editorslinks

A non-government information service on Turkey
Un service d'information non-gouvernemental sur la Turquie


203

17th Year - N°203
September 1993
38 rue des Eburons - 1000 Bruxelles
Tél: (32-2) 215 35 76 - Fax: (32-2) 215 58 60
 Rédacteur en chef: Dogan Özgüden - Editrice responsable: Inci Tugsavul
 


CRAZY ARMAMENT OF THE TURKISH ARMY

    As the Turkish Armed Forces were carrying on a destructive war against the Kurdish national movement, the Turkish war industry staged a demonstration of armament by opening the first International Defense Industry and Civil Aviation Fair (IDEF 93) on September 14 in Ankara. On this occasion, the Defense Ministry published a detailed inventory of the Turkish war industry under the title of White Book 1993.
    Supported by fabulous budget allocations and the investments of a military-industrial complex, the Turkish war industry has already become one of the most powerful death machines of the world. Many of the weapons and ammunitions produced by this industry are currently being used against Kurdish population.
    The Turkish military, in White Book 1993, justify this crazy armament with the increase of the threats to Turkey’s security due to its proximity to the conflicts in the Balkans, Caucausus and the Middle East. However, General Hursit Tolon, Secretary General of the Turkish General Staff, said in an interview to the Turkish Daily News of September 15 “The Gulf War had many effects on the political and military balances in the region, including giving a new impetus to the Kurdish recessionism. Turkey’s geopolitical and geostrategic position does not allow it to extricate itself from international and regional power balances. For this reason, instead of having a front-line defense, we have adopted the strategy to have front-line power.”
    In addition to the above-mentioned concerns, many hawks in the military and political spheres advocate a Turkish expansion and consider this expensive armament as indispensable for putting their adventurist projects in practice.
    The bipolar world of the Cold War period had dictated a specific threat perception to Turkey, which as a NATO country was given the major responsibility of securing the alliance's southern flank. In many respects it was a clear cut role. Turkish Army's modernization program at the time was geared very much to the needs of this bipolar environment and toward the threat from the Warsaw pact.
    Since the Cold War period ended, defense budgets are being cut in the West, but Turkey is going the opposite way by increasing its own defense budget. In 1993, Turkey allocated 11.5 percent of the National Budget,  that is TL 41 Trillion ($5,125,000,000), to the military expenditures. Although, in line with other military powers, Turkey too decided to scale down its Army from some 700,000 to 550,000 by the end of 1994, it plans to restructure the Army from a division-regiment system to a brigade-batallion system for having a more mobile striking force.
Turkish forces mobilized against the Kurdish national movement already number about 180,000 in the Southeast. These forces are rapidly being equipped with sophisticated arms produced by the war industry or imported from other countries.
    The responsibility for the development of a war industry has been entrusted to the Under-secretary for Defense Industry (SSM) which can be considered as the supreme authority of the military-industrial complex growing thanks to the budget allocations and the investments by the foreign and local private capital.
    Under the Defense Industry Act of 1985, projects worth approximately $10.5 billion have either been contracted or are about to be contracted.
    Decisions regarding the execution of projects are made by the Defence Industry Executive Committee (SSIK) which is comprised of the prime minister, the minister of national defense and the chief of general staff.
    The financial support for large-scale defense industry projects, whose feasibility, evaluation, contracting and production follow-on studies are being carried out by the SSM, is provided by the Defense Industry Support Fund established separately within the national budget. This fund, with revenues of $700 million annually, constitutes a consistent resource for military industry investments. It also further expedites SSIK decisions by reducing bureaucratic formalities. major sources of the fund are: shares from income and corporate taxes, shares from sales of state-owned products, shares allotted from lotteries, and a percentage of the fuel consumption tax. The fund is administered by the SSM in line with the principles set by SSIK.
    Turkey's defense capabilities are not limited to SSM activities and a strong defense industry base has begun to emerge in the last few years.

    Projects under way

    • 115 F-16 C/D have been manufactured to date at the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) facilities in Mürted near Ankara. The said facilities are the most developed next to the Lockheed (it was General Dynamics when the contract was signed) plants in the United States. The production program at present consists of the production of 240 aircraft for the Turkish Air Force and an additional 46 for the Egyptian Air Force.
    TEI (Turkish Engine Industries) has undertaken the task of manufacturing the engines for the F-16s through a joint venture initiative.
    • The production of 122 active and 160 passive electronic warfare systems by the MIKES company in Akyurt, Ankara, to be fitted to the F-16 fighter planes produced in TAI. The $325 million project has already produced 21 systems, four of which have been fitted to the Turkish F-16s.
    • The production of 1,698 FNSS designed armoured combat vehicles in four variants. A 1,3 billion, eight-year project signed with the American FMC-Turkish Nurol joint venture company (JVC) in 1988.
    It includes the production of subsystems such as the cupola (with Tursav) engine transmission (Taksan), 25 mm gun and turret (French Giat and Turkish MKEK) system, and night vision systems (Texas Instruments and Turkish Aselsan).
    497 vehicles of three variants have been delivered to the Turkish military as of August 1993, as suggested by the contract. The production facilities are in Gölbasi near Ankara.
    • The direct procurement of 45 Black Hawk helicopters from American Sikorsky . 25 Black Hawks have been delivered so far. The project is $ 1.1 billion. In addition to that project, in-country coproduction of an additional 55 Black Hawks is under consideration. The package also includes procurement of 20 Super Puma-type (Cougar) transport helicopters from French Eurocopter. Negotiations continue with Sikorsky and Eurocopter for the procurement of four maritime helicopters.
    • The production of 52 CN-235 model light transport aircraft has been undertaken by Spanish CASA with Turkish partner TAI. After the direct delivery of two planes from Spain, four more have been jointly produced at Mürted's TAI facilities and delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces. The project cost is $550 million.
    • The production of 14 air search radars and 18 C3 (communications, command, control) systems in the framework of the mobile radar complexes project. The mobile radars are being produced by the French Thompson-Turkish Tekfen consortium and the C3 systems by the American Aydin-Turkish Aymet consortium. The production facilities for both systems are in Ankara. The first integrated system is expected to be delivered in 1994. The project cost is $313.5 million.
    • The production of 2,936 high frequency single side band (HF/SSB) radios with frequency hopping and electronic counter-countermeasure capabilities. British Marconi has undertaken the $160 million project with Turkish partners Has, Cihan and Elit. 1,100 radios of three variants have been manufactured so far in the consortium's facilities in Gölbasi, near Ankara.
    • The procurement of two Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) systems for $41 million from American Aircraft Industries and General Atomics of the United States. meanwhile, the Turkish company TAI has designed and produced two prototype UAVs in line with a research ad development (R&D) project financed by the SSM.
    • The production of one fleet of replenishment ships for the Turkish Navy is being undertaken by the Turkish shipyard Sedef, near Istanbul. The project cost is $26 million.
    • The production of 40 basic trainer SF-260 model aircraft by Italian Augusta with Turkish partner TAI, in TAI's Mürted facilities. 32 planes have been delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces so far. The total project cost is $17 million.
    • Twelve R&D projects costing $22 million have been awarded to a number of Turkish research institutes and universities to be subsidized by the Defence Industry Support Fund. Some of these projects are:
    - Silicon carbide-based composite material
    - Hardware&software development for defense systems
    - Milimeter wave electronic warfare
    - Ramjet liquid propellant ceramic rocket engine
    - PRC/VRC 9600 VHF/FM frequency hopping radio
    - Software for portable common tools environment
    - Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
    - B carbide-based armour materials
    - Semiconductive technologies.
    • The MAN, Mercedes-Benz Türk, Otokar (Landrover), Otomarsan and Otosan plants are capable of and are presently manufacturing trucks, buses, small-type wheeled tactical and utility vehicles, and pick-up trucks. The said vehicles are produced and made available to the Turkish armed forces and other allied countries. Half ton utility vehicles are being produced at the Turkish armed forces facilities in the configurations of ambulances, weapon platforms, and tactical vehicles.
    • Tank upgrading industry. The M-48 (with 105 mm guns) and M-113 repair, maintenance, and modernization activities facilities also have the capability to modernize M-60 MBT tanks .
    • Arms, weapons, ammunitions, rockets: The wide-ranging production of artillery and ammunition; small arms and ammunition; anti-aircraft guns; infantry weapons rocket systems; aircraft bombs; propelling charges; antitank and limpet mines; gunpowder; demolition blocks; primer and blasting caps; pistols; rifles; machine guns; tank guns; mortars; 20 and 35 mm automatic cannon; steel, brass and wooden products; construction, excavation and industrial machinery; howitzers; mortars; hand grenades; explosives; and fuses and gas masks are undertaken at the MKEK (Mechanical and Chemical Industries Corp.) facilities.
    • Field equipment and construction: The Turkish construction sector is lending service ar a high level to the Turkish armed forces and allied countries. The construction equipment and machinery are provided by both the civilian and military sector, including excavation and industrial machinery.
    • Wireless radios: The Aselsan (Military Electronic Industry) manufactures the 4600 series VHF/FM portable, vehicular and tank radio, the 4800 series synthesized mobile radio, digital encryption equipment, computer controlled fire and alarm system, telephone encryption systems, laser range finders, avionics, night vision systems, rocket electronics, electronic warfare systems, fuses and electro-optic systems in a wide range and as such command considerable export potential.
    • Maintenance and modernization: Depot-level maintenance and repair activities of the F-4, F-5, F-16, C-130, C-160, SF-260, UH-1, and helicopters and their motors are being done in Turkey. Modernization and evaluation studies are under way on schedule to foresee the use of the F-4 aircraft in the year 2000, and possible use of the F-5's, to train pilots for the F-16s. Modernization will take place entirely in Turkey.
    • Support equipment: Helmets, parachutes, uniforms, and aircraft and helicopter spare parts are presently being produced at Turkish armed forces facilities.
    • Sea platforms: Type 209-1200 submarines, Meko-200 type frigates, guided missile-carrying assault boats, destroyer escorts, tankers, bulk carriers, landing craft, fast patrol boats, tugs,logistic coasters, cargo ships and floating and dry docks are being built at Turkey's civilian and military shipyards.

    Projects under consideration

    The following are the projects currently under consideration by the SSM and the Turkish General Staff, which have not been finalized:
    • The Multi-Launch Rocket System (MLRS) project. Twelve systems and their rockets have already been delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces by American LTV. 24 more systems will be produced in the framework of an approximately $1 billion project. The MLRS rockets are planned for production in Turkey, with the cooperation of LTV and Turkish Roketsan, which also produces body, solid fuel and engine parts for Stinger missiles in its facilities near Ankara within a NATO program.
    • The 35 mm anti-aircraft fire control systems project. The project suggests in-country production of 97 such systems at a cost of $400 million. The Dutch Signal company producing the Flycatcher, the British Racal company producing the Eagle, and the Swiss/Canadian Contraves company producing the Skyguard have been short-listed for the coproduction of this project, expected to be announced in the second half of 1993.
    • The mine-hunting vessel project. The project involves native contributed production of six such ships within the modernization of the Turkish navy. It will cost $380 million. German shipyards Abeking&Rasmussen and Fr-Leurssen Werft, French SOFMA-DCN, British Vosper Thornycroft and Italian Intermarine have made their proposals for the project which is expected to be finalized by the end of 1993.
    • Low level air defense project. Thomson-CSF of France with Crotale, Euromissile consortium with Roland and Oerlikon-Bührle with Adats and their Turkish partners are in the running to co-produce low-level air defense systems in Turkey. The evaluation by the Turkish General Staff is under way for revised tactical and technical requirements.
    • The Coast Guard vessel project. Evaluations are under way for the construction of 24 Coast Guard vessels in Turkish shipyards. The project's estimated cost is $200 million.
    • Procurement of attack helicopters. Five Bell Super Cobra helicopters for $100 million are expected to be provided by the US Government through Foreign Military Sales (FMS).
    • Fighter plane modernization project. Letters have been sent to 24 companies for the F-5 modernization project. The aim is to use the modernized F-5s as an F-16 training plane. Preliminary studies for the structural and avionics upgrade of the F-4 Phantom aircraft in the inventory of the Turkish Air Force have been initiated.
    • The in-flight refuelling aircraft project. Evaluations are under way for the procurement of three refuelling tanker aircraft.

    Black List of the Turkish War Industry

    As a fruitful market of war industry investments, in the post-Cold War Period Turkey sees itself in a position to freely choose its partners and to refuse the cooperation of some western countries which have been critical against Turkey on the matters of human rights.
    Those countries such as Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Sweden have attached so conditions to Turkey's weapons procurement and production programs  as banning the use of weapons or ammunition  originating from them in the South East against Kurds.
    According to the Turkish Daily News of September 15, Turkey has now established an unofficial "black list", which specifies the countries that will be exempted from its joint-production and direct-purchase defense projects.
    Although Germany, with whom Turkey had a special defense cooperation program during the Cold War, is not included on the black list because it has lifted its embargo, many officials say, nevertheless, this country actually deserves to be included on the list because its vacillating political approach to Turkey ultimately makes it unreliable in the planning of military modernization programs.
    As a sort of irony, the yesterday's principal enemy, Russia, takes part among the reliable partners of Turkey in armament cooperation. In March 1993, Turkey and Russia signed various defense cooperation protocols, such as the $75 million protocol which enables Ankara to buy arms from Moscow.
    No doubt, the most reliable partner of Turkey is always the United States.  In addition to a number of joint projects, in December 1992, the United States signed with Ankara a $1.1 billion deal to provide the Turkish Army with Black Hawk helicopters to be used for destroying the Kurdish nationalist movement in the South East. The deal with Sikorsky Aircraft involved direct purchase of 45 Black Hawk helicopters for $485 million, and the manufacture and assembly of other 50 others in Turkey --with a project cost of $615 million-- at an installation alongside Mürted, where F-16s are coproduced with the U.S. General Dynamics company.
   
CILLER’S NEW ANTI-KURD PLANS

    Prime Minister Ciller, in a triumphal address to the parliamentary group of her DYP, claimed on September 1st that 1,020 PKK militants were killed in clashes with Turkish security forces in the last six weeks. She said that the government was determined to finish off the PKK by forming special commando teams and procuring new vehicles and helicopters in order to enhance the reconnaissance and observation capability of the Army.
    The daily Sabah of September 12 quoted Chief of Staff General Dogan Güres as pledging to “finish off” the PKK by next spring. With recent operations the Turkish Armed Forces have dealt serious blows to the organization,” he said, adding, “The PKK has been pushed into a tight spot. Their current actions are the result of their desperation. They are under great strain locally and internationally.”
    Ciller’s government last month announced a plan to set tup special squads to fight the PKK. Commando conscripts would be encouraged to volunteer for the special force after completing their 15-month military service, according to the plan.
    State Minister Mustafa Ciloglu said on August 28 that a new 20,000-strong force to combat PKK guerrillas would be ready in six months’ time.
    “Until now we have always been on the defensive, only responding to attacks. From now on we will change our strategy. In six or seven months’ time we will knock the terrorists out like a hammer with a 20,000-strong special team,” he said.
    On the other hand, the daily Hürriyet of August 31 reported that Prime Minister Ciller has a secret plan envisaging “shock penalties” for people who harbour “terrorists” or take part in mass boycotts. According to the plan drafted by the Interior Ministry,  those who harbour “terrorists" or support their actions by closing their shops or grounding their commercial motor vehicles as a show of solidarity with the PKK will face one to three-year prison sentences. The stores of the shop-owners in question will be closed for a period of six months and the motor vehicles will be banned from taking to the road for six months. The detention period will be extended for persons detained on suspicion of being members of a “terrorist” organization.
    Those making speeches abroad in a way that debases the state will be given harsher penalties. This foresees to prevent DEP members from making speeches abroad.
    An anti-terrorism fund will be created, financed with money channelled from the other special funds in the country and from the National Lottery Agency’s earnings. Part of the money earned from football matches too will go into the anti-terrorism fund. Security officials who get injured and go into premature retirement will receive their full salary as pension? So will the spouses and children of the security officials who die in the struggle against “terrorist” organizations.

PKK WARNS OF NEW ESCALATION

    As the Turkish Army’s destructive offensive was getting new dimensions, the leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, in an interview to the daily Özgür Gündem, quoted by the Turkish Daily News of August 30, warned the government of an escalation of its nine-year-old armed campaign.
    The PKK leader said the organization, which today counts some 10,000 militants, planned to increase this number to 20,000 by winter and to 30,000 by spring 1994.
    “No government can stand against 30,000 guerrillas,” Öcalan said. Denying reports of another cease-fire by the PKK, Öcalan said unless the Turkish state accepted the PKK’s conditions, there would be no cease-fire:
    “I clarified the conditions for a cease-fire in may latest press conference. Turkish army operations in the Southeast should stop. I have also said that [a cease-fire] could only come from the military, rather than the government. Ciller is just make-up for the special war [in the Southeast]. No one should expect cease-fire conditions from civilians.”
    Öcalan said that the discussions by Turkish authorities for a private army to combat the Kurdish militants started after the Tansu Ciller government took office.
    “The idea of establishing a private army is unlawful, Öcalan said. “The idea is to recruit a bunch of bandits, hooligans, fascists and street dwellers into the core counter-guerrilla force the government has now. These are all men who will say, ‘I am the law.’ The recent murders and kidnappings are indications of that. It is not possible to assume that a private army could succeed with what a large regular army could not. If the murders against ordinary people and forced evacuations of villages continue, the PKK will have to retaliate with the same means.
    “If they push the limits of war, we will do the same. We will set up special guerrilla teams against the special [State] forces.”
    Öcalan claims that the province of Elazig has been used by the Counter-guerrilla forces as a base of torturing Kurdish patriots to death. A journalist for Özgür Gündem, Ferhat Tepe, was found dead in Elazig recently after being abducted in Bitlis earlier in August.
    “We know that former fascist circles play an important role in those kind of things. They get important support from merchants and loan sharks in Elazig. We will inflict heavy blows to their revenues. We plan to surround Elazig from all directions with guerrilla forces.”
    Öcalan mentioned the Turkish economy as another target of PKK attacks. “Our limited actions against Turkish tourism turned everything upside down. We will develop similar measures not only in Kurdistan, but also in Turkey. It is not difficult to hit Turkish economic targets.” Referring to the debate as to where to run the Turkish-Azeri oil pipeline, he said: “International oil companies should come and talk to us, not with Turkey.”
    PKK leader said a faction within the Turkish military apparatus may attempt a coup d’état to provide a political solution for the Kurdish problem. “The opposite can also happen: a coup d’état staged by further right” elements wanting a harsher stance against the Kurdish militants could take place. The Güres-Fisunoglu battle to determine who would be the next Chief of general Staff was a part of that struggle,” he added.
   
HELSINKI WATCH REPORT ON THE MEDIA

    Helsinki Watch issued in August 1993 a new report on Turkey, entitled “Free Expression in Turkey, 1993: Killings, convictions, confiscations.”
    In the introduction of the 40-page report, Helsinki Watch says extremely concerned about the violation of freedom of expression in Turkey in the first half of 1993.
    “Under the Anti-Terror Law which was introduced in 1991, many left-wing and pro-Kurdish journalists, writers and publishers continue to be tried, and many go on to be sentenced to prison terms and fines,”  says the report. “Penal Code provisions that make it a crime to insult Atatürk, secularity, Islam, the security forces and the president continue to be used to restrict free expression. Newspapers and books are regularly confiscated. The Press Law allows prosecutors to stop distribution of a newspaper without a court order. The same provisions restrict freedom of speech on radio and television, in electoral speeches, symposiums, posters, and leaflets. Publishers and authors are also charged and imprisoned under these laws.”
    “In the first seven months of 1993, four journalists were killed in Turkey. In southeast Turkey, one newspaper distributor and a newspaper vendor selling left-wing newspapers were killed during the same period. The government has made little effort to find and prosecute their killers. Many other journalists, newspaper vendors and distributors have received death threats. While journalists of the mainstream press are left alone for the most part, journalists from left-wing newspapers are frequently attacked, arrested or brought to trial. In southeast Turkey journalists are particularly at risk.
    “While the coalition government that came to power in November 1991 suggested that past restrictions on freedom of expression would be removed, their actions have proved extremely disappointing.
    “The convictions of journalists, authors, publishers and artists under the Anti-Terror Law as well as under provisions of the Penal Code contravene the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, to which Turkey is a signatory, as well as Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Right and Article 19 of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”
    After having given hundreds of examples of the violations of the freedom of expression, Helsinki Watch makes the following recommendations to the Turkish government:
    • Investigate promptly, thoroughly, and impartially the murders of the sixteen journalists and five vendors and distributors assassinated since February 1992; prosecute those responsible;
    • Release from prison and detention all journalists, writers and artists imprisoned or detained for their writings or the peaceful expression of their views;
    • Cease all legal actions against journalists, writers, publishers and artists based on the substance or circulation of their writings or the peaceful expression of their views;
    • Repeal the Anti-Terror Law;
    • Amend the Constitution to remove those portions that restrict free expression;
    • Amend the Penal Code to remove all articles that restrict free expression;
    • Amend the Press Law to remove those portions that restrict freedom of the press;
    • Repeal the law to protect Minors from Harmful Publications;
    • Repeal the Act on the Works of Cinema, Video and Music;
    • Abolish the Film and Music Censorship Boards;
    • Repeal or amend all other laws that unduly restrict freedom of expression; and
    • End restrictions that deprive Kurds of their ethnic identity, including restriction on the use of Kurdish language, music and dance.
    Helsinki Watch also recommends that the United States government publicly condemn the human rights abuses detailed in the report and use its best efforts to persuade the government of Turkey to put into practice Helsinki Watch’s recommendations.
    In addition, Helsinki Watch recommends that the United States government end all military and security assistance to Turkey until Turkey no longer manifests these violations. According to the report, Turkey is the third largest recipient of U.S. aid; in 1993, Turkey will receive $450 million in loans for military assistance and $125 million in economic assistance.
   
SCANDALS OF CORRUPTION

    As the fraud charges concerning Prime Minister Tansu Ciller and her husband, Özer Ciller, were systematically being blacked out by the big press, another fraud story concerning a top bureaucrat, near to the SHP, occupied the front pages of all Turkish dailies for past two months.
    Istanbul Municipal Water Works Department (ISKI) chief Ergun Göknel is the hero of this new mediatic scandal. Eager to marry a woman 29 years his junior, he paid his then-wife Nurdan Göknel $800,000 in April for a quick divorce. Mrs. Göknel, after having received the money, in an act of revenge, informed the press of this arrangement and publicly questioned how a bureaucrat could afford it.
    When the scandal broke, Istanbul Mayor Nurettin Sözen, a former friend of Göknel and a member of the junior coalition partner SHP, immediately sacked him as investigators moved in.
    On August 19, a criminal court of Istanbul detained Göknel on charges of embezzlement, falsifying documents and failing to declare his assets.
    Göknel’s personal diary, in his own handwriting, revealed that the former ISKI chief has been making regular payments to Labour Minister Mehmet Mogultay (SHP) and 29 journalists.
    During his interrogation, Göknel claimed Istanbul Mayor Nurettin Sözen took part in the massive corruption in municipality affairs.
    The police discovered a list in Göknel’s house detailing the names of private companies and the amounts paid to, or received from, each firm by dishing out lucrative contracts in return for commission.
    There are also claims that ISKI also diverted municipal funds to the SHP, becoming, in a way, the bread-basket of the social democrats in Istanbul with its vast resources.
    Although SHP leaders denied all allegations in this affair, this witch hunt did more harm to the SHP than any person or organization just prior to the municipal elections in 1994.
    However, neither the other partner of the coalition, DYP, nor the parties in opposition are cleaner than the SHP.
    The daily Milliyet lists 19 alleged corruption cases that have surfaced since March. Some of the dossiers involve the Forestry Ministry, the National Electricity Board and the Treasury.
    Five months ago, Ciller’s DYP was fending off charges of misuse of public funds in a property transaction. President Demirel, who was party leader and prime minister at the time, said: “I paid the money -- so what?” The ILKSAN affair, named after a primary school teachers’ consortium given government funds for over-priced land, dropped from the headlines when President Özal died in April.
    When Ciller replaced Demirel at the head of the government, her fabulous wealth lead to polemics on the origin of this richness, but no investigation has been started on the affair.
    On the contrary, benefiting from the ISKI scandal which eclipsed hers, Ciller presented herself  at her TV address to the nation on August 26 as the vanguard of the fight against to corruption and promised to TV viewers a perfectly clean society.

“MILITARY REGIME SHOULD BE TRIED”

    The Human Rights Association of Turkey (IHD) is seeking to hold a symbolic trial against five former generals who staged a military coup in 1980 and ousted the country’s elected government and parliament.
    IHD Chairman Akin Birdal said on September 27 that they planned to hold the first hearing by the end of 1993 and established contact with various international bodies such as the Paris and New York bar associations as well as Helsinki Watch.
    "We decided on doing this because the September 12 regime had not been tried in the field of human rights," Birdal said.
    He added that the "trial" would only be symbolic in nature, but everyone who had suffered because of the coup was invited to file charges.

CILLER’S RIDICULOUS LESSON TO GERMANS

    Prime Minister Ciller, during her visits to foreign countries as the head of the executive, attempted to rise her image as a real “iron lady.”
    During a press conference in Berlin on September 22, Ciller claimed that there were no minorities and there was no discrimination in Turkey.
    “I wish our Turkish citizens living in Germany had one-tenth the human rights the Kurdish citizens living in Turkey have. I wish our Turkish people could vote in Germany. Kurds (in Turkey) can start a business and get into Parliament. I wish our Turkish people could do that here,” she said.
    This declaration was immediately ridiculed by the opposition in Turkey reminding that Turks and Kurds in Germany, although not citizens of the country, have already the right to constitute their organizations, to have education and make publications in their own language. As for Turkey, the Kurds trying to use these rights are systematically persecuted.
    Furthermore, although Turks arrived in Germany in last decades, they can freely fight for obtaining more rights such as to have double nationality and to be elected to assemblies, their demands are being supported by German progressive forces and not any Turk has been persecuted for demanding these rights.
    On the contrary, the Kurds existed in Turkey even before the arrival of Turks at the 11th century and are the real owners of the region they inhabit. The Turkish rule turned the Turkish Kurdistan into a colony and deprived the Kurds of their very fundamental rights such as speaking or having education in Kurdish. It is not a matter of not recognizing yet a right to those recently  arrived in a country, but of violating a right of the native population of the country by a colonialist rule.

OLYMPIC FIASCO FOR “IRON LADY”

    After having completed her three-day visit to Germany, Ciller rushed to Monaco for a last-ditch attempt to turn odds in favour of Istanbul for millenium Olympic Games in the year 2000, and on the occasion, to draw the attention to herself
    As a matter of fact, the Istanbul’s candidate for Olympic games had been one of the top subjects of the Turkish media fooling once more the population with exaggeratedly optimistic reports on Turkey’s eligibility.
    “If Istanbul wins, it will be the first time the Games are held in a Muslim nation,” Ciller said before departing from Berlin. She argued that Istanbul, the Turkish city that straddles Europe and Asia, might be “one of the best platforms” for improved international contacts. Conditioned by the slogan “Let’s meet where the continents meet”, Turks believed that if the games take place in Istanbul, it would bring not just a profitable audience but also a recognition of Turkey’s growing influence in a region torn apart by ethnic strife after the collapse of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia.
    89 members of the International Olympic Committee were invited to Turkey for selling them Istanbul as the best place for the Games. Prior to Ciller’s arrival to Monaco, a 250-member Turkish delegation attended the IOC meeting in support of Istanbul’s bid.
    Ciller and the Turkish delegation were so convinced that Istanbul will win, the Turkish media published reports claiming that Istanbul will be one of the richest cities of the world and all municipal problems will be solved thanks to a $207 million worth of revenues from the Games.
    Completely ignoring the on-going human rights violations in Turkey, Ciller and Turkish media were also hopeful that China’s human rights record will erect a barrier impossible for Beijing to break through as a contender. Nevertheless, a large number of international human rights organizations kept claiming that political killings occur in Turkey on a daily basis and that Turkish security forces are guilty of widespread human rights violations.
    All these illusions collapsed on September 23 when Istanbul was eliminated by the IOC in the first round with only seven votes.
    Next day, the daily Milliyet’s banner an “Dreams and Despair. Olympics 2000 was our dream. We wanted it so much and got nothing.”
    As for Ciller, she continued to fool the people by saying “Turkey has achieved its aim in Monaco. From now on the world knows Turkey is a name to reckon with in such international competitions.”

DREAM OF EUROPALIA ‘96
   
    In another bid to make forget its shameful record of human rights, Ankara launched a new campaign for making Turkey the subject of the 1996 European promotion festival Europalia.
    Meeting with about 100 business executives in Istanbul on September 4, Foreign Minister Hikmet Cetin said that such an event would be an opportunity for the country to improve its image in the West.
    The biennial festival Europalia is based in Belgium and actually carrying on the theme of Mexico.
    “Apart from the arts, it is a forum that promotes the economic and cultural sides of a country,” Cetin said. “It is an important activity that will be held under the joint patronage of our president and the Belgian king.”
    The festival is estimated to cost about $30 to 40 million, of which 60 percent will be covered by the Europalia Fund and the rest by the subject country.
    Turkish business executives that met with Cetin pledged to support the festival.

30th YEAR OF TURCO-EC RELATIONS

    The 30th anniversary of the signing of the Ankara Agreement, which set Turkey officially on the path to full membership with the European Community, was celebrated on September 12, 1993 at a meeting and luncheon organized by the Economic Development Foundation (IKV) in Istanbul.
    President Demirel, in an address to the assembled guests, said that membership in the EC was not just economic but political and security-related as well. It will enable Turkey to prosper.
    However, contrary to Demirel’s optimism, Turkey’s adhesion to the EC for the time-being seems improbable because of the country’s poor economic conditions, high rate of inflation, growing unemployment and, above all, bad record of human rights.
    Besides, the candidacy of other developed European countries constitutes another obstacle in the way of Turkey’s full membership.
    During the meeting of Istanbul, EC Commission member Christina Scrievener, reminding that the EC is still in the process of coping with the results of the establishment of the single market and need to strengthen itself and deal with its current crisis, did not give any concrete promise as regards Turkey’s membership soon. She was contented with saying that Turkey has progressed rapidly during the 30 years the agreement has been in force, and the EC will continue to encourage Turkey’s integration.
    Turkey’s interest in the European Community dates back to July 31, 1959, when the Turkish Government, two months after the Greek government, applied for membership in the Community.
    The application was concluded  on September 12, 1963, with the Ankara Agreement which made Turkey an associate member of the EC and which outlined a three-stage process by which Turkey was expected to strengthen its commercial, economic and political relations with its associate and eventually achieve full membership --as realized in the case of Greece in 1981.
    To insure full membership, a second agreement, known as the Additional Protocol, signed in 1970 and put into practice in 1973, reaffirmed this engagement and allowed Turkey to prepare herself --customs union by 1995 and an improvement of her reputation in terms of democracy and human rights.
    Although Turco-EC relations were suspended after the 1980 Coup, Ankara tabled its official application for full membership. Nevertheless, this move was kindly rejected in 1989 by the EC. It did not say no to membership; instead it suggested that both itself and Turkey should not talk about full membership until it put its own house in order --that is, completion of the Internal Market by 1992 -- and until Turkey completely prepares itself on improvement of economic conditions, strengthening democracy  and human rights and a change in attitude on the Cyprus issue.
    In terms of Turkey’s economic conditions, the EC’s reservations can be understood to a great extent: Turkey should not expect the Community to accept the free movement of workers and to provide job opportunities for the two million Turkish unemployed. Turkey should eliminate all customs tariffs. Besides, Turkey should find a solution to its double-digit inflation rates and to its total public debt equivalent to half of its GNP.
    None of  these economic conditions has been ameliorated since then.  The rate of unemployment is permanently rising as a result of the bad economic performance and the high population growth rate. The Cyprus issue still remains unsolved. Above all, Turkey continues to be the only European country continuing to systematically violate human rights and and to use its armed forces to suppress the Kurdish part of its population.

NEW LEADER BUT SAME POLICY IN SHP

    After the change at the head of the major coalition partner DYP, the junior partner SHP (Social Democrat Populist Party) too changed its leader on September 12.  Ankara Mayor Murat Karayalcin, 49, who won 559 votes from 1,007 delegates against the 403 of his nearest rival, Aydin Güven Gürkan, and became SHP chairman.
    Although he promised “to build the new Turkey” during his electoral campaign, Karayalcin too, like former chairman Erdal Inönü, accepted to be the partner of the DYP and assumed the post of vice premier in the Ciller’s government.
    As for his rival Gürkan who lost the race, he was later elected chairman of the SHP Parliamentary Group.
    Despite the existence of a coalition protocol promising full democratization in the country, the Ciller-Karayalcin Government too continues to escalate state terrorism and to adopt economic measures to the detriment of the working population.

STATE TERRORISM IN AUGUST

    1.8, two unidentified assailants, raiding  a house at the village of Kara Hasan in Maras, killed Ayse Rani (35) and her two daughters, Elif (7) and Gözde (4) by hacking with an axe.
    1.8, at the village of Seyhcoban in Diyarbakir, two brothers, Abdülkadir Ates and Nedim Ates, were assassinated by unidentified gunmen.
    2.8, in Hazro (Diyarbakir), 25-year old Yücel Dolan, son of the town's mayor, died at hospital after having been taken there from a police station. Although the police claimed that he died for a heart attack, Dolan's parents accused the police of having tortured him to death.  Dolan's father Resul Dolan, mayor of Hazro, said having seen traces of beating and electric torture on his son's body. 30 other people taken into custody together with Dolan too were subjected to torture during their interrogation.
    3.8, the Ministry of Finance started an administrative proceeding against the chief officials of the Trade Union of Finance Workers (Tüm Maliye Sen) on charges of organizing some actions to obtain trade union rights. Besides, seven officials of the trade union were fired from their posts at Finance departments.
    3.8, during a wedding ceremony in Gümüscay town (Canakkale), a person of Kurdish origin, Hasan Cetin, was forced to leave the hall. After a quarrel between Turks and Kurds, a group of 300 people attacked and destroyed the houses and shops belonging to Kurds in the town.
    5.8, unidentified gunmen assassinated Ekrem Afsin (52) and Sehmuz Ekmen (23) in Batman and Nurettin Tangüler in Diyarbakir.
    5.8, in Istanbul, police detained 17 people during a series of raids at the quarters of Ikitelli, Parseller and Güngören.
    6.8, in Diyarbakir, unidentified gunmen shot dead Murat Karacobanoglu and Ömer Tegmen.
    7.8, in Nusaybin, security forces raiding a house shot dead two persons.
    7.8, unidentified people assassinated Hasan Okur and Osman Göcer in Diyarbakir and Muhyettin Tastekin in Mus.
    8.8, in Nizip (Gaziantep), a suspect of theft, Selahattin Dörtbudak, was found dead at the gendarmerie station.  Although military authorities attributed the death to a heart attack, Dörtbudak's mother accused the gendarmes of having tortured her son to death after having seized TL 1 Million in his pocket. She said having seen torture traces and blood stains on Dörtbudak's body.
    8.8, in Mersin, Doctor Sabri Soysal alleged that he had been tortured for eleven days at police station after being detained on July 21. Claiming that his three ribs were broken, Dr. Soysal asked for a medical examination by the Doctors' Union of Turkey (TTB).
    8.8, security forces detained about 40 people including some DEP members during their operations in Izmir and Manisa.
    9.8, in Diyarbakir, two tradesmen named Siddik Adiyaman and Süleyman Ayverdi, were assassinated by unidentified people. The victims had reportedly participated in a protest action against the State's repressive operations. A paramilitary organization named the Turkish Revenge Brigade (TIT) has been menacing the tradesmen participating in such actions. The number of the tradesmen assassinated in Diyarbakir in last ten days has already reached six.
    10.8, in Istanbul, a 22-year old detainee, Osman Akcicek,  was hospitalized as a result of beating during his interrogation at the Eminönü police station.
    13.8, in Istanbul, police raiding a cafeteria at the Perpa Business Center shot owner Nebi Akyürek (32) and cashier Selma Citlak (22) as well as three other persons inside on claim that they were Dev-Sol militants.  The parents of the victims accused the police of extrajudicial execution.
    13.8, the Public Prosecutor's Office started a legal action  aiming to close down the Istanbul branch of the Human Rights' Association of Turkey (IHD) on pretext that during a meeting organized by the IHD on December 6, 1992, some speakers had made separatist propaganda and praised the PKK.
    13.8, in Gaziantep, Ahmet Elinc (27) was assassinated by unidentified people.
    14.8, in Ergani, peasant Halil Keser was shot dead by unidentified gunmen.
    14.8, a musical and cultural festival organized in memory of the 37 victims of the Sivas Massacre was forbidden by the Ankara Governor.
    16.8, in Ordu, the special security teams shot dead two militants of the Workers'-Peasants’ Liberation Army of Turkey (TIKKO).
    17.8, in two different PKK cases, the Istanbul SSC sentenced seven defendants to different prison terms of up to 22 years and 6 months.
    17.8, unidentified gunmen shot dead Hayrettin Celik and Vasfettin Celik in Batman.
    18.8, in Ankara, Ihsan Ertas and Gaffar Karaman claimed that they had been tortured at the Political Police Headquarters during their interrogations in July.
    18.8, unidentified gunmen assassinated postman Mehmet Sevim in Batman and worker Celal Konat in Diyarbakir.
    19.8, in Diyarbakir, a 2-year old child perished at a bomb explosion and eight people wounded.
    19.8, two local DEP officials, Mehmet Yesil in Batman and Musa Ak in Diyarbakir, were assassinated by unidentified gunmen.
    20.8, in Izmir, a meeting organized by DEP on the friendship of peoples was banned by the Governor.
    20.8, security forces detained six alleged PKK militants in Manavgat.
    20.8, the Istanbul SSC sentenced six members of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Turkey (TDKP) to 15-year imprisonment each.
    21.8, in Söke (Aydin), 27-year old Baki Erdogan was killed under torture during his interrogation at a police station.  Erdogan had been detained on August 10 together with 11 other people on charges of having take part in Dev-Sol activities.
    23.8, in Istanbul, Mustafa Akdag was brutally beaten and menaced with killing by a police team.  The victim complained the policemen to the Prosecutor's Office.
    24.8, in Adana, the headman of the Daglioglu Quarter, Naci Gültekin, was hospitalized as a result of being tortured at a police station. Besides, a 18-year old young woman, Ruken Seker said that she had been tortured and sexually harassed during her five-day police detention.
    24.8, unidentified gunmen shot dead Mehmet Celik and Ebedin Günes in Diyarbakir and Mahmut Dogan in Tunceli.
    25.8, the Peace Festival organized human rights associations in Batman for August 27, 28 and 29 was banned by the Governor on pretext that it might be used as an occasion for PKK propaganda.
    26.8, in Silvan, unidentified gunmen shot dead Vahit Demir and Yusuf Karaüzüm and wounded three other persons. Karaüzüm was a distributor of the daily Özgür Gündem in the town. During the funeral of the victims, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a group of women and shot dead Menaf Günes. In another attempt on the same day, electrician Ilhami Solmaz lost his life.
    27.8, in Batman, van driver Celal Acil was assassinated by unidentified people.
    27.8, in Istanbul, Mehmet Dolmaci claimed that he had been beaten and wounded by a policeman for a personal matter.
    28.8, the trial of 16 alleged PKK members began at the Istanbul SSC. Two of the defendants, Mahmut Baran and Ali Besenk declared at trial that they had been tortured for two weeks during their police interrogation.
    28.8, a meeting for peace organized in Urfa by DEP was reported for two months by the Governor. Same day, another meeting by DEP in Adana for September 1st was banned by the Governor.
    28.8, unidentified gunmen assassinated electrician Ibrahim Hakki Baykara in Diyarbakir and tradesman Hasan Yilmaz in Batman.
    29.8, in Kiziltepe (Mardin), grocer Übeydullah Eren and his two children, Yilmaz and Ferhat, were killed with the explosion of a bomb placed in their house.
    30.8, in Yerköy (Yozgat), 39 year old Osman Sarac claimed that he had been tortured for 24 hours after his detention by police. The traces of torture were certified by a medical report.
    30.8, a festival for peace and fraternity organized in Diyarbakir for September 3-4  by human rights organizations was banned by the Governor on pretext that such a festival could lead to separatist propaganda.
    31.8, the Ankara SSC sentenced Dev-Sol member Erol Özpolat to capital punishment and two other defendants to imprisonment of up to 15 years.

PERSECUTION OF THE MEDIA IN AUGUST

    2.8, two Istanbul correspondents of the review Mücadele, Savas Karakurum and Zeynep Arikan Gülbag were wounded by an unidentified gunman.
    2.8, Tatvan representative of the weekly Azadi, Besir Gündem was taken into police custody.
    3.8, weekly Gercek N°16 and monthly Hedef N°21 were confiscated by the Istanbul SSC in virtue of Anti-Terror Law.
    3.8, the prosecutor of the Istanbul SSC opened a legal proceeding against two journalists of the daily Aydinlik and asked for one-month ban on the daily's publication. Responsible editor Hale Soysü faces a prison term of up to six months and publisher Mehmet Sabuncu fines for a news about the PKK.
    5.8, a photo exhibition on the Sivas Massacre in Ankara was banned by the governor.
    8.8, weekly Azadi N° 65 and fortnightly Emegin Bayragi N°96 were confiscated by the Istanbul SSC by virtue of Anti-terror Law.
    9.8, Bitlis correspondent of the daily Özgür Gündem, Ferhat Tepe, who had been kidnapped by unidentified people on July 28 was found dead in Sivrice (Elazig). Medical experts certified some traces of torture and beating on Tepe's body. So, the number of the journalists assassinated in last two years reached to 17. Tepe's funeral ceremony was attended by more than 2,000 people in Bitlis and local tradesmen shut their shops in protest against the assassination.
    10.8, monthly Iscinin Yolu N° 14 was confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda.
    11.8, in Adana, a demonstration in protest against journalist Ferhat Tepe's assassination was prevented by police and seven journalists, Haci Cetinkaya, Asiye Sürücü, Halil Isik, Arslan Saric, Songül Genc, Bülent  Türkmen and Cagatay Yödek, were taken into custody as they were attempting to place a black wreath in front of the Governor's office. Similar protest actions took place in Ankara, Izmir, Istanbul and Diyarbakir as well.
    12.8, the owner of the publishing house Honca, Haydar Uc was sentenced  by the Istanbul SSC to 20 months in prison and TL 166,000 in fine for having published last year a book entitled The Logic of the Revolution and the Question of Power.  The said book had already been confiscated by the same court.
    12.8, in Kusadasi (Aydin), 21 people were put under arrest by a tribunal for having shouted some political slogans during a music festival in the town.
    13.8, the Istanbul SSC confiscated a book entitled Major Differences between  The Bourgeois Unionism and The Class Unionism, written by Ünal Erdem. The court also ordered the confiscation of the machines of the Gül Printing House where the book was printed. The owner of the Varyos Publishing House who published the book faces a prison term of up to five years by virtue of Article 8 of the Anti-terror Law.
    16.8, Professor Fikret Baskaya was sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 20 months in prison and TL 41,666,000 ($ 4,167) in fine for his book entitled Bankrupt of the Paradigm - Introduction to the Criticism of the Official Ideology.
The owner of the Doz Publishing House, Selim Okcuoglu too was sentenced to 5-month imprisonment and a fine of TL 41 Million.
    17.8, two Urfa correspondents of Özgür Gündem,  Kemal Avci and Ercan Aslan were taken into custody in Adiyaman to where they had gone for a reportage.
    18.8, Dogubeyazit correspondent of  Özgür Gündem,  Ahmet Icge was placed under arrest together with local DEP chairman Halit Kasimoglu and eight other people.
    19.8, Cizre correspondent of  Özgür Gündem, Salih Tekin was detained by police which had been forcing him for last three days to leave the city.
    22.8, monthly Özgür Halk N° 34 and weekly Mücadele N° 58 were confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda and praising an outlawed organization.
    22.8, the local office of the Contemporary Journalists' Association (CGD) in Bursa was destroyed with the explosion of a bomb placed in by unidentified persons.
    22.8, a concert organized in Hatay for raising financial support to the daily Aydinlik was banned by the Governor.
    24.8, journalist Yalcin Kücük was tried by the Ankara SSC for his recent book entitled Talks in the Kurdish Garden containing his interviews with PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan. The prosecutor demands imprisonment of up to five years as well for Kücük as for the publisher of the book, Hikmet Kocak.
    27.8, the monthly review of the Human Rights' Association (IHD), Human Rights Bulletin, was confiscated by the Ankara SSC for containing Ismail Besikci's article entitled "Human-Moral Values".  Besides, the SSC Prosecutor started a legal action against the IHD Secretary General Hüsnü Öndül and Besikci by virtue of Article 8 of the ATL.
    30.8, the former responsible editor of the monthly Emek, Tuncay Atmaca was imprisoned in Izmir for purging his penalty. Atmaca had been sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to 30 months in prison and TL 83 Million ($8,300) in fine for some articles in the review.
    30.8, monthly Direnis N°21 and the last issue of the bi-monthly Media-Cat were confiscated by tribunals, the first for separatist propaganda and the second for obscene publication.
    30.8, a series of cultural demonstrations entitled Democracy and Humour organized by the Municipality of Torbali in Izmir were banned by the governor because Aziz Nesin was among the invited writers.
    31.8, the former responsible editor of the monthly Hedef, Elanur Kaya was imprisoned in Istanbul for purging his penalty. The journalist had been sentenced by the Istanbul SSC to five months in prison and TL 44 Million ($4,400) in fine by virtue of the Anti-terror Law.
    31.8, the Ankara SSC sentenced Asli Yalcinoglu, publisher and chief editor of the review Berhem, to two years in prison and TL 200,000 in fine for some articles in the review and a book entitled The Ballads of Dersim that he published. The tribunal later commuted prison term into a fine of TL 3,850,000 ($ 385). Berhem will soon be tried by the same tribunal for another accusation liable to a prison term of up to five years.
    31.8, Newroz Atesi N°12 and Devrimci Cözüm N°6 were confiscated by the Istanbul SSC for separatist propaganda and praising an outlawed organization.

TURKISH FAILURE IN TURKIC REPUBLICS

    When the Soviet Union collapsed and the Turkic origin Central Asian republics and Azerbaijan became independent, the Ankara rulers rose to the occasion and presented Turkey as their “big brother.” As it shared common cultural links with the “Turkic” republics, the United States and many European partners believed that Turkey could play an important role to switch these republics to a western-style democratic system and a free market economy, without taking into consideration Turkey’s awful record of human rights and tremendous economic problems.
    When the DYP-SHP Coalition came to power in late 1991, a long list of Turkish delegations started touring the Turkic republics by making unrealisable promises in economic cooperation. President Özal and Premier Demirel promptly declared the Turkish world now spanned from the coasts of the Adriatic Sea to the Great Wall of China.
    Encouraged by the government, the neo-fascist Gray Wolves movement of Turkey openly interfered in the domestic policy of these countries in a move to gather all these countries under the flag of the 3-continent Turkish Empire: Turan.
Many Grey Wolves and former army officers were placed in the administrations of Azerbaijan, Türkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzistan. Grey Wolves leader Alparslan Türkes personally participated in the electoral campaign of former Azeri president Elcibey as Demirel was visiting this country.
    A series of ceremonies were organized in Turkey with the participation of the leaders or representatives of these countries for raising the banner of the grand Turkish union from the Adriatic Sea to the Great Wall of China.
    But while Turkish rulers were busy in this way trying to create a myth, they were doing hardly anything constructive to actually set up the democratic and economic infrastructure that was seriously lacking in these countries. So what began as a grand union of the Turkic republics started dying down in two years, and all these countries moved back speedily to the Russian sphere of influence.
    The fall of Azeri President Elcibey, most ardent partisan of the Turkic Union, and Azerbaijan’s adhesion to the Community of Independent States has been the coup de grace to the myth of grand Turkish empire.
    Ultra-nationalist and expansionist circles of Turkey are now taking revenge of this fiasco by mobilizing all their forces and possibilities to crush the Kurdish national movement in the country and to reinforce their rule, that they could not extended to Turkic republics, in the Turkish Kurdistan.