Thousands of Turks protest over IMF plan

Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit: Grappling with IMF anti-inflation measures

ANKARA, Turkey -- Thousands of Turks have walked out on strike in Ankara against unemployment, low wages and social security cuts.

Banners and slogans attacked the government but much anger was also directed against the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and its anti-inflation plan.

"IMF Get Out. This country is ours!" said one slogan on posters pinned to the chests of many protesters.

Police backed by armoured cars stood by as the demonstrators filed into the central Kizilay district, chanting protests while Turkish pop music blared over loudspeakers.

The demonstration caused some minor problems in a few hospitals and schools but failed to cripple public transport and other services, as organisers had hoped for.

The protest came as the government continues to grapple with a financial crisis that threatens to scupper hopes of curbing double digit inflation.

The IMF said on Thursday it was sending a mission to Ankara at the weekend to discuss an emergency loan. The IMF said the $4 billion dollar loan would only be granted if Turkey cleans up its banking system and establishes a banking watchdog.

The watchdog organisation has now been set up and dozens of senior bank officials have been detained on suspicion of corruption.

The stock market has fallen consistently since last week's detentions.

Most protest speeches addressed the issues of low pay in the health and civil service sectors, as well as fears of rising unemployment if privatisations go ahead.

One protester criticised the IMF's representative for Turkey, Carlo Cottarelli, who has become a familiar figure in the country.

"Yes we're against the government. But Cottarelli's the one who is running this country," he said.

The protest was the first visible public show of discontent since the crisis broke last week with fears over the stability of the country's inflated banking system.

Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit's delicately-balanced left-right government is pressing an IMF dis-inflation plan that views privatisation and strict control on public sector pay increases as a central issue.

Trade unions fear privatisation could help push unemployment well above the present 14 percent. Many state-run enterprises, as well as government agencies, are heavily over-staffed.

Civil servants took part in the protest though their participation in any strike is illegal.

The IMF aims to bring inflation down to single digits by the end of 2002, against an October annual level of 44 percent. But government officials accept this year's targets are not likely to be met until early next year.

CNN Turkey and Reuters contributed to this report.

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