US embassy cable - 05ADANA50

UNCLAS ADANA 000050 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PINS, PGOV, PHUM, TU, ADANA, Press Summaries 
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR MARCH 15, 2005 
 
This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for March 15, 
2005.  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, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS 
 
YENI SAFAK / SABAH / MILLIYET / RADIKAL / ZAMAN / OZGUR GUNDEM / 
CUMHURIYET / EVRENSEL : Another earthquake measuring 5.9 shook 
Karliova district of Bingol yesterday morning and wounded 
eighteen people. Sixty-nine buildings were seriously damaged and 
383 buildings were moderately damaged. The relief aid's arrival 
in remote settlements was delayed due to the snow-blocked roads. 
People stayed outside at very cold temperatures all night long. 
 
 
CUMHURIYET / EVRENSEL:  Nevruz celebrations will start early 
this year. A variety of activities and events will be held in 
Istanbul, Adana and Gaziantep to celebrate the day.  DEHAP 
(Democratic People's Party) Istanbul Provincial Chairperson said 
that they will invite the Governor and the Mayor to this year's 
celebration and celebrate the event together with political 
parties and mass organizations. DEHAP's Provincial Chairperson 
in Gaziantep said that recent developments in the (southeastern) 
region will be emphasized during the celebrations, giving a 
message of cooperation to democratic forces. 
 
RADIKAL / YENI SAFAK / EVRENSEL:        The Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs rejected claims made in the recent Human Rights Watch 
(HRW) report.  (Note: The document reportedly claims that Turkey 
had failed to implement plans to facilitate the return of 
internally displaced people, mainly Kurds, to southeastern 
Turkey, and had made misleading statements about the number of 
people who actually returned.  End note.) The Ministry announced 
that the report, far from being a real representation of events, 
is ignoring the sincere endeavors of Turkey to facilitate the 
return of the people to the region. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM / CUMHURIYET / EVRENSEL:   A report prepared by 
the Egitim-Sen (Education Union) showed that 800,000 children 
are not able to go to schools in the (southeastern) region, due 
to both an inadequate number of facilities and the economic 
needs of some families. Children are going to the agricultural 
fields to work. In order for these children to receive full-day 
schooling (at a classroom size of  30 students per class), 
26,000 classrooms and 22,000 additional teachers are needed at 
the present.  This is because currently, the sizes of the 
classrooms in the region are 60 to 70 students per class, and 
the schoolday is divided in half to receive two groups of 
students. The report adds that the 15 years of conflict in the 
region badly affected the psychology of many children. 
 
BOLGE:  Suleyman Onatca, Chairperson of the Adana 
Industrialists and Businessmen Association, criticized the way 
PM Erdogan governed the country. According to Onatca, PM Erdogan 
has been disregarding public opinion, the Turkish economy has 
been on a bad track and unemployment rates have been soaring. 
Onatca placed blame on the government for falling into idleness 
since December 17. 
 
 
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS 
 
1.      SABAH (GUNEY):  The producers of the Cukurova Plain have 
been producing organically cultivated lettuce and exporting some 
of the produce to EU countries. The lettuce is either being 
consumed in supermarkets and fast food chains in Istanbul, Izmir 
and Ankara, or is being made into salads in Istanbul factories 
for export mainly to the U.S., England, Denmark and Italy to 
meet the demand of fast food markets there. 
 
 
 
REID