GUL TO APPEAR IN TRAFFIC SAFETY AD
President Abdullah Gul is set to appear in a new public service announcement (PSA) promoting traffic safety. Under a joint Interior Ministry and Security Directorate initiative launched last year, the PSA program aims to raise public awareness of traffic safety with short spots aired nationally and locally. Under the project, the state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) has already shot a series of one-minute PSAs. /Sabah/
PM ERDOGAN TO VISIT ATHENS TOMORROW
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Athens tomorrow to attend the opening ceremony of a new Acropolis Museum. Erdogan will also meet with his Greek counterpart Costas Karamanlis. In related news, Dr. Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Ibrahim Aal Al-Sheikh, the head of the Saudi Arabian Shoura (Consultative) Council, visiting Turkey at the invitation of his Turkish counterpart Koksal Toptan, yesterday met with Erdogan. Al-Sheikh also met with Toptan. /Hurriyet/
FM DAVUTOGLU IN NEW YORK
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu yesterday flew from Germany to New York to chair a meeting on Iraq at the UN. Turkey holds the rotating presidency of UN Security Council for one month, and will hand over the presidency to Uganda in July. /Hurriyet Daily News/
SWEDEN'S ASP: "HINDERING TURKEY'S EU MEMBERSHIP PROCESS WOULD BE A HISTORIC MISTAKE"
Hindering Turkey's full European Union membership process would be a historic mistake, said Sweden's Ambassador to Ankara Christer Asp yesterday. Speaking to Star daily, Asp, whose country will assume the EU's rotating presidency from the Czech Republic on July 1, spoke of Germany and France's proposal that Turkey be given "privileged partnership" in lieu of full membership. Stating that Sweden will work to ease Turkey's process during its presidency, he added that Turkey has long been part of Europe culturally, and has had a great impact on European society. /Star/
BAGIS: "WOMEN'S RIGHTS IS A MAJOR ISSUE FOR TURKEY'S EU REFORMS"
Speaking in Ankara yesterday at the second meeting of the Civil Society Dialogue, focusing on women's rights and Turkey's European Union accession process, State Minister and chief negotiator for EU talks Egemen Bagis stressed the importance of expanding and protecting women's rights as part of Turkey's EU reform efforts, adding that Turkey had taken remarkable legal strides in recent years to eliminate discrimination against women. Efforts are continuing to ensure that those laws are translated into daily life, he added. He also spoke about a government push for more women's participation in politics, at both the nationwide and local levels, and added that policies and measures to expand and protect women's rights have an expanded place in Turkey's Ninth Development Plan. Touching on a recent European Court of Human Rights decision fining Turkey for failing to protect a Turkish woman from domestic violence and discrimination, Bagis said the fine was undeserved, adding that Turkey's standards to protect women from domestic violence were in line with European ones. Also speaking at the meeting, Education Minister Nimet Cubukcu said one of the most important matters of Turkey's EU reforms and accession negotiations is women's rights and the family. Saying Turkey has made significant progress in ensuring gender equality as part of its EU reforms, she added, "Today Turkey has a judicial framework based on universal norms enabling women to defend their rights before the law. However, these are only preliminary steps. There is much work before us in this respect." /Turkiye/
ANKARA'S ESENBOGA NAMED ONE OF EUROPE'S BEST AIRPORTS
The Airports Council International in Europe (ACI Europe) has named Ankara'S EsenboGa Airport the best airport in Europe in the 5-10 million passenger category, announced leading Turkish airport operator TAV Airports Holding yesterday. ACI Europe announced the Fifth Annual ACI Europe Best Airport Awards on Wednesday in Manchester, Britain. The awards cover four categories, recognizing achievement in core activities such as customer service, retailing, security, and environmental awareness. The winner of the 5-10 million passenger category was Ankara's Esenboga, praised for its environmental awareness, quality, security, commercial areas and areas of operation. /Sabah/