News Scan – 6th January, 2014: TÜSİAD urges gov’t to fight against corruption, bribery

TÜSİAD urges gov’t to fight against corruption, bribery

The Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (TÜSİAD) has for the second time urged the government to take concrete steps in fighting corruption and bribery since a corruption scandal hit Turkey on Dec. 17.

TÜSİAD President Muharrem Yılmaz said that if the government were to take concrete steps to fight against corruption and bribery, it would create relief among the people, Milliyet daily reported on Sunday.

“There should be an attitude of continuity [for dealing with corruption and bribery]. It requires reform and regulation,” Yılmaz said.

In an earlier statement released on Dec. 20, a short while after the corruption and bribery probe was revealed, TÜSİAD advised the government to stay away from actions and statements that would overshadow the investigation and called for judicial independence and the protection of individual rights to be preserved.

The association indicated that the situation paints a bad picture of the country and that it expects the investigation to be carried out in a way that would not harm the personal rights of individuals — as was unfortunately seen before in similar cases — and that will strengthen trust in the rule of law in Turkey.

Turkish lira hits fresh record low on graft probe, Fed tapering

Turkey’s lira hit a new record low against the dollar today, dampened by investor caution over a corruption investigation, concern about China’s growth outlook and U.S. Federal Reserve stimulus reduction.

The lira traded at 2.1925 by 12.15, weakening from 2.1774 late on Jan. 3, having reached a previous record low of 2.1885 on Jan. 2. It weakened 17 percent in 2013.

The Federal Reserve will begin winding down, or tapering, its $85 billion-a-month money-printing programme this month, and emerging markets are seeing foreign investment pull back as a result.

Turkey is among the most vulnerable with its huge current account deficit and its reliance on external financing.

HURRIYET DAILY NEWS

Head of Turkish bars union pushes for new legal proposal over retrial of coup cases

A set of legal proposals floated by the head of Turkey’s bar association and heeded by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government, which could lead to the retrial of hundreds of military officers and others who were convicted of plotting to topple the government, has offered a glimpse of hope after a period of severe political turmoil in Turkish politics.

Metin Feyzioğlu, the head of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB), told reporters after a meeting with Erdoğan on Jan. 4 that they had discussed a set of legal proposals that could lead to the retrial of military officers and other people accused of plotting against the government.

As of Jan. 6, Feyzioğlu was at the Silivri Prison campus near Istanbul, where defendants in the Ergenekon coup case and convicts in the Balyoz coup case have been jailed. There, he visited former Chief of General Staff Gen. İlker Başbuğ, Workers’ Party (İP) leader Doğu Perinçek, journalist Tuncay Özkan, and retired Gen. Bilgin Balanlı, the former commander of the War Academies.

“Our approach is not limited to any case or person. The TBB’s duty is to protect rule of law and human rights,” Feyzioğlu told reporters following his visit in Silivri.

HURRIYET DAILY NEWS

Freed Turkish journalist traumatized by ordeal

Turkish photojournalist Bünyamin Aygün, who was released from 40 days of captivity on Sunday following several days of clashes between rival opposition groups in Syria, has said he is afraid to sleep, fearing that freedom is a dream from which he’ll wake up.

“I hesitate to sleep now, because I fear this may be a dream,” Aygün told reporters on his arrival at İstanbul Atatürk Airport at noon on Monday, adding that he hasn’t slept in two days.

Aygün, who is believed to have been kidnapped by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), was freed, he said, when the militants holding him surrendered to Ahrar al-Sham, a group affiliated with the Free Syrian Army, after several days of intense fighting.

Aygün said: “After three to four days of clashes, those who were holding me captive surrendered. Then [members of] Ahrar al-Sham came in [the storeroom where Aygün was held] and said ‘You are now free.’”

In the days leading up to his release, Aygün, who went to Syria on assignment for the Milliyet daily, was held in the storeroom of a house in a small town in the governorate of İdlib, northern Syria, where heavy fighting continues — apparently not only between the Syrian Army and rebel groups, but also between rebel factions themselves.

Aygün spent a sleepless weekend as clashes intensified and drew closer to the house. He had only bread to eat and water to drink.

Renewables to have 30 percent share in Turkey’s installed power by 2023

Nearly one of third of Turkey’s installed power will be generated from renewable energy sources by 2023, Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said in a parliamentary hearing. Briefing the members of the parliament on the government’s energy policies, Yildiz said that the installed capacity relying on renewable sources had increased two fold in the last 10 years, and now exceeds 25,000 megawatts (MW).

Noting that power generation from renewables was supported through special legislation as well as sector-specific incentives, Yildiz provided information on Turkey’s renewable potential. “Turkey aims to utilize 20,000 MWs of its total wind energy capacity of 48,000 MW by 2023, the Centenary of the Republic, while fully utilizing its hydro sources”, the Minister remarked, adding that geothermal sources will also be utilized to their fullest extent, and are expected to generate 600 MW by 2023.

Important steps have been taken to add solar energy to the grid, Yildiz said, referring to the license applications received by the country’s Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EMRA). The total installed capacity using solar energy will reach 3,000 MWs in the next 10 years.

06.01.2014

This is a news-scan from major Turkish papers and internet sites. However, we do not verify above stories neither do we vouch for their accuracy.