PROTESTS WILL GREET TURKISH PM IN PALMA

THE Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan is going to be greeted by noisy protests when he attends the Alliance of Civilisations summit in Majorca this weekend. His presence was confirmed by the Turkish government yesterday, just hours before the Platform for Social Democracy and Social Globalisation announced that it intends to stage a giant march through Palma on the eve of the inaugural United Nations-sponsored conference on Saturday - the night Balearic leader Jaume Matas will be holding talks over dinner with the Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, in the Majorcan capital. Under the slogan “What Alliance of Civilisations?” the march, which will include a large number of immigrants from Spain's troubled North African enclaves according to organisers, will call for “real peace and freedom” in the poorer countries of the world. Erdogan will be meeting the Spanish PM for talks on Sunday ahead of addressing the Alliance summit in Calvia. The Turkish Prime Minister will then accompany the leader of the Turkish parliament, Bulent Arinc to the Euro-Mediterranean summit in Barcelona on Monday for talks with the leader of the Catalan government Pascual Maragall.