build-up -- to win the tie.
The French go through to next year’s
extravaganza in South Africa along with
Slovenia, Greece, Portugal and Algeria,
which beat archrivals Egypt 1-0 in neutral
Sudan to win a tense sudden-death playoff
to secure the nal African qualifying berth.
Uruguay struggled to tame Costa Rica
before booking their place in the World Cup
nals with a 1-1 draw at home in the second
leg of their South America/CONCACAF
playoff. The Uruguayans went through 2-1
on aggregate after winning the rst leg in
San Jose on Saturday. London Reuters
Okur-less Jazz subdue
Hedo’s Toronto Raptors
Rookie Eric Maynor scored 11 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter and
helped the Jazz, who let an 18-point lead slip to one early in the fourth
before pulling away for their ninth straight win over the Raptors
It was a scenario that has played out in
Utah’s home arena for many years: a tight
game in the fourth quarter, when the Jazz
turn to their point guard to make the game’s deci-
sive plays. It just wasn’t that point guard.
Eric Maynor, a rookie out of Virginia Common-
wealth, ran the team for much of the fourth quarter,
while Deron Williams moved over to the two-spot.
The move paid off nicely for the Jazz, who blew
open a tight game to defeat Hedo Türkolu’s To-
ronto Raptors 104-91 in Salt Lake City on Wednes-
day night for their ninth straight win over the Rap-
tors. The Turkish superstar scored 11 points with six
rebounds and four assists, but that was not enough
to save his team from defeat.
The Utah Jazz were without another Turkish
star, Mehmet Okur, who was sidelined by the u.
His teammates nonetheless did a very good job.
“Two words: Eric Maynor,” was how Jazz
forward Carlos Boozer loudly greeted report-
ers for his postgame interview. “Eric’s been
playing great, man. He’s stepped in,
he’s got swag, he’s got condence.
When he comes in the game,
he knows what he’s sup-
Leader Efes hosts Galatasaray in TBL ‘match of the week’
A scene from
an Efes-Gala-
tasaray game
last season.
Efes is highly
favored over.
Galatasaray
today.
Kuznetsova to warm up in Sydney
posed to do out there and does a great job of
doing it.”
The Jazz opened the fourth quarter leading by
three and with a seldom-used lineup combination
of Maynor, Williams, Boozer, Andrei Kirilenko and
Paul Millsap. Maynor quickly took charge, as he
made a free throw and assisted on a reverse layup
by Kirilenko to put Utah up by four.
Boozer had a team-high 22 points and
18 rebounds for Utah, while Williams and
Kirilenko each had 20 points.
Maynor also hit a jump hook and scored on
an uncontested layup -- thanks to an as- sist
from Williams to put the Jazz up
89-79 with six minutes re-
maining. Maynor scored
11 of his 15 points in the
fourth quarter, includ-
ing a stretch
Men’s Turkish Basketball League (TBL)
leader Efes Pilsen entertains Galatasaray
Cafe Crown in week six action at the Ayhan
ahenk Sports Hall in stanbul this evening.
Efes Pilsen, which downed previously
unbeaten Beikta Cola Turka 88-84 in a
thrilling stanbul derby at the BJK Cola Turka
Arena last weekend to take over top spot, is
highly favored over scandal-hit Galatasaray
Cafe Crown, in what has been dubbed the
“match of the week” by the local media.
CMYK
French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova will launch her 2010
Australian Open campaign at the Sydney International. The 24-year-
old Russian joins Serena Williams, Elena Dementieva, Caroline
Wozniacki and Victoria Azarenka as the fifth player in the women’s
top 10 rankings to sign up for the Jan. 10-16 event. Sydney Reuters
where he scored eight straight points. Those
eight points gave the Jazz a 91-79 lead.
Chris Bosh helped the Toronto Raptors trim
an 18-point decit to just nine in the nal three
minutes of the rst half. Bosh scored 22 points
on 8-of-11 shooting in the rst half and the Jazz
didn’t look to have anyone that could guard him.
Both teams adjusted well defensively af-
ter the break. The Jazz nished with a total
of 54 points in the paint and Bosh scored 32
points. It was the fourth time Bosh has scored
at least 30 points this season, but he got four
of them in the nal two minutes with the
game already decided. Bosh recorded his
NBA-leading 10th double-double of the
season with 17 rebounds.
Other NBA results on Wednesday:
Dallas 99, San Antonio Spurs 94; Hous-
ton 97, Minnesota 84; Washington 108,
Cleveland 91; Boston 109, Golden State
95; New York 110, Indiana 103; Orlan-
do 108, Oklahoma City 94; Atlanta 105,
Miami 90; Philadelphia 86, Charlotte 84;
Memphis 106, LA Clippers 91; Portland 87,
Turkish
star Hedo
Türkolu
stumbles as
he dribbles
past Utah
Jazz’s Paul
Millsap during
the second
half of their
NBA game
in Salt Lake
City, Utah, on
Wednesday.
Galatasaray outlasted archrival Fener-
bahçe Ülker 74-72 in overtime in a trouble-
marred stanbul derby at Abdi pekçi Sports
Arena in game ve last weekend to stay in
touch with the league frontrunners. But Efes
is a more formidable opponent than Fener
Ülker and so Galatasaray Cafe Crown players
may need more than a Houdini touch to be
able to upset mighty Efes Pilsen this evening.
The game kicks off at 8 p.m. and will be
aired live on Spormax. stanbul Today’s Zaman
GS Cafe Crown
caught in act
Galatasaray Café Crown was caught red-
handed after it was discovered that the
stanbul side fielded suspended player Cemal
Nalga by making him wear the No. 7 jersey of
injured player Tufan Ersöz during two warm-
up matches in Europe. When the scandal broke
out, the Galatasaray club management held an
emergency meeting and decided to sack the
administrative and technical personnel in the
men’s basketball branch. The Turkish Basketball
Federation sent a notice to Galatasaray demand-
ing an urgent verbal explanation from the club
and the team’s head coach as well as Cemal Na-
lga. The Galatasaray basketball team faces very
severe penalties, including being relegated to
lower division if these claims are proven. Nalga
was suspended for five matches for punching an
opponent during the match against Cibona Za-
greb on Sept. 16. After the league match on Oct.
17 at stanbul’s Abdi pekçi Sports Arena, Oyak
Renault complained to the federation that Na-
lga’s five-match suspension was still under way.
In response, the federation rejected the com-
plaint, listing the five matches in which Nalga
had not played on its Web site, and the matches
included those against the Skyliners on Sept.
24 and Ludwigsburg on Sept. 25. According to
evidence provided on the Web site of Ludwigs-
burg, Nalga’s name was not on the list while the
photos and videos showed that he was there
wearing Ersöz’s No. 7 jersey. stanbul Today’s Zaman
Jayawardenes sets
new world record
Mahela Jayawardene and Prasanna
Jayawardene broke a 72-year-old
world record on Thursday as Sri Lanka took
a 334-run first-innings lead on the fourth
day of the first test against India. Sri Lanka
declared its first innings at 760-7 -- thanks
to a 351-run sixth-wicket stand between
Jayawardenes. It is the highest innings total
ever scored in India. India, which made 426
in its first innings, was 77-0 in its second in-
nings at tea, with Virender Sehwag making
an adventourous 47 and Gautam Gambhir
not out on 28. The home team still trails
by 257 runs with four sessions remaining
in the test. Wicketkeeper Jayawardene
dropped Sehwag off a no-ball in Chanaka
Welegedara first over before Dammika
Prasad found an edge in the next over
which flew between the first slip and the
wicketkeeper to the boundary. Ahmedabad AP
UAE striker dies
of heart attack
Striker Salem Saad of United Arab
Emirates club side Al Nasr has died
after suffering a massive heart attack at
training, the club’s Web site (www.alnasr.
com) reported on Thursday. The club said
the 31-year-old collapsed on the pitch
during a regular practice session and was
immediately rushed to a nearby hospital
but died shortly after arrival. Sydney Reuters
Raikkonen open to
Mercedes offers
Kimi Raikkonen’s plans for a one year
sabbatical from Formula One lasted
less than 24 hours before his manager
suggested that he might be open to of-
fers from Brawn’s new owners Mercedes.
Steve Robertson told the autosport.com
Web site on Thursday that the Finn, who
failed to reach a deal with McLaren after
leaving Ferrari, was not 100 percent cer-
tain to be absent next year. London Reuters
Ivankov quits
internationals
Bulgaria goalkeeper Dimitar Ivankov
has announced his retirement from in-
ternational soccer following his country’s 4-1
win against Malta in a friendly on Wednes-
day. “I quit and this is my final decision,” the
34-year-old Ivankov told reporters. Ivankov,
capped 62 times for his country, was part
of Bulgaria’s squad at the Euro 2004 finals
in Portugal. He also won three Bulgarian
league titles and five Bulgarian cups while
playing for Levski Sofia. Sofia Reuters
 Bon Jovi comes full ‘Circle’ on US chart
Bon Jovi claimed its fourth No. 1 album on the US pop chart
Wednesday, despite a sharp drop in sales. “The Circle”
sold 163,000 copies during the week ended Nov. 16, ac-
cording to Nielsen SoundScan. Los Angeles, Reuters

WWW.TODAYSZAMAN.COM FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2009

Two Web sites that sold and their owner, Hank Risan, from ney was not immediately returned. based on a technique he pioneered

AP, RICHARD DREW

Stes sellng songs by The Beatles for
25 cents apiece should re-
streaming or selling songs by the Fab
Four and other popular artists, includ-
EMI Group sued Risan and the sites
earlier this month to stop the sites from
called “psycho-acoustic simulation.”
The process involved re-recording

Beatles songs main shut down indenitely, a fed-

eral judge ruled on Wednesday. US
District Judge John F. Walter issued a
ing Lily Allen and Coldplay.
A hearing in the case had been
scheduled for today, but Walter de-
streaming or selling its music. It claimed
the sites were selling high-quality ver-
sions of copyrighted songs, including
store-bought CDs and improving the
quality and trying to simulate how a
live listener would hear the music,
to reman preliminary injunction against Blue-
Beat.com and Basebeat.com at the re-
cided the issue based on pleadings
by attorneys for Risan and the mu-
Beatles music, which has never been
legally released digitally. Risan argued
Risan explained in lings. Attorneys
for the music label dismissed the ex-
shut down

PHOTO
quest of music company EMI Group. sic label. A phone message left on in court lings that he had re-recorded planation in a ling as “technobabble
The injunction prohibits the sites Wednesday evening for Risan’s attor- the music and inserted artistic touches and doublespeak.” Los Angeles AP

Actor Will Ferrell appears on the NBC “Today” televi-

sion program in New York in this June 3 file photo.

Forbes: Will Ferrell

is Hollywood’s most
overpaid Star
Funnyman Will Ferrell and British actor Ewan
McGregor on Wednesday headed a Forbes.
com list of Hollywood’s most overpaid stars when
looking at the nancial returns of their movies. Bil-
ly Bob Thornton, Tom Cruise and Jim Carrey also
made the top 10 tally of actors who cost more to hire
than they appear to be worth at box ofces.
Ferrell took rst place largely due to the op of his
summer 2009 movie “Land of the Lost,” which Forbes
said cost an estimated $100 million to make but earned
just $65 million at box ofces worldwide for movie stu-
dio Universal Pictures. The movie followed a disap-
pointing $43 million box ofce for Ferrell’s 2008 outing
“Semi-Pro,” and $128 million for “Step Brothers.”
Using a formula that calculated the actor’s esti-
mated salary on each lm, including DVD and TV
sales, compared to the lm’s revenues from theater
box ofces and elsewhere, Forbes.com said that for
every dollar Ferrell was paid, his lms earned an av-
erage $3.29. To create the list, the nancial news Web
site looked at Hollywood’s 100 biggest stars who had
lead performances in at least three widely distributed
movies in the last ve years. McGregor, best known
for “Trainspotting” and his work in the “Star Wars”
franchise, is not among Hollywood’s highest paid ac-
tors but has recently proved a poor investment, aver-
aging a return of $3.75. Los Angeles Reuters

Woman leaves
$40,000 at shrine
A woman quietly left $40,000 worth of rare US
coins near a Catholic shrine for safekeeping
so the Virgin Mary could watch over her life savings
while she was out of town, and apparently it worked:
The money was returned to her when she got back a
week later. Operators of the National Shrine Grotto
of Our Lady of Lourdes near Emmitsburg thought
they had been blessed with a big donation when a
groundskeeper found the two plastic freezer bags
lled with gold and silver while raking leaves.
But Shrine Director William Tronolone said the
woman approached him after a noon Mass Sunday,
six days after the discovery, to ask whether anyone
had found some coins she had hidden beneath fallen
leaves at the site on the campus of Mount St. Mary’s
University. “I said, ‘Why did you leave it there?’ And
she said, ‘Well, I had to go away and I was afraid to
leave it and I wanted the Blessed Mother to watch
over it for me -- and evidently she did because you
found it,’” Tronolone said. Hagerstown, Md. AP

Lost man drives nine

hours to get newspaper
An elderly man who went out to fetch a morn-
ing newspaper ended up driving nearly 400
miles after getting lost and taking a wrong turn onto
a major Australian highway, police said on Wednes-
day. The man, 81-year-old Eric Steward, eventually
stopped and asked for directions after driving for nine
hours, from the New South Wales country town of
Yass to Geelong in the southern Victoria state.
Steward, who did not know where he was, even-
tually approached a policeman at a petrol station and
asked for help late on Wednesday. “This little old man
came up to me saying he was lost. He handed me his
mobile and asked if I could speak to his wife,” said Vic-
torian Police Senior Constable Clayton Smith. Steward,
who was reunited with his family on Wednesday, said he
took the wrong turn and just kept on going. “I just went
out on the road to have a drive, a nice peaceful drive,” he
told reporters, adding he did not need a satellite naviga-
tion device as he’d only been lost once. Canberra Reuters

CMYK