ERDOGAN: "OUR NEW CONSTITUTION WILL BE DRAFTED BY THE PEOPLE, NOT LEGAL EXPERTS"

Turkey should have an understandable constitution that guarantees freedoms and fundamental rights, said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday, adding that he hopes this summer’s general elections will produce a Parliament ensuring broad-based participation in the drafting a new constitution afterwards. Speaking to Turkish reporters before leaving Qatar, where he worked to boost bilateral trade as well as seek a large Turkish share of Qatar’s planned $180 billion in infrastructure investments to prepare the country for the 2022 World Cup, Erdogan said, "The new Constitution won’t be drafted by jurists but will be made through broad-based participation of large sectors of Turkish society. When it is enacted, the people won’t need an explainer to understand the new constitution." Explaining that non-governmental organizations, youth and women’s organizations, labor unions, economists and social scientists will have an active hand in putting together the new constitution, Erdogan pledged to do whatever is necessary to ensure the largest participation in its writing. Stating that they would consult jurists in the final phases of drafting the new constitution, Erdogan said some NGOs are already doing preliminary work on the text and the government is encouraging such efforts. He said he dreams of a concise, easy-to-understand constitution that promotes advanced democracy and guarantees freedoms and basic rights. Touting the government’s efforts to date to improve women’s rights in Turkey, Erdogan said the new constitution will also guarantee women’s rights, as well as do more to protect families. The current Constitution provides protection for families but this should be more concrete, he added. /Sabah/

PM ERDOGAN TO LAY GROUNDWORK FOR TURKISH-SYRIAN FRIENDSHIP DAM

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is slated to break ground for a friendship dam that Turkey and Syria recently agreed to jointly construct. Erdogan will visit Syria late this month to attend, along with his Syrian counterpart Muhammed Naji al-Otri, the groundbreaking ceremony for a planned dam over the Orontes (Asi) River, which originates in Syria and flows through Turkey’s border province of Hatay before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. When it goes into operation, the dam will generate 16 million kwh electricity annually. /Star/

ERDOGAN: "TURKEY AND QATAR ARE LIKE BROTHERS"

Turkey and Qatar have become brothers, and will live as brothers and sisters, said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Doha yesterday. Speaking to the Turkey-Qatar Business Forum, he said that there are no political problems between the two countries. "We are paying a visit to Qatar, the shining star of the Middle East, with around 500 businessmen and several government ministers," he added. "In time, such meetings will yield fruit." He also said, "When we consider Qatar’s $180 billion investment target over the next five years, the participation of Turkish businessmen in this is important. Qatar will make serious investments, as it is set to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup." /Aksam/

BABACAN: "A FINANCIALLY STRONGER ISTANBUL IMPLIES A STRONGER ANKARA"

Istanbul should emerge as a financial hub not only for Turkey but also for the world, said Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy Ali Babacan yesterday. Speaking to Parliament’s Planning and Budget Commission, Babacan said a financially stronger Istanbul will also strengthen Ankara. Asked about the government’s plans to move the headquarters of some economy- and finance-related state institutions such as the Central Bank to Istanbul, Babacan said, "Considered in terms of financial activity and economic investment, Istanbul is Turkey’s most active city. We want to see Istanbul not only as a nationwide but also as a region-wide and worldwide financial center." If Turkey wants to attract the world to Istanbul, it must first show that we believe in Istanbul, Babacan said, adding that an Istanbul with stronger economic power will also add to Ankara’s strength. "Turkey growing stronger will make the capital more powerful both at home and abroad," he concluded. /Turkiye/

DISAPPOINTED BY MERKEL’S CYPRUS REMARKS, ANKARA CALLS FOR FAIRNESS

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s recent statements accusing Ankara of failing to work to resolve the Cyprus problem were a serious letdown, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said yesterday. "Ms Merkel’s latest statements caused serious disappointment on our part," he told a press conference in Ankara. "If Ms. Merkel and Germany work for peace on the Cyprus issue, we will always support this, but they should first take an objective approach to the parties concerned." During a five-hour visit to Greek Cyprus on Tuesday, Merkel claimed that Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots had not done enough to reach a deal on the island. Her criticism also received a prompt response from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "I guess Ms. Merkel has forgotten … (that she) said it was wrong to admit Greek Cyprus into the European Union" before a resolution on Cyprus, Erdogan said in Qatar. "But now she pays a visit to the Greek Cypriot administration and makes such a statement. It is also clear that she does not know the history of the Cyprus issue" Asked to comment on Merkel’s views, Davutoglu started by saying that Germany is one of Turkey’s key allies. "Positive initiatives taken over the last two years have come from the Turkish side," he added. "If Ms. Merkel had talked to the two parties, she would not be making one-sided statements." /Hurriyet Daily News/

TURKEY URGES UNITY IN LEBANON

Alarmed at prospects of political instability in Lebanon, which would have regional implications, Ankara yesterday called on Lebanon to keep its unified government. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, while on an official visit to Qatar, discussed the developments in Lebanon with Syrian President Bashar Assad during a telephone conversation late on Tuesday. "The parties in Lebanon are invited to consider general interests, to embrace a constructive and responsible method of dialogue, to avoid protests and withdrawal from the government, and to remain committed to the Doha and Taif accords, which are assurances of Lebanon’s unity, security and stability," Erdogan and Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor said in a joint statement released yesterday. In Ankara, the Saudi and Turkish foreign ministers both warned that the prospect of political instability poses a "great danger" for Lebanon and the region. "If the government resignations materialize, if there is a split... this may lead to a conflict... and this poses a great danger," Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. "Lebanon may face the problems it faced before, and this will affect countries in the region." /Today’s Zaman/

TURKISH CITIZENS ABROAD SEEK GREATER ROLE IN TURKEY’S POLITICS

Pointing to more than 2.5 million Turkish voters in Europe, a new report by a civil society organization in Germany is calling for legal changes to allow these citizens to be represented in Turkish politics directly in Parliament. In 2007 only 110,000 of these people used their right to vote, since polling stations are not available at embassies or consulates, and they have to travel to customs points at Turkey’s borders. Turkish citizens living abroad are seeking a greater role in the politics of their home country, calling for changes that would make it easier for them to vote and even elect their own representatives to Parliament. "There are 2.44 million Turkish citizens living in Europe who are eligible to vote, but only 110,000 of them were able to vote in Turkey’s 2007 general election," said Professor Faruk Sen, head of the Turkish-German Education and Scientific Research Foundation (TAVAK). Currently Turkish citizens living abroad have to travel to a Turkish border customs checkpoint border 90 days before an election and cast their vote there, rather than being able to vote at their embassies or consulates, as citizens of many other countries can do. /Hurriyet Daily News/

US HISTORIAN: "MILLIONS OF TURKS SUFFERED DURING THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE’S COLLAPSE"

A map prepared by Justin McCarthy, professor of history at the University of Louisville in the United States, shows that the breakup of the Ottoman Empire set thousands upon thousands of forlorn refugees on the move – including Ottoman Muslims. Since most Western histories of this era focus only on the Christians who suffered, the Washington-based Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) has published an annotated map showing the travels of 5 million Ottoman Muslims who were displaced from the Balkans, the Caucasus, and Crimea from 1770 to 1923. The map also records and provides historical context for the 5 million Ottoman Muslims who died from 1864 to 1922 in wars that were fought to dismantle the Ottoman Empire. "The peoples of the Ottoman Empire suffered some of the worst disasters in history," said McCarthy. "They were forced from their lands – never to return – and died in great numbers. All groups suffered, but those who suffered most were the Muslims, especially the Turks. I hope that this map will demonstrate the disastrous fate of all those peoples." /Today’s Zaman/

TOP MERRILL LYNCH ECONOMIST: "TURKEY DESERVES A BETTER CREDIT RATING"

Merrill Lynch, a subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation, is expecting credit agencies to upgrade Turkey’s credit rating this year, said the chief economist at the US-based group. An upgrade would take the country’s macro transformation "to the next level," Turker Hamzaoglu told a press conference in Istanbul yesterday. "Turkey already deserves an upgrade to investment grade." He added that that Turkey’s cyclical recovery has proven to be strong so far. "Macro fundamentals have improved relative to its peers," he said. "This year will be a graduation year for Turkey after completing crucial reforms. We expect the increase in gross domestic product at year’s-end to stand at around 5.3 percent." /Hurriyet Daily News/

THY SET TO OVERTAKE BRITISH AIRWAYS TO BECOME EUROPE’S THIRD-BIGGEST AIRLINE

Outdoing a number of leading European airlines, including Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, with its strong performance in recent years, state-run Turkish Airlines (THY) is now vying with British Airways to become Europe’s third-biggest airline, with its CEO Temel Kotil seeing that goal possibly within reach this year. Touting THY’s new Curioz Children’s Club at the international terminal of Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport to the media, Kotil yesterday said THY carried 29.4 million passengers last year, and set a goal of 34-35 million passengers this year to retain THY’s recent growth trend. On THY’s ambitions to become Europe’s number three air carrier this year, he said, "Last year there was a head-to-head competition between THY and its British rival. But THY will probably triumph in this rivalry this year, because THY has remarkably expanded its aircraft fleet. There is no such expansion in British Airways’ fleet. We also perform very well in on-time departures, with 86 percent of our planes taking off on time." /Aksam/