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TURKS MULL BOYCOTT OF FRENCH PRODUCTS
By Ayla Albayrak
Wall Street Journal
http://blogs.wsj.com/emergingeurope/2011/12/23/turks-mull-boycott-of-french-products/?mod=google_news_blog
Dec 23 2011
Just one day after France's Parliament passed a bill that would
criminalize the denial of Armenian genocide, the Turks faced a question
of whether they should boycott French products.
Although several Turkish ministers said before the vote that Ankara
would not sponsor an official boycott - as Turkey is a member of
European Customs Union - they also warned Paris that the "people
could not be prevented" from levying their own sanctions.
A man holds a sign reading "I boycott French goods" during a
demonsration in front of the French consulate in Istanbul.On Friday,
some nongovernmental organizations and trade unions began announcing
measures to voice their displeasure with the French Parliament's
decision. The first came from Turkish bookmaker Spor Toto, which said
it would exclude all French sports teams from its indexes.
Turkey's Consumer Association, Tuketiciler Birligi, launched an
Internet campaign to help Turks identify French brands in supermarkets
- from Danone to Evian - to help them boycott. "Barcode 30 and 37 mean
the product is imported from France," advised an emailed statement
circulating among Turkish Internet users.
The chief of the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen
warned on Tuesday that "if this law passes, all French products sold by
two million tradesmen and craftsmen will be lifted from the shelves,"
referring to the confederation's two million members.
Turkey's Public Workers Unions Confederation, Kamu-Sen, called for all
public sector employees to boycott French products and companies, while
some smaller regional business groups launched their own protests.
A raft of companies represented by Turkey's Union of Chambers and
Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), with the backing of the Turkish government,
tried to lobby French companies against the bill with a letter sent
to company executives in Turkey. The letter threatened a "serious
protest in Turkey against French products, resulting in a serious
economic loss." The TOBB asked French companies to sign the letter,
to be sent to President Nicolas Sarkozy, but it was not clear how many
of the almost thousand French companies operating in Turkey took part
in the campaign.
Turkey's influential Industry and Business Association tried to cool
tensions this week, warning that a boycott could affect employment and
output. French auto giant Renault employs more than 6,000 people in
Turkey. A Renault spokesperson said the company is "closely following"
the debate over the genocide bill.
Despite threats of a major citizen initiative, there was little
evidence on Friday of big boycott campaigns on social media websites
or scheduling of mass protests. Although many Turks have reacted
angrily to the move by France's Parliament, analysts stressed that
the economic ties between the two countries were strong enough to
weather the political storm.
French cars, cosmetics and other products are popular in Turkish
households. According to statistics of Turkey's economy ministry,
imports of French products continued to grow steadily each year,
exceeding $8 billion in 2010, and last year only five countries
imported to Turkey more than France. Even the word "boykot" was
imported to Turkish from French.
When the French Parliament passed the same bill in 2006 - which was
later dropped at the Senate and never became law - the Turkish boycott
on French products did not have a long-term effect.
If the bill becomes a law, denying Armenian genocide, officially
recognized as such by France, would become a crime in France,
punishable by one-year imprisonment and a fine of ~@40,000. Many
Armenian groups say up to 1.5 million of their people were
systematically killed during World War I in today's Eastern Turkey,
which was part of the Ottoman Empire. Turkey denies the allegations
and says hundreds of thousands died in warfare and famine.
Nolwenn Allano, CEO of French insurance company Gras Savoye, said many
businessmen in Turkey were looking beyond the politics and trying to
maintain healthy business relations with their French partners.
From: A. Papazian
By Ayla Albayrak
Wall Street Journal
http://blogs.wsj.com/emergingeurope/2011/12/23/turks-mull-boycott-of-french-products/?mod=google_news_blog
Dec 23 2011
Just one day after France's Parliament passed a bill that would
criminalize the denial of Armenian genocide, the Turks faced a question
of whether they should boycott French products.
Although several Turkish ministers said before the vote that Ankara
would not sponsor an official boycott - as Turkey is a member of
European Customs Union - they also warned Paris that the "people
could not be prevented" from levying their own sanctions.
A man holds a sign reading "I boycott French goods" during a
demonsration in front of the French consulate in Istanbul.On Friday,
some nongovernmental organizations and trade unions began announcing
measures to voice their displeasure with the French Parliament's
decision. The first came from Turkish bookmaker Spor Toto, which said
it would exclude all French sports teams from its indexes.
Turkey's Consumer Association, Tuketiciler Birligi, launched an
Internet campaign to help Turks identify French brands in supermarkets
- from Danone to Evian - to help them boycott. "Barcode 30 and 37 mean
the product is imported from France," advised an emailed statement
circulating among Turkish Internet users.
The chief of the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen
warned on Tuesday that "if this law passes, all French products sold by
two million tradesmen and craftsmen will be lifted from the shelves,"
referring to the confederation's two million members.
Turkey's Public Workers Unions Confederation, Kamu-Sen, called for all
public sector employees to boycott French products and companies, while
some smaller regional business groups launched their own protests.
A raft of companies represented by Turkey's Union of Chambers and
Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), with the backing of the Turkish government,
tried to lobby French companies against the bill with a letter sent
to company executives in Turkey. The letter threatened a "serious
protest in Turkey against French products, resulting in a serious
economic loss." The TOBB asked French companies to sign the letter,
to be sent to President Nicolas Sarkozy, but it was not clear how many
of the almost thousand French companies operating in Turkey took part
in the campaign.
Turkey's influential Industry and Business Association tried to cool
tensions this week, warning that a boycott could affect employment and
output. French auto giant Renault employs more than 6,000 people in
Turkey. A Renault spokesperson said the company is "closely following"
the debate over the genocide bill.
Despite threats of a major citizen initiative, there was little
evidence on Friday of big boycott campaigns on social media websites
or scheduling of mass protests. Although many Turks have reacted
angrily to the move by France's Parliament, analysts stressed that
the economic ties between the two countries were strong enough to
weather the political storm.
French cars, cosmetics and other products are popular in Turkish
households. According to statistics of Turkey's economy ministry,
imports of French products continued to grow steadily each year,
exceeding $8 billion in 2010, and last year only five countries
imported to Turkey more than France. Even the word "boykot" was
imported to Turkish from French.
When the French Parliament passed the same bill in 2006 - which was
later dropped at the Senate and never became law - the Turkish boycott
on French products did not have a long-term effect.
If the bill becomes a law, denying Armenian genocide, officially
recognized as such by France, would become a crime in France,
punishable by one-year imprisonment and a fine of ~@40,000. Many
Armenian groups say up to 1.5 million of their people were
systematically killed during World War I in today's Eastern Turkey,
which was part of the Ottoman Empire. Turkey denies the allegations
and says hundreds of thousands died in warfare and famine.
Nolwenn Allano, CEO of French insurance company Gras Savoye, said many
businessmen in Turkey were looking beyond the politics and trying to
maintain healthy business relations with their French partners.
From: A. Papazian