US embassy cable - 03ANKARA6173

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 006173 
 
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 
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2003 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER 
THREE THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Iraqi groups worried about Shiite influence on new 
constitution - Hurriyet 
Turkey wants U.S. action, not words on PKK - Turkiye 
Powell: new Mideast to be based on tolerance, freedom - 
Milliyet 
AKP threatens to call early election - Turkiye 
Parliament back from summer recess today - Sabah 
Verheugen demands implementation of EU reforms - Milliyet 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Growing rift between White House, CIA - Cumhuriyet 
Washington aims to untie Iraq knot at UN in October  - Zaman 
Chalabi received $1 million from U.S. for false WMD info - 
Radikal 
U.S. gives `Rambo training' to 7,000 peshmerge - Yeni Safak 
Denktas: Annan Plan was drafted together with Greek Cypriots 
- Yeni Safak 
Israel's `security wall' toughens life for Palestinians - 
Cumhuriyet 
Verheugen: Turkey has taken significant steps forward - 
Zaman 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Ambassador Black due in Ankara:  U.S. State Department 
counter-terrorism coordinator Ambassador Cofer Black will be 
in Ankara on Wednesday to discuss the PKK/KADEK issue with 
MFA officials.  The two sides agreed on a joint plan of 
action against the PKK on September 12.  Ankara wants 
Washington to draw up a concrete plan to eradicate the 
threat posed by the PKK before Turkey deploys peacekeepers 
to Iraq.  Papers comment that the U.S. wants to see the 
results of the repentance law recently passed by Ankara 
before launching a military operation against the terrorist 
organization.  Dailies quote diplomatic sources as saying 
the U.S. delegation has prepared a plan of action to discuss 
with Turkish officials at meetings on Thursday.  The cabinet 
is set to hold an extraordinary meeting in the coming days 
to consider sending troops to Iraq to support the 
stabilization mission there. 
 
 
Election fraud by DEHAP:  The head of Turkey's election 
board (YSK) indicated he will announce next week a decision 
about a court ruling convicting the pro-Kurdish party DEHAP 
of election fraud.  The YSK decision could reduce the 
government's majority in parliament and lead the GOT to call 
early elections.  The government stands to lose the two- 
thirds legislative majority needed to alter the 
constitution.  Junior opposition party DYP has applied to 
the YSK to annul the votes cast for DEHAP on November 3, and 
to distribute them among the three parties now in 
parliament.  However, papers regard the cancellation of the 
November 3 election results as a remote possibility. 
 
 
Verheugen presses for implementation of EU reforms:  The 
EU's expansion chief, Guenther Verheugen, urged Foreign 
Minister Gul earlier this week to implement some critical EU 
reforms, "Milliyet" reports.  The EU wants to see the 
implementation of language education and broadcasting in 
Kurdish, issuance of regulations changing the structure of 
the National Security Council (NSC), and harmonization of 
regulations concerning foundations.  Verheugen also told Gul 
that Turkey's State Security Courts (SSC) should be 
transformed into specialized courts, and that Turkey still 
needs to catch up with the EU standards regarding freedom of 
expression. 
 
 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION: 
A)  Guantanamo 
B)  Iraq 
 
 
"Guantanamo Law" 
Fikret Ertan wrote in the Islamist-intellectual Zaman 
(10/1): "When it comes to the case of Guantanamo, the US is 
not acting within internationally recognized practices for 
`prisoners of war,' and instead calls the foreigners in 
Guantanamo `detainees captured on the battlefield.'  It 
seems that prison conditions in Guantanamo are simply 
unbearable. . The controversy over the issue once again made 
headlines following Secretary Rumsfeld's remarks, in which 
he made clear that a change in Guantanamo's population is 
unlikely because the legal process may take years.  His 
remarks signify a completely arbitrary approach that goes 
against all existing rules and laws. . After Rumsfeld's 
statement, one wonders if the prisoners will spend rest of 
their lives in the Delta Camp regardless of whether or not 
they have committed a crime.  The international community 
should immediately work on revising the Geneva Convention, 
have it adapted to the current circumstances, and rule out 
the ongoing practices at Guantanamo at once." 
 
 
"Can Kurds in Iraq Be the Winner?" 
Kamuran Ozbir commented in the nationalist Ortadogu (10/1): 
"Before the war, Iraqi Kurds enjoyed a privileged status 
compared to the other ethnic groups in Iraq.  Now the Kurds 
have to decide whether they will support the plan for Iraq 
developed by the Bush administration.  The US plan will 
likely ignore the expectations of the Kurds.  Before and 
during the war, the US was in need of the Kurds.  Today, 
they are no longer necessary for the US, since American 
forces are in control of the country. . Once Iraq is fully 
reestablished, the Kurds will lose their autonomy.  Moreover 
the US administration is not supporting the Kurds' argument 
for independence, as is clear from US official remarks about 
a unified Iraq. . It seems that the Kurds will be on the 
losing side." 
 
 
EDELMAN