Türkiye (10 Viewers)
- Thread starter Martin
- Start date
Erdogan let his power go to his head, being a second rate member in europe wasnt enough when he thought he could be the powerhouse in a new middle east. The EU dont take him seriously anymore and his aint helping either when he keeps limiting the freedom and rights of the pepole, and europeans take that shit seriously
BALLOT BOX REFLECTS TRUST IN AK PARTY
Despite smear campaign, against the AK Party managed to win local elections by a landslide. Speaking with AK Party voters, Daily Sabah asked how the campaign atmosphere affected their decisions at the ballot box
ISTANBUL — The rulIng Justice and Development Party success in Sunday's local elections reflects the public's continued trust in the government. The opposition's failure to come up with viable alternatives to AK Party policies, coupled with the attacks against the AK Party, resulted in 45.5 percent of the electorate backing the government.
The March 30 local elections, which turned into an effective vote of confidence for the AK Party government, resulted in another landslide victory for the ruling party. The results showed that the AK Party's votes increased from 38 percent to 45.55 percent in spite of concerted efforts to weaken it using black propaganda during electoral campaigns.
The Gülen Movement, led by Fethullah Gülen, who has lived in self-imposed exile since 1999, tried on numerous occasions to weaken the government, including during the Dec. 17 operations and by wiretapping the phones of key figures in the government through infiltrating the nation's police and judiciary ahead of the March 30 elections.
Opposition parties, including the Republican People's Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) subsequently worked to decrease the votes of the AK Party.
Yet, the most shocking move came from the Gülen Movement, which regards itself as a religious community, but whose followers voted for the left-wing CHP candidates in critical cities in the elections and gave rise to allegations that there is an alliance between the CHP and the movement. After the results of the elections, CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu on Monday denied allegations that his party joined forces with the Gülen Movement for the elections. Even though both sides denied the alliance, the Gülenaffiliated media outlets had continuously promoted CHP candidates ahead of the elections.
However, the question of whether the alleged alliance of the movement and CHP would prove successful in decreasing AK Party votes across the country was answered when the results of the ballot sent a shock through the main opposition CHP.
Expecting a sharp increase by getting the support of Gülen Movement followers in the country, CHP has seen only a 4 percent increase in its votes compared to 2009 local elections. Through its effective candidates in critical cities such as Ankara and Istanbul, CHP prepared intensively for the Sunday's elections. The campaigns, TV ads and nominating effective candidates such as CHP Ankara mayoral candidate Mansur Yavaş, who transferred from the MHP, and CHP Şişli district mayor Mustafa Sarıgül, who served Şişli for years, did not have the effect that CHP expected in the entire country.
According to elections results, the MHP experienced the biggest failure since it could not protect its previous voting rates and saw a 1 percent decrease in its votes across the country. Compared to the 2009 local elections when MHP garnered 16.1 percent of the votes, the party's votes decreased to 15.2 percent and lost some of the cities that were the MHP's fortresses in the north of Turkey.
The most striking loss for MHP was in the northern city of Kastamonu that was ruled by MHP municipalities for 20 years. Kastamonu residents on Sunday's elections voted for the AK Party mayoral candidate.
As nearly 50 million citizens went to the ballot box, Daily Sabah spoke to AK Party voters and asked them how the alliance between opposition parties and black propaganda campaigns of the Gülen Movement affected their voting behaviors.
Ahmet Demirbağ, a student at University of Galatasaray said, "I voted for the AK Party because of the opposition's failure to offer alternative policies. In many areas, including education, health and social services, the AK Party's policies are successful despite some insufficiencies. Although Erdoğan's rhetoric raises tension, I did not vote for CHP, which has contradicted itself."
Ülkü Güner, a student doing her masters at Istanbul University, said, "I am more afraid of the Gülen Movement than Erdoğan himself.
The Gülen Movement is illegal and as opposed to be a political group, it was first established as a religious organization. During the AK Party period, I have preserved my lifestyle as a secular. Also it is a fact that rightist political parties have always been more successful in local administrations."
Fırat Canev, an employee residing in Ankara, said, "I voted for the AK Party in Ankara since I do not support the CHP turning its back to its own supporters and nominating other political figures who have different political backgrounds. Even though I do not praise the AK Party candidate in Ankara, for the first time in my life, my ideological stance was ahead of my expectations from the municipality in local elections."
Suna Merve Aslaner, a housewife residing in the northwestern city of Düzce, said that she voted for the AK Party because of the continuous black propaganda of the Gülen Movement. "They came to my home and asked me to vote for the most powerful candidate against the AK Party. Nobody can orient my political preference, this is my democratic right and I have the capability to choose the candidate that I trust more, not them."
Murat Caner Korkmaz, a secondary school teacher in Ankara, said, "I voted for the AK Party because I like the firm stance of Erdoğan against all those slanders and black propaganda. I believe in him and I do not think that he will do anything that would be against the benefit of Turkey."
AN ELECTION TRADITION: BALCONY SPEECH
After the tightly contested local elections on March 30, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced his victory by giving a traditional balcony speech in Ankara Sunday night
ISTANBUL — The nation affirmed its confidence in the AK Party, despite the black propaganda and operations carried out by the Gülen Movement with the aim of overthrowing the ruling government.
Since the AK Party first came to power, Erdoğan's political charisma and the nation's trust in the party increased stably across the country.
Without exception, Erdoğan has won every election his party competed in.
In what has become an election tradition for the past 12 years, Erdoğan addressed a huge crowd in front of the AK Party headquarters and thanked his supporters. "You have protected the independence struggle of the new Turkey," the prime minister said. "Today, no one has lost, every citizen has won a party that will serve them," Erdoğan continued, adding: "Let's open a new page in which the love of Turkey exceeds all. "Seventy-seven million [Turkish citizens] should know that new Turkey has won today. National unity, brotherhood and the reconciliation process has won today," he shouted to great applause.
Slamming the Gülen Movement and its continuous attempts to mislead the nation, the prime minister threatened that those who try to change the course of Turkey through illegal messages and acts will be razed to the ground. Referring to the rift between the well-established Gülen Movement and the government, Erdoğan stated that the election process made clear who the traitors were.
He said he filed a complaint about some members of the movement and pointed out that while some Gülenists fled in the past, others may soon flee as well.
Erdoğan denounced the head of the movement, Fethullah Gülen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania for 14 years and warned his foes that he "will enter their caves."
He went on to say: "How could you dare threaten our national security?
They [the Gülen Movement] will pay the price. They have infiltrated governmental bodies for 35 years. Now it is time to purge them."
Erdoğan was interrupted midspeech by chants of "Stand tall, do not bow, Turkey is with you" and "God is great." Erdoğan responded with "We are here. The nation will not bow, Turkey will not be defeated."
Calling out the opposition party, Erdoğan contended that it is not enough for a party to embrace the people; opposition parties should also leave arrogance out of politics. The prime minister said it was clear that Turkey is in need of a new opposition and he called on opposition parties to learn a lesson from the election results.
http://www.dailysabah.com/elections-2014/2014/04/01/an-election-tradition-balcony-speech
Despite smear campaign, against the AK Party managed to win local elections by a landslide. Speaking with AK Party voters, Daily Sabah asked how the campaign atmosphere affected their decisions at the ballot box
ISTANBUL — The rulIng Justice and Development Party success in Sunday's local elections reflects the public's continued trust in the government. The opposition's failure to come up with viable alternatives to AK Party policies, coupled with the attacks against the AK Party, resulted in 45.5 percent of the electorate backing the government.
The March 30 local elections, which turned into an effective vote of confidence for the AK Party government, resulted in another landslide victory for the ruling party. The results showed that the AK Party's votes increased from 38 percent to 45.55 percent in spite of concerted efforts to weaken it using black propaganda during electoral campaigns.
The Gülen Movement, led by Fethullah Gülen, who has lived in self-imposed exile since 1999, tried on numerous occasions to weaken the government, including during the Dec. 17 operations and by wiretapping the phones of key figures in the government through infiltrating the nation's police and judiciary ahead of the March 30 elections.
Opposition parties, including the Republican People's Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) subsequently worked to decrease the votes of the AK Party.
Yet, the most shocking move came from the Gülen Movement, which regards itself as a religious community, but whose followers voted for the left-wing CHP candidates in critical cities in the elections and gave rise to allegations that there is an alliance between the CHP and the movement. After the results of the elections, CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu on Monday denied allegations that his party joined forces with the Gülen Movement for the elections. Even though both sides denied the alliance, the Gülenaffiliated media outlets had continuously promoted CHP candidates ahead of the elections.
However, the question of whether the alleged alliance of the movement and CHP would prove successful in decreasing AK Party votes across the country was answered when the results of the ballot sent a shock through the main opposition CHP.
Expecting a sharp increase by getting the support of Gülen Movement followers in the country, CHP has seen only a 4 percent increase in its votes compared to 2009 local elections. Through its effective candidates in critical cities such as Ankara and Istanbul, CHP prepared intensively for the Sunday's elections. The campaigns, TV ads and nominating effective candidates such as CHP Ankara mayoral candidate Mansur Yavaş, who transferred from the MHP, and CHP Şişli district mayor Mustafa Sarıgül, who served Şişli for years, did not have the effect that CHP expected in the entire country.
According to elections results, the MHP experienced the biggest failure since it could not protect its previous voting rates and saw a 1 percent decrease in its votes across the country. Compared to the 2009 local elections when MHP garnered 16.1 percent of the votes, the party's votes decreased to 15.2 percent and lost some of the cities that were the MHP's fortresses in the north of Turkey.
The most striking loss for MHP was in the northern city of Kastamonu that was ruled by MHP municipalities for 20 years. Kastamonu residents on Sunday's elections voted for the AK Party mayoral candidate.
As nearly 50 million citizens went to the ballot box, Daily Sabah spoke to AK Party voters and asked them how the alliance between opposition parties and black propaganda campaigns of the Gülen Movement affected their voting behaviors.
Ahmet Demirbağ, a student at University of Galatasaray said, "I voted for the AK Party because of the opposition's failure to offer alternative policies. In many areas, including education, health and social services, the AK Party's policies are successful despite some insufficiencies. Although Erdoğan's rhetoric raises tension, I did not vote for CHP, which has contradicted itself."
Ülkü Güner, a student doing her masters at Istanbul University, said, "I am more afraid of the Gülen Movement than Erdoğan himself.
The Gülen Movement is illegal and as opposed to be a political group, it was first established as a religious organization. During the AK Party period, I have preserved my lifestyle as a secular. Also it is a fact that rightist political parties have always been more successful in local administrations."
Fırat Canev, an employee residing in Ankara, said, "I voted for the AK Party in Ankara since I do not support the CHP turning its back to its own supporters and nominating other political figures who have different political backgrounds. Even though I do not praise the AK Party candidate in Ankara, for the first time in my life, my ideological stance was ahead of my expectations from the municipality in local elections."
Suna Merve Aslaner, a housewife residing in the northwestern city of Düzce, said that she voted for the AK Party because of the continuous black propaganda of the Gülen Movement. "They came to my home and asked me to vote for the most powerful candidate against the AK Party. Nobody can orient my political preference, this is my democratic right and I have the capability to choose the candidate that I trust more, not them."
Murat Caner Korkmaz, a secondary school teacher in Ankara, said, "I voted for the AK Party because I like the firm stance of Erdoğan against all those slanders and black propaganda. I believe in him and I do not think that he will do anything that would be against the benefit of Turkey."
AN ELECTION TRADITION: BALCONY SPEECH
After the tightly contested local elections on March 30, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced his victory by giving a traditional balcony speech in Ankara Sunday night
ISTANBUL — The nation affirmed its confidence in the AK Party, despite the black propaganda and operations carried out by the Gülen Movement with the aim of overthrowing the ruling government.
Since the AK Party first came to power, Erdoğan's political charisma and the nation's trust in the party increased stably across the country.
Without exception, Erdoğan has won every election his party competed in.
In what has become an election tradition for the past 12 years, Erdoğan addressed a huge crowd in front of the AK Party headquarters and thanked his supporters. "You have protected the independence struggle of the new Turkey," the prime minister said. "Today, no one has lost, every citizen has won a party that will serve them," Erdoğan continued, adding: "Let's open a new page in which the love of Turkey exceeds all. "Seventy-seven million [Turkish citizens] should know that new Turkey has won today. National unity, brotherhood and the reconciliation process has won today," he shouted to great applause.
Slamming the Gülen Movement and its continuous attempts to mislead the nation, the prime minister threatened that those who try to change the course of Turkey through illegal messages and acts will be razed to the ground. Referring to the rift between the well-established Gülen Movement and the government, Erdoğan stated that the election process made clear who the traitors were.
He said he filed a complaint about some members of the movement and pointed out that while some Gülenists fled in the past, others may soon flee as well.
Erdoğan denounced the head of the movement, Fethullah Gülen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania for 14 years and warned his foes that he "will enter their caves."
He went on to say: "How could you dare threaten our national security?
They [the Gülen Movement] will pay the price. They have infiltrated governmental bodies for 35 years. Now it is time to purge them."
Erdoğan was interrupted midspeech by chants of "Stand tall, do not bow, Turkey is with you" and "God is great." Erdoğan responded with "We are here. The nation will not bow, Turkey will not be defeated."
Calling out the opposition party, Erdoğan contended that it is not enough for a party to embrace the people; opposition parties should also leave arrogance out of politics. The prime minister said it was clear that Turkey is in need of a new opposition and he called on opposition parties to learn a lesson from the election results.
http://www.dailysabah.com/elections-2014/2014/04/01/an-election-tradition-balcony-speech
Thanks, it's really good to see people are much more resistant to disinformation, conspiracies and foreign intervention compared to past. Let the so called elite complain about how should their and a shepherd's vote should not be equal. Their misery is music to our ears.
TURKEY WILL BE NEW PRESIDENT OF THE D-8
ANKARA — The Developing Eight have high expectations of Turkey's presidency this year, says the group's secretary general.
Sayed Ali Mohammad Mousavi said Saturday Turkey was the "founding father" of D-8, which represents an economic development alliance among eight countries with high Muslim populations.
"We appreciate the Turkish government's support to the D-8," Mousavi said. "Turkey is doing well in the field of industry and commerce.
"We have high expectations of Turkey because Turkey is the founding father of this organization."
D-8 members, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey, will gather in five meetings this year in the framework of the 9th D-8 Summit.
It will mark the beginning of Turkey's two-year presidency, which it takes over from Pakistan.
Topics to be discussed during the summit were oil, natural gas and renewable energy issues, said Mousavi.
The series of meetings will begin on May 26-28, when D-8 energy ministers meet in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri.
Later in Istanbul, finance ministers will gather on June 16-17, tourism ministers on September 1-2, and agriculture ministers on October 15-17.
D-8 was founded by former Turkish prime minister Necmettin Erbakan in 1997.
TURKEY WILL BE NEW PRESIDENT OF THE D-8
ANKARA — The Developing Eight have high expectations of Turkey's presidency this year, says the group's secretary general.
Sayed Ali Mohammad Mousavi said Saturday Turkey was the "founding father" of D-8, which represents an economic development alliance among eight countries with high Muslim populations.
"We appreciate the Turkish government's support to the D-8," Mousavi said. "Turkey is doing well in the field of industry and commerce.
"We have high expectations of Turkey because Turkey is the founding father of this organization."
D-8 members, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey, will gather in five meetings this year in the framework of the 9th D-8 Summit.
It will mark the beginning of Turkey's two-year presidency, which it takes over from Pakistan.
Topics to be discussed during the summit were oil, natural gas and renewable energy issues, said Mousavi.
The series of meetings will begin on May 26-28, when D-8 energy ministers meet in the central Anatolian province of Kayseri.
Later in Istanbul, finance ministers will gather on June 16-17, tourism ministers on September 1-2, and agriculture ministers on October 15-17.
D-8 was founded by former Turkish prime minister Necmettin Erbakan in 1997.
A sad day for the nation.
FIRE IN COAL MINE KILLS AT LEAST 201 WORKERS IN SOMA
MANISA — A fire in a coal mine in Turkey's western province of Manisa killed at least 201 miners on Tuesday, Soma's Mayor said and as many as 500 more may still be trapped. There were 787 workers in the mine when a power transformer exploded and set fire to the mine.
Local member of parliament Muzaffer Yurttas told broadcaster NTV that the bodies of countless workers, believed to have died from suffocation and burns, had been retrieved from the mine and that at least another 75 workers had been taken to hospital.
"They are pumping oxygen into the mine, but the fire is still burning. They say it is an electrical fault but it could be that coal is burning as well," Tamer Kucukgencay, chairman of the regional labour union, told Reuters by telephone.
Energy Minister Taner Yildiz confirmed that a fire had been triggered by an electrical fault and that workers had been killed, but declined to say how many.
The blast happened during a change in shifts, leading to uncertainty over the exact number of workers still in the mine, labor union officials said.
Nurettin Akcul, national head of the Turkish Mineworkers' Union (Maden-Is), told CNN Turk television that an unknown number were still trapped after the blast, which he said happened around 2 km (miles) below ground.
http://www.dailysabah.com/nation/2014/05/13/more-than-200-workers-trapped-in-soma-coal-mine
FIRE IN COAL MINE KILLS AT LEAST 201 WORKERS IN SOMA
MANISA — A fire in a coal mine in Turkey's western province of Manisa killed at least 201 miners on Tuesday, Soma's Mayor said and as many as 500 more may still be trapped. There were 787 workers in the mine when a power transformer exploded and set fire to the mine.
Local member of parliament Muzaffer Yurttas told broadcaster NTV that the bodies of countless workers, believed to have died from suffocation and burns, had been retrieved from the mine and that at least another 75 workers had been taken to hospital.
"They are pumping oxygen into the mine, but the fire is still burning. They say it is an electrical fault but it could be that coal is burning as well," Tamer Kucukgencay, chairman of the regional labour union, told Reuters by telephone.
Energy Minister Taner Yildiz confirmed that a fire had been triggered by an electrical fault and that workers had been killed, but declined to say how many.
The blast happened during a change in shifts, leading to uncertainty over the exact number of workers still in the mine, labor union officials said.
Nurettin Akcul, national head of the Turkish Mineworkers' Union (Maden-Is), told CNN Turk television that an unknown number were still trapped after the blast, which he said happened around 2 km (miles) below ground.
http://www.dailysabah.com/nation/2014/05/13/more-than-200-workers-trapped-in-soma-coal-mine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjYbmybQB5c
This is the Anatolian people, they are unique. No matter how much you explore the world, it's not easy to find people like them.
He is saying: I should pull of my boats so that the stretcher doesn’t get stained
It is privatised.
This is the Anatolian people, they are unique. No matter how much you explore the world, it's not easy to find people like them.
He is saying: I should pull of my boats so that the stretcher doesn’t get stained
It is privatised.
Former Turkish president jailed for life
Kenan Evren along with former air force commander Sahinkaya sentenced to life in prison for staging the 1980 coup.
Former Turkish President Kenan Evren and former Air Force Commander Tahsin Sahinkaya have been jailed for life for their roles in the military coup of September 1980, according to state media.
The verdict was announced by an Ankara court on Wednesday.
Evren, 96, and Sahinkaya, 89, had been accused of setting the stage for a military intervention and then conducting the coup.
Evren, who also served as president after three years of military rule, never expressed regret for the coup which he always argued ended years of left-right street fighting that killed thousands.
"Should we feed them in prison for years instead of hanging them?" he asked in a speech in 1984, referring to those executed after the coup.
The coup set the stage for a military regime under which thousands were tortured, hundreds sentenced to death and many more vanished and ushered in an era of military dominance in Turkish politics.
Evren was elected president in 1982 and held the seat for the seven years that followed.
The country was governed by a military government until the parliamentary elections of November 1983.
Kenan Evren along with former air force commander Sahinkaya sentenced to life in prison for staging the 1980 coup.
Former Turkish President Kenan Evren and former Air Force Commander Tahsin Sahinkaya have been jailed for life for their roles in the military coup of September 1980, according to state media.
The verdict was announced by an Ankara court on Wednesday.
Evren, 96, and Sahinkaya, 89, had been accused of setting the stage for a military intervention and then conducting the coup.
Evren, who also served as president after three years of military rule, never expressed regret for the coup which he always argued ended years of left-right street fighting that killed thousands.
"Should we feed them in prison for years instead of hanging them?" he asked in a speech in 1984, referring to those executed after the coup.
The coup set the stage for a military regime under which thousands were tortured, hundreds sentenced to death and many more vanished and ushered in an era of military dominance in Turkish politics.
Evren was elected president in 1982 and held the seat for the seven years that followed.
The country was governed by a military government until the parliamentary elections of November 1983.