TURKEY SHOULD NOT BE FULL OR PRIVILEGED EU MEMBER
By Nilgun Gulcan (U.S.A.K.)

Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
Dec 8 2006

The European Union leaders have been playing very dirty games with
Turkey. There is no criteria for Turkey’s membership. They are changing
the main principles when Turkey has fulfilled those which required
by the EU. The Brussels asks Turkey such a democracy and economy
which the current members do not have got. However Turkey shows great
efforts to catch the asked criteria. Turkey’s democracy and economy
are better than the new comers, namely Bulgaria and Romania. Turkey
has better human rights record than many EU countries. However talks
with Turkey is in danger. Why? What happened?

– Has Turkish economy collapsed?

– No. Turkish economy has boomed. The growth rate is among the
fastest economies.

– Has Turkey’s democracy have any difficulties?

– No. Tayyip Erdogan is the strongest civilian Prime Minister in
Turkish political history.

– Are the minorities under governmental pressure?

– No. All the minority schools, newspapers, societies, churches, etc.

are open and freely service to their people.

The only problem is Cyprus. Actually, the Southern Cyprus – Greek
Cyprus. The Republic of Cyprus was established as a Turkish and Greek
Cyprus. However The Greeks made a military coup, and occupied all
the seats assigned to the Turkish Cypriots by the Constitution. Many
Turks were massacred and many more were tortured. If Turkey did not
intervene the clashes, there have been no Turkish Cypriot on the
island. The Cyprus Issue would have been another Bosnia or Kosova
story. In another word, Turkey’s only crime is to save the Turkish
Cypriots from a massacre. Although the aggressive side was the Greeks
and they aimed to annex the whole island to the Greece motherland,
the European Union (Community) punished the Turkish Cypriots and
Turkey. When the Greeks usurped all legal and political rights
granted by Cyprus Constitution and when the Greeks seized all of the
Turkish properties (houses, lands etc.) without legitimate authority,
Turkish Cypriots established their own state: The Turkish Republic of
Northern Cyprus (TRNC). They had no chance but the TRNC, because they
were not able to pass the border. They could not become civil servant
in the south; they could not sell or use their own territories etc.

Strangely the TRNC was recognized by only Turkey. The Southern Greek
Cyprus was recognized by the West as the only legitimate body on
the island. Naturally the Turkish people saw this unjust attitude
as religious solidarity. Christian West was supporting the Christian
Greeks despite of their crimes in the Cyprus Issue. The European Union,
under the pressure from Greece, imposed a severe isolation.

Now the Turkish Cypriots cannot make trade, cannot directly fly
to any country, and even they cannot post a letter to any European
country. In another word, they were the victims, and they have been
punished. In 2004, the United Nations proposed a peace plan (Annan
Plan). The EU leaders promised Turkey and the TRNC that all isolation
would be ended if the Turkish side supports the Annan Plan. The EU
also warned that those who say ‘no’ to the Plan would be punished.

Turkish Cypriots strongly supported the plan and re-unification of
the island. However the Greeks strongly rejected the Annan Plan.

Papadapulos, leader of the Greek side, said "we do not want to lose
our state for re-unification". Strangely against, the EU did not keep
its own word. Not only the EU, but also the US did also not keep its
promise. Thus the Christian Cypriots were accepted as full member of
the European Union, while the Muslim Cypriots were left outside. The
severe isolation continues on the Turkish Cypriots, and the Greek
Cypriots are enjoying the EU full membership. The Greek Cypriots have
been doing anything possible to prevent Turkey’s EU membership talks.

They create problems, they reject anything positive for Turkey etc.

The Greeks do not want to make any negotiation to solve the Cyprus
Problem, because they have no problem to make compromise. They think
that it is a matter of time, and Turkey will have to give up in
insisting a just solution in Cyprus. According to the Greek side,
Turkey will not back the Turkish Cypriots for EU membership. This
is a clear blackmail. The Greek Cyprus with Greece halt Turkey’s
EU membership.

What is not understandable is that France, Germany and Austria leaders
allow the Greeks playing dirty games because Chirac and Merkel are
also against Turkey’s membership. According to them, Turkey is a Muslim
country and not belongs to the ‘Christian European’ civilization. They
cannot find any excuse for their anti-Turkey policies and therefore
they back the Greeks. They all know that Turkey’s EU membership and the
Cyprus issue are separate issues. However they play domestic Christian
and even racist politics at the EU level. Chirac and Merkel divide
the European continent as ‘Christian’ and ‘Muslim’ one. They ignore
more than 100 million Muslim Europeans. For Chirac, the 600.000-Greek
Cyprus is more important than 75 million-Turkey, because Chirac wants
the religious French, Armenian and Greek votes in France.

Turkey on the other hand offers new options to the EU. Mr. Erdogan
makes efforts to solve the Cyprus problem. He has made a lot of
compromises. However he has to understand that the EU does not want
any solution for neither Cyprus Problem, nor Turkey’s EU membership.

The Dark Ages understanding dominates the EU, and Turkey will never
able to satisfy the EU by making compromises. Turkey should stop all
this comedy, and clearly say a ‘NO’ to the European Union. We the
Turks do not need the full, half or privileged EU membership.

ONE DISASTER AND LOTS OF ADVICE
By Orhan Bursali

Anatolian Times, Turkey
Dec 8 2006

CUMHURIYET- EU policy has come to a halt. Both conservative EU
states and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) have halted
relations. The EU is following a long-term strategy to block Turkey’s
EU membership. The first county they used for this purpose was Greece,
followed by the Greek Cypriots. The strategy was determined by letting
the Greek Cypriots into the EU ranks despite their problems. The
strategy was clear: Turkey would be forced to give into every request
by Greece and the Greek Cypriots. This wasn’t enough, because other
issues were waiting after Turkey gives up its rights in the Aegean
Sea and leaves Cyprus: the Kurdish and Armenian questions, etc. This
strategy bore fruit in the first obstacle: You’re not implementing the
additional protocol? Then you’ll pay. So it’s clear what next week’s EU
summit will bring. The US and some EU countries are trying to prevent
this recommendation from going in effect, but nothing will change. When
could they change? When the EU starts to believe that it can’t continue
without Turkey. There’s no prospect of this on the horizon.

And why has the AKP cooled its relations? It thought it could get
EU support for its cause of wearing headscarves in public places and
fundamentalism under the guise of human rights. But it didn’t happen.

What did the AKP not do? It didn’t immediately appoint a chief
negotiator. State Minister Ali Babacan was appointed to his chief
EU negotiator post six months late. And lastly, the EU only made
a declaration that it would lift the embargo against the Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus, but never applied it.

One disaster has created a common ground for a discussion on what to
do. Not for EU membership, but for developments without the EU.

GEORGIAN HIP HOP: CREATING A BEAT FOR THE CAUCASUS

EurasiaNet, NY
Dec 8 2006

A EurasiaNet Photo Story: Text by Paul Rimple. Photos by Sophia Mizante

Since its debut in the early 1990s as underground music, rap has
become a leading mainstream genre for Georgia, a country better known
for the intricate melodies of polyphonic choirs than the pulsating
rhythms of the hip-hop beat.

Yet while cynics may question the concept of a distinctly Georgian
hip hop, the motivation driving the phenomenon is simple: A person
doesn’t need much money or resources to rhyme.

"I came from the Kutaisi streets and performed on the same streets in
1990," said 35-year-old Shavi Prinsi (Black Prince), the country’s
undisputed eldest hip-hopper and one of its biggest stars. Kutaisi
is an industrial town of about 186,000 in western Georgia that ranks
as one of the country’s rap centers. "All I had was a microphone and
boom box."

It was after hearing Public Enemy’s song "Can’t Trust It" that Shavi
Prinsi got hooked on hip-hop rhythm and taught himself how to dance
by watching music videos. "Sure, I don’t understand English well, but
I can feel the music and what they are trying to say. I understand the
general meaning," said Prinsi, a one-time piano and drums student whose
songs generally advocate the use of marijuana and cover what he calls
"everyday stuff." "People love rap because the rhythm is catchy –
they can dance to it."

But Georgian rappers insist their music does not just imitate the
sounds born in New York’s South Bronx. "Look, we’ve lived through
communism and experienced war on our streets," commented 30-year-old
Tbilisi rapper Bedina. "We are against war, against drugs. If you
need bread, there are better ways of getting it than by selling drugs."

Bedina’s own songs reflect his experience as a "street boy" in
Georgia’s turbulent 1990s, his five years in prison for weapons’
possession and his life since he has been released. "Prinsi is from
the sunny west side – green, clean air," commented Bedina. "I’m from
asphalt, the blocks."

Unlike other parts of the world where open antagonism exists
between rappers, Georgian rappers say solidarity characterizes their
community. Accent, tempo and phrasing of lyrics make up the only
difference between rap styles in Kutaisi and Tbilisi, the country’s
two rap capitals, Shavi Prinsi explains. Rappers from both cities
often perform together.

Bedina attributes the trait to the Georgian mentality. "We like to
make friends with people," he said. By comparison with the American
rap scene, he continued, "[t]here’s more justice in our approach."

No rivalry over mega-sized salaries, either. Unlike the West, where
stardom is reflected in the income made from record sales, Georgian
rappers and musicians in general do not make a substantial income
from the sale of records. Musicians are not paid royalties every time
their song is played on the air. Instead, the main source of income
comes from performing in concerts. Recognition comes from video clips
broadcast on a local music television station, which asks viewers to
SMS or call in to vote for their favorite clip.

Some clips are made on budgets as low as 100 lari (about $55).

Nonetheless, despite the financial limitations, they can exhibit a
high level of direction and production.

Tbilisi rapper Bedina puts it down to an evolution in the packaging
of Georgian rap. "You know, in 2002, Georgian show business really
developed, but rappers weren’t invited to many concerts," he said.

"Then we realized we should create melodic music videos with lots of
dancing girls for mass consumption."

The western fashion of music business paid off. Rap’s popularity
instantly shot up. In 2003, Armenian DVD and CD distributor David
Arutunov organized the country’s first rap festival in Tbilisi. More
and more young people adopted hip-hop fashion, while small groups
of break dancers formed. Graffiti glorifying American rapper Tu-Pac
popped up all over walls of Georgia’s cities.

The popularity of home-grown rap, however, may have peaked. A lack
of sponsors has kept Arutunov from organizing another festival.

Tbilisi radio station disc jockey Ramaz Khatiashvili associates the
drop in popularity with Georgian’s current fascination with western
pop music. "Rap isn’t as popular as it was a couple years ago,"
Khatiashvili said. "Georgians aren’t listening to anything Georgian.

They prefer American or English music now."

Bedina admits there has been a lack of commercial interest. "I haven’t
been on TV lately, maybe because television is opposed to art, or
people are just tired of hearing about their problems."

However, a strong fan base persists, predominately with teenagers. On
November 27, despite freezing temperatures, the Soviet-era House of
Culture in Gori, a small regional center not far from the breakaway
region of South Ossetia, was packed to capacity for a variety show
featuring pop singers, dancers and many rappers.

So long as hip hop artists identify with those fans’ needs, performers
say, the future of Georgian rap is secure. Commented Bedina:
"Our people relate to our texts because we sing about our common
problems. We sing about the street."

Editor’s Note: Paul Rimple is a freelance writer based in Tbilisi.

Sophia Mizante is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.

COURT AGREES TO START PROCEEDINGS AGAINST HOSPITALIZED EX-SENATOR -1

RIA Novosti, Russia
Dec 8 2006

MOSCOW, December 8 (RIA Novosti) – Russia’s Supreme Court has agreed to
launch criminal proceedings in absentia against former senator Levon
Chakhmakhchyan, currently in hospital, a RIA Novosti correspondent
reported Friday.

The court accepted fraud charges against Chakhmakhchyan filed by the
Prosecutor General’s Office.

Chakhmakhchyan was dismissed from his post as deputy head of the
Federation Council’s committee for self-government after being caught
up in a bribery scandal. However, the former senator was immune from
prosecution, and was not arrested.

In a sting operation in June, FSB operatives found $300,000 in cash,
which had been previously marked with special ink, in the office of
the chief accountant of the Association of Russian-Armenian Business,
of which Chakhmakhchyan was vice president. The FSB alleged that the
funds had been taken as bribe money.

Prosecutors say Chakhmakhchyan formed an organized crime group to
extort funds from companies including air carrier Transaero.

Boris Kuznetsov, a lawyer for Chakhmakhchyan, said two suspects in the
case had so far been arrested. However, he said his client dismisses
all accusations as "absolute nonsense."

The lawyer also said he intended to appeal the Supreme Court’s decision
to start criminal proceedings against his client.

"I will appeal, so today’s decision will not come into force, and
the Prosecutor General’s Office will not be able to obtain an arrest
warrant for my client," the lawyer said.

When the scandal broke out in June, several MPs questioned the
legality of measures against Chakhmakhchyan and asked for a special
investigation into the case; however, 136 senators in parliament’s
upper house voted for Chakhmakhchyan’s dismissal.

Following a call from President Vladimir Putin in May for stronger
anti-corruption measures, several senior officials in the customs
and security services have been sacked.

TROJAN HORSE: ANKARA INFLUENCED DUTCH ELECTION RESULTS

Brussels Journal, Belgium
Dec 8 2006

>From the desk of Paul Belien on Fri, 2006-12-08 15:27

Yesterday evening, the Dutch television program Nova caused
considerable embarrassment in the Netherlands by revealing how the
Turkish government influenced last months’ Dutch general elections.

In an e-mail sent to thousands of ethnic Turks in the Netherlands
the Turkish Ministry of Religious Affairs called on them to vote for
Fatma Koser Kaya, a 38-year old woman whose family emigrated to the
Netherlands when she was six years old. Koser Kaya is a member of the
leftist "social-liberal" Democrats 66 (D66) party. On 22 November,
D66 lost three of its previous six seats in Parliament. Koser Kaya,
however, though only sixth on the list of D66 candidates, was
elected as one of the party’s three parliamentarians thanks to the
34,564 individual votes she got, possibly as a result of the Turkish
government’s interference.

Immigrants are known to overwhelmingly vote for candidates of their
own ethnic group. Since they have often not integrated in the country
where they have settled their loyalties lie with their countries
of origin. This has created a situation where the immigrants in
Western democracies become Trojan horses of foreign nationalism and
religious fanaticism. This phenomenon became apparent in this year’s
local elections in the Netherlands and in neighbouring Belgium. It
tipped the balance in favour of parties that put forward immigrant
candidates. At the same time, however, it worked to the disadvantage
of indigenous candidates on these parties’ lists, causing considerable
resentment among the latter.

In an e-mail, sent from a government address in Ankara, the Turks in
the Netherlands were asked to vote for Koser Kaya. The e-mail was
sent by Ali Alaybeyoglu, the advisor to Mehmet Aydin, the Turkish
minister of Religious Affairs. The first paragraph reads:

"We all realize that no-one can represent Turks better than Turks.

The Turkish community is threatened by assimilation. If we do not
unite and vote for a common candidate our position will only worsen
in future."

The e-mail lists five reasons why Turks should vote for Koser Kaya.

The most important one is the fact that D66 does not recognize the
Turkish genocide of the Armenians in 1915. The four other reasons
have to do with D66’s opposition to the policies of Rita Verdonk,
the Dutch minister of Integration.

The Armenian issue became a topic in the Dutch general elections when
the two leading parties in the country, the Christian-Democrats and
Labour, refused to put forward candidates of Turkish origin who did
not accept the party line that there was a genocide of the Armenians
in 1915. As a reaction Turkish lobby groups initiated a campaign
to urge Dutch voters of Turkish ancestry to boycott any party that
labels the 1915 mass killing of Armenians a genocide.

The e-mail from the Turkish ministry lists the Dutch parties and
points out why, apart from D66, they are not acceptable to Turks. The
Christian-Democrats and Labour are excluded because of their position
on the genocide, the Liberal Party VVD because it "is the party of
Verdonk and Hirsi Ali," the Animal Rights Party because it considers
"animals to be more important than Turks," and the Calvinist Party
because it "is preparing a new crusade."

Today, the Dutch ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted Ankara about
the affair. The Turkish Minister of Religious Affairs said he knows
nothing about an e-mail. Minister Aydin added that if this e-mail
had indeed been sent he strongly condemns it. "We do not interfere in
the internal politics of our friends," he said. Aydin’s collaborator
Alaybeyoglu, the man who allegedly sent the e-mail, said that several
people have access to his e-mail address. According to the Dutch
ministry the matter is still under investigation.

e/1739

DASHNAK LEADER WANTS CAUTIOUS LINE ON NATO
By Ruben Meloyan

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Dec 8 2006

Armenia should exercise caution in forging closer links with NATO
because of its strained relationship with alliance member Turkey,
a leader of the governing Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(Dashnaktsutyun) said on Friday.

Deputy parliament speaker Vahan Hovannisian claimed that Ankara has
long been acting against "Armenian national and state interests"
and may use NATO for that purpose.

"We have many unresolved issues with Turkey," he told an international
conference in Yerevan. "We must not let Turkey put those unresolved
problems on NATO’s shoulders. We don’t need that. We have a problem
with Turkey, not NATO."

Hovannisian and his nationalist party, a member of Armenia’s governing
coalition, regards Turkey as a grave threat to Armenia’s national
security. Dashnaktsutyun also takes the view that Turkish recognition
of the 1915 Armenian genocide must be the main prerequisite for
normalizing relations between the two nations.

President Robert Kocharian and his administration as a whole favor
a softer line, saying that Ankara should establish diplomatic
relations with Yerevan and open the Turkish-Armenian border without
any preconditions. But they share Dashnaktsutyun’s position, reaffirmed
by Hovannisian, that membership of NATO should not be on the Armenian
foreign policy agenda in the near future, despite growing public
support for it.

Yerevan is instead trying to step up cooperation with the U.S.-led
alliance under an "individual partnership action plan," or IPAP,
launched earlier this year. Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian discussed
the implementation of Armenia’s IPAP with NATO’s Secretary General
Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Brussels on Wednesday.

Speaking at the Yerevan conference, Oskanian’s deputy Arman Kirakosian
said closer ties with NATO will not only strengthen Armenia’s security
but also facilitate its "European integration."

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

RUSSIAN-ARMENIAN TYCOON LINKED WITH POLITICIAN’S BEATING
By Ruzanna Stepanian

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Dec 8 2006

The leader of a small pro-establishment party, which used to be
sponsored by Ara Abrahamian but is now at loggerheads with him,
claimed on Friday that the influential Russian-Armenian tycoon may
have been behind his alleged beating.

Harutiun Arakelian of the Ramkavar Azatakan Party of Armenia (HRAK)
said he was ambushed and beaten up by two unknown men outside his
office in central Yerevan on Thursday. The attackers fled the scene
after prompting an outcry from passers-by, according to him.

Police said they are investigating the allegations and could open a
criminal case.

The reported incident followed a bitter war of words between the HRAK
and Abrahamian, an Armenian-born Russian businessman who sponsored
the party’s unsuccessful participation in the last parliamentary
election. The row was in turn sparked by the HRAK’s decision last
month to pull out of Abrahamian’s Moscow-based World Congress of
Armenians. The Kremlin-connected tycoon publicly shrugged off the move,
claiming that he does not know who leads the party loyal to President
Robert Kocharian.

Asked by RFE/RL whether he believes Abrahamian ordered the alleged
assault, Arakelian said, "I don’t want to rule out anything. But I
don’t want to accuse anyone either." He argued that he lacks evidence
to directly implicate anyone.

KOCHARIAN AGAIN SLAMS ARMENIAN TAX COLLECTION
By Emil Danielyan

Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Dec 8 2006

President Robert Kocharian again lambasted Armenia’s tax and customs
authorities on Friday, saying that the amount of taxes collected
by them remains too low and "does not correspond to the existing
potential."

The criticism came at a special meeting between Kocharian and a group
of top officials, including Prime Minister Andranik Markarian, Finance
Minister Vartan Khachatrian and Central Bank chief Tigran Torosian. The
heads of the State Tax Service (STS) and the State Customs Committee
(SCC) were also in attendance.

"In the president’s words, some work has been done in the past few
years to improve the tax and customs administration, but it is still
far from being satisfactory," Kocharian’s office said in a statement.

The head of state was cited as demanding a "qualitative change" in
the work of his government’s two revenue collection agencies next year.

The Armenian budget for 2007, approved by parliament last week,
calls for an almost 16 percent increase in public spending which is
projected to total a record-high 558.7 billion drams ($1.51 billion).

This will require a corresponding rise in tax revenues, something
which was stressed by Kocharian during the meeting.

According to official data released by the Finance Ministry, the STS
and SCC collected 346 billion drams in combined revenues during the
first ten months of this year. This represents an almost 20 percent
rise from the same period in 2005, putting the government on track
to meet its 2006 budgetary targets.

Despite having grown steadily over the past decade, the tax revenues
are still worth less than 15 percent of Gross Domestic Product,
one of the lowest rates in the former Soviet Union highlighting the
scale of tax evasion in Armenia. Kocharian’s chief economic adviser,
Vahram Nercissiantz, has repeatedly singled out the disproportionately
low figure as a key economic challenge facing the country.

"It is evident that considering our robust economic growth, it should
have been possible to collect much more tax revenues," Nercissiantz
admitted in a RFE/RL interview last June. He said Armenia’s continuing
double-digit economic growth makes the tax shortfall particularly
glaring.

Kocharian was reported to instruct the tax authorities to tackle the
problem by eliminating unspecified legal loopholes for tax avoidance
and creating a level playing field for all Armenian businesses. It
is not clear if he agreed with a widespread perception that wealthy
government-connected entrepreneurs get away with grossly underreporting
their earnings.

The latest list of the country’s 300 largest corporate taxpayers made
public by STS last month shows that many of the so-called "oligarchs"
continue to post modest profits contrasting with their conspicuous
wealth. Gagik Tsarukian, arguably the most influential and ambitious
of them, was again a case in point. The biggest of the companies
known to be owned by him held a lowly 76 place in the STS rankings,
with only 411 million drams ($1.1 million) in taxes and other duties
paid from January through August.

GERMAN AMBASSADOR: MOST OF AZERBAIJANI CITIZENS LIVING AND KEEN TO GET POLITICAL ASYLUM IN GERMANY ARE ARMENIANS
Author: I. Alizadeh

TREND, Azerbaijan
Dec 8 2006

Per Christopher Stankina, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
of Germany to Azerbaijan, said that most of the Azerbaijani citizens
who found political asylum in the Federative Republic of Germany
(FRG) are Armenians in origin, Trend reports.

According to him, the number of Azerbaijani citizens that live in
Germany reach 6,500 people, and they have appealed to corresponding
bodies of Germany with a request to receive political asylum. The
German diplomat said that despite the appeals, these Azerbaijani
citizens have not been granted with their request.

"Placement of 6,500 Azerbaijani citizens in Germany is a large
number. After checking the information, it was revealed that most of
them are Armenians in their origin, and not Azerbaijanis. After the
German Government has checked and studied this information thoroughly,
they came to a conclusion that the legal situation connected with
obtaining the citizenship was complex", said the German Ambassador.

According to Mr. Stankina, these people want to stay in Germany. The
diplomat said that they will impede the work in this direction, since
during the check up they said that they were Azerbaijanis. But the
point is that they are not, said the diplomat.

ARMENIAN ROCKER SINGS THE BLUES

The Berlin Paper, Germany
Dec 8 2006

8 December: Eastern Europe-inspired noise rock meets Emirsian’s slow
folk guitar

Noise rock gets a sip of melancholy Friday when Armenian singer
Aren Emirze plays tracks from his first solo album in ten years at
Bastard club. In contrast to his heavier, more metal-infused past,
Aren’s new album is more personal – gyspy-esque guitar chords seem
to retrace memories from his past. (tbp, 08 Dec 2006)

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