News Scan, Dec 30th 2013 – Graft probe worries CEOs in Turkey for new year
Graft probe worries CEOs in Turkey for new year
Around 71 percent of 132 CEOs in Turkey have said the ongoing corruption probe would have affect economy, a magazine survey has showed.
CEOs in Turkey are worried about the repercussions of the ongoing graft investigation on the economy in 2014, a local magazine’s survey has shown.
More than 71 percent of 132 CEOs working at some of largest companies operating in Turkey have said the ongoing bribery and corruption probe would have a serious impact on the economy, according to a poll conducted by Ekonomist magazine.
The survey results indicate that particularly foreign partners of Turkish companies are concerned about the course of political stability in the country in the wake of recently erupted political tension.
HURRIYET DAILY NEWS
Woman detained for protesting Turkish PM with shoebox
Turkish police detained a woman in the western province of Manisa on Dec. 29 after she protested against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with a shoebox, in a reference to money found in shoeboxes during a major corruption operation.
Police seized $4.5 million in cash in shoeboxes during the bribery raid in the house of Süleyman Aslan on Dec. 18, the general manager of the state-run lender Halkbank.
The woman, identified as Nurhan Gül, reportedly showed a shoebox from her balcony while Erdoğan was addressing his supporters during a rally in Manisa’s Akhisar district. Shortly after Gül’s protest, police and bodyguards of the prime minister came and detained the woman.
Gül has been released pending trial after she was taken to the police station and questioned for two hours.
“I waved the empty shoebox and sat at my balcony. I did not use any word or verbal expression. Bodyguards and police came to my house after one or two minutes. They asked who waved that box. I was detained after saying it was me,” Gül said in her testimony.
HURRIYET DAILY NEWS
War of words escalates between Turkey, EP over corruption probe
In the midst of the large-scale corruption scandal, several members of the European Parliament have continued to express that they are concerned about the state of the independence of the judiciary in Turkey, which has not hesitated to respond, calling on its European colleagues to make cautious statements.
While Turkey has been shaken by a large-scale corruption scandal, following statements from Socialist leader Hannes Swoboda and Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Füle, Hélène Flautre, co-chairwoman of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, also released a statement on Saturday and criticized Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for being irresponsible when voicing accusations against those investigating the current corruption probe.
“I observe the recent developments in Turkey with extreme vigilance,” said Flautre, underlining that the credibility of the prime minister is at stake. She criticized Erdoğan for leveling accusations against those investigating corruption and bribery rather than calling for light to be shed on the “serious allegations of corruption involving his family.”
“Allegations are certainly not findings, and justice must now continue its work in serenity and independence,” Flautre stated.
Flautre’s statement came after the Council of State’s decision on Friday to cancel the government’s executive order requiring police and prosecutors to notify their superiors of all investigations, which would have effectively given the government advance warning of investigations that should be secret.
Turkish Official Says Officers Could Be Retried
A senior ruling party official says Turkey’s government could change laws to allow the re-trial of hundreds of military officers who were convicted of plotting to overthrow the government.
Mustafa Elitas’ comments, published in Hurriyet newspaper Sunday, came after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s political adviser suggested this week that the convicted officers had been framed by groups within the judiciary who are now allegedly orchestrating a widespread corruption probe against Erdogan’s allies.
Many believe the groups in the judiciary are followers of Pennsylvania-based spiritual leader Fethullah Gulen, a moderate preacher whose Muslim believers command a global empire of business, media and education interests.
The convicted officers have long claimed the evidence against them was fabricated, and the corruption probe could create an uneasy alliance between the government and military.
AP
TODAYS ZAMAN
The Turkish State Theatres to perform in several Turkish provinces
The Turkish State Theatres (DT) will perform seven plays in seven provinces across Turkey in January, the DT head quarter in the Turkish capital Ankara announced in a press release.
The DT plans to bring the characters in William Shakespeare’s play, ‘Macbeth’, to life in a performance translated by Orhan Burian and directed by theatre professor Bozkurt Kuruc in the Cuneyt Gokcer theatre on January 14 in the capital Ankara. The Istanbul state theatre will perform on January 30, Roda Moskowa’s play called ‘Where are you running to, small Thai’, directed by Cezmi Gokalp and translated by Tugrul Cetiner.
The state theatre in Turkey’s northwestern city of Bursa will perform ‘Those with a mind do not stop,’ a story about people who fail to blend in society, and a critique of a host of meaningless rules that mold it. The state theatre of Konya province, located in the central part of Turkey, will perform on January 16 the Polish dramatist Slawomir Mrozek’s play ‘The Emigrants’ that tells the story of two men who share a room under the stairs, confessing their respective pasts to each other. On January 19, the state theatre of Diyarbakir, one of the largest cities in southeastern Turkey, will perform Oktay Arayici’s play called ‘’Rumuz Goncagul’’. The state theatre in Antalya, a city in the Mediterranean coast of Turkey, will perform on January 22 the classical Italian playwright Carlo Goldoni’s ‘The Liar’, a love story that takes place in Venice, Italy. The state theatre in Van, an eastern province of Turkey, will perform on January 30 Behic Ak’s play called ‘Separation’, directed by Cem Kilic.
AA
30.12.2013
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.
