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EU: NON-MUSLIM COMMUNITIES FACE PROBLEMS IN TURKEY
armradio.am
18:04 11.10.2012
The European Commission issued 2012 Progress Report on Turkey. This
report on progress made by Turkey in preparing for EU membership
briefly describes the relations between Turkey and the Union;
analyses the situation in Turkey in terms of the political criteria
for membership; analyses the situation in Turkey on the basis of the
economic criteria for membership; reviews Turkey's capacity to take
on the obligations of membership, that is the acquis expressed in
the Treaties, the secondary legislation and the policies of the Union.
This report covers the period from October 2011 to September 2012.
Concerning freedom of thought, conscience and religion, the report
notes that freedom of worship continues to be generally respected. In
September the third religious service since 1915 was held at the
Armenian Holy Cross Church on the Akhtamar Island in Lake Van. A
number of crypto-Armenians have started to use their original names
and religion.
However, according to the report, restrictions on the training
of clergy remain. "Neither the Turkish legislation nor the public
education system provide for private higher religious education for
individual communities. The Armenian Patriarchate's proposal to open
a university department for the Armenian language and clergy remained
pending for a fifth year."
"The Ministry of National Education approved a new regulation allowing
children from Armenian, Greek and Jewish minorities who are not Turkish
citizens to be educated in minority schools. However, children who
are not Turkish citizens do not receive official graduation papers,"
the report said.
The EU reminds that the commemoration of the twentieth anniversary
of the Khojalu tragedy on 26 February in Istanbul's Taksim square
was marred by racist and anti-Armenian slogans and degenerated into
an attempted march on the Armenian Agos newspaper.
"Rhetoric against missionaries or minorities remains in a number of
compulsory schoolbooks. Several important buildings in the Armenian
cemetery in Malatya were demolished by the Malatya municipality on
2 February."
The report emphasizes that the full execution of the ECtHR judgment
of 14 September 2010 on the Dink case is crucial for Turkey in order
to fight impunity and to hold all involved accountable before the law.
"The five-year court case on the murder of Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink ended on 17 January 2012. One person was convicted for incitement
to murder, but all defendants were acquitted of charges of links to
a terrorist organization; the family of Hrant Dink demanded a new
investigation into the conduct of various members of the police force
and Gendarmerie who seemed to be implicated in the crime according
to an inquiry conducted by the Presidential State Inspection Board
(DDK)," the report reminded.
The EC report reminded also that the Armenian-Turkish protocols signed
in 2009 have not been implemented yet.
From: Baghdasarian
armradio.am
18:04 11.10.2012
The European Commission issued 2012 Progress Report on Turkey. This
report on progress made by Turkey in preparing for EU membership
briefly describes the relations between Turkey and the Union;
analyses the situation in Turkey in terms of the political criteria
for membership; analyses the situation in Turkey on the basis of the
economic criteria for membership; reviews Turkey's capacity to take
on the obligations of membership, that is the acquis expressed in
the Treaties, the secondary legislation and the policies of the Union.
This report covers the period from October 2011 to September 2012.
Concerning freedom of thought, conscience and religion, the report
notes that freedom of worship continues to be generally respected. In
September the third religious service since 1915 was held at the
Armenian Holy Cross Church on the Akhtamar Island in Lake Van. A
number of crypto-Armenians have started to use their original names
and religion.
However, according to the report, restrictions on the training
of clergy remain. "Neither the Turkish legislation nor the public
education system provide for private higher religious education for
individual communities. The Armenian Patriarchate's proposal to open
a university department for the Armenian language and clergy remained
pending for a fifth year."
"The Ministry of National Education approved a new regulation allowing
children from Armenian, Greek and Jewish minorities who are not Turkish
citizens to be educated in minority schools. However, children who
are not Turkish citizens do not receive official graduation papers,"
the report said.
The EU reminds that the commemoration of the twentieth anniversary
of the Khojalu tragedy on 26 February in Istanbul's Taksim square
was marred by racist and anti-Armenian slogans and degenerated into
an attempted march on the Armenian Agos newspaper.
"Rhetoric against missionaries or minorities remains in a number of
compulsory schoolbooks. Several important buildings in the Armenian
cemetery in Malatya were demolished by the Malatya municipality on
2 February."
The report emphasizes that the full execution of the ECtHR judgment
of 14 September 2010 on the Dink case is crucial for Turkey in order
to fight impunity and to hold all involved accountable before the law.
"The five-year court case on the murder of Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink ended on 17 January 2012. One person was convicted for incitement
to murder, but all defendants were acquitted of charges of links to
a terrorist organization; the family of Hrant Dink demanded a new
investigation into the conduct of various members of the police force
and Gendarmerie who seemed to be implicated in the crime according
to an inquiry conducted by the Presidential State Inspection Board
(DDK)," the report reminded.
The EC report reminded also that the Armenian-Turkish protocols signed
in 2009 have not been implemented yet.
From: Baghdasarian