The president praised the city’s Alevi cultural heritage, describing various communities’ cultural traditions and practices as important elements of a nation’s wealth. After visiting municipal offices in Tunceli, Gül visited the Association to Protect and Spread the Culture of Hacı Bektaş Veli, a beloved figure for the Alevi and Bektaşi communities, and the association’s cemevi. He was met by members of the association, including its deputy chairman, Celal Karagöz. A candle was lit in the cemevi for Gül, as Karagöz explained is the custom when someone visits a cemevi for the first time, noting that the act symbolizes brotherhood, democracy and peace. Karagöz reiterated the province’s demand that cemevis be given legal status as places of worship. The visit was applauded by Alevi community representatives as tacit recognition of the cemevi as a place of worship by the state, something that has been denied for years. During the visit, a group of residents gathered at Republic Square carrying a banner that read “We don’t want dams on Munzur.” The group also chanted slogans expressing the same demand. A brief scuffle between the protestors and police ensued when the protesters attempted to cross a police barricade. In his talks with civil society representatives and city administrators as well as ordinary citizens, Gül was told that the city does not want any dams to be constructed on Munzur River. Gül said he would relay this message to officials in Ankara upon his return from Tunceli.
Oct. 31 SaturdayThe return of a group which included members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to Turkey on Oct. 19 as part of the government’s Kurdish initiative directed the public’s attention to the surrender of other PKK members. According to recent figures from the military in the first 10 months of this year 120 members of the organization surrendered to security forces. Observers in the region say the highest increases in the number of terrorists leaving the group usually come at times when armed clashes seem to subside.
Nov. 1 Sunday
Sudden and sharp falls in temperatures accompanied by heavy downpours as well as snow across the country over the weekend decisively spelled out the start of winter following mild temperatures throughout October. The turn in the weather caused considerable damage in some cities and even resulted in casualties.
Turkey took over leadership of the Kabul Regional Command from France for a year, at a time when the United States is considering whether to vastly expand the amount of US resources invested in the eight-year war, including deploying tens of thousands more troops amid some of the conflict’s worst violence and an Afghan government embroiled in allegations of fraud in August elections.
The Democrat Party (DP) and the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN), once the primary representatives of the center right, finally merged in the party congresses they held alternately using the same hall. ANAVATAN, which former President Turgut Özal established in 1983 as ANAP after the military coup of Sept. 12, 1980, closed after 26 years and merged with the DP.
The Federation for Aegean and Western Mediterranean Industrialists and Businessmen’s Associations (ESİDEF) kicked off a giant meeting -- the “Business Development Platform ‘09” -- which brought more than 10,000 businessmen together in İzmir to explore business opportunities. The convention provided a venue for more than 30,000 working meetings for participating businessmen.
Nov. 2 Monday
The number of victims of H1N1 influenza, popularly known as swine flu, increased to seven as the country began to administer vaccines against the illness, starting with health workers.
Col. Dursun Çiçek, whose signature appears on a military action plan against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), once again failed to give testimony about the plan to civilian prosecutors conducting an ongoing probe into a clandestine group.
Diyarbakırspor Chairman Çetin Sümer threatened to withdraw his team from their next match in the wake of racist slogans chanted by rival Gaziantepspor supporters a week ago. Sümer said his team was considering boycotting the match against Galatasaray this weekend. “If you had watched the match, you would have seen that we were right. The racist stance against our team was not limited to the Gaziantepspor match. We have experienced the same thing for several weeks. We wanted to add color to Turkish soccer. … We have informed our governor, mayor and the civil society organizations in Diyarbakır about our decision [to withdraw the team from the league]. Our decision is final,” Sümer noted.
Nov. 3 Tuesday
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vowed that his party will not cease investigating a military document allegedly prepared by Col. Dursun Çiçek outlining a strategy to undermine the ruling AK Party. Speaking at his party’s parliamentary group meeting, he said the purpose of what he called a document of “conspiracy against the nation” was to damage the reputation of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK). He also said high-ranking generals in the military should not be conservative regarding the investigation, but do what they can to bring those responsible to justice.
A second letter recently reached civilian prosecutors conducting a probe into a criminal organization, revealing that the TSK initiated a smear campaign to distort facts related to a military action plan against the country’s ruling party and a civilian faith-based group. The second letter came only two weeks after the first one, which pointed to the authenticity of a notorious action plan aimed at undermining the ruling AK Party and the faith-based Gülen movement.
A coalition known as “70 Million Steps Against Coups” staged a demonstration in İstanbul’s Beyoğlu district in protest of a military action plan to destroy the government.
After Health Minister Recep Akdağ became the first government official to receive a swine flu vaccine on Tuesday, following the start of widespread vaccinations on Monday, Prime Minister Erdoğan announced that he is skeptical about the vaccine. Erdoğan, speaking at his party’s parliamentary group meeting, said people should decide on their own as to whether to get the vaccine. He also warned people not to kiss while greeting each other and to wash their hands immediately after shaking hands as part of measures to avoid swine flu.
The inflation rate was higher than expected in October as the approaching winter led to increased spending on clothes and as tax incentives introduced by the government to stimulate a number of sectors ended. While economists were anticipating a rise of 1.88 percent in October over the previous month, the consumer price index (CPI) increased by 2.41 percent last month over September and the producer price index (PPI) rose by 0.28 percent in the same period, according to numbers released by the Turkish Statistics Institute (TurkStat).
Nov. 4 Wednesday
Two navy lieutenants who were detained early on Wednesday for plotting to assassinate Naval Forces Command admirals were released in the afternoon after testifying to a prosecutor.
Amid mounting reactions to a recently adopted regulation allowing the import of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into Turkey, some nongovernmental organizations applied to the Council of State for a stay of execution. When the regulation allowing for the trade of GMOs was adopted in late October, agricultural organizations, consumer associations and the opposition parties accused the AK Party government of putting the public’s health in danger by allowing GMOs to be imported.
Fifteen people in Turkey died as of Wednesday from H1N1 influenza, also known as swine flu, according to a written statement released by the Ministry of Health.
Nov. 5 Thursday
President Abdullah Gül paid a visit to the eastern province of Tunceli in what was the first presidential visit to the city in 19 years. The president praised the city’s Alevi cultural heritage, referring to different cultural traditions and practices as important elements of a nation’s wealth.
The number of deaths caused by the H1N1 virus reached 19 in Turkey, the Ministry of Health announced, signaling a worrying increase in the death rate.
In its latest step in implementing its foreign policy principle of “from zero problems to maximum cooperation” with neighbors, Turkey approached its Aegean neighbor Greece to establish a “high-level strategic cooperation council,” similar to those it has established with Iraq and Syria. In the proposal sent to Athens, Ankara underlined the cooperation platforms it has recently established with other neighbors and said it would be possible to have such a platform with Athens, in a mechanism based on mutual respect and understanding.
The Diyarbakırspor administration decided to play this weekend’s soccer match against Galatasaray, contrary to expectations after the team’s previously announced decision to boycott the match due to racist slogans directed at the team and its fans a week ago.
A round table meeting in Parliament brought members of the parliamentary Environment Commission together with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband for discussions on “the fight against climate change.” Later in the day, the visiting politician had talks with senior Turkish leaders focusing on Turkey’s EU accession drive.
A report fulfilling the requirements for the release from prison of cancer patient Güler Zere, who is serving time on charges of membership in a terrorist organization, was issued by the Forensic Medicine Council (ATK) after a delay of nearly three months, a step expected to pave the way for her release.
The Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) announced that the banking sector increased its profits by TL 4.58 billion in the third quarter compared to the same period of last year, a 41.1 percent rise, for a total of TL 15.72 billion in the first three quarters of the year.
Nov. 6 Friday
President Gül gave his approval for the release of terminally ill prison inmate Güler Zere, a move that was expected as the president had stated that his personal convictions were in agreement with a forensics report declaring her health so poor as to necessitate an end to her incarceration.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu reminded Europeans skeptical of Turkey’s membership in the European Union that its accession to the 27-nation bloc would boost its global standing, saying the EU would be better equipped to deal with political, economic and cultural challenges in the new world. Turkey’s foreign policy vision, which is based on promoting peace in the troubled Middle East, would be a boon, not a burden for the EU, Davutoğlu said in a lecture at the Académie Diplomatique Internationale in Paris. “Turkey is part of Europe and will continue to be so. We pursue this active policy to contribute to global peace and security,” he said.
Radio Guide
