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DE RUEHDA #0105/01 1300540
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INFO RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 0730
RUEUITH/AFOSI DET 521 ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 0682
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000105 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR MAY 09, 2006 
 
 
This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for May 09, 2006. 
Please note that Turkish press reports often contain errors or 
exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for the accuracy 
of the reports summarized here. 
 
POLITICAL, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS 
 
EVRENSEL:       People of Diyarbakir were reportedly frustrated that 
PM Erdogan did not talk about the Kurdish issue during his 
current visit to the province.  The daily reported that the 
businessmen in Diyarbakir, however, were pleased with Erdogan's 
visit. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   DTP Diyarbakir district mayors, who were not 
allowed to the airport to welcome PM Erdogan the previous day on 
grounds that they did not list their names, expressed their 
resentment. 
 
SABAH (GUNEY):  Diyarbakir Deputy Governor Erol Ozer said 
18,601,000 new Turkish liras have been paid so far to 2759 
people who incurred material losses during measures taken to 
counter terrorism in the southeastern region of Turkey. 
Applications of 1000 people who wanted to benefit from the law 
have been rejected because their eligibility conditions were 
reportedly doubtful. 
 
SABAH (GUNEY):  In a conference dubbed "Greater Middle East 
Project of the U.S. and its Missionary Activities," participants 
included Iskenderun Mayor Mete Aslan and Dean of the Faculty of 
Divinity in Ankara's Gazi University. Mayor Aslan cited a news 
article reporting that participants in a meeting about Hatay 
province held in neighboring Syria, shouted "Iskenderun, 
Iskenderun."  Aslan further commented, "If we were to claim land 
from every location that the Turks went to under Ottoman rule, 
we should first lay claim to Aleppo.  Professor Nedim Macit, 
Dean of Faculty of Divinity, said in his speech that the U.S.'s 
aims were to decrease the number of Muslims in the world to 640 
millions and usurp the under- and over ground riches of those 
(Muslim) countries.  Turkey and Cyprus were also among those 
countries, said Macit. 
 
RADIKAL / EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM:      The trial of 23 children, 
against whom charges were brought because of their participation 
in demonstrations in Diyarbakir in late March, started at 
Diyarbakir Children's Heavy Penalty Court.  The children, who 
faced up to 20 years of imprisonment on grounds that they 
"breached the codes regulating demonstrations and public 
gatherings", "damaged public property" and "showed resistance to 
the police officers."  Nine of the 23 children, who have 
remained under arrest to date, have been released by the court 
to stand trial later. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   The daily pointed out where statements of 
defendants in the Semdinli case contradicted their statements to 
the Turkish parliamentary commission probing Semdinli case. 
 
EVRENSEL:       Van State Theater authorities, who initially 
accepted the application of Egitim-Sen (Union of Teachers) to 
perform a theater play in Kurdish at one of the state theater 
halls in Van, told Egitim-Sen members that the halls had been 
booked for other performances allegedly when theater authorities 
realized that the play was in Kurdish. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):     In a local bazaar in Batman, 
a police officer got into an altercation with a bazaar salesman 
who allegedly verbally harassed the police officer's wife as she 
was shopping.  The event reportedly caused great panic among 
people after the police officer reportedly opened fire in the 
air when other salesmen involved themselves in the altercation. 
Police allegedly beat the four salesmen as they took them under 
custody.  Meanwhile, during a fight that broke out because of a 
girl who was abducted in Bitlis's Guroymak district, a person 
died and ten people were wounded. In an event in a Sanliurfa, 12 
people were wounded when two families started a row that turned 
into a fight. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Democratic Alawi Initiative (DAI) voiced the 
right to teach Alawi children their own religion and its 
practices.  DAI has also defended the right to conduct Cem 
rituals also in Kurdish at Alawi worshipping houses. 
 
HURRIYET (CUKUROVA) / OZGUR GUNDEM:     Police searched a car in 
Sanliurfa's Viransehir district and found 33 Glock-brand guns 
and 26 clips which were illegally brought from northern Iraq. 
Three people have been detained. 
 
HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):    One hundred eighty kilograms of 
marijuana have been found in a moving company truck traveling 
from Van to Mersin as a result of the concerted efforts of the 
 
ADANA 00000105  002 OF 002 
 
 
Mersin, Adana, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep and Van Security 
Directorates. 
 
EKSPRES / BOLGE:        Seyhan Municipality's cleaning services 
workers have launched a strike in Adana reportedly to press 
demands to win back their social rights. 
 
BOLGE:  Mustafa Attaroglu, newly elected chairman of AKP 
Adana provincial party organization, reportedly said during a 
press announcement that he would win more votes if former 
chairman Abdullah Dogru did not withdraw from the race. 
REID