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Zaman Online, Turkey
Nov 10 2006
Brussels Insistent on Freedom of Speech, Opening Ports to Cyprus
By Selcuk Gultasli
Thursday, November 09, 2006
zaman.com
On Wednesday, the European Union released the progress report and
strategy paper, two extremely critical documents for the future of
the negotiation process between Turkey and the European Union.
The EU Commission, which underlined freedom of expression and the
Cyprus issue, did not make any recommendation on the resolution of
the Cyprus issue at this stage, despite the insistence of some
commissioners. The Commission, which, in an attempt to support the
Finnish Plan on Cyprus, postponed the issuance of the report for a
month, increased the importance of the Finnish Plan and the Dec.
14-15 EU Summit for Turkey.
Replacing the controversial `absorption' capacity with `adaptation'
capacity, the Commission also clarified its strategy for future
enlargement. At the press conference held after the release of the
report, Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn did not respond to
questions over whether membership talks with Turkey would be
suspended if it did not implement the additional protocol. Rehn noted
that both the Commission and the EU strongly supported the Finnish
Plan, and wanted to see what it would achieve. The report, while
noting that Turkey had sufficiently fulfilled the Copenhagen
Criteria, stressed that the pace of the reform process slowed down.
It also urged Turkey to maintain EU standards with regard to the
issues, such as non-Muslim communities, recognizing the rights of
working women on labor conditions and civil-military relations.
Despite the persistence of the correspondents present at the press
conference, Olli Rehn did not answer the questions on the probable
suspension of membership talks with Turkey in case of its
non-compliance with the additional protocol. Asked whether the EU
gave an ultimatum to Turkey by the report, Rehn said they wanted to
give time to the Finnish Plan, and decided that it would not be wise
to make any recommendation at this stage.
Rehn, implicitly criticizing German, French and Austrian politicians,
who favored Turkey's privileged partnership rather than its full
membership in the European Union, said, `Instead of such rhetoric
that create a vicious circle, we should try to create a virtuous
circle that would make Turkey more European.' When asked about the
controversial Article 301 of Turkish Penal Code, Rehn accused Kemal
Kerincsiz without mentioning his name. Welcoming the Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's meeting with civil society
organizations to discuss possible amendments to this article, Rehn
recalled that the article should be ameliorated not for Europe, but
for the Turkish people. Rehn also noted that it would wrong to assert
that Turkey had stepped back from the reform process, but its pace
had slowed down.
----------------------------------------------- -------------------------
Major issues covered by the Progress Report and Strategy Paper:
Freedom of Speech: Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code is
extensively abused. The conviction of Hrant Dink in relation to this
article created a case law that restricts freedom of speech. Hence,
the article is a matter of concern, which might cause
auto-censorship.
Cyprus: If Turkey does not fulfill its obligations under the Ankara
Protocol, the entire negotiations process would be negatively
affected. If Turkey does not proceed with implementing the
aforementioned protocol, the Commission will adopt recommendations
accordingly before the December summit of the Council of European
Union. In addition, Turkey should take concrete steps toward
normalizing its relations with all EU member countries.
Civil-military relations: Senior army officers persist in making
public statements on issues out of their area of competence. Turkish
armed forces still have unusual political influence. Senior military
officers publicly express their views on both domestic and foreign
political issues, such as Cyprus, secularism, the Kurdish question
and the Semdinli indictment.
Religious freedoms: Ratification of the draft laws on religious
minorities has been postponed several times. There is no alleviation
of non-Muslims' problems. This is also the case with the Alevi
community. To ensure full operation of all religious communities
without any restrictions, framework legislation should be devised in
accordance with the European Court of Human Rights case law. Even
though it refers to religious communities, the report does not make
any mention of Sunni majority's problems.
The Southeast: Turkey is target of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK)
terrorism in an increasing scale. The PKK is on the EU's list of
terrorist groups. The European Union has condemned terrorist
activities. Turkey should resolve the serious economic and social
problems of the Southeast.
Judiciary: The reforms introduced so far presents a blurry picture.
There is strong need for steps that would ensure independence of the
judiciary. Honor killings should be investigated with scrutiny, and
the perpetrators should be sentenced to imprisonment. Corruption is
still commonplace in the public sector and the judiciary. Legislation
on fighting corruption remains weak and unsatisfactory; the
institutions which carry out the fight against corruption should be
empowered. There is a steady decrease in the number of incidents
involving torture and ill treatment. However, the amended articles of
Anti-Terror Law might endanger the fight against torture and ill
treatment.
`Mr. Ocalan Removed
The expression `Mr. Ocalan,' which caused outrage in Turkey, was
replaced with `Abdullah Ocalan.'
The report also makes reference to the predominantly Roma vicinities
in Ankara and Istanbul. It asserts that nearly two million Turkish
Romas are subjected to discrimination in access to housing, health,
and employment. Unlike the previous report, this year's progress
report does make any reference to the Armenian allegations over the
1915 incidents.
Nov 10 2006
Brussels Insistent on Freedom of Speech, Opening Ports to Cyprus
By Selcuk Gultasli
Thursday, November 09, 2006
zaman.com
On Wednesday, the European Union released the progress report and
strategy paper, two extremely critical documents for the future of
the negotiation process between Turkey and the European Union.
The EU Commission, which underlined freedom of expression and the
Cyprus issue, did not make any recommendation on the resolution of
the Cyprus issue at this stage, despite the insistence of some
commissioners. The Commission, which, in an attempt to support the
Finnish Plan on Cyprus, postponed the issuance of the report for a
month, increased the importance of the Finnish Plan and the Dec.
14-15 EU Summit for Turkey.
Replacing the controversial `absorption' capacity with `adaptation'
capacity, the Commission also clarified its strategy for future
enlargement. At the press conference held after the release of the
report, Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn did not respond to
questions over whether membership talks with Turkey would be
suspended if it did not implement the additional protocol. Rehn noted
that both the Commission and the EU strongly supported the Finnish
Plan, and wanted to see what it would achieve. The report, while
noting that Turkey had sufficiently fulfilled the Copenhagen
Criteria, stressed that the pace of the reform process slowed down.
It also urged Turkey to maintain EU standards with regard to the
issues, such as non-Muslim communities, recognizing the rights of
working women on labor conditions and civil-military relations.
Despite the persistence of the correspondents present at the press
conference, Olli Rehn did not answer the questions on the probable
suspension of membership talks with Turkey in case of its
non-compliance with the additional protocol. Asked whether the EU
gave an ultimatum to Turkey by the report, Rehn said they wanted to
give time to the Finnish Plan, and decided that it would not be wise
to make any recommendation at this stage.
Rehn, implicitly criticizing German, French and Austrian politicians,
who favored Turkey's privileged partnership rather than its full
membership in the European Union, said, `Instead of such rhetoric
that create a vicious circle, we should try to create a virtuous
circle that would make Turkey more European.' When asked about the
controversial Article 301 of Turkish Penal Code, Rehn accused Kemal
Kerincsiz without mentioning his name. Welcoming the Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's meeting with civil society
organizations to discuss possible amendments to this article, Rehn
recalled that the article should be ameliorated not for Europe, but
for the Turkish people. Rehn also noted that it would wrong to assert
that Turkey had stepped back from the reform process, but its pace
had slowed down.
----------------------------------------------- -------------------------
Major issues covered by the Progress Report and Strategy Paper:
Freedom of Speech: Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code is
extensively abused. The conviction of Hrant Dink in relation to this
article created a case law that restricts freedom of speech. Hence,
the article is a matter of concern, which might cause
auto-censorship.
Cyprus: If Turkey does not fulfill its obligations under the Ankara
Protocol, the entire negotiations process would be negatively
affected. If Turkey does not proceed with implementing the
aforementioned protocol, the Commission will adopt recommendations
accordingly before the December summit of the Council of European
Union. In addition, Turkey should take concrete steps toward
normalizing its relations with all EU member countries.
Civil-military relations: Senior army officers persist in making
public statements on issues out of their area of competence. Turkish
armed forces still have unusual political influence. Senior military
officers publicly express their views on both domestic and foreign
political issues, such as Cyprus, secularism, the Kurdish question
and the Semdinli indictment.
Religious freedoms: Ratification of the draft laws on religious
minorities has been postponed several times. There is no alleviation
of non-Muslims' problems. This is also the case with the Alevi
community. To ensure full operation of all religious communities
without any restrictions, framework legislation should be devised in
accordance with the European Court of Human Rights case law. Even
though it refers to religious communities, the report does not make
any mention of Sunni majority's problems.
The Southeast: Turkey is target of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK)
terrorism in an increasing scale. The PKK is on the EU's list of
terrorist groups. The European Union has condemned terrorist
activities. Turkey should resolve the serious economic and social
problems of the Southeast.
Judiciary: The reforms introduced so far presents a blurry picture.
There is strong need for steps that would ensure independence of the
judiciary. Honor killings should be investigated with scrutiny, and
the perpetrators should be sentenced to imprisonment. Corruption is
still commonplace in the public sector and the judiciary. Legislation
on fighting corruption remains weak and unsatisfactory; the
institutions which carry out the fight against corruption should be
empowered. There is a steady decrease in the number of incidents
involving torture and ill treatment. However, the amended articles of
Anti-Terror Law might endanger the fight against torture and ill
treatment.
`Mr. Ocalan Removed
The expression `Mr. Ocalan,' which caused outrage in Turkey, was
replaced with `Abdullah Ocalan.'
The report also makes reference to the predominantly Roma vicinities
in Ankara and Istanbul. It asserts that nearly two million Turkish
Romas are subjected to discrimination in access to housing, health,
and employment. Unlike the previous report, this year's progress
report does make any reference to the Armenian allegations over the
1915 incidents.