De-mining stalled by opposition

Israeli link holding up Turkish bill to clear minefields along Turkey’s border with Syria

Turkish marines disembark from an amphibious troop carrier and follow a tank at the start of landing exercise maneuvers in Izmir, Turkey, yesterday.

ANKARA (AFP) – Turkey’s plan to rid its border area with Syria of land mines faces stiff political opposition over fears that an Israeli company stands to lease the land for four decades after clearing it of mines.

For two weeks, a parliamentary debate has been raging over the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) proposal for clearing mines along the 510-kilometer (316-mile) frontier.

After ratifying the Ottawa Treaty ban on anti-personnel land mines in 2003, Turkey has until 2014 to clear its border territories of mines.

Deputies have approved four sections of the government’s bill, but a number are holding up the last two parts by not attending the parliamentary sessions.

Their opposition centers on a clause that would allow the chosen mine-clearing company to rent the territory, turning in into agricultural land, for up to 44 years.

Two unnamed Israeli companies are said to be strong contenders to win the contract that Turkey hopes will be managed by NATO’s Maintenance and Supply Agency (NAMSA).

The country’s Council of State, the supreme arbitration body, quashed a government decision taken a few years ago to award the contract to an Israeli mine-clearing company without inviting others to the tender.

The opposition accuses the government of planning to “sell” an area of Turkey, covering 176 square kilometers according to Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul, to foreign companies.

Other critics fear how Syria, with which Turkey has enjoyed better ties in recent years, will respond to an Israeli company working along its border.

“You will create a second Gaza,” Hakki Suha Okay, the deputy head of the main opposition Republican People’s Party, warned in parliament.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has tried to quell the criticism, saying Turkey stands to gain from the contract.

“It is easy to say, ‘You are selling our land to Israel,’ but do not forget that it is Turkish people who will be working for the company responsible for the project,” he said on the weekend.

Erdogan leads one of the few Muslim countries to have diplomatic relations with Israel but is not averse to criticizing the Jewish state.

The Turkish-Syrian border is riddled with some 615,000 land mines, planted since the 1950s to prevent Kurdish rebels and smugglers from crossing. According to Turkey’s army, clearing the mines would cost tens of millions of dollars, with many of them having shifted position over the years due to ground movement and flooding. Parliament could pass the mine-clearing bill this week before it is sent to President Abdullah Gul for approval.