Why should you sign a blank promissory note? It sounds very unlikely to happen to a sane person, isn’t it? However, a promissory note is the easiest instrument to issue as security. For a very simple transaction a foreign person may be required to put his/her signature on promissory notes in Turkish. My office dealt with several cases and defended foreign persons many times on fraud or abused promissory notes which were given as security with good will.
What is a promissory note?

A promissory note is a written promise committing an individual or institution to pay a specified sum of money at a fixed or determinable future date, with or without interest. A promissory note is a contract detailing the terms of a promise by one party (the maker) to pay a sum of money to the other party, the payee.

Business people use promissory notes very commonly as security for commercial purposes.

A valid promissory note must include the following elements according to Article 688 of the Turkish Commercial Code: 1. The wording “promissory note,” or if it is written in a foreign language, the correct translation of this wording in this foreign language should be included in the text of the promissory note. 2. An undertaking for an “unconditional” and “absolute” payment of a definite sum of money. The definite sum can be shown in Turkish lira, or it is also possible to show it in a foreign currency. 3. The maturity date (non-existence of the maturity date does not invalidate the promissory note; a promissory note without a maturity date is generally considered to be payable on submission). 4. The name of the beneficiary. 5. The signature of the maker (or drawer). 6. The date of issuance. 7. The place of issuance. If the place of issuance has not been designated on the promissory note, then the promissory note is deemed to be issued at the place written next to the name of the issuer. 8. The place of payment.

If one of these terms are missing on the promissory note, then the promissory note may not be deemed a promissory note anymore, and therefore, any legal action can be contested easily.

Why did I give you this boring list? I want you to see that issuing a promissory note is not something you do on the street. Please consult your lawyer if you are required to sign it.

It is also a common practice to ask the maker to write the amount and to leave the other details blank. In this case the payee can fill in these blanks freely and any such promissory note shall be valid under Turkish law, provided they are duly signed by the maker.

I strongly recommend you not to use promissory notes for whatever reason since there is almost no difference in giving a promissory note or paying the same amount in cash.

If you have to sign a promissory note for some reason then please make sure that there are no blank parts on the form. If you leave the promissory note blank or in some way open to abuse and if someone fills it in and files it before the execution office then you may be forced to pay the amount written on the note. I should note that it is very difficult to get that paid money back because the gang who abused the note usually vanishes.

Source – Todays Zaman

“In this day and age the most successful gulet holiday companies are the ones that embrace new technologies and connect themselves directly with their target audiences,” said Jonathan Bowker, founder of Maritime Media.”What we do at Maritime Media is leverage these technologies and create mediums to distribute our customers messages. Our Social Media Framework does just that and is designed specifically to support the gulet charter industry and provides a new and unique way to our customers in Bodrum to reach their holiday maker customers and other interested parties directly.”

“Social Media News releases perform well for the gulet holiday industry, they grab the audiences attention and are easy to read and can convey messages concisely. Maritime Media work closely with customers to counsel them on the editing, optimisation and creation of Social Media News from scratch,” added Mr Bowker.

Through the Maritime Media SMR service gulet holiday companies in Bodrum can create news releases that are visible worldwide, almost immediately following dispatch. The majority of Social Media Releases are 400 words with a headline of up to 100 characters. The new SMR service is an inexpensive and valuable tool that reaches travel and marine bloggers as well as marine trade journalists around the world.

Maritime Media provides a trusted source of information for the industry and a powerful online distribution network that creates worldwide awareness of sailing holiday destinations.

Source -maritime media

Professor Elif Dagli, chairperson of the committee, received the award at a ceremony at the Hilton Baltimore Hotel. Speaking at the award ceremony, American Cancer Society Chairman Thomas Glynn said that despite all pressure by giant cigarette industry, Turkey had applied the smoking ban in public places successfully. He said that Turkey was the first Muslim country which put into practice a nationwide smoking ban.

The Global Smoke Free Partnership is a multi-partner initiative formed to promote effective smoke-free air policies worldwide. The Partnership is coordinated by the American Cancer Society and the Framework Convention Alliance with contributions of nearly 20 partners.

Turkey banned smoking on public transportation and in workplaces and malls in May 2008. It gave extra time to restaurants, bars and cafes to bring themselves in compliance with the smoking ban law. Expanded smoking ban went into effect across Turkey on June 19, 2009.Accordingly, it is illegal to smoke in coffeehouses, cafeterias, pubs, narghile-smoking places, clubs of associations and foundations, restaurants, taxis, mass transportation vehicles of highway, railway, seaway and airway.

Under the law, making advertisement and promotion of tobacco products as well as names and brands of producer companies is forbidden too. Turkey is the seventh country in the European continent which bans smoking in all enclosed public places.

Recent public surveys indicated that smoking ban led to a significant decrease in number of addicts.

…Bodrum is exceptionally pretty and I wanted to go back there – in better circumstances (not summer). The Castle of St. Peter on a small peninsula in the sea, 2-storey, flat roofed, white-washed houses nestling into the bay and cobbled streets in the old town.

We went back there in November 2008 with friends and stayed overnight and we saw a completely different side to the town. We stayed in a pension (I think it was called Artemis) on the seafront for a very reasonable amount (70 lira for the room, with breakfast and a view of the bay as in the second photo). I’ve read in guidebooks that Bodrum is purely a summer town.

This is very far from true. It may be true of Gümbet which seemed completely closed down for the winter but Bodrum – as I’ve been told by Turkish friends – is a bit of a playground for Turkish pop / rock stars and actors who live in Istanbul but have holiday homes there. I was expecting Bodrum to be sleepy in winter but all is active – but in a nice way. As you can see in the photos, the weather wasn’t the best but it didn’t matter.

Source – turkey for life