ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on August 19, 2003. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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ERDOGAN SAYS GOVERNMENT TO SEND 2B WITHOUT CHANGE
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that they would adopt the constitutional amendment that foresaw sale of lands which lost the character of being forests without any change and submit it to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. Following the meeting of Council of Ministers which was held in Sakarya yesterday, Erdogan replied to questions of reporters. When a journalist asked his view about the return of the constitutional amendment to the parliament by President Sezer, Prime Minister Erdogan said that ''Mr. President had sent back the same law to the parliament saying that Article 169 should be cancelled and that certain amendments had to be made in Article 170. We did the things wanted by him and sent the constitutional amendment back to him. I have difficulty in understanding the law's being sent to the parliament again and I am sad about it on behalf of the nation.'' Erdogan added that they would send back the law to President Sezer as it was.

PM ERDOGAN OPENS COLA TURKA
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited beverage factory of Ulker in Adapazari and opened Cola Turka factory. The Council of Ministers convened under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Erdogan in northwestern province of Sakarya on Monday to mark the fourth anniversary of Marmara quake. Erdogan and some ministers visited Cola Turka factory of Ulker in Adapazari and watched the advertisement film of Cola Turka which was not shown on tv channels yet. Erdogan said that it was a very important investment and stated that unemployed people in the region had the chance to find jobs thanks to such investments. He wanted this spirit of investment to continue.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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REFERENDUM RESISTANCE
Prime Minister Erdogan said that the forestry law would be submitted to President as it was. ''We take the risk of referendum, the decision should be given by the people,'' he noted. The government tries to find new formulas regarding President Ahmet Necdet Sezer who vetoes some important laws for the government. The government which tries to decrease the authorities of President Sezer by constitutional amendment, will complain to the people about Sezer saying that ''we work in harmony with the military, but we can't work with the president. He continuously impedes us. He vetoes the regulation about the sale of deforested lands which will contribute to the Turkish economy significantly.''

PARLIAMENT CAN CONVENE IN EXTRAORDINARY SESSION IN SEPT.
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputy group leader Ipek claimed that the return of the constitutional amendment by President Sezer to the parliament was against the Constitution. Ipek stated that the parliament could convene in extraordinary session in the first half of September. Ipek asserted that it was not possible for the president to return the back the regulation which was adopted by 367 or more than 367 votes in the parliament under Article 175 of the Constitution.

SABAH (LIBERAL)
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BIG ARREST
Figures regarding deposits account of Imar Bank started to become definite. Imar Bank's deposits deficit was determined as 3.4 quadrillion Turkish liras (TL) as of Friday. 212,734 people who have accounts in Imar Bank came to Pamukbank to give information about their deposits account. Those people had 4.2 quadrillion TL of deposits account in Imar Bank. However, according to official figures, Imar Bank has 800 trillion TL of deposits in its balance sheet. Kemal Uzan, Hakan Uzan and Melahat Uzan are wanted to be questioned about Imar Bank.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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BARGAINING FOR SECTOR, NOT FOR MONEY
Turkey which prepares to send soldiers to Iraq, does not want to have a new bargaining process with the U.S. about the cost of the troop which it plans to send to Iraq. But Ankara wants to take part in reconstruction, health, culture and education fields in Iraq. If the U.S. accepts this proposal, Turkey will meet the expenses of the troop itself.

''OUR DIALOGUE WITH TURKEY IS FINE''
Metin Corabatir, the Turkey Press Spokesman of United Nations High Commissioner For Refugees (UNHCR) said that UNHCR generally had good dialogue with the Turkish government. Corabatir said that UNHCR and the Turkish government were in contact and that they hoped they could find a solution regarding the future and return of the refugees staying in Mahmur camp in north of Iraq.

RADIKAL (LEFT)
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PROTEST AGAINST GOVERNMENT
A group of persons who are members of the Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (KESK) held a protest in front of the building where the cabinet meeting was held in Adapazarý. Speaking in front of the building, Evren said that the problems of Adapazarý had to be solved.

BIG PROBLEM: UNEMPLOYMENT
According to the latest figures of the State Institute of Statistics (SIS), rate of unemployment in Turkey reached 10 percent and the number of unemployed people is nearly 2.5 million. The rate of unemployment was 6.7 percent three years ago and it was 9.3 percent one year ago.

TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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GOVERNMENT TAKES UP PROBLEMS OF SAKARYA
The Council of Ministers convened in Sakarya which suffered significantly from the massive earthquake in Sakarya upon the fourth anniversary of the quake. The government discussed many problems of Sakarya which could not be solved for four years. Prime Minister Erdogan stressed that civil servants who were involved in corruption didn't have any place in legal state and that they would be punished. ''Education will no longer be in prefabricated huts in Sakarya. Within two years prefabricated schools will be replaced with permanent schools. Sapanca lake will be conserved and cleaned. The development plans will be revised,'' Erdogan said.

TARGET IN IRAQ:ONE BILLION DOLLARS
Ercument Aksoy, the chairman of the Turkish-Iraqi Business Council said that if the U.N. contracts were approved in time and if the Iraqi private sector came to Turkey to purchase goods, exports to Iraq would reach almost one billion dollars till the end of the year. Noting that they would do their best for Turkish firms and contractors to do business in Iraq, Aksoy said that they also planned to open an office in Baghdad.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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U.S. TO START NEW CYPRUS TALKS IN OCTOBER
Following the end of the term in office of U.N. Secretary General's special representative to Cyprus Alvaro De Soto and the collapse of Annan plan, the U.S. is expected to pursue a more active policy about Cyprus. The U.S. plans to bring the two sides in Cyprus for new negotiations in October. Alithia newspaper published in the Greek Cypriot side asserted that U.S. Department of State's Special Coordinator to Cyprus Thomas Weston would meet with TRNC President Rauf Denktas and Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos in Sept. in New York and he would bring the two leaders together to start negotiations in October.

GULER'S VISIT TO ISRAEL POSTPONED
The visit of Energy and Natural Resources Minister Hilmi Guler to Israel to discuss the sale of Manavgat brook's water, which was planned for this week has been postponed to the first week of September. While the escalation of tension in the Middle East was shown as a reason to postpone the visit, sources stated that Guler had an accident and he was treated and resting at home.

(EÖ-ÖÞ) 19.08.2003