NEWS SCAN for Turkey – Oct 09th, 2013
Down below you will find a summary of topics from major Turkish papers and internet sites
The Supreme Court of Appeals approves conviction of 237 suspects in coup case
The Turkish top court approved the convictions of 237 suspects in the “Balyoz” (Sledgehammer) coup-plot case this morning, including former First Army Gen. Çetin Doğan, former Air Force Gen. Halil İbrahim Fırtına, opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) deputy and former general Engin Alan, former Navy Adm. Özden Örnek and other high-ranking retired generals.
The court approved the acquittal of 36 suspects, while quashing the convictions of 63 other suspects on the grounds that they had agreed to commit a crime but had not followed through and actually committed an infraction. The suspects will soon be released, although it was not immediately announced when and if they would face a retrial.
The court also ordered the release pending a retrial of 25 imprisoned suspects over problems with evidence. The much-anticipated final verdict announced by the Ninth Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals is seen as the precursor for other controversial coup cases into plots like Ergenekon and the Feb. 28 process.
The European Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry Economic Forum to be held in Istanbul
The European Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Eurochambres) Economic Forum will be held in Istanbul on October 16. Accordingly, presidents of the Association of Chambers, professional company executives, academics and think-tank representatives from 43 countries will meet at the Halic Congress Center in Istanbul. The main agenda of the Forum is the “Growth Investment.” Other subjects on the agenda include support for new businesses, access to finance, sustainable industry, women’s entrepreneurship, green economy, digital services and skills needed in the labor market.
Holding a press conference about the meeting yesterday, President of Eurochambres Alessandro Barberis and President of Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) Ibrahim Caglar replied to the questions posed by press members. Barberis noted that Turkey was an important part of Europe and that Eurochambres, as the largest business organization in Europe, supported Turkey’s accession to EU. Caglar, on the other hand, noted that the Forum posed a significant opportunity in terms of Turkey’s EU accession.
Turkey revises its growth rate targets and targets of inflation and unemployment
The Turkish government announced its mid-term economic program yesterday, cutting down its growth forecast for the 2014-2016 period, while also increasing its target of inflation and unemployment. The government reduced the growth rate target from 4 percent to 3.6 percent for this year and from 5 percent to 4 percent for 2014, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan announced at a press meeting.
Turkey revised its growth rate targets downwardly, in parallel with the latest forecast cuts in the world, Babacan noted. He said that the IMF now expected global output to expand just 2.9 percent this year, down from 3.6 percent, and 3.6 percent next year, below its estimate of 4.1 percent.
Babacan stated that they prioritized reducing the current account deficit and inflation and increasing growth and employment. “The Turkish economy’s structural problems are quite known: Our domestic savings are very low, we’re highly dependent upon foreign energy sources and our value-added production is in low levels,” said Babacan. “All of our policies will be complementing each other, from financial to fiscal to resolve all of these structural problems. We have obtained very good results from public finances, reaching the lowest budget deficit since 2006.”
Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay announces Syrian refugee reaches to 600 thousand
Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay chaired a meeting on Syrian refugees in Turkey under the coordination of Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency at the headquarters of the Office of the Prime Minister.
Noting that there are currently 600,000 Syrian refugees in Turkey, Atalay said that 200,000 of them were located in 21 separate camps. Atalay also underlined that international non-governmental organizations (NGO) need to take permission to bring aid to the camps.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Hamas leader Meshaal
Turkish PM met with Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal on Tuesday at the prime ministry official residence in Ankara. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Undersecretary Hakan Fidan were also present at the meeting, which was closed to the press.
Efforts for reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, the situation in Gaza and the recent developments in Syria were reportedly at the focus of the meeting. The last meeting between Erdogan and Meshaal had taken place on June 18, 2013 in Ankara with the participation of Gaza’s Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh as well. Tuesday’s meeting came at a time when the rumors about Hamas opening offices in Turkey and Qatar are rife.
Covered women working as public servants start wearing headscarf freely
Female public servants were able to enter their workplaces with their headscarves on yesterday for the first time ever after an amendment guaranteeing the freedom of dress went into effect earlier in the day.
The PM said “Both the lifting of the headscarf ban and the abolition of an oath that was obligatory for primary school students are moves that will serve to normalize the country and bring back the authentic spirit of the Turkish Republic,
Erdoğan said they had fixed imbalances, brought the republic back to its origins, and steadily removed pressures, bans and “cruelties” that had been imposed since the 1940s. “They have brought Turkey further away from its basic founding principle, while we are bringing our republic back to its origin; we are making the public, in other words the nation, and the republic embrace each other again,” he said.
09.10.2013
SOURCE: MEDIA
We do not verify above stories neither do we vouch for their accuracy.
