August 8, 2003

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World Media Watch

by Gloria R. Lalumia

BUZZFLASH NOTE: Once again, these are the views and perspectives of the individual papers, not of BuzzFlash or Gloria. They offer BuzzFlash readers a way of reading what other nations are saying about the crisis, whether we like it or not. We repeat: This is not an endorsement of their viewpoints.

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1//Turkish Daily News, Turkey--PARLIAMENT TO VOTE SENDING TROOPS TO IRAQ IN SEPTEMBER (The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government may call Parliament to assemble in an extraordinary session before the end of parliamentary recess in order to pass a motion to allow them to send Turkish troops to Iraq. The United States asked the Turkish government to send troops to Iraq under its occupation during Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul's visit to Washington. It is reported that the AK Party government is on the verge of reaching a decision on the demand of the United States.)

2//Financial Times, UK--KURDS BLOCK TURKISH MISSION INTO IRAQ (Kurdish leaders have refused a US request to allow 12,000 Turkish troops through northern Iraq for a possible peacekeeping assignment in the city of Falluja, a Kurdish official said on Wednesday. Adel Murad, head of the political office of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), said the request came at the weekend from General John Abizaid, head of US central command, in a meeting in the northern city of Mosul with the leaders of PUK and its occasional rival, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP)...Bush administration officials have acknowledged approaching Ankara about taking part, but Gen Abizaid's request - made to Jalal Talabani, PUK leader, and Masoud Barzani, KDP chief - is the most concrete sign that Turkey and the US have agreed on co-operation. Central command declined to comment.)

3//Inter Press Service, Italy--ECONOMY-ISRAEL: US EMBRACE TURNING PAINFUL ("Economic thinkers in both the big political parties (Labour and Likud) have been very much influenced by the American model," says Gal. He attributes that partly to the growing dependence on the U.S. for military aid and political backing..."For years we supported the Likud because of the security situation," says Eti Goari, a 38-year old single mother form the coastal town of Nahariya who has also joined the protesters in Jerusalem. "We never really took the economy into account when we voted but I'm sure that will change now because what's the use of having security if you don't have a life.")

4//The Independent, UK--BERLUSCONI LAWYER AT CENTRE OF 'DEVASTATING CORRUPTION' (The reputation of the Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, took another battering yesterday when a Milan court described the conviction of one of his close associates as climax of the largest corruption case in postwar Italy. The judges described the successful case against Cesare Previti, a lawyer and a parliamentary deputy from Mr Berlusconi's centre-right Forza Italia party, as one of "devastating corruption", adding: "The picture that eventually emerges is certainly that of the biggest corruption in the history of the republic in Italy.")

5//The Sydney Morning Herald, Australia--HOWARD THE YOUNGER OFF TO HELP BUSH WIN ELECTION (The conservative political genes run deep in the John Howard household - the Prime Minister's youngest son, Richard, is interested in working for President George Bush's re-election campaign next year. And just as George jnr followed his similarly named father into politics, and eventually the presidency, Richard John Winston Howard's prospective work experience in the United States has sparked speculation that a Howard political dynasty could be in the making.)

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1//Turkish Daily News 7 August 2003
http://www.turkishdailynews.com/FrTDN/latest/for.htm#f12

PARLIAMENT TO VOTE SENDING TROOPS TO IRAQ IN SEPTEMBER
Ayla Ganioglu, TDN Parliamentary Bureau

The Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government may call Parliament to assemble in an extraordinary session before the end of parliamentary recess in order to pass a motion to allow them to send Turkish troops to Iraq.

The United States asked the Turkish government to send troops to Iraq under its occupation during Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul's visit to Washington. It is reported that the AK Party government is on the verge of reaching a decision on the demand of the United States.

However, Parliament has to assemble in September at any rate, in order to decide whether to extend the mandate allowing the U.S. to use Turkey's airspace or not.

It is expected that AK Party will call on Parliament to assemble in September, if not in August, to decide on this motion.

In March Parliament didn't approve a motion allowing the deployment of U.S. troops in Turkey and the sending of Turkish soldiers abroad, but it passed a motion allowing its ally to use its airspace on March 20. According to this motion, Turkey also decided to send troops to northern Iraq in order to maintain border security during the war and uncertainty timespan in Iraq to keep the PKK/KADEK terror organization militants under its control.

The motion allowed these two important resolutions for six months. The mandate will end on the September 20.

Although the U.S. has asked Turkey to withdraw its troops from northern Iraq in various different platforms, Turkey wants to stay in this region until the PKK/KADEK threat vanishes.

Turkey will either decide to withdraw its troops from northern Iraq due to the demand of the United States and will not extend the mandate of this motion or involve in new bargaining with its ally to send Turkish troops to the southern part of Iraq.

It is reported that the AK Party government may try to solve the problem by replacing "northern Iraq" with "Iraq" in the motion as a second formula.

Meanwhile, it is predicted that the U.S. may try to bargain on the conditions Turkey proposed for extending the mandate of the motion.

(MORE)

2//Financial Times Published: August 6 2003 21:58
[LINK]

KURDS BLOCK TURKISH MISSION INTO IRAQ
By Charles Clover in Baghdad and Semih Idiz in Ankara

Kurdish leaders have refused a US request to allow 12,000 Turkish troops through northern Iraq for a possible peacekeeping assignment in the city of Falluja, a Kurdish official said on Wednesday.

Adel Murad, head of the political office of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), said the request came at the weekend from General John Abizaid, head of US central command, in a meeting in the northern city of Mosul with the leaders of PUK and its occasional rival, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).

Mr Murad said any introduction of Turkish troops into Iraq would damage Kurdish support for the US-led effort to form a new Iraqi government and could spark violence between Turkish forces and Kurdish fighters.

The Kurdish refusal throws up another hurdle to the US's efforts to get a third division of foreign troops to help ease the burden on its 146,000 forces in Iraq.

(SNIP)

Turkish peacekeepers could be airlifted into central Iraq, where they could patrol areas dominated by fellow Sunni Muslims, but it would be expensive.

Bush administration officials have acknowledged approaching Ankara about taking part, but Gen Abizaid's request - made to Jalal Talabani, PUK leader, and Masoud Barzani, KDP chief - is the most concrete sign that Turkey and the US have agreed on co-operation. Central command declined to comment.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's prime minister, called an unscheduled meeting of his senior advisers on Wednesday to discuss the potential deployment.

3//Inter Press Service August 4, 2003
http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=19508

ECONOMY-ISRAEL: US EMBRACE TURNING PAINFUL
Ferry Biedermann

Israel's transition from a welfare state to market models closer to the U.S. economy is turning out to be a painful one.

JERUSALEM, Aug 4 (IPS) - Israel's transition from a welfare state to market models closer to the U.S. economy is turning out to be a painful one.

The single mothers in their colourful tents protesting against welfare cuts outside the offices of the finance ministry in Jerusalem are only the most visible indication of the change. Israel is finding itself moving close to the U.S. in ways most people do not want.

The gap between rich and poor is bigger now in Israel than anywhere else in the Western world -- except for the United States, according to recent research by the Luxembourg Income Study. That is a remarkable position for a country that was founded partly on socialist ideals and where the collective farm, the Kibbutz, was the ideal.

(SNIP)

But the government is lowering taxes, especially for the rich. The government defends its policies as necessary for encouraging growth, but many of the poorest wonder why the huge deficits are being offset by welfare cuts, but then again made worse by tax cuts. The government says it wants to encourage growth, and Netanyahu speaks of "breaking the welfare habit."

Experts say Israel is moving away from a system of 'total welfare' along the European model of the seventies to a 'minimal welfare' system along U.S. lines. But that does not mean no gap existed between rich and poor earlier.

"There have always been such differences," says Dr Johnny Gal from the School for Social Work at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. "There were big gaps between the immigrants from Arab countries and the immigrants from Europe; these still exist. The poorest segment has always been the Arab population and that has not changed."

In May and July the government cut some 2.4 billion dollars off its expenses. The economy contracted last year and most experts expect zero growth this year - from a 6.8 percent growth in 2000.

(SNIP)

" Economic thinkers in both the big political parties (Labour and Likud) have been very much influenced by the American model," says Gal. He attributes that partly to the growing dependence on the U.S. for military aid and political backing. "But many of the top people genuinely belief the American model is better. Many were educated there or have spent parts of their working lives there."

Gal says the left-wing Labour party too is moving in that direction, but the people who are hit by the current round of welfare cuts blame Likud which is in power now.

"For years we supported the Likud because of the security situation," says Eti Goari, a 38-year old single mother form the coastal town of Nahariya who has also joined the protesters in Jerusalem. "We never really took the economy into account when we voted but I'm sure that will change now because what's the use of having security if you don't have a life."

4//The Independent 07 August 2003
http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/story.jsp?story=431299

BERLUSCONI LAWYER AT CENTRE OF 'DEVASTATING CORRUPTION'
By Stephen Castle in Brussels

The reputation of the Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, took another battering yesterday when a Milan court described the conviction of one of his close associates as climax of the largest corruption case in postwar Italy.

The judges described the successful case against Cesare Previti, a lawyer and a parliamentary deputy from Mr Berlusconi's centre-right Forza Italia party, as one of "devastating corruption", adding: "The picture that eventually emerges is certainly that of the biggest corruption in the history of the republic in Italy."

The formal written declaration is an acute embarrassment to Mr Berlusconi who took over the six-month rotating presidency of the EU in June under a cloud because of the corruption allegations levelled against him.

Since then, Mr Berlusconi has been embroiled in controversy and a public spat with the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, after likening a German MEP to a Nazi concentration camp guard. The judges' statement is sensitive because Mr Berlusconi and Mr Previti are co-defendants in a separate case where there are allegations that judges were bribed. The Prime Minister has only avoided appearing in the dock because the case against him has been suspended while he remains in office, because of an immunity law.

Yesterday's declaration concerns a different trial.

(MORE)

5//The Sydney Morning Herald August 8, 2003
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/07/1060145803652.html

HOWARD THE YOUNGER OFF TO HELP BUSH WIN ELECTION
By Tom Allard

The conservative political genes run deep in the John Howard household - the Prime Minister's youngest son, Richard, is interested in working for President George Bush's re-election campaign next year.

And just as George jnr followed his similarly named father into politics, and eventually the presidency, Richard John Winston Howard's prospective work experience in the United States has sparked speculation that a Howard political dynasty could be in the making.

Described yesterday by a family friend as "the most political of the children", Richard - like his father as a young man - is a passionate and extremely accomplished debater who is training for a life in law.

Richard is completing his final year of a commerce/law degree at the University of NSW, and was a member of the Australian team that won the world schools debating championships in 1998. In a rare interview five years ago he seemingly eschewed a political career.

(SNIP)

He joked at the time that he was "very opinionated and have the strange belief that I'm always right" - a pre-requisite, many would argue, for a career in politics.

Believed to be overseas, Richard could not be reached for comment on whether he had a change of heart about his career.

Nonetheless, Mr Howard's office confirmed his son's interest in working with the Bush re-election campaign, saying he was pursuing the matter with his own contacts in the Republican Party.

"Like many young Australians, Richard wants to do work experience in the US," a spokesman said. "The Prime Minister hasn't made any representations on his behalf, and neither has his office."