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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 005927 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL 
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2006 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
French Parliament Adopts Armenian 'Genocide' Bill 
All papers report the French Parliament adopted on Thursday a bill 
making it a crime to deny that Armenians suffered 'genocide' at the 
hands of Ottoman Turks before and after World Wa I.  The French 
move is widely seen as a playfor Armenian diaspora votes in next 
year's prsidential election.  Under headlines such as 'Hostile 
Decision' and 'A Genocide of Thought,' Turkish papers regard the 
decision as running counter to democracy and history, dealing a blow 
to free speech. 
 
'Turkey will not forget this,' said an angry Foreign Minister Gul, 
adding the Turkish Parliament would hold an extraordinary session 
October 17 to discuss the decision.  Turkish Foreign Ministry (MFA) 
said on Thursday that adoption of the draft had been a heavy blow on 
bilateral ties.  "Today, long-standing Turkey-France relations have 
suffered a heavy blow due to irresponsible initiatives by French 
politicians who are not able to predict the consequences of their 
policies," said the MFA in a statement.  Turkey's chief EU 
negotiator Ali Babacan told the Brussels think-tank Friends of 
Europe that it would be harder to push for greater freedom in Turkey 
when free speech was being restricted in a founding member of the 
EU, known to be a homeland of liberty.  Responding to a question, 
Babacan said the Turkish government would not organize an economic 
boycott of French-made commodities in Turkey.  'On the other hand, 
it is up to individuals in our country if they want to do something 
like that,' Babacan stated.  All papers highlight that business 
groups in Turkey are preparing for a boycott of French goods. 
Papers recall that in a past crisis with Italy, a three-year boycott 
of Italian products in Turkey had resulted in Euro 1.2 billion 
losses for Italian businesses.  A delegation of the main opposition 
party CHP attending the French parliamentary debate over the draft 
reacted strongly by saying that the French lawmakers had expressed 
their 'centuries-long resentment' of Turkey.  'They put Ottoman 
history on trial.  We call on our government to show an adequate 
reaction,' maintained Haluk Koc, the head of the CHP delegation. 
 
The European Commission condemned the French parliament vote, saying 
the move is likely to hinder open dialogue between Armenia and EU 
aspirant Turkey.  European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn warned 
that it would bring 'disastrous' consequences if the upper house of 
French Parliament passes the bill and it becomes law. 
 
The Patriarch of the Armenians in Turkey, Mesrob II, said the 
resolution will strengthen the hands of not only Turkish but also 
Armenian nationalists and racists.  'This resolution adopted by the 
French Parliament is anti-democratic because it limits personal 
freedom of expression,' said Mesrob II.  Turkish-Armenian editor 
Hrant Dink said he would travel to France in a deliberate act to 
violate the bill.  'Turkey must retain its cool, and not slow down 
the process of democratization,' Dink said. 
 
Several papers quote State Department Sean McCormack as saying in 
response to a question about the French resolution that 'the US has 
its own views' on the issue.  'We've talked about them before.  We 
issue usually an annual statement on the topic.  I don't have 
anything to add to that statement,' said McCormack. 
 
Ergun Babahan acknowledges in the mass appeal Sabah that Armenians 
who lived in Anatolia for thousands of years faced unacceptable 
trouble during World War I.  "We should accept the incidents of 
history openly and should allow investigations and debates on these 
issues to happen freely.  Unfortunately, with the French 
Parliament's decision, it became impossible to hold this stance.  If 
a controversial issue is accepted as fact by laws and defending it 
declared as crime, then, there is a fascistic stance.  Therefore, 
the French stance is a fascistic one.  There is a great benefit for 
the supporters of Article 301 to evaluate the whole issue from this 
 
ANKARA 00005927  002 OF 004 
 
 
angle.  Because, following the French decision, article 301 
supporters will realize what a wrong and ugly act it is to make 
freedom of expression as a crime.  Of course, Turkey will react to 
the French decision, but the only important thing is not to fall 
into traps, and to block the efforts of Sarkozy and his team to 
distract us from the path to EU.  The impact of the French 
parliament's decision will do nothing more than damage the relations 
between Turkey and Armenia." 
 
Haluk Sahin of the intellectual-liberal Radikal feels sad that the 
French decision on Armenian genocide comes from a country that 
'Turkey, for years, held up as an example and showed such special 
consideration that we opposed brother Algeria's independence.'   "In 
the past, France knew so well how to deal with an undemocratic 
Turkey, but, now, a democratic, productive and wise Turkey, open to 
all kinds of discussions, continues on the EU path with concrete 
steps. And this worries France.  Only about an hour after the 
annoying news came from France, Turkey was thrilled with the news 
about Orhan Pamuk's Nobel Prize.  From now on, Turkey will be called 
as 'Orhan Pamuk's country' and the entire world will turn more 
careful eyes towards Turkey.  Orhan Pamuk became Turkey's great 
honor by deeply evaluating Turkey, Istanbul and life.  Never mind 
the nonsense in France; let us be proud of Pamuk". 
 
Ralston Meets with Gul 
All papers:  US Special Envoy for Countering the PKK Retired 
-General Joseph Ralston, accompanied by his Turkish counterpart Edip 
Baser, met yesterday with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.  Gul warned 
Ralston not to stall the fight against PKK terrorism.  Gul stressed 
that Ralston would be successful 'despite all difficulties.' 
Ralston said at a joint press conference with Baser after the 
meeting that a ceasefire was not enough, and that it was necessary 
for the PKK to renounce the violence it has been pursuing.  Papers 
quote Ralston as saying that the PKK declaration of ceasefire had 
been a 'positive first step.'  Ralston also said the option of 
military action against the PKK was on the table as a 'last resort,' 
but that it might be called if necessary. 
 
Orhan Pamuk Awarded Nobel Literature Prize 
All papers give extensive front page coverage to Nobel Prize for 
literature being awarded to novelist Orhan Pamuk, the first Turkish 
writer to receive it.  'Orhan Pamuk, respected around the world with 
his novels translated into 45 languages, has become Turkey's pride,' 
says Radikal.  The Swedish Academy said Pamuk had been given the 
award because 'in the quest for the melancholic soul of his native 
city Istanbul, he has discovered new symbols for the clash and 
interlacing of cultures.'  Several papers and commentaries welcome 
the award, saying 'the 2006 Literature Nobel is ours.'  Some others, 
however, debate whether the award was 'political,' that it was given 
for Pamuk's statements with regard to the Armenian genocide and not 
for his writing.  Pamuk caused an uproar when he told a Swiss 
newspaper last year that nobody in Turkey dared mention what he 
called the killing of a million Armenians by Ottoman Turks or of 
30,000 Kurds in recent years.  A case was brought against him for 
'insulting the Turkish identity.' 
 
Pamuk, born in Istanbul in 1952, was a visiting scholar at Columbia 
University in New York from 1985-88, during which he was also a 
visiting fellow at the University of Iowa.  Some of his works are 
The Silent House-1984, The White Castle-1985, Black Book-1990, New 
Life-1995, My Name is Red-2000, Snow-2002. 
 
Turkish Parliament Sets Election Date for November 2007 
Hurriyet, Milliyet, Sabah, Cumhuriyet, Zaman and others report the 
ruling AKP and opposition parties CHP and ANAP in the parliament 
approved a law setting the general elections for November 4 next 
year.  Lawmakers also approved reducing the minimum age for running 
for parliament to 25 from 30, opening the way for 6 million 
potential candidates. 
 
 
ANKARA 00005927  003 OF 004 
 
 
Turkish Cyprus to Hold 'Toros' Exercises in Retaliation to 
'Nikiforos' 
Cumhuriyet reports Turkish Cyprus 'foreign ministry' said in a 
statement the Greek Cypriots held on October 10-15 their 'Nikiforos' 
military exercise, violating a 2001 accord with the Turkish side for 
suspending military games.  The statement said Turks would hold on 
November 7-9 'Toros' exercises in retaliation. 
 
Gul to Visit Athens in November 
Radikal reports Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is to visit Athens in 
the second half of November, quoting the Greek foreign ministry as 
saying they were trying to confirm a date with the Turkish side. 
 
US Businessmen Due to Visit Turkey 
Cumhuriyet cites a Turkish-American Businessmen's Association 
(TABA-AmCham) statement announcing a large delegation of businessmen 
from US trade chambers will visit Turkey in November for talks with 
business representatives in Istanbul and Ankara.  The statement said 
US companies have long been eager to make a reality some projects 
which have been waiting for years. 
 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV (8 a.m.) 
 
Domestic News 
 
- A Turkish contingent of 260 soldiers to join UNIFIL went to the 
Mediterranean port city of Mersin yesterday to depart for Lebanon on 
October 19. 
 
- The Kurdish party DTP deputy chairperson Aysel Tugluk said her 
party would work for making the cease-fire declared by the PKK last, 
saying they would hold meetings with the organization if necessary. 
 
 
- Turkish security forces killed three PKK militants in the province 
of Sirnak in southeast Turkey during their biggest military 
offensive since the organization announced a unilateral ceasefire, 
the governor's office in the province near the border with Iraq 
said. 
 
 
- International investment bank Lehman Brothers is to open 
representation in Turkey. 
 
International News 
 
- UN Security Council members have failed to agree on sanctions on 
North Korea for its claimed nuclear test. 
 
- Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal rejected responsibility for the 
kidnapping of Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit in Gaza in June, but 
said he was proud of those who conducted the abduction. 
 
- Israeli forces killed five Palestinians, one of them a child, 
during a raid on Gaza Strip. 
 
- Britain's foreign secretary Margaret Beckett said the Guantanamo 
Bay detention center is 'unacceptable in terms of human rights' and 
'ineffective in terms of counter-terrorism'. 
 
- President Bush dismissed as 'not credible' a Lancet survey 
suggesting that 655,000 Iraqis have been killed since the US 
invasion of Iraq in March 2003. 
 
 
  Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
ANKARA 00005927  004 OF 004 
 
 
 
WILSON