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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000659 
 
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 PREL KPAO
SUBJECT: TURKISH MEDIA REACTION 
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 2009 
 
IN TODAY'S PAPERS 
 
Opposition Parties CHP and MHP Decline to Support the AKP's 
Constitutional Reforms 
Mainstream Vatan reports opposition MHP leader Devlet Bahceli told 
his party group meeting yesterday that the MHP would give no support 
to the ruling AKP's plans for constitutional changes.  Mainstream 
Sabah reports that President Gul and opposition CHP leader Baykal 
met at the Presidential Palace yesterday to discuss constitutional 
reform, along with Turkish ties to Armenia and Azerbaijan.  Sabah 
says Baykal told Gul the constitutional amendments "are not a 
priority on Turkey's agenda at the moment" and thus "we don't 
support the amendments." 
 
Karayilan: The PKK No Longer Pursues Separatist Goals 
Mainstream Milliyet columnist Hasan Cemal continued his interview 
with Murat Karayilan, the top leader of the PKK.  Karayilan said, 
"The PKK is in a more reasonable position when compared to past. 
The PKK is not a separatist organization anymore but is looking for 
a solution that respects the unitary structure of the country.  Our 
aim is to have Kurds live under equal rights and freedoms.  The 
Regional Administration Law can be amended in order to reinforce 
local administrations.  Then the 'social reconciliation project', 
which is also called 'amnesty' by some groups, may come to the 
agenda in order to address issues like Kurdish identity and cultural 
rights.  But for such a process to start, a cease-fire is a must." 
 
FM Travels to northern Cyprus 
Islamist-oriented Zaman reports Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was 
sworn in before the parliament yesterday and will now go to northern 
Cyprus on what is considered his 'first formal foreign visit.' 
Davutoglu's visit comes one day after a new government was 
established in northern Cyprus.   Zaman says Turkish Foreign 
Ministers traditionally go to northern Cyprus for their first 
foreign visits, and during the visit Davutoglu will reiterate 
 
Editorial Comments on Turkish Foreign Policy 
 
Sami Kohen wrote in mainstream Milliyet: "It comes no surprise that 
Davutoglu began his tenure as foreign minister by meeting with his 
Azeri counterpart as soon as he took in charge.  Turkey has an 
opportunity to advocate for normalization between Baku and Yerevan 
while Turkey itself works on rapprochement with Armenia.  Turkish 
diplomacy seems to be more focused on the Caucasus in the days to 
come, which is the right priority." 
 
Cengiz Candar wrote in liberal-intellectual Radikal: "Foreign 
Minister Davutoglu comes from the perspective of producing policy 
and being proactive.  He has pursued a 'zero problem with neighbors' 
policy  and a 'soft power role' in the Middle East policy from the 
beginning.  Today we can see the positive results of his approach. 
Turkey has become an increasingly powerful country in the 
international arena." 
 
The World Shocked About The Violent Attack in Mardin 
All papers and TV channels:  Media outlets are almost completely 
focused on reporting on the mass murder of 44 people in Bilge 
village of the southeastern province of Mardin, which occurred 
earlier in the week.  Conservative-nationalist Turkiye reports all 
of 8 suspects who were detained carry the same surname those who 
were killed.  According to Turkiye, a resident of the village said, 
"The assailants wanted the bride to marry one of their relatives. 
However, they raided the wedding ceremony when they heard that the 
bride was marrying a member of another clan, with whom they were in 
blood feud."  Mainstream Vatan claims that the massacre was carried 
out because the bride's father had decided that his daughter would 
marry the son of her aunt, not the son of her uncle.  Liberal 
Radikal says that the massacre might be related to dispute about the 
control of a fishery.  Turkish officials condemned the attack.  PM 
Erdogan said "no tradition, no custom can ever justify this 
 
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massacre."  President Gul, CHP leader Baykal and MHP leader Bahceli 
also condemned the attack by describing it as a "major tragedy" and 
called for the murderers to be tried without any delay.  Leftist 
Taraf reports that DTP Deputy Chair Emine Ayna criticized the 
village guard system in this region by saying "the slaying in Mardin 
reveals the hazards of the village guard system.  The massacre is 
result of state policy encouraging the murder of Kurds by Kurds." 
Ayna demanded the abolishment of the village guard system.  The 
paper adds that the village guard system was introduced in 1985. 
The guards are paid by the state and they are given weapons and 
ammunitions by the military.  And all the men in Bilge village were 
village guards. 
 
Meanwhile, EU Commissioner Olli Rehn said he was shocked and 
sorrowed by the attack.  Nationalist Tercuman says that the world 
was horrified by the massacre carried out in modern Turkey, a 
country that is pursuing EU accession. 
 
Mardin Massacre 
 
Yasemin Congar wrote in leftist Taraf: "This brutality cannot merely 
be explained away by 'revenge' or 'tradition.'  This massacre is a 
result of a 25-year war that undermines regional values with the 
help of state weapons.  Most of the victims as well as the assassins 
are village guards and the weapons used in the massacre were 
actually provided to them by the state.  It is not possible to 
understand this massacre without looking at the bigger picture, 
which shows that the village guard system operates above the law and 
at the same time is sponsored by the state." 
 
Mehmet Kamis wrote in Islamist oriented Zaman: "This unspeakable act 
cannot simply be explained by animosity, terror or ignorance.  This 
tragedy is rooted in social trauma, where violence haunts everybody. 
 Bloodshed and death have become ordinary things in the southeast. 
First of all we should start thinking about repairing souls in order 
to overcome the trauma in this region." 
 
Gungor Mengi wrote in mainstream Vatan: "Ignorance is a dangerous 
thing and as we have seen in the Mardin massacre, it can even turn 
humans into something worse than monsters.  It is urgent that we 
focus on education by working with universities and non-governmental 
organizations." 
 
A Coup is Thwarted in Georgia Prior to NATO Exercises 
Media outlets are united in expressing alarm over an attempted coup 
in Georgia, which borders Turkey to the northwest.  Mainstream 
Haberturk's website reports, "NATO exercises stir up the Caucasus." 
Leftist nationalist Cumhuriyet reports in "Coup Tensions Between 
Moscow and Tbilisi," that "Things are heating up in the Caucasus 
again."  In "A Coup Attempt in Georgia," leftist Taraf notes, 
"Georgia claims Russia was behind the coup," but "Russia has denied 
the allegations."  Mainstream Sabah reports, "Things are not calming 
down in Georgia."  Far right Ortadogu reports "The tensions won't 
ease in Georgia."  Mainstream Hurriyet reports "The waters are not 
calming for our neighbor, Georgia," as "this time a former 
politician and retired generals who support Moscow attempted to 
overthrow the government."  Islamist-oriented Zaman reports in "A 
Coup Is Stopped by Cameras in Georgia" that, "As Georgia begins NATO 
exercises today, a coup was thwarted yesterday after secret cameras 
took photos of an attempted military coup." 
 
Hundreds of Thousands of Civilians Flee from Clashes in NW Pakistan 
Media outlets focus on the impending humanitarian crisis in Pakistan 
as an estimated half million people have fled clashes in the 
country's northwest between the Taliban and the Pakistani military. 
In "Civilians Are Fleeing from Swat," leftist nationalist Cumhuriyet 
notes "After warnings from the Pakistani administration that clashes 
could break out, thousands of civilians are filling the streets," to 
escape Swat.  Mainstream Haberturk reports "500,000 people are 
fleeing from fighting within Pakistan."  Liberal Radikal reports 
 
ANKARA 00000659  003 OF 003 
 
 
"The Taliban is advancing as half a million Pakistanis flee" from 
the fighting. 
 
 
TV News (CNN Turk) 
 
Domestic 
 
- PM Erdogan will deliver a speech at the Azerbaijani Parliament on 
May 13. 
 
- The Interior Ministry forms a crisis desk to deal with the slaying 
in Mardin. 
 
- DTP Leader Ahmet Turk held contacts in the European Parliament and 
met with EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn. 
 
 
World 
 
-  Russia pulls out of a Russia-NATO council meeting planned for 
Brussels later this month. 
 
- Armenia pulls out of NATO military exercises in Georgia. 
 
- The World Health Organization (WHO) says 1,124 cases of the H1N1 
flu infection have been officially confirmed in 21 countries 
worldwide. 
 
 
JEFFREY