Prime Minister Ecevit Responds Question

ANKARA (A.A) - 06.08.2002 - Prime Minister and leader of the Democratic Left Party (DSP) leader Bulent Ecevit said on Tuesday that attitude of State Minister for Economy Kemal Dervis in setting up dialogue with the other parties created uneasiness in DSP, stressing that, ''the reason of the statement of Emrehan Halici was the reactions coming from the organization.''
Ecevit said, ''attitude of State Minister responsible for Treasury in daring to give a direction to politics during election campaign can not be accepted. Mr. Dervis will find a solution for this.''
Ecevit responded to the questions in a live tv broadcast in CNN Turk.
Question: What lied behind the statement of Mr. Halici?
Ecevit: The duty of Mr. Dervis was related with contributing to Turkey's economy, not with entering the politics much. He had undertaken this mission. He really worked well. However, recently he began to be interested in the politics much. Meanwhile, he brought onto agenda that there is an uncertainty in Turkey. While saying economy and politics should not be confused, he began to confuse them. Although he is not a party member, he is a member of the government and a member of an important position. Despite this, he intensely set up dialogue with other parties. This disturbed our organization. The main reason of the statement of Mr. Halici was the reaction coming from our organization.''
Question: Did this disturb you also?
Ecevit: Of course it did. Particularly the reaction coming from the party members and the organization came to a point that we could not endure. I hope he will change his attitude soon.
Question: Mr. Halici had held another news conference earlier. He stated that Husamettin Ozkan did not give necessary response to the accusations that were made to you and the party. Ozkan's resignation followed this. Now that Halici criticized Dervis. Can this be considered as Mr. Ecevit invited Mr. Dervis to resignation?
Ecevit: Everybody interprets it however he likes. It is not necessary for me to say much. However, he can not continue like this. Mr. Dervis should understand this.
Question: Will there be any drawbacks if Mr. Dervis changes attitude against the criticisms, reduce his political activities and continue his mission as State Minister responsible for economy?
Ecevit: We don't have any objection against Dervis's personality. He is a very respectable person. The important thing is that Dervis should assume an attitude that is appropriate to his position soon because election campaigns started. It is unacceptable that State Minister responsible for Treasury visits the provinces and dares to give direction to politics. Mr. Dervis should find a solution for this.''
Question: If Mr. Dervis says he was pleased with his situation, will this lead to dismissal?
Ecevit: I don't focus on assumptions. The important thing is that Halici stated why we felt uneasy. If Mr. Dervis wants, he can find a solution for all those. Dervis can find a solution to this if he wants. He can harmonize his attitude with the party requirements.''
Question: Mr. Dervis also put forward a policy model, he speaks about a project. Mr. Dervis launches a political activity. Is you complaint about his inclusion in an action opposing DSP. Do you say ''either join the YTP or stay in the government'' to Dervis?
Ecevit: Yes, we want him to make this decision.
Question: Either to stay in the government or in DSP?
Ecevit: He is not a member of the DSP. However, we can not accept his contributions to another party.
Question: You have invited him to DSP a while ago and asked him to work together. Something may have happened to cut the ties.
Ecevit: May be some high level circles in Turkey deceived Dervis in political means. They have settled in him the idea that he could give a direction to Turkish politics. However, politics is not so easy. A person will appear, bring many parties together, and give a direction to the course of the country by himself, this is not possible in political life.
Question: Is this a dream?
Ecevit: I should say this much.
Question: I suppose you don't find the project of Mr. Dervis as realistic.
Ecevit: I couldn't understand what that project is. Nobody understood that either. He proposes people from all sections and political ideas to come together. Then what is the meaning of the multiparty politics? For instance, New Turkey Party (YTP) could not define their party. The general secretary of the party told that YTP was not leftist. Nobody within that party who was proud of being democratic leftist to that date could not oppose to him. This shows that they are a group of people who want to do politics not on concrete basis and they don't have supporters. Some of our deputies resigned from our party, but they don't have any basis in the society. They don't have any organization. In that respect, I don't think that Mr. Dervis will achieve any goals with such a party, which could not even put the word of party in its name so easily.
Question: Mr. Cem and Mr. Ozkan have been the ministers from the Democratic Left Party (DSP) for a long time. What was the reason of this resignation?
Ecevit: Certain circles disseminated claims for a long time that I was very ill. In fact, I was not ill until a short time ago. However, I became sick in the middle of summer which passed in a short time. I had to rest for a while in bed. After that, those who carried out this campaign against me, started to think that Ecevit had ended his mission. I suppose our friends who resigned from DSP thought that ''as there is no more Ecevit from now on, we should follow another path. In fact, their resignation was not logical or had any ideological basis. Their resignation didn't have a concrete reason. They only gave up hope about me. They also gave up hope about the party.
Question: Some people defend the view that if Ecevit had made such a regulation in the party and announced the names of Mr. Cem, Mr. Ozkan and Mr. Dervis as ministers who had responsibility after himself, this division in the party would not take place. Was this expected from you?
Ecevit: I will naturally withdraw from politics after a period of time. I also mentioned that. As I said, they gave up hope about the party. This is sad because there was no need to give up hope. I think that DSP is still the most consistent party of Turkey. The talent of DSP to ensure harmony during the 57th government and its contributions led to positive developments in Turkey.
Question: Has there been any suggestions to you proposing you to be come the honorary leader of the party?
Ecevit: No, none of my friends in the party proposed me to withdraw.
Question: You told that if the elections was held at its regular time, you would put into practice a transition project. Were you thinking of Mr. Cem and Mr. Ozkan as names for this project if they were patient.
Ecevit: Maybe. Everybody could have taken place in that project. In fact, the problem is not my problem. DSP is a party which we founded by making great sacrifices. This party can't be used up in such a way.
Question: Do you think the divisions in the party would stop if you accepted to hold congress when the nine DSP deputies proposed you to do so?
Ecevit: When this was voiced, the decision to hold early elections was almost on the agenda. It was not possible to hold a congress when early elections was on the agenda. This can take place after the elections.
Question: Couldn't you stop such a division in the party by holding the congress earlier?
Ecevit: There were no signs and reasons of such a division.
Question: We are having early elections soon. Won't you be prime minister candidate after the elections?
Ecevit: I don't want to talk about the things that will take place after the elections. We will see.
Question: IMF will have a meeting tomorrow. Will it be your expectation for Dervis to make a decision at least till weekend?
Ecevit: I said I thought like this. We have not talked something like this weekend. The patience of our party members has exhausted because of the attitude of Dervis. We could not wait for a date, the time has come for a warning, a reminder. This has nothing to do with the IMF meeting''
Question: Is it true that Dervis caused this uncertainty as Emrehan Halici stated?
Ecevit: People from different sections contributed to this. This has a separate influence.
Question: You seem to remove the Dervis problem at this speech
Ecevit: In what sense?
Question: Like your roads have separated, and that he should make a decision.
Ecevit: It depends on Mr. Dervis.
Question: DSP and CHP will enter elections. There is also YTP. Mr. Dervis says he would act together with this action. May be he will enter politics from there. Three parties will enter elections from the left. You have stated some concerns about the results of elections. Particularly that AK Party seemed as the first party, and you saw as an handicap HADEP's reaching a process that may pass threshold. Also three leftist parties will enter elections. May be there will be the problem of threshold in the left. What kind of result are you expecting in this case? In case a parliament without left is formed, what kind of a problem this will bring for Turkey?
Ecevit: I feel very uneasy over the formation which gradually began to appear in political life of Turkey recently. That is fundamentalist and separatist sections began to be influential in Turkish politics. I see that they are trying to make themselves adopted by putting forward the allegation that they changed. They could have changed, and I would very sincerely want this. However, this had to be experienced in time. If separatist and fundamentalist movements strengthen as a result of the elections, this will bring very big difficulties for Turkey.''
I feel regret that most of the sections of the society, media and other parties keep silent against this danger. They seem to disregard this danger. This really makes me concerned. In fact, Turkish society has sections which are very sensitive on those issues. However, there is an atmosphere as if it is inappropriate to talk about those issues. I will focus on this in the election campaign, and I hope to get a result.''
Question: Alliance is under discussion as if it is a solution against this development. Alliance is put forward as a formula to set up an election center against AK Party's coming out as the first party from the elections. There is a new view which tries to bring all the parties to election by making alliance against AK Party. Do you regard this as a solution?
Ecevit: Parties which are not big and important may come together and set up alliances. However, although DSP does not have a strict ideology, it is very faithful to its ideology. We have never been close to attitudes that would mean Alliance. We will lose most of our voters if we prefer this way.''
Question: You say you are close to alliances?
Ecevit: We have been close to alliances from the beginning.
Question: Yesterday, ANAP leader Yilmaz said they were ready to make alliance with the DSP.
Ecevit: Election takes place, government will be founded, and dialogue and coalition among parties will follow this. We have earlier done this, and it was very successful. Coalition governments are widespread in European countries and Scandinavian countries. During the period of the 57th government, a very successful coalition government was founded. The parties may come together after the elections. What we have to do, and what we have decided to do is to attract the attention of the public to this danger. In fact, the public is terribly sensitive on such threats. They don't want Turkey to have problem. We have to give warning signals in this respect, and I have started to do this.''
Question: About AK Party and HADEP, you said they may disrupt stability. Your statements were regarded as strange saying that this was not a democratic approach, and that those should be fought with laws. They said Ecevit denies his own democratic past.
Ecevit: On the contrary, while I was starting this campaign, I said we would carry out this fighting without deviating from democracy. In the past, I always defended the rights of the sections which I criticized and considered as danger. This is the requirement of democracy. If there is a danger, I will of course warn the public about this danger. However, I have never made a suggestion so far to close this or that party, or imprison this or that politician.