VZCZCXRO5553
RR RUEHDA
DE RUEHDA #0092/01 1990524
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 180524Z JUL 07
FM AMCONSUL ADANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4565
INFO RUEUITH/AFOSI DET 521 ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 1110
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0962
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEILB/NCTC WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/AFOSI DET 522 INCIRLIK AB TU
RUETIAA/DIRNSA FT MEADE MD
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 1168

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000092 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JULY 12, 2007 
 
 
¶1.      This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for July 12, 
¶2007.  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: 
 
¶2.      BOLGE / EKSPRES / HURRIYET:     CHP national leader Deniz 
Baykal attended a ground-breaking ceremony of a waste water 
management facility in Mersin.  Baykal addressed a crowd of 
people and said that a new Turkey would emerge namely after the 
July 22 election.  Meanwhile, the dailies report CHP's and DP's 
Adana candidates as continuing their election campaigns in which 
they opened new elections offices in districts and quarters of 
the province. 
 
¶3.      BOLGE:  DP party members were reportedly pleased that 
20,000 people attended the political rally DP leader Mehmet Agar 
held in Adana the previous day despite the high summer 
temperatures. 
 
¶4.      EVRENSEL / GUNDEM / HURRIYET:   Diyarbakir Mayor Osman 
Baydemir criticized recent investigation started against his 
remarks delivered in a program of pro-PKK Roj TV which branded 
the PKK's activities as "armed Kurdish opposition."  Baydemir, 
who was not able to understand the grounds for the 
investigation, said his remarks were not new and he had been 
using such statements since 10 years. 
 
¶5.      GUNDEM: Soldiers are allegedly removing the posters 
and banners an independent candidate has been hanging in the 
streets in Bitlis's Tatvan district.  DTP provincial chairman in 
Tatvan said they filed a complaint with the authorities against 
such acts. 
 
¶6.      ZAMAN / GUNDEM: Four people have been detained in 
Sanliurfa's Viransehir district on charges of "praising 
criminals and making propaganda for the PKK" during a funeral 
ceremony of a PKK militant who died in a military conflict in 
Tunceli.  Police are still searching five other people against 
whom same charges were brought. 
 
¶7.      EVRENSEL:       To dismiss reported wrong speculations 
surfacing recently about DTP's attitude concerning EMEP (Party 
of Labor), a party which announced its support for independent 
candidates previously, DTP national headquarters announced that 
they had advised party grassroots to support EMEP in 
constituencies where DTP did not endorse any independent 
candidates. 
 
SECURITY: 
 
¶8.      GUNDEM: PKK reportedly announced that 446 soldiers and 
96 PKK militants have died in a total of 252 military operations 
conducted against the PKK in the last six months.  The intensity 
of the conflicts reportedly increased in May and June, reports 
the daily. 
 
¶9.      GUNDEM: The daily describes some recent newspaper 
stories coming out about PKK members burning eight heavy 
machinery vehicles at a mine run by a private company in a 
village of Hatay as false allegations. 
 
ECONOMY: 
 
¶10.     EKSPRES:                EPDK (Regulatory Board for Energy 
Market) granted a license to a joint-venture company of Turkish 
Petrol Ofisi and Australian OMW to build an oil refinery in 
Adana's Ceyhan district.  Chairperson of Ceyhan's Chamber of 
Commerce said the 4.5 billion dollar investment will create 1000 
jobs. 
 
¶11.     HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):    A Chinese commercial delegation 
paid a visit to Mersin's Chamber of Commerce and Industry to 
explore investment opportunities in the region. 
 
CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT: 
 
¶12.     HURRIYET (CUKUROVA) / ZAMAN:    Hakkari and Yuksekova 
district police conducted two separate anti-drug operations. 
Police found a total of 70 kilograms of heroin in a house and on 
a person they searched.  Three people were detained.  Meanwhile, 
police in Hatay searched a car which entered Turkey from Syria 
through a border gate and found 30 kilograms of smuggled gold 
 
ADANA 00000092  002 OF 002 
 
 
hidden in the car. 
GREEN