Transitions Online

‘Easy-Cards’ Made Hard

by Emil Danielyan
30 September 2004

You might be able to buy it from any newspaper kiosk in Moscow, but in
Armenia buying an activation card for your cellphone either takes months or
costs up to $200.

YEREVAN, Armenia–Felix Sahradian looked frustrated after scanning the
numbers on a notice board outside the Yerevan office of Armenia’s only
telephone company. Again, he was not among the lucky ones whose number had
come up, a number that would have granted him the right to one of the most
coveted goods in Armenia: a prepaid SIM card to activate a mobile phone.

Prepaid SIM cards may be cheap and readily available for sale around the
world, but, in Armenia, you have to register with ArmenTel, the deeply
unpopular national telecommunications operator, and wait for at least a year
in order to be able to buy one at a reasonable price.

Sahradian signed up in January and is one of tens of thousands of people who
remain on ArmenTel’s waiting list. “They say I’ll get a card in the near
future,” he said skeptically. “But why should I wait for months and years?
You can buy them in any newspaper kiosk in Moscow.”

The 51-year-old civil servant could buy this tiny chip without any wait, by
turning to speculative traders. But few people in this impoverished nation
can afford the black-market price, normally $120 but, this summer, as much
as $200. ArmenTel charges only $24 apiece. That includes 27 minutes of free
local phone calls.

HAVE MOBILE, WON’T PHONE

This Soviet-style rationing underscores the underdeveloped state of mobile
telephony in Armenia. The problem is a key bone of contention in the
Armenian government’s long-running dispute with Greece’s Hellenic
Telecommunications Organization (OTE) which purchased ArmenTel in 1998.
Exclusive rights to all telecom services were a key clause of the $200
million deal. ArmenTel is now on course to lose its monopoly rights to
mobile-phone services.

The Greeks pledged to modernize Armenia’s obsolete telecom infrastructure
and claim to have already invested $200 million. The authorities in Yerevan,
however, say that figure is grossly inflated. They also accuse ArmenTel of
abusing its monopoly. The dispute intensified early this year, when the
government deciding to unilaterally revoke the company’s exclusive rights to
provide cellphone and international internet services.

ArmenTel and its parent company denounced the move as illegal, filing two
separate lawsuits with the International Court of Economic Arbitration in
London. The Greeks accused the government of breaching its contractual
obligation to allow a steep increase in fixed-line phone charges in Armenia.

The two sides agreed in June to try to reach an out-of-court settlement,
with the government agreeing to delay the termination of ArmenTel’s monopoly
until 29 September-and now, by another two weeks. No details of the talks
they have held since have been made public. Armenian officials have made it
clear that the market will be liberalized regardless of their outcome. The
only question, they say, is whether the country will have one or two more
mobile-phone operators. One Russian-based firm is already lobbying for a
license, promising to invest $75 million in its own network.

Whatever the arguments, one thing is clear: ArmenTel and its owner, a
telecom giant with an annual turnover worth billions of dollars, have failed
to meet Armenian demand for a service that has developing rapidly in most
parts of the world. In mid-August there were just 140,000 mobile-phone users
in Armenia. Local analysts believe that number will at least double once
supply matches demand.

Most subscribers prefer to pay in advance for their phone calls, first
buying a SIM card package and then buying top-up cards at newspaper kiosks
whenever their credit runs out. ArmenTel dubbed the enabling SIM card an
“easy-card” when it was introduced a few years ago. The choice of the name
could have hardly been more ironic. In late August the operator began
distributing a new batch of “easy-cards” for the first time in over a year.
That, of course, was far too little to meet demand (though, at $0.36 per
minute, calling on a mobile phone is not cheap in Armenia). In Yerevan’s
central administrative district, for example, only one-third of the 12,000
registered applicants were able to lay hands on them.

The situation is not much better even for contract customers, who pay a
monthly fee of $18 and a per-minute charge of 15 cents. SIM cards for their
phones have been available only in small numbers for years. Their unlimited
sales resumed a month ago.

Another problem has been the poor quality of wireless communication network.
Making phone calls in peak hours in the afternoon is often a nightmare,
suggesting that the network’s capacity is inadequate even for the current
very modest number of users. The network still covers less than half this
mountainous country.

Westerners living in Yerevan, the Armenian capital, find the situation
particularly shocking. “To pay $120 to use a prepaid mobile card is
absolutely ridiculous, particularly given the quality of the service one
receives,” said Audrey Selian, a Swiss doctoral candidate researching the
use of information technology by Armenian government agencies. “It is
appalling what a shortage there is of them.”

A MARKET (AND ECONOMY) STUNTED

ArmenTel’s failure to achieve market saturation in the six years (and more)
since its takeover by OTE has still not been clearly explained. Its Greek
executives rarely speak with local journalists. Their spokeswoman, Hasmik
Chutilian, blamed the “weak network” on the ongoing row with the Armenian
authorities, saying that the government has scuttled some of the investments
ArmenTel was planning. She also said that the company committed a “marketing
mistake” six years ago when it decided to concentrate on fixed-line
telephony.

The landline network was in dire straits at the time. In this area at least,
ArmenTel can claim some success. Its investment has improved the service
markedly, especially in the Armenian capital, where 68 percent of phone
lines are now connected to digital exchanges. There are now more than
530,000 fixed-line phone users in this country of 3 million, the company
says, making its “teledensity” rate relatively high by ex-Soviet standards.

But Serge Sargsian, the government’s representative on the ArmenTel board,
counters that the improvement has largely been confined to Yerevan, which
now accounts for just over half of subscribers. Only 12 percent of regional
exchanges have been digitalized and phone access in rural areas has
“declined terribly,” he says.

Ian Beeby, a representative of the California-based WFI Consulting firm that
audited ArmenTel, made a similar point last year. “We have seen a number of
villages where exchange capacity did exist and now no longer exists,” he
said.

Another source of discontent has been ArmenTel’s grip on internet traffic to
internet service providers abroad. This has led to high prices without any
corresponding increase in quality. Local internet service providers and
other business executives believe that ArmenTel’s monopoly has been stifled
the development of information technology, one of the promising sectors of
the Armenian economy. “The kind of communication for which we pay tens of
thousands of dollars each month would cost just $100 in America,” Hovannes
Avoyan, head of the Lycos Armenia firm, complained recently.

The Armenian government seems to share these concerns. But it still remains
to be seen how far it is prepared to go in liberalizing the telecom market.

—
Emil Danielyan is a journalist based in Yerevan and a long-time contributor
to TOL, and to its print predecessor, Transitions.

Film festival set to open on Tuesday

By Naush Boghossian
Staff Writer

Daily news.com
Saturday, October 02, 2004

GLENDALE — Less than a decade after it was launched to promote only
Armenian filmmakers, the Arpa International Film Festival has evolved
into a prestigious showcase for filmmakers from around the world.

The six-day film festival, celebrating its seventh year, starts
Tuesday and will feature 60 films by artists from 19 countries
including Botswana, the Czech Republic, Russia, Mexico, Pakistan and
Iran, all with one central theme: human struggles.

“Every year, we get more countries in our festival and people calling
from all around the globe to submit their films,” said festival
committee member Alex Kalognomos.

“While we still have a core of Armenian filmmakers submitting films
from the diaspora, every year it’s more representative of the world at
large.”

The nonprofit Arpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art, or AFFMA, was
founded in Los Angeles — home to the largest population of Armenians
outside Armenia — with the purpose of supporting filmmakers who
explore subjects of social and cultural importance including diaspora,
exile and multiculturalism.

“It’s about people who have turned great misfortune into stories of
human resilience. That’s what this film festival is about,” Kalognomos
said.

“It’s about global empathy and the love of humanity, especially at a
time when we are at war, and that we can do it if only through the
love of cinema.”

The festival — named for the Armenian word for a life-giving water
source — draws about 2,500 people a year to its screenings and
parties.

Next Sunday’s awards banquet, to be held at the Sheraton Universal
Hotel, will honor producers Robert Papazian and James Hirsch.

This year’s films tell stories including a Japanese-American baseball
pitcher’s plight in a U.S. internment camp in World War II in “Day of
Independence”; modernism clashing with tradition for a teacher in
post-revolutionary Iran in “The Fifth Reaction”; and a young woman’s
humanity being cruelly rejected as she is placed on the auction block
in pre-Civil War America in “Bid’em In.”

Stories that revolve around life in America include “Compton Cowboy,”
about a young African-American boy living in Compton who grew up
dreaming about becoming a country music singer, and “Poster Boy,”
about a senator’s son coming out to his father about being gay during
his campaign.

The festival, which was once restricted to Armenian filmmakers, began
accepting submissions from non-Armenians within two years of the
organization’s inception.

“In the beginning, AFFMA as a small organization catered to young,
aspiring filmmakers and other artists,” said screenwriter Paul
Peterson, who serves on the group’s board of directors. “Over the
years, with its success becoming greater each year, AFFMA has opened
up to artists of all caliber, from neophyte to veteran filmmaker.”

What helped propel the festival to a more prestigious level was
getting ArcLight Cinemas on board, a coup for the foundation.

Even though the organization had shown films at local studios,
ArcLight allowed its movies to be seen by the general public.

“ArcLight made Arpa visible to the public at large, and it wasn’t by
invitation only, and in that sense, ArcLight has been fantastic,”
Peterson said.

Though relatively small compared with the Hollywood Film Festival and
the AFI Film Festival — also hosted by the theater — Arpa has always
been well-received and well-attended by the public, said Tracy
Hawkins, director of strategic alliances for ArcLight Cinemas.

“I think they have done a really good job choosing films to be in the
festival that can cross over to people other than Armenians,” Hawkins
said. Arpa is one of about 10 festivals they hold each year. “Through
all their films, they have a way of touching all cultures.”

As the organization gets more involved in the industry, its leaders
say, it will only grow in its role as an international festival.

“I think there are no limits to how big and how prestigious it could
become. Am I saying it will ever be as big as the Cannes Film
Festival? No. But that’s not its purpose,” Peterson said.

“For what started out as a small community festival, it has now
blossomed into a legitimate international festival, which in time will
only get bigger and better.”

Naush Boghossian, (818) 546-3306 [email protected]

Turkey at a Glance

Posted on Sun, Oct. 03, 2004

Population: 69 million

(July 2004 estimate)

Per-capita income: $6,700

(2003 estimate)

Median age: 27.3 years

Religion: 99.8 percent Muslim, mostly Sunni

Ethnic breakdown: Turkish, 80 percent; Kurdish 20 percent (estimated);
small numbers of Greeks, Jews and Armenians

History

Istanbul, formally Constantinople, was the seat of the Greek-speaking
Eastern Roman Empire (later the Byzantine Empire) and Eastern Orthodox
Christianity. The central Asian Ottoman Turks took the city in 1453
and established their own empire (including the Islamic caliphate),
which came to control much of the Middle East and parts of Europe.

Turkish troops were repulsed from Vienna in 1683, and the Ottoman
Empire fell into decline and was defeated fighting alongside Germany
in World War I. Most of the two million Christian Armenians who had
lived in the empire were forcibly deported or killed in a series of
massacres from 1915 to 1920.

In 1923, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded the Republic of Turkey after
driving out the Greek army and overturning the draconian Treaty of
Sevres. The remnants of a thriving Greek merchant community fled after
anti-Greek riots in the 1950s.

The Turkish military overthrew elected governments in 1960, 1971 and
1980, and in the 1997 “post-modern” coup, the military forced the
resignation of an Islamic fundamentalist prime minister.

Preparations for EU Membership

In the last two years, in an effort to comply with EU standards,
Turkey:

Banned the death penalty.

Allowed broadcasting and classes in the Kurdish language.

Banned sex discrimination, torture and honor killings.

Scrapped state security courts and reduced the military’s role in
government.

Eased bureaucratic restrictions on non-Muslim religious groups.

Lifted free-speech restrictions.

An anniversary: Archbishop to make dedication
By Cathy Flynn / News Staff Writer

Dailynews.com
Sunday, October 3, 2004

FRAMINGHAM — When the town of Framingham built a park near the
Armenian Church of the Holy Translators, the church came through with
a nice gesture: extending the path that cut through the new park.

“We wanted to ensure that the area stayed welcoming and nice,”
said Dora Garabedian, a founding member of the church, which today
draws almost 200 members from around MetroWest and the Milford area.

When Armenian Church Archbishop Khajag Barsamian visits the
church today to dedicate its new stained glass windows, it will be an
occasion to celebrate the paths that the church has forged between its
members, their heritage, the community and the world.

“Our motto is ‘where faith, family and fellowship meet,'”
explained Father Krikor Sabounjian, pastor of the church, located at
38 Franklin St. in downtown Framingham. “We have a philosophy of
inclusion…of making people feel welcome.”

Many of the church’s 160 members are couples in mixed marriages
including non-Armenians, and children are always an important part of
Sunday services, Sabounjian said.

The new windows, donated by Tom and Dora Garabedian of Hopkinton,
show historic symbols of the Armenian Church. Designed by Worcester
artist Arthur Arakelian and built by Ken Paulson of Paulson Stained
Glass Window in Upton, they depict grapes and pomegranates, wheat
sheaves, the Armenian cross, andthe colors of the Armenian flag. The
angels hold a lyre and a harp to signify the church’s love of music.

“We wanted to make it a warm and welcoming symbol,” said
Garabedian, adding that the windows harmonize with the building’s more
modern architecture and the Byzantine touches added by the church.

The windows are the latest of many milestones celebrated by the
church in its 7-year history. The first was its birth around a kitchen
table in Hopkinton, where four Armenian couples, including the
Garabedians, decided to establish an Armenian Church in MetroWest.

“Our church has some wonderful roots in Worcester, Watertownand
Boston,” said Garabedian. “But MetroWest has many young families, and
it was tough for us to drive 40 minutes to a church for a three-hour
service.”

Through the Armenian Church of America, the new church was
established as a “mission parish,” a term for fledgling churches
without a permanent structure and priest. Sabounjian was its deacon.

From its original 25 members, the church quickly rose to 40
members and continued to grow. While the first worship services were
celebrated in members’ homes, the Sisters of St. Joseph later donated
their facilities onBethany Hill in Framingham for worship and Sunday
School. The church found its present location — once the home to
Brazilian and Baptist churches — in 2001.

Both Sabounjian and Garabedian said that Armenians have always
had strong faith, which in turn leads to a strong connection with
their own heritage.

“Whenever you have a commonality of ethic background and
religious purpose, it keeps the community strong,” said Garabedian.

About 45 church members made a pilgrimage to Armenia last summer,
visiting ancient monasteries, a monument to the one million Armenian
victims of the Ottoman genocide in the early 20th century, and the
capital city of Yerevan.

“We have a strong tie to Armenia, and our pilgrimage emphasized
that,” said Sabounjian. “It was the first time that many of our
members had been there. The biggest tie to Armenia is through the
church … it maintains both the religion and the culture.”

The church is also making its mark in other parts of the
world. Through the Merguerian family of Ashland, church members whose
son John spent a year in Iraq, the church sent care packages to
soldiers there.

Members also volunteer at the nearby Salvation Army soup kitchen.
Through the state Department of Social Services, the church also
donates turkeys, Christmas gifts and Easter baskets to local families
in need. Its youth group participates in the annual Walk for Hunger
sponsored by Project Bread.

Today’s service, which starts at 9:30 a.m., will be followedby a
coffee hour.

( Cathy Flynn can be reached at 508-435-8593 or at [email protected]. )

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

AZERBAIJAN, BULGARIA: COOPERATION EXPANDING

AzerTag
October 02, 2004

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov has
received the newly appointed plenipotentiary ambassador of Bulgaria to
Azerbaijan Republic Ivan Palchev, October 1, AzerTAj was told from the
press service of Ministry.

Having congratulated the ambassador with new appointment, minister
Elmar Mammadyarov expressed hope for continuation and henceforth of
the existing versatile and close cooperation between Azerbaijan and
Bulgaria.

Stating that it is honor to carry out activity in Azerbaijan as the
ambassador, Ivan Palchev has emphasized that would use all existing
opportunities for the further expansion of links between two
countries, successful realization of cooperation in all areas.

At the meeting, also were exchanged views on preparation to the coming
official visit of the President of Bulgaria Georgi Parvanov to
Azerbaijan, and has been marked, that during this visit would be
signed many joint agreements between two countries, including in
political, economic, medical, trading and other areas.

Having emphasized the confidence of success of visit of the President
of Bulgaria to Azerbaijan, Minister of Foreign Affairs has expressed
gratitude that Bulgaria supports our country in the cause of
settlement of one of the most important problems of Azerbaijan – the
Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh conflict – and always stated
recognition of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, has stated hope
for expansion of political relations between our countries and within
the framework of the international organizations.

Foreign minister of Azerbaijan Republic received credentials of
Bulgarian ambassador and wished him further success in his activity.

FINLAND INTERESTED IN PEACE SETTLEMENT OF ARMENIA-AZERBAIJAN CONFLICT

AzerTag
October 02, 2004

Minister of Foreign Affairs Elmar Mammadyarov met the newly appointed
plenipotentiary ambassador of Finland to Azerbaijan Terkhi Khakala, on
October 1, the Ministry’s press center told AzerTAj.

Having thanked the Minister of Foreign Affairs for meeting, Terkhi KhÃ
êà ëà has emphasized the interest, which has increased recently by
his country to Azerbaijan, and also importance of the efforts directed
on expansion of links between two countries in political, economic and
other spheres. Having noted interest of the country in peace
settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny-Karabakh conflict, the
ambassador has emphasized, that Finland is amember of OSCE and
directly keeps up the processes concerning the resolution of conflict.

Having congratulated Terkhi Khakala on the occasion of appointment as
the new ambassador in Azerbaijan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Elmar
Mammadyarov has expressed hope for his active participation in
expansion of relations between the countries. Having emphasized, that
Azerbaijan is the country representing great value from the economic
and strategic points of view, the Minister has noted presence of all
conditions for participation of Finland in economic projects carried
out in the Country. Highly having estimated political support of
Finland, Mr. Mammadyarov ascertained extreme importance of opinion of
world community basing on international legal norms in settlement of
the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh conflict.

The ambassador presented a copy of his credentials to the foreign
minister of Azerbaijan.

A country on the cusp

Irish Times
Oct 02, 2004

Turkey: Any explicator of contemporary Turkey – that mysterious,
wildly beautiful dissolution of Europe into Asia – must contend with
the fear and ignorance instilled in Western minds by centuries of
conflict between Ottoman and Christian forces, writes Joseph O’Neill.

The threatening figure of “the Turk” – a dark-browed, sensual
Mohammedan, addicted to barbarism – lives on; and whereas the horror
of the prison scenes in Midnight Express (1979) still lingers, the
images of, say, Abu Ghraib (or, for that matter, the intermittent
revelations of the shockingly primitive workings of the domestic
criminal justice system in the US) quickly fade ina detergent flood of
counter-narratives. Mud sticks to Turkey. Or, as the self-pitying old
Turkish saying has it, the Turks have no friends but themselves.

This is, of course, untrue. It is, in fact, remarkable how frequently
foreign observers fall head over heels in love with the country and
its people, and how much of the literature, however critical, is
tinted with affection and even bedazzlement. From appreciative
travellers such as Freya Stark to hard-bitten diplomats, journalists
and academics, visitors are emotionally susceptible to Turkey’s
extraordinary charms. Andrew Mango, a BBC veteran turned Turkish
scholar, is the latest sympathetic onlooker to put pen to paper. This
book,which follows his acclaimed biography of Atat’rk, assesses the
state of modern-day Turkey and the progress of its historic
Westernising mission.

That mission was, of course, conceived and drastically pursued by
Kemal Atat’rk. The trajectory of the republic he founded bears, it so
happens, many similarities to that of the Irish republic. Both shook
off foreign rule in or around 1922; both spent their first three
decades of independence in isolationist mode, staying neutral during
the second World War; both have been afflictedby political violence;
both have vexed relationships with their pasts and their national
myths; and both now espouse a cult of entrepreneurship and economic
growth at the expense of traditional values. So why is Turkey, by
comparison with Ireland, still a poor, undeveloped country? What can
be done to make things better?

These are vital questions. Although there is, in Mango’s view, little
danger of Turkey undergoing an Islamic revolution, it is obviously
crucial that it succeeds in establishing itself as the first
fully-fledged Muslim democracy- which, in practice, means accession to
the EU. The position here is well known. Even if EU economic criteria
are satisfied, Turkey must do justice to its Kurdish citizens, end the
widespread perpetration of physical abuse by agents of the state,
remove its clumsy restrictions on political, cultural and religious
expression and dispose of the need for the army to intervene
periodically to rescue the country from the dangerous incompetence of
its elected governments. These concerns are not the product of
historical prejudices about “the Turk”. They reflect substantial and
legitimate concerns that increasing numbers of Turkish citizens share.

Without hesitation, Mango puts his finger on the underlying
difficulty: the shortage in Turkey of what, in a Kemalist turn of
phrase, he calls “modern knowledge”. (Atat’rk once peevishly asked:
“Can a civilised nation toleratea crowd of people who let themselves
be led by the nose by sheiks, dervishes and the like, and who entrust
their faith and their lives to fortune-tellers, magicians,
witch-doctors and amulet-makers?”) The most profound attribute of a
modern European nation – an inclination to rational, non-supernatural
explanations of good and evil, and, consequently, to certain shared
moral reflexes – characterises only an educated minority of Turkish
citizens, the mass of whom (including many members of the political
class) are still given to conspiracy theories, paranoia and weird
blind spots on questions of freedom and justice. Turkey is a place
where honour killings persist and, as Mango points out, where the
World Trade Centre attacks may seriously be attributed to the Mossad
and the CIA. It’s also a place where the government actively
considered the criminalisation of adultery until finally scrapping the
proposal last week .

Mango’s attitude to such issues seems to be that, given time,
encouragement, and understanding, Turkey will muddle its way into the
European mainstream.He certainly does not advocate radical
liberalisation. After all, when Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Georgia, not to
mention prickly Greece and Armenia, nestle on your borders, when you
have a separatist conflict on your hands, when your politicians tend
to be self-serving demagogues and when the voting public is vulnerable
to extremist populism, it may be that you have little choice butto
proceed carefully and incrementally. This – conservative
progressiveness, Mango c alls it – remains the stance of the Turkish
army and its allies in the Kemalist establishment.

Which brings us to an unfortunate feature of The Turks Today: it
sometimes reads as if it were written by and for the Turkish
authorities. Although Mango favours an informed and analytically
critical Turkish culture, he exhibits precisely the limitations that
continue to hold back Turkish thinking. Thus, Kurdish political
violence is largely attributed to the “truculent” ambition of one
individual, the PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, and the “tradition of
violence endemic in Kurdish society”; almost nothing is said of the
oppression of the so-called mountain Turks and their long-standing
claims to self-government.The Armenian genocide is subjected to a
cursory, misleading summary that culminates with the statement:
“Turkey holds that claims and counter-claims should be examined by
historians and not by politicians.” Never mind that historians have in
fact examined the Armenian claims and, overwhelmingly, upheld them.

Andrew Mango’s new book is often expert; but to be of true service to
the country he knows so well, he cannot go native on matters of
intellectual and moral honesty.

The Turks Today By Andrew Mango John Murray, 292pp. GBP20

Joseph O’Neill is an author. His most recent book is Blood-Dark Track:
A Family History (Granta Books)

Turkey: EU Reports Pave Way For Qualified Approval Of Entry Talks

By Ahto Lobjakas, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Two draft reports prepared by the European Commission, seen by RFE/RL,
suggest the commission will on 6 October recommend that the EU set a
date at its December summit for the start of accession talks with
Turkey — subject, however, to stringent conditions. The reports
praise Turkey for its recent raft of democratic reforms, but identify
shortcomings. They also note that the accession of Turkey would
present significant challenges to the EU’s existing policies.
Commission officials, speaking privately, say a positive decision is
virtually guaranteed, but it is likely to be accompanied by numerous
specific conditions.

Brussels, 1 October 2004 (RFE/RL) — Some form of go-ahead next week
by the European Commission for Turkish entry talks now appears a
foregone conclusion.

However, two draft progress reports prepared by the European
Commission suggest that uncertainties abound, and that any decision is
likely to come with extensive conditions and qualifications attached
to allow more skeptical member states to support it.

The European Commission’s annual progress report on Turkey praises
democratic reforms undertaken since 1999 and accelerated in the past
two years. However, it does not clearly say Turkey now meets the
so-called Copenhagen entry criteria dealing with democracy, the rule
of law, and human rights. Instead, a number of areas are identified
where Turkey is clearly at odds with what are described as “modern”
European standards.

Thus, the recognition that constitutional reforms have shifted the
balance of civil-military relations toward civilians comes with the
caveat that conflicting legal provisions allow the military to
continue to enjoy a degree of autonomy.

Turkey’s new Penal Code, adopted a few days ago, receives wide praise
for abolishing the death penalty and enshrining women’s rights.

The Penal Code also outlaws torture. The report notes there was a
marked decline in reported instances of torture in 2004 as compared
with 2003. However, an increase in claims of torture was recorded
outside of formal detention centers.

An EU fact-finding mission returned from Turkey last month and
concluded that Ankara is seriously pursuing its policy of zero
tolerance on torture. Again, however, the mission reported that
“numerous cases” of torture and ill treatment of detainees still
occur.

Similar conclusions are evident in other key judgments. Reforms are
praised, but continued contrary practices are noted.

Thus, the report says there have been a significant number of cases
where nonviolent expression of opinion is still prosecuted and
punished. Books were still being banned and writers put on trial in
2003.

In the field of human rights and the protection of minorities, the
report recognizes the introduction of two constitutional reforms and
eight legislative-reform packages since 1999. Turkey has adopted a
number of human rights treaties since 1999. It executes some judgments
of the European Court of Human Rights, but — again — not others.

Human-rights-monitoring bodies have been set up, as have specialist
training programs at the the Interior and Justice ministries, as well
as police. However, implementation of human rights reforms is said
not to be uniform across the country.

Turkey is criticized for not having signed the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities. It receives praise for
having allowed TVand radio broadcasts in minority languages, such as
Kurdish, Arabic, Bosnian, and Circassian. However, it is noted that
harsh restrictions exist limiting their length.

The report notes that Turkey constitutionally guarantees the freedom
of religion, but adds that non-Muslim communities continue to
encounter difficulties. Thus, Christians are said to occasionally
still be subject to police surveillance.

The second report analyzes the potential impact of Turkish membership
on the EU. It proceeds from the assumption that Turkey would not join
before 2014. That date marks the start of the new EU multiannual
budget cycle.

The assessment appears to be that most of the EU’s current policies —
above all, farm support and regional aid — will need to be radically
rethought so that they do not prove ruinously costly.

The study says a Turkish accession would be different from all
previous enlargements because of the country’s population, size, and
geographical location.

The annual cost of farm support to Turkey is estimated to top 11
billion euros ($13.6 billion) ââ=82¬` or more than 10 percent of the
EU’s current budget.

Long transitional periods are predicted for the free movement of
workers, and a potentially permanent “safeguard” measure may become
necessary to allow other EU member states to lock out Turkish labor if
their markets suffer ill effects.

Another major challenge is said to be the future management of the
bloc’s external borders, as well as dealing with migration and asylum
issues once Turkey joins. Fighting organized crime, terrorism, and the
trafficking of human beings, drugs, and arms will also present
significant new challenges for the EU.

Turkey’s membership in the visa-free Schengen area is said not to be a
“short-term” prospect after accession. This means that border controls
would remain in place.

Opportunities for the EU could arise in the form of heightened
security for the bloc’s energy supplies. Turkey would provide direct
links to the Caspian countries, as well as the Persian Gulf.

The clearest positive potential for the EU emerges in the field of
foreign policy. As a country with a Muslim majority and a strategic
position, Turkey could valuably enhance the EU’s role in the wider
Middle East. It could also serve as an important model for reform.

However, the report says that, in practical terms, Turkish and EU
policies are still often at variance regarding Iraq, the Caucasus, and
relations with the Muslim world.

Turkey could also become a channel for stabilizing EU influence in the
South Caucasus. Much is said to depend on Turkey’s willingness,
though. In particular relations with Armenia will need to improve. The
study says reconciliation must be achieved over the mass killings of
Armenians in 1915 and 1916, which are widely called genocide. Turkey
must also contribute to the easing of tensions in the dispute between
Armenia and Azerbaijan concerning Nagorno-Karabakh.

The study says Turkey could also help the EU to stabilize Central
Asia.

GEORGIA DENIES REPORTS ON PRESIDENT’S COMMENT ON AZERI-ARMENIAN CONFLICT

Prime-News news agency
2 Oct 04

Tbilisi, 2 October: Official Tbilisi has denied reports alleging that
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili made a harsh statement about
Nagornyy Karabakh during his telephone conversation with Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Erdogan in late September.

Citing the presidential press service, the Georgian foreign ministry’s
press service has said that during the telephone conversation the
parties noted the need for a dialogue between Azerbaijan, Armenia and
Georgia, but they did not discuss the issue of Nagornyy Karabakh.

France Press and the Turkish Anatolia news agency had reported that
during the telephone conversation Mikheil Saakashvili said:
“Karabakh’s occupation must end in order to settle the conflict
between Armenia and Azerbaijan”.

An article in the Turkish Daily News says that Mikheil Saakashvili and
Recep Erdogan discussed Georgian-Turkish relations and conflicts in
the Caucasus.

AZERI MPS URGE INTERNATIONAL REACTION TO ARMENIAN RESETTLEMENT IN KARABAKH

ANS TV, Baku
2 Oct 04

The Milli Maclis (parliament) standing commission for foreign
relations has appealed to the OSCE, UN, NATO, the Organization of the
Islamic Conference and the League of Arab States in connection with
the illegal settlement of Armenians in the occupied territory of
Nagornyy Karabakh and other seven districts of Azerbaijan.

In an interview with Trend news agency, the commission chairman, Samad
Seyidov, said that these steps, which are aimed at strengthening the
occupying regime in the occupied territories, cause concern. This runs
counter to the Geneva convention which bans an occupying country from
settling people in the occupied territories. These steps by Armenia
call into question a peaceful solution to the Karabakh conflict,
Seyidov said.

The standing commission called on the world community to react to the
incident properly.