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  • ANKARA: Turkish PM Erdogan Accuses Media Of Distorting 'Expelling' R

    TURKISH PM ERDOGAN ACCUSES MEDIA OF DISTORTING 'EXPELLING' REMARKS

    Hurriyet
    March 19 2010
    Turkey

    PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once more slammed the media, accusing
    the press of distorting his remarks to the BBC about 'expelling
    undocumented Armenian workers' from Turkey. 'Regretfully, it was
    quoted by cutting off the word 'undocumented.' It is malicious
    destruction because of the significant difference between Armenians
    and undocumented Armenian workers,' Erdogan says

    Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. AA photo

    Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has again lashed out at the media,
    this time claiming news outlets misreported his remarks about deporting
    Armenian workers. The outburst came despite most news outlets reporting
    that he was referring to undocumented workers.

    In the same speech Friday, Erdogan also had harsh words for Israel
    regarding settlement plans in east Jerusalem and Tel Aviv's treatment
    of Palestinians.

    Erdogan suggested the "possibility to expel 100,000 Armenian
    undocumented workers in Turkey" in response to U.S. and Swedish
    lawmakers passing resolutions recognizing the Armenian "genocide"
    when he spoke to the BBC Turkish service late Tuesday.

    Without giving any names, the prime minister Friday criticized "some"
    columnists for comparing Roma and Armenian citizens to undocumented
    immigrants. "This is disrespectful to my Roma citizens and my Armenian
    citizens," Erdogan said, addressing his party's members in a televised
    speech.

    The prime minister stressed that he was not referring to Turkish
    citizens of Armenian heritage in his remarks made to the BBC.

    "Regretfully, it was quoted by cutting off the word 'undocumented,'"
    he said. "It is malicious destruction because of the significant
    difference between Armenians and undocumented Armenian workers."

    "Especially the foreign press is attempting to arouse indignation by
    purposely ignoring the adjective 'undocumented,'" Erdogan said. "There
    are dirty games [being played] even though I was the first Turkish
    prime minister to speak about mistreatments of minorities in the past."

    The Turkish prime minister emphasized that "baseless genocide claims"
    will harm the normalization efforts with Armenia. "You cannot write
    history through parliamentary votes," he said. "If you are sincere
    about learning what happened, you can examine the archives and see
    what is true or not."

    "I re-call on Armenia and third countries to be constructive and
    responsible," Erdogan said. "All initiatives that deteriorate the
    [normalization] process will carry a heavy cost - [not to] Turkey but
    [to] the creators and supporters of those malicious initiatives."

    The prime minister also expressed his anger at columnists who had
    criticized his remarks to the BBC. "Those columnists trying to teach
    me humanity should first defend the rights of Turkey. Look in the
    mirror first," he said.

    "Have you ever heard them saying anything positive about the
    government?" he asked, referring to his critics. "They have eyes,
    but are blind to our achievements."

    Erdogan also highlighted that his government's "democratic initiative"
    encompasses more than just increasing rights for Kurds. Apologizing to
    Roma citizens on behalf of the state, he said: "My Roma citizens have
    not benefited from citizenship rights. We will fix these problems."

    "We have changed a lot of things with the [democratic] initiative. We
    are now in a position to understand each other better," he said.

    The prime minister also countered critics who claim that his
    government's democratization efforts have slowed down. "The process of
    national unity and brotherhood has managed to create mutual empathy,"
    Erdogan said. "It has economic, social and security dimensions. We
    support this hope [of democratization] with concrete steps."

    PM slams Israel again

    Erdogan also harshly criticized Israeli settlement plans in east
    Jerusalem and vowed not to normalize relations unless the humanitarian
    tragedy of Palestinians comes to an end.

    "Building 1,600 new settlements in east Jerusalem is not acceptable.

    It is a tactic to wipe Palestine out, piece by piece," Erdogan said,
    noting that Turkey's role is not confined within the country's borders.

    "We are aware of multi-headed politics in Israel. But this multi-voiced
    government should review this situation. As both the U.N.

    and the U.S. oppose [the settlements], such a step means ignoring
    the 1967 agreements," he said.

    Erdogan threatened not to normalize ties with Tel Aviv as long as
    the situation continues. "How can we make contact, my brother?" he
    asked, addressing Israeli politicians. "First, you need to align with
    international law and avoid any cruelty or outrages."

    "Turkey will not be present anywhere innocent people suffer," he said.

    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=er dogan-criticizes-media-apologizes-to-turkeys-roma- people-2010-03-19
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