ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on October 29, 2003. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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SEZER: EVERYBODY SHOULD BE ASIDE IN PROTECTING REPUBLIC
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer released a message on the occasion of 80th year of Republic and said, ''everybody and all of our citizens have to protect the qualities of Turkish Republic, which are showed in the Constitution, and attribute importance and be aside to these principles.''
GOVERNMENT TO ATTEND RECEPTION
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he would attend October 29 reception with ministers, but he set deputies free in taking decision. Some deputies of Justice and Development Party (AK Party) decided not to participate in reception. Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc would not attend the reception due to his mother's illness.
MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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WINTER HAS COME
Cold and rainy weather which is influential throughout Turkey paralyzed daily life. Traffic was negatively affected in cities where it snowed while torrential rains caused flood. A fishing boat including four people was lost in northern Samsun province. The snow thickness in Uludag, one of famous winter resorts of Turkey, reached 18 centimeters.
U.S. DELEGATION: ''THERE IS NOBODY LIKE TURKISH SOLDIER''
U.S. Congress members Edward Royce and Thomas Lanton met with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul yesterday. The U.S. delegation reacted to the statement of Paul Bremer, U.S. civilian administrator for Iraq in which he said that ''Ottoman Empire was in Iraq as colonialist force'' by saying that ''they should not confine to history.'' The U.S. delegation said that the United States needed Turkish soldiers in Iraq. Royce stressed that ''there were not any other competent peace forces like the Turkish soldiers'' while Lantos said that they wanted Turkish soldiers to be beside the United States in Iraq and it would be so.
SABAH (LIBERAL)
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NOW TARGET IS FULL DEMOCRACY
Only 80 years have become enough for Turkey to arrive at the door of ''house of societies respectful to people and depending on supremacy of law'' which Europe reached in centuries with bloody wars and painful transformations. Turkey is today the 16th biggest economy of the world. But still, it has to make progress. It is behind the European Union (EU) avarage in national income per capita and average life span.
GUL: U.S. IS INCOMPETENT IN ITSELF
Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said that Turkey was not impetuous and ambitious on the issue of sending soldiers to Iraq. He added that the United States had some hesitations and ineptitudes in itself regarding deployment of Turkish soldiers in the region.
CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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LONG LIVE REPUBLIC!
The 80th anniversary of the Republic is being celebrated throughout the country, in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and foreign representations of Turkey. The first ceremony in Ankara will take place in Anitkabir, the Mausoleum of Ataturk, the Founder of Turkish Republic. Deputies of Justice and Development Party (AK Party) are getting prepared to boycott the reception to be hosted by the Presidential Palace on the 80th anniversary of the Republic since they were invited to the reception without their wives. Republican People's Party will attend the reception in unison while Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc announced that it would not attend the reception ''due to illness of his mother.''
''I AM SIDE TO SECULARISM''
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer gave a short and open response to the discussions on the reception to be hosted at the Presidential Palace on the 80th anniversary of the Republic which have been systematically escalated by the Justice and Development Party (AK Party). Sezer said, ''everybody from the president to deputies, from the prime minister to the members of the jurisdiction who have taken oath to be committed to the secular republic has to protect and pay attention to the qualities of the republic and be a side to these principles.''
RADIKAL (LEFT)
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CELEBRATIONS OF 80TH ANNIVERSARY OVERSHADOWED BY ''RECEPTION CRISIS''
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, who has started a discussion by two kinds of invitation cards, including one inviting the spouse and one which does not invite the spouse, said in his message on the 80th anniversary of the Republic that everybody should be a side to constitutional principles of the Republic. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who asked the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) not to escalate tension, said, ''the Republic will exist forever.'' Elkatmis and Uzunkaya of AK Party returned the invitation cards. Republican People's Party (CHP) defended the stance of the Presidential Palace.
REFORM MONITORING COMMISSION: ''THERE SHOULD NOT BE ANY DELAY IN IMPLEMENTATION''
The Reform Monitoring Commission requested that new regulation on National Security Council (NSC) should not be delayed in its meeting. Secretariat General for European Union (EU) told ministers to give instruction to their personnel that there should not be any delay in implementation.
TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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''UNITED STATES HAS DEFICIENCIES''
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that it was the United States who asked Turkey to send soldiers to Iraq and therefore, the United States was Turkey's interlocutor not the Iraqi administration. Gul noted that they were not in a hurry to send soldiers to Iraq. Gul said, ''it is the duty of those who appointed the Iraqi administration to convince them. If there is a problem in this process, this is caused due to deficiencies of the United States.'' Gul added, ''we won't have any reason to stay in lands of another country when the terrorism threat against our country ends. But, as long as the north of Iraq threat against our country continues, our armed forces will continue to be in that region.''
AND THE SNOW COMES
Cold weather caused snowfall in some parts of Turkey. Snowfall, rain and storm which were influential in many provinces caused electricity cuts and paralyzed transportation.
CABINET ATTENDING RECEPTION
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that he and ministers would attend the Republic Day reception to be hosted by President Ahmet Necdet Sezer even though Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputies were not attending.
ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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ALL CHP MEMBERS EXCEPT BAYKAL TO ATTEND RECEPTION
All members of Republican People's Party (CHP) will attend October 29 Republic reception today. CHP leader Deniz Baykal, who will return from Socialist International meeting tomorrow, cannot participate in the reception.
DEHAP TO ATTEND REPUBLIC CEREMONIES FOR THE FIRST TIME
Democratic People's Party (DEHAP) decided to attend the 80th year celebrations of Republic on every platform. DEHAP, which did not participate in official celebrations and did not visit Ataturk's Mausoleum and sing the Turkish National Anthem during party activities until today, will now act like other parties on those issues. DEHAP, which makes politics on ethnical basis and is blamed for having connection with terrorist organization PKK/KADEK, launched initiatives to reconcile with Republic.
(BRC-GC-AÖ) 29.10.2003