The Belgian Union of Professional Journalists (AGJPB), on October 23, 2002, officially protested against the indictment of Dogan Özgüden, Info-Türk chief editor, by the Turkish justice.

After failing to be recommended for membership of the European Union, Turkey is clinging to faint hopes that the EU Council comprising heads of government will take a political decision to give Turkey at least a date for accession talks.

Turkish Energy Minister Zeki Cakan and his Iranian counterpart Bijan Namdar Zanganeh told reporters they were satisfied with the results of the agreement, but did not say whether they had reached any new deal on prices.

When the sentence was announced, Zeybek, a former editor of a radical newspaper was in Sweden to receive the PEN Tucholsky Award, granted annually to writers who have been persecuted, threatened or are in exile.

RSF:A group of 16 Spanish people, including the 10 journalists, were expelled to the Greek-Cypriot side of the island by police and foreign ministry press officials after conferring with NGOs, the media and other civil society groups in the north.

Amnesty International urged the authorities to take further steps to protect all people in Turkey from the crime of torture following the sentencing of ten police officers for the torture of the Manisachildren.

A Turkish court sentenced ten police officers to prison for a total of 1020 months for charges of torturing 16 teenagers. The time for the trial, which has been going on for seven years, will be up in June 2003.

SP deputy Bekaraoglu, during an anti - was demonstration, said: Some people are bargaining with the U.S. over the life of the Turkish soldiers. The weapon companies that got Bush elected, now want him to start a war, so that they can sell their weapons.

RSF: Turkey breaks commitments to European Union by charging journalists Ozguden, Karaca and Sert with insulting the army. More than 50 journalists were brought before the Turkish courts in 2001 in connection with what they had written.

Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the European Union Strategy Paper and Progress Report Regarding the Cyprus Issue: Turkey expects the EU Council not to make a historical mistake by relying on the relevant Commission reports.

A complaint by Turkeys former armed forces chief of staff, Gen. Hüseyin Kivrikoglu, that Reporters Without Borders (RSF) harmed his public image will be heard by a Paris court on 16 October.

Scholor Aktar: The negativeness of the progress report is due to the weaknesses of the commission. It has come in very handy for the anti-EU circles. The general elections has already been affected in such a way to benefit the anti-EU parties.

The court refused to retry journalist Kizilyaprak. The judge decided that the EU-reforms did not alter Kizilyapraks conviction. The journalist is facing a prison sentence. The case is taken to the ECHR.

The head of the Chamber of Architects, Gursel, believes that the findings excavated at the antique City of Zeugma should be preserved and exhibited. This would contribute to Gazianteps and the regions economy according to Gursel.

HRW: EU report on Turkeys progress toward membership due out Wednesday EU report on Turkeys progress toward membership due out Wednesday could signal whether the EU considers recent reforms enough for Turkey to start membership negotiations.

Independent Kurdish intelectual Umit Firat believes that Turkeys concerns are not about security, but about freedom: Ankara cannot stand the fact that the Kurds outside Turkey are granted more rights than Turkeys Kurds.

Afrika newspaper editor-in-chief Sener Levent and editor Memduh Ener released from prison; progress in case of journalist Lutlu Adali murdered in 1996.

In the first 9 months of 2002, 51 books were banned in Turkey. As a promising development, 11 of these were acquitted. But 4 books were sentenced. 42 books were banned in 2001.

Ulgen, the owner of the English Fast language institute, may not establish a Kurdish Fast class. The Education Ministry did not approve teaching Kurdish at the language institutes where every other language is taught.

Scholar Gerger said: This treatment is part of the 11 September syndrome, but cannot prevent me from defending human rights and fighting against the USAs belligerent policies.