US embassy cable - 05ISTANBUL1734

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ISTANBUL 001734 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PHUM, TU, Istanbul 
SUBJECT: ISTANBUL MEZZES: SLICES OF LIFE FROM TURKEY'S 
MEGAPOLIS 
 
REF: A. 04 ISTANBUL 1868 
     B. ISTANBUL 1297 
 
1. (U) This is the first in a series of cables offering a 
sampling of political, economic and human rights topics 
making news in Istanbul. 
 
Green on the Green 
------------------ 
 
2.  (U) Residents of Istanbul's upscale and secular 
residential Kadikoy districts are up in arms about a City 
Council decision to build a mosque in Goztepe Park, the only 
large open space on fashionable Baghdad Caddesi.  In the 
Council's mid-September meeting, AKP members -- who hold the 
majority on the council -- voted in favor of a plan to 
allocate one-fourth of the park for a "place of worship," 
over objections of CHP council members.  Some observers 
ascribe the dispute to CHP reluctance to approve a competing 
development proposal, and an AKP attempt to use the proposed 
mosque to force them to do so. 
 
School Opening Tainted by Extortion 
----------------------------------- 
 
3.  (U) An undercover television report this month brought 
into the open an unpleasant reality facing parents whose 
children attend public schools: the strong-arm tactics used 
by school administrators to compel parents to pay additional 
fees to cover costs left unmet by inadequate financing from 
Ankara.  One parent secretly filmed a Gazi district school 
principal, as he threatened to send his son to a separate 
class of "poor children" where he would learn only reading 
and writing and "nothing else," if he did not make the 
required USD 100 contribution.  The father confirmed that 
there was such a class in the basement of the school, and 
that more than half the class members were Roma.  Education 
Directorate officials pledged to look into the matter and 
take appropriate action, but to date there has been no 
follow-up. 
 
Bumps in the Road 
----------------- 
 
4. (U) Another unpleasant reality of the new school year, the 
return of gridlocked traffic, has been compounded this fall 
by the municipality's decision to launch 350 new road 
projects.  Construction along many main arteries has turned 
30 minute commutes into 2-and-a-half hour expeditions and 
left Istanbul drivers fuming.  Mayor Kadir Topbas, who 
ironically was lauded the same week the projects started for 
his planning acumen by the business daily "Referans", swiftly 
regrouped, however, announcing on September 25 that 
henceforth road work would be conducted at night, rather than 
during the day. 
 
Turkey's First Victim of Reality TV? 
------------------------------------ 
 
5.  (U) The recent death of a star of the popular Turkish 
reality show "Will You Be My Bride," in which real Turkish 
mothers screen women as potential brides for their sons (ref 
A), has many in the Turkish media questioning the popular 
reality genre and its adoption here.  The 24-year-old son 
(Ata) of the show's most dominant -- and popular -- mother 
was found dead in a hotel room in southeast Turkey, 
apparently after consuming a lethal mix of ecstasy and 
alcohol.  Ata's Istanbul funeral turned into a media circus, 
with fans taking pictures in front of his flag-draped coffin 
and blaming his mother for his death.  Organizers of the 
funeral are being investigated by a local prosecutor, as use 
of the Turkish flag is restricted to soldiers and high civil 
servants. 
 
Alevis File Suit 
---------------- 
 
6.  (U)  The Istanbul-based Cem Foundation on September 23 
made good on its recent warning (ref B) that it would go to 
court if the Prime Ministry and the Ministry of Education did 
not take action within 60 days to give Alevi "cemevi" centers 
the status of "places of worship" and to amend school 
textbooks to include information about Alevi faith and 
culture.  Cem Foundation President Izzettin Dogan along with 
1918 other Alevis have filed a case with the Ankara 
Administrative Court against the government's inaction. 
 
A Final "Note" 
-------------- 
 
7.  (U)  Visitors to Istanbul spinning the radio dial in 
their hotel rooms may be surprised by 103.6 FM, a station 
mixing American Christian pop with Turkish soft rock.  Trans 
World Radio, a North Carolina-based group which participates 
in an alliance called Gospelcom.net, reportedly programs in 
Turkish on the station, as well.  103.6 FM is not to be 
confused with Holy 106.3 (available on-line through 
Live365.com), which bills itself as "the world's first 24/7 
Holy Hip Hop Global Radio Network."  In March 2005, Holy 
106.3 listed Turkey among the top 10 countries where its 
listeners were "locked in" that month. 
JONES