Roj TV active in Turkey

ANKARA - Turkish Daily News
Monday, November 28, 2005

CHP leader Baykal says a deputy from his party giving an interview to Roj TV was less important than the fact that the channel was active in Turkey

Opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal said over the weekend the fact that the Denmark based Roj TV channel being active in Turkey was more important than a deputy giving an interview to it.

Speaking to journalists, Baykal said that the CHP deputy from Hakkari, Esat Canan, being interviewed on Roj TV showed that the channel was active both in Denmark and Turkey.

Turkey says Roj TV is a mouthpiece for the outlawed PKK, which is designated a terrorist group not only by Turkey but also by the United States and the European Union, and is pressing Denmark to close it.

Baykal said the government needs to tackle the issue and take measures against Roj TV.

When asked about the affair, Transportation Minister Binali Yıldırım said he was sure the CHP would investigate the matter and act in accordance with Turkey's official policies.

Canan dismissed the accusations directed against him on Sunday, arguing, "What's important is not who talked to which Television station, but what they said."

He said Roj TV was available in Turkey and claimed that no one had done anything about it until now. "There were deputies from the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and Motherland Party (ANAVATAN) who appeared on the channel before. I don't want to give names, but if that becomes necessary, I'll do that too."

"I am against any sort of violence and I have voiced my opinion on many channels. I talk to many journalists about what I saw and lived through in Şemdinli. Some are aiming to deviate the debate on Şemdinli by emphasizing a single phone interview," he said.

Canan also said he did not believe a disciplinary investigation within the CHP was necessary.

AKP after making a militant a president:

Baykal, speaking before his visit to Atatürk's Mausoleum on Saturday with the new members of the CHP Party Assembly, accused the ruling AKP of trying to make certain a political militant would become the next president.

He dismissed reports that the AKP was considering offering the presidency to Chief of General Staff Gen. Hilmi Özkök, arguing: "What the AKP has in mind for the presidency is very distant from what the chief of general staff can provide. Unfortunately, the AKP is trying to impose its own narrow view on the president."