ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in Turkish press on July 25, 2004. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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CONSUMER RIGHTS ASSOCIATION TO INDICT OFFICIALS FOR TRAIN CRASH
The Consumer Rights Association (TUKODER) will indict Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim and Turkish State Railways (TCDD) Director General Suleyman Karaman for the derailment of high-speed train in northwestern province of Sakarya. The TUKODER said that it would indict Yildirim and Karaman to the Ankara Chief Prosecutors' Office on Monday for ignoring consumers' safety and human life and for turning a blind eye to all warnings of scientists and experts.
FREIGHT TRAIN DERAILS THIS TIME
A freight train derailed in Pozanti town of southern province of Adana following Thursday's train crash in Sakarya. There were no casualties in the derailment. The freight train derailed while it was approaching the Pozanti Station at about 16:00 hours. The freight engine along with two cars derailed while it was pulling 25 cars. An investigation into the cause of derailment was launched.
MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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''WE DID NOT APPROVE IT''
Turkish State Railways (TCDD) Director General Suleyman Karaman claimed earlier that two academicians had approved the high-speed train project. Prof. Dr. Zerrin Bayraktar from the Yildiz Technical University and Prof. Dr. Inal Seckin from the Istanbul Technical University were among 14 academicians who attended a meeting in Ankara on July 14 on the project. They said, ''we took the high-speed train to return to Istanbul following the meeting upon invitation of TCDD Director General Karaman. Karaman telephoned us during the voyage to ask how we were doing. We said fine. That was all. We did not approve the project.''
ECEVITS TO GIVE UP POLITICS
Congress of the Democratic Left Party (DSP) will take place today to elect its new leader. Earlier, DSP leader Bulent Ecevit and his wife Rahsan Ecevit decided to give up active politics.
SABAH (LIBERAL)
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PASSENGER PLANE SKIDS OFF RUNWAY IN ISTANBUL
A passenger plane on a flight from Dusseldorf, Germany, skidded off the runway after landing in Istanbul. No one was injured. The Turkish-owned private Inter Airlines plane, carrying 104 passengers and six crew members, landed at Istanbul's Ataturk airport at 1.30 a.m. The plane's left side wheel system broke after touching down, causing the plane to turn to the left and skid off the runway. There was slight damage to the plane and passengers were evacuated through emergency exits.
NETHERLANDS ENCOURAGES ITS BUSINESSMEN TO INVEST IN TURKEY
The Dutch government will provide Dutch businessmen who want to invest in Turkey, with a financial aid of 1.5 million euros. The Netherlands included Turkey in its cooperation program with east European countries a few months ago. The government decided to encourage Dutch businessmen to invest in Turkey under the program.
CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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HIGH-SPEED TRAIN DRIVERS AND CONDUCTOR ARRESTED
Fikret Karabulut and Recep Sonmez, the drivers of the train which derailed in Pamukova town of northwestern province of Sakarya on Thursday claiming 37 lives, and conductor Koksay Coskun were arrested by the court on duty. Their Ismail Gurses said that that Turkish State Railways (TCDD) instructed the train drivers to increase the speed limit to 130 km/h in the region where the crash occurred.
INDICTMENT AGAINST PRIME MINISTER
Aydin Menderes, the chief advisor of True Path Party (DYP), said that a parliamentary inquiry should be launched against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim following Thursday's high-speed train crash, killing 37 people and injuring 81 others.
RADIKAL (LEFT)
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AK PARTY TRIES TO DECEIVE PEOPLE
While number of questions has gradually increased following Thursday's high-speed train crash in northwestern part of Turkey, all relevant government officials including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan have become strictly silent. Turkish State Railways (TCDD) only kept drivers and conductor of the train responsible for the derailment.
TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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TRAIN DRIVERS HAVE BEEN WARNED
Train drivers who were competing with each other were last week warned ''not to exceed the speed limit''. Turkish State Railways (TCDD) Deputy Director General Erol Inan just two weeks ago said that the train drivers had been competing with each other to cover the Istanbul-Ankara voyage in less than five hours. He warned them as saying, ''for God's sake, please drive the train slowly.'' Addressing train drivers, Inan said, ''there are drivers who enter some areas with a speed of 100 km/h although the maximum speed must be 80 km/h. This is not a speed-train railway but it is a railway for faster-than-normal train. Don't scare passengers. The important thing is the safety of the passengers.''
OUR SUDDEN BRAKE AT HIGH-SPEED CAUSED DISASTER
Minutes taken during testimony of train drivers leaked to the newspaper. In his testimony, Fikret Karabulut, one of the train drivers, said, ''it was me who was driving the train when it derailed. The speed was 130 km/h. As I had to decrease the speed from 130 km/h to 80 km/h, I applied the brakes. At that time, the train jolted. When I looked at the mirror, I saw that the part that was connecting the first and second cars was broken and other cars flipped over.'' Meanwhile, train drivers Fikret Karabulut and Recep Sonmez and conductor Koksal Coskun were arrested and sent to prison.
VISA FACILITY
Turkish citizens who have passports can stay in Bulgaria for thirty days without visa. It is the same for Bulgarian citizens who want to visit Turkey.
ECEVIT GOING TO STEP DOWN
Together with Bulent Ecevit who is going to put an end to his 47 years of political life today, his wife Rahsan Ecevit will quit politics. Five candidates will vie for the Democratic Left Party (DSP) leadership in today's Sixth Regular Congress.
ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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HOSPITALS TO OPEN TENDER TO EMPLOY NURSES
Thousands of health staff lost their jobs when the Health Ministry closed the state foundations that were paying their salaries. Hospitals which employ civil health servants at first planned to close down patient floors as they could not find personnel to assign. Many head doctors went to the Health Ministry and explained the difficult situation they were facing. And the ministry decided that health staff can be employed at hospitals through tenders. It informed the hospitals that they can open tenders to employ health staff. The Dr. Siyami Ersek Cardiovascular Surgery Hospital became the first one that opened such a tender to employ 68 nurses, 2 pharmacists, 1 physiotherapist, 5 public health staff and a number of radiology, anesthesia, laboratory and emergency medicine technicians.
(UK-MS) 25.07.2004