Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

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REVUE DE PRESSE~PRESS REVIEW,BERHEVOKA ÇAPÊ~RNISTA STAMPA~DENTRO DE LA PRENSA~BASIN ÖZETÎ
98
II
Demirel: System in
Turkey will always
remain secuÙlr
Turkish president tells Bulgarian
press that there are 10 million
citizens of Kurdish origin in Turkey
Turkish Daily News
ANKARA- President Süleyman Demirel hassaid that
Islamic fundamentalism in Turkey will never receive more
that 19 percent of the vote in any election.
Demü'el, whose words were quoted by Anatolia News
agency on Thursday from an interview he gave to the
Bulgarian daily Trud, added that the system in Turkey
would always remain in the hands of parties that believed in
secularism.
Pointing out that fundamentalism has .been enjoying a
worldwide revival over the past 20 years, Demirel Indicated
.that politics based on fundamentalism had also increased in
the west. "As a secular state Turkey respects the.religious.
beliefs of its citizens. Turkey's traditIOn of secularism.
comes from the religious harmony maintained for centuries .
by the Ottoman Empire," Demirel said.
"Because of this we are very sensitive to all political ten-'
déncies that obstruct the proper functioning of the democratic
regime," he added. .
Answering questions about the Southeast, President
Demirel said that Turkey was faced with the problem of
Kurdish terrorism.
Indicating that there were around 10 million people of
Kurdish origin in Turkey, Demirel said Turkey was a 'melting-pot"
in which many cultures have come together at different
periods and lived together in harmony.
"The problem is the PKK, which has been conducting a
bloody camp.a!gnof terror since 1984and has been.guilty of
massacres without differentiating about women or children.
Our security forces have taken measures to prevent the ter.
ro~st activities of this organization," the president
said.
He added that "great strides" had been made to this end;
"No one can be stron~er than the state. The terrorist organi.
zation willlearn this,' he added.
Demirel went on to say that economics measures were
also, b~.i.~g~ak~~conc~r:IlI,n&:so~theastAna!olia and add~d .
that the Sotitheast Anatoha pröJect; otherwIse know by Its
Turkish acronym of GAP, was being implemented stage by
stage.
Adding that with the completion of the early stages. of
GAP opportunities for modem production projects will be
.available in the region, he declared: " l believe that you will
not recognize the southeast Anatolian region in the year
2000," Referring to the state of the economy in Turkey,
Demirel said that the biggest problem in this case was the
chronic budget deficit. .
. "Because of this, the value of our money is constantly'
.falling and inflation i.sconstantly rising. But with the Apnl
5 measures a turning point has been reached," Demirel said,
referring to theausterity package recently adopted by the
government.
H~ went on to say that Turkey is obliged to pursue the
reqUIrements of a market economy, and that there was
therefore a need to reduce the role of the state in the economy.
He also claimed that "the necessary measures have
been tàken to reduce the budget deficit."
. ~IOfcourse, when radical economic measures are taken,
some crises must be undergone.
But these are not developments that cannot be overcome,"
Demirel said.
On the subject of Turkish-Bulgarian relations, President
. Demirel said that apart from the 1984-1989 period ties
between the two countries had always been good, adding
that both countries "shared the same ideals."
Underlining the importance of the Black Sea Economic
Cooperation project, Demirel said "the only thing dividing
thé two countries is a border."
"In the future when the free circulation of goods, labour,
capital and information is secured, borders WIllcease to be
obstructions among Black Sea countries," he concluded.
US Trade and Development Agency grants for Turkey
Over the past 12 years, the IDA has provided Turkey with over $12 millioll ill grallts
Turkish Daily News
ANKARA-Turkish Undersecretary
of Treasury Osman Birsen and U.S.
Trade and Development Agency
(TDA) Dir~ctor J. Joseph
Grandmaison signed three agreements,
totalling $984,000, a press
release from the United States
Information Service (USIS) said.
''This visit and the.signing of these
grants demonstrate one of the
Clinton administration ' s efforts to
strengthen U.S.-Turkish economic
relations in the post-Cold War era,"
said Grandmaison.
The grants come amid tensions
between Washington and Ankara
caused by' the U.S. Congress' efforts
to tie mIlitary aid with Turkey to
what Ankara calls third factors -
~uman rights and the Cyprus
Issue.
Prime Minister Tansu Çiller signalled
that she could reject military
aid alto~ether if it is gIven "condItionally.
' Over the past 12 years, the
IDA has provided Turkey with over
$12 million in grants for .feasibility
studies, techntcalassistance and
training in support of the planning
and development of major projects.
Following the October meeting
between Prime Minister Tansu Çiller
and President Bill Clinton in
Washington, special joint economic
committee meetings were held in
Ankara to outIlne a program to
enhance economic ties between the
tWo countries. Since those meetings,
TDA has provided $2.43 million in
grants to Turkey.
According to. the agreement
signed today, the TDA will provide
$375,000 worth of financial assistance
to the Transportation and
Communication Ministry for the
development of a policy framework
on privatization of Turkey's
telecommunication sector.
The TDA will also provide
$377,000 for a geographic information
system feasibility study for the
GAP regional development administration
and another $232,000 for a
similar study for the Bursa Water
and Spwage Administration.
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