These are some of the major headlines and their brief stories in Turkey's press on February 1, 2002. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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IT'S ENOUGH, BELGIUM!
Belgium which has been harboring terrorists and has not yet extradited murderer Fehriye Erdal to Turkey, now sent three of its parliamentarians to terrorist PKK organization's successor head terrorist Osman Ocalan. Belgian parliamentarians Ferdy Willems and Vincent Van Quickenborne and another one who has not been identified toured Northern Iraq between January 6 and January 10 and met with PKK's current head terrorist Osman Ocalan. These three parliamentarians, who do not pay attention to opening of a joint front against terrorism, of Belgium which leads the countries which are ''tolerant'' towards terrorist organizations, went to Northern Iraq via Iran and met with Abdullah Ocalan's brother Osman Ocalan on January 10. They were accompanied by also two Belgian journalists and Dervis Faro from the Kurdish Institute. These parliamentarians are members of Belgian ''Volks Uni'' (VU) party which defends independence of Flaman region and foundation of two separate states in Belgium. Belgium's ''soft'' attitude towards terrorist organizations created tension in relations between Ankara and Brussels lastly with the issue of assassin Fehriye Erdal.
TURKISH TANKS TO ENTER BAGHDAD
New York Times columnist William Safire claimed that Turkish tank brigades and the U.S. special forces would enter Baghdad in an operation targeting to overthrow Saddam Hussein in Iraq.
THEY USE AL-AJYAD FORTRESS AS DUMP
48-year-old Recep Yildirim who worked as an ambulance driver at the Turkish Hospital in Mecca secretly took photographs in 1997 of the Al-Ajyad Fortress which was constructed by the Ottomans in 1600s to protect the Kaaba and demolished by Saudi Arabians a few weeks ago to build a hotel. These photographs show that the fortress was being used as a dump and left to its destiny. Recep Yildirim said, ''I saw that they used the doors as a shooting target. The Ottoman sultan's signatures inscribed on the walls were dismantled. Inside of the fortress was full of dirt and garbage.''
MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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TSUNAMI FAULT LINE IN SOUTHERN MARMARA
Prof. Celal Sengor will drive away sleepiness of residents of Northern Marmara region with his statements about tsunami. Prof. Sengor said, ''it has been determined that the main fault line in Marmara Sea is single. However, there are fault lines in the south of the main fault line and they can cause earthquakes measuring more than 7 on the Richter scale. These fault lines can also cause tsunami. They are between Cinarcik and Armutlu.''
DERVIS SAYS 1 U.S. DOLLER MUST BE 1,400 THOUSAND TURKISH LIRAS
Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) Chairman Oguz Satici said that U.S. dollar should absolutely come to its real place and that State Minister Kemal Dervis had given the necessary message. Responding a question about his meeting with Dervis during a cocktail party held on the occassion of start of publishing of TIM's Turkishtime magazine, Satici said, ''Mr. Dervis mentioned two points: Those who play with foreign exchange at high or low currency will suffer damages. To me, one U.S. dollars should be about 1 million 400 thousand Turkish liras and later it should fluctuate according to the inflation rate. Besides, such a valued Turkish lira can create problems for us from time to time.''
OBSTACLES WITH IMF SMOOTHED AWAY
Obstacles in front of a new stand-by deal with the IMF which will also cover a fresh loan of 10 billion U.S. dollars in 2002 were smoothed away. IMF officials said that they had received ''positive'' news about the arrangement on the restructuring of state banks following after President Ahmat Necdet Sezer had ratified the Banking Law's three articles which he had earlier vetoed. Speaking to the newspaper, an IMF official said, ''an official statement has not been made yet but this second obstacle had been removed''. IMF Spokesman Conny Lotze said that the IMF Board which was expected to approve new deal with Turkey and 10 billion U.S. dollars of loan to Turkey would convene on February 4.
SABAH (LIBERAL)
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Second shocking decision against Uzan family after the United States: precautionary measure was put on businessman Cem Uzan's five-storey business center, luxury residence and bank accounts in London. The case filed by Motorola and Nokia at the New York State Court on charges of ''mob'' acitivities gained an international dimension. Upon request of U.S. judge Rakoff, Britain put precautionary measure on Uzan family's properties in this country. Both of the immovable assets on which the London High Court put precautionary measure due to the 2.7 billion U.S. dollars case belong to Cem Uzan. One of them is a five-storey business place near Oxford Street in London and the other is a luxury residence in the city-center. Precautionary measure was put also on many accounts of Uzan family at British banks. These accounts cannot be used until the case in the United States in finalized.
WHY DID RUSSIANS EXPEL OCALAN?
Head of terrorist PKK organization Abdullah Ocalan proceeded from Athens to Moscow. The CIA, MOSSAD, National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and Egyptian Intelligence Department have been pursuing him since he left Damascus. As his mobile phone had never been closed, his place was determined immediately. Moscow got into a difficult situation. Russian Prime Minister Primakov said, ''the natural gas agreement with Turkey is more important than him'' and showed the door to Ocalan. Later, Ocalan remembered Italian Prime Minister d'Alema and Italian parliamentarians who had visited him in Damascus. Ocalan decided to go to Italy. His escape to Italy started, but with the password: ''as a guest''.
CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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D'ALEMA PLAYS BOTH ENDS AGAINST MIDDLE
Claims which were put forward since Abdullah Ocalan stepped on Italy are becoming concrete. Former Italian prime minister Massimo d'Alema cannot deny that he had responsibility for bringing of Ocalan to Italy. He only says that those claims were ''explicit''.
KURDISH EDUCATION OBJECTIONABLE
French Senator Michel Pelchat said that Turkey's concerns about Kurdish were comprehensible. Stressing that the Republic had a national language, Pelchat said that Kurdish education could strengthen separatism.
''PEACE IS VERY IMPORTANT''
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit met with Rights and Freedoms Movement (HOH) leader Ahmet Dogan in Bulgaria. Ecevit said that peace in the Balkans was very important. Dogan said that Turkish businessmen became very late regarding investment in Bulgaria.
RADIKAL (LEFT)
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HE VIOLATES HIS 159
What Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli had said while responding to criticisms, violates Article 159 of the Turkish Penal Code which he is defending: Insulting the Prime Minister, his deputy and the Justice Minister. Bahceli referred to those who criticized their position toward articles 312 and 159 and Article 8 of the Anti-Terrorism Law with descriptive adjectives like ''worthless, aggressive and outworn''. However, if 159 is legalized unchanged, these expressions will be considered offense as they target the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister.
AND THIS IS DECREE CRISIS
The coalition government could not reach an agreement on four strategic decrees including transparency and influential management. These decrees should be approved until February 4 when the IMF will discuss the stand-by and 12 billion U.S. dollars loan. MHP raised objections against three decrees about transparent and influential management, measures to draw foreign capital and banking and personnel regime. Meanwhile, the decree which includes tax strategy is going to be renewed.
TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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CRISIS OF 312
Adjustment laws destroyed the harmony between MHP and the Motherland Party (ANAP). MHP leader Bahceli criticized ANAP leader Mesut Yilmaz: ''It is thought-provoking that those who have not contributed to our democratic culture for long years are now acting as disciples of democracy. Those who have outworn ideas and want amendment to Article 312 have set up a holy alliance against the MHP.'' Meanwhile, Yilmaz said, ''I don't want to be a part of this polemics. But Article 312 should absolutely be changed. This is wanted by the EU.''
''IT IS A SENSITIVE ISSUE BUT WE WILL SOLVE IT''
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit said about Article 312 which created crisis between MHP and ANAP, ''we will smooth away also this obstacle through compromise.''
SEZER RATIFIES BANKING
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer ratified the Banking Law which he had earlier vetoed and sent it to the Prime Ministry for its publishing in the Official Gazette.
ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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BAHCELI SPEAKS HARSHLY, ADJUSTMENT POSTPONED TO MARCH
Discussion of adjustment laws which created polemics between coalition government partners MHP and ANAP was postponed to March 2002. With this decision, the tension between MHP and ANAP was frozen.
SOLDIERS RELIEVE MPS' FEAR OF DIVISION
The path in front of the U.N. Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Convention which Turkey promised to sign during its process of EU membership was opened. The General Staff and Foreign Ministry persuaded the parliamentarians who had the concern that ''Turkey is divided if we approve this convention''. The first article of the convention includes the sentence which says ''all nations have the right to determine their destiny''.