flash bulletin

16 December 2004

1. "EU ready to say 'yes' to Turkey, as well as 'but'", "There is a good prospect of a solution on Friday but no guarantee to the outcome in the end and also a temporary stop if negotiations are going in the wrong way"

2. "Turkey Applies Last-Minute Pressure For EU "Yes" Decision", On the eve of a crucial summit that may determine the outcome of Turkey's 41-year campaign for European Union membership, Brussels has mulled fresh conditions for Ankara to meet before accession talks could begin.

3. "Turkey Must Face The True", The debate over whether to include Turkey in the European Union crystallizes the essence of what it means to be "European."

4. "Media group sounds alarm over Turkey as EU talks set", The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) voiced concern Wednesday over media freedom and standards in Turkey, welcoming some reforms but saying more needs to be done as Ankara bids to join the EU.

5. "Breadley: The liberty of language will come to Turkey", Christian Breadley, second clerk of English Embassy to Ankara visiting the Private Kurdish Language Course in Van said the liberty of language would come to Turkey. "But this people cannot learn the language only with two courses."

6. "Erdogan: Kurdish Ad Political Assassination", Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that an advertisement placed by a Kurdish group, namely, “What do Kurds want from Turkey?” was a political assassination directed against the nation’s will.

1. - International Herald Tribune - "EU ready to say 'yes' to Turkey, as well as 'but'":

BRUSSELS / 16 December 2004 / by Graham Bowley

The European Union's 25 countries will agree by Friday to begin membership negotiations with Turkey, but the Netherlands, which holds the EU presidency, is seeking to give individual countries long-term powers to prevent Turkish immigrants from flooding westward, according to Gerrit Zalm, the Dutch finance minister and deputy prime minister. Further economic, political and military reforms in Turkey will also be sought.

"There is a good prospect of a solution on Friday but no guarantee to the outcome in the end and also a temporary stop if negotiations are going in the wrong way," Zalm said in an interview ahead of a summit meeting of EU leaders here Thursday and Friday.

With a decision on Turkey only hours away, the European Parliament voted Wednesday for the EU to open talks "without undue delay." It voted, 407 to 262 with 29 abstentions, to pass the resolution, which is nonbinding but nevertheless likely to influence leaders ahead of the start of the summit meeting.

José Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission, said in Parliament during a debate: "It is now time for the European Council to honor its commitment to Turkey and announce the opening of accession negotiations. A clear date should be indicated." He added: "We accept that the accession process is open-ended, and its outcome cannot be guaranteed beforehand."

Meanwhile, Jan Peter Balkenende, the Dutch prime minister, said in the Dutch Parliament that he expected a "yes" Friday but that the negotiations would take years before Turkey could become a full member.

The issue of Turkish accession will dominate the summit talks. Leaders arrive Thursday and will devote discussions over dinner to the issue of Turkish membership, with a decision possible late Thursday or on Friday.

Their embrace of Turkey will begin the process to end Ankara's 40-year wait to join the EU, but the conditions they will apply will require a profound transformation of its economy and society beyond the political and human rights reforms already achieved. The summit talks will also cover these topics:

Bulgaria and Romania: EU leaders will give final blessing to end accession talks with the two countries and set a date for signing an accession treaty with each. This would pave the way for them to join the EU in 2007 or 2008.

Croatia: The EU is likely to agree to start accession negotiations with Croatia, probably in April, that are likely to be conditional on Croatia's cooperation over war crimes investigations.

The EU budget: The EU is in the middle of heated negotiations about its 2007-2013 budget. Rich countries are seeking to limit spending to 1 percent of Union GDP, but other countries - mainly in the poor, former Communist East - and the European Commission want to expand it.

The United Nations: European leaders will meet with the UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, in what is seen as tacit support for Annan, who is facing tough criticisms in the United States.

The fight against terrorism: EU foreign ministers met in Brussels earlier this week ahead of the summit talks, and the Dutch government said they had "provisionally settled many elements" that would be agreed by government leaders on Thursday and Friday.

Foreign ministers are due to discuss Ukraine and the Middle East in a separate meeting Thursday evening.

On Turkey, the issues at stake in the negotiations are the following:

Whether and when negotiations should begin. EU governments are likely to say "yes" and start talks around October next year.

Whether the EU should guarantee that the talks can end in full membership. Some Europeans want the aim of the talks to be a second-class status for Turkey, stopping short of full membership. Some are also pushing for extensive powers, likely to be granted, to call off talks if Turkey backslides on human rights reforms.

When the talks can end. The EU is likely to insist that talks last 10 to 15 years or longer, to allow Turkey time to make further significant economic and civil reforms, and give the EU time to change its own internal financial structures.

Under current EU rules, rich countries are obliged to subsidize poorer regions, but these countries do not want the huge burden that Turkey would represent.

Turkey has GDP per head roughly one third the EU average.

Other tough restrictions, such as checks on migration flows.

One sticking point is Turkey's refusal to recognize the republic of Cyprus.

Cyprus, which joined the EU in May, has suggested it may veto Turkey's bid for membership if Ankara does not recognize it.

Turkey denies that recognition should be a condition for membership. But the EU insists that Turkey will have to sign a protocol recognizing all 10 member states that joined the EU in May and that this will mean a tacit recognition of Cyprus.

Dutch sources said Wednesday that Turkey would sign the so-called Ankara protocol soon, probably Friday.

Most EU governments support Ankara's bid for membership, but public opposition has hardened in some countries in recent months.

This has come over fears about immigration and the threat posed by Turkey to a European cultural identity, as well as to European budgets and jobs.

"The big issue at stake is to have sufficient guarantees if Turkey becomes a member that it is not disturbing important policies in the countries," Zalm said.

The Netherlands will be an important voice around the table as the EU countries seek to end months of rancorous debate and come to a compromise on Turkey.

The tough position on immigration reflects special concerns in the Netherlands where public opinion has soured.

But the calls for curbs on population movements reflect a broader toughening of European identity - a general unease about embracing a large Muslim nation into the EU fold.

There is also a growing fear that bringing Turkey within the EU's borders would trigger new waves of migration into countries that are already struggling to digest large populations of migrants.

These fears have grown strong in countries such as Germany and France, but the French and German governments remain supporters of Ankara's bid.

President Jacques Chirac of France faces an especially tough task in winning a skeptical French electorate around.

French opinion polls show that a majority of voters oppose Turkish membership. In Germany, the CDU opposition party has called for the EU to give Turkey a "privileged partnership" but not full membership.

Zalm is insisting that powers be devolved to individual countries so that each capital is free to decide when to lift immigration restrictions on Turkey.

"We need long transition periods, and must be able to decide for ourselves when there can be free movement of people," said Zalm, referring to strict controls imposed by the Dutch government to allay fears about immigration.

2. - Eurasianet - "Turkey Applies Last-Minute Pressure For EU "Yes" Decsion":

15 December 2004 / by Mevlut Katik*

On the eve of a crucial summit that may determine the outcome of Turkey's 41-year campaign for European Union membership, Brussels has mulled fresh conditions for Ankara to meet before accession talks could begin. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayipp Erdogan was sharply critical of proposed new criteria, cautioning the EU that it would be making a "historic mistake" if it rebuffed Turkey's membership bid.

Among the most sensitive draft conditions reportedly under consideration by the EU's Dutch presidency is a stipulation that Turkey recognize 10 countries -- including Cyprus, which joined the EU in May -- as members of the bloc before membership talks can begin. Such a move would amount to de facto recognition of Cyprus itself – a difficult demand for Ankara to meet given its own support of the self-declared Turkish Cypriot state in the north of the island.

In a statement to the Turkish parliament on December 14, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul rejected recognition of Cyprus in any form while a peace deal for the island, divided between Turkish and Greek Cypriots since 1973, remains unsigned. "Turkey will not take any steps which would mean recognizing [Cyprus] directly or indirectly," Gul said.

What that will mean for Turkey's membership bid remains unclear, but already a lobbying campaign is underway to block the imposition of fresh EU conditions. Also in Ankara's sights: a suggestion for a so-called "privileged membership" as a fallback in case accession talks with Ankara fail. Removal of permanent caps on the free movement of Turkish workers within the EU is another goal.

Turkish and international media have reported Erdogan as telling EU envoys that Ankara will reject the EU if it offers membership with strings attached. "We have said on several occasions that we will not accept a decision that is not based on a perspective of full membership and which offers special status," Erdogan told members of his Justice and Development Party on December 14. "I believe the EU will not undersign a historic mistake which will weaken its own foundations and will make a decision in line with Turkey's expectations."

Erdogan and Gul are scheduled to fly to Brussels on Wednesday for last-minute talks with EU leaders ahead of the summit, which is scheduled to begin December 16. A final decision on Turkey's membership bid – widely expected to be affirmative – should be made public the next day.

Obstacles beyond the criteria under consideration by the EU presidency could hamper Turkey's accession efforts. Critics within the EU believe that attempting to integrate a Muslim majority country such as Turkey with a relatively poor population of 70 million could cause excessive turmoil. Of particular concern is what low-cost Turkish workers would mean for the EU's moribund labor markets.

France has been perhaps the most outspoken opponent of EU membership for Turkey. As part of Turkey's membership negotiations, the French government has announced that it might consider questioning Turkey about the Ottoman Empire's 1915-1917 mass killing of roughly 1.5 million Armenians. In announcing French intentions on December 14, Foreign Minister Michel Barnier described the Ottoman action as "genocide," a controversial term likely to further spark Erdogan's ire. French President Jacques Chirac planned to make a televised address on December 15 to explain his support for Turkey's accession, but has promised that France would hold a national referendum on the issue once membership talks with Ankara were completed. Meanwhile, Austria has proposed that EU leaders make clear to Turkey that membership talks will not have a guaranteed outcome.

Ankara is already smarting from a series of conditions attached to an EU progress report on Turkey's membership bid, released October 6. In its report, the European Commission said it needed more proof of Turkey's commitment to reforms before it could wholeheartedly endorse Ankara's accession to the bloc. A monitoring system was also proposed to track Turkey's progress in ongoing legal and human rights reforms as a condition for membership talks. In the past five years, Turkey has already undergone a series of fast-track reforms to bring its legal code, minority policies and political institutions in line with European standards.

Returning from a trip to Brussels on December 10, Erdogan reasserted the claim that the EU is discriminating against Turkey. "No other country had to wait 41 years at the door of the EU. We have fulfilled all the criteria, but despite this Europeans are hesitating."

Turkey has made full membership in the EU a main foreign policy goal since it signed an association agreement, known as the Ankara Agreement, with the bloc in 1963. A customs union agreement followed 33 years later, and in 1999, Turkey was declared an official candidate for EU membership and asked to fulfill a set of criteria, known as the Copenhagen Criteria, to bring the country in line with EU political norms. The European Commission's progress report paved the way for the final decision on Turkey's membership bid at this week's summit. Even if accession talks begin, however, full EU membership could take another decade, making Turkey's EU campaign a half-century journey.

Meanwhile, in response to the conditions sought by Brussels, Turkey has set down its own criteria. Erdogan has stated that Ankara expects full membership talks without additional conditions to come out of the December 16-17 summit. A concrete date for talks to begin in 2005 is also anticipated. Some Turkish media had reported that the EU may decide instead to hold an intergovernmental conference in the second half of 2005 to decide on a start date for talks to begin after an initial, six-month monitoring process.

Erdogan has rejected any additional political conditions not already included in the Copenhagen criteria, and argued that placing permanent limitations on Turkish workers would be against EU law. The notion of "privileged partnership" – a concept reportedly conceived by France and Austria – was rejected "as a status that does not exist in the EU."

Nor has Erdogan hesitated at raising the possibility of terrorism as part of his pre-summit pressure campaign. If Turkey is not invited to join the EU, he warned the audience at the opening of Istanbul's Modern Art Museum on December 10, violence from Islamic terrorists could escalate. "There is nothing we can do if the EU feels that it can live with being simply a Christian club," Erdogan was quoted as saying by The Times of London, "but if these countries burn their bridges with the rest of the world, history will not forgive them."

* Editor's Note: Mevlut Katik is a London-based journalist and analyst. He is a former BBC correspondent and also worked for The Economist group.

3. - The Baltic Times - "Turkey Must Face The True":

15 December 2004

The debate over whether to include Turkey in the European Union crystallizes the essence of what it means to be "European." Not surprisingly, the range of answers is broad, often diametrically opposite. Geography, history, religion, economics and even mentality have been cited as reasons why or why not to invite the Muslim country to the world's biggest economic bloc. Simple "expansion-fatigue" within the 25-nation (and soon to be 27-nation) union is another.

One thing you can't take away from Turkey: the country truly longs to be a EU member. Both its political leaders and the public, any the religious and the secular segments of society, want to build their future as part of Europe. They have had this desire for decades now, even throughout the multiple political changes and economic pitfalls the country has undergone.

As a result, on Dec. 17 EU leaders are likely to give the green light to begin accession talks - e.g., to designate Turkey a candidate country for membership - at their summit in Brussels. This will entail 10 - 15 years of accession negotiations before the country is formally granted member status, and there are likely to be a number of stop signs and roadblocks along the way. But even on this score the debate is heated, with pro-Turkey advocates arguing that accession criteria for the 70-million-plus country should be no different than for, say, miniscule Malta.

But they should. The choice of accepting an ant or an elephant into the family has radically different implications for the household, and those who are blind to that are likely to be the first to complain when something goes wrong later.

Regarding Turkish membership, the real issue is not about size. It is about mentality. Specifically, the country has refused to acknowledge the genocide of 1915, when over 1 million Armenians were led to their death in the Syrian deserts or just slaughtered. The incident has been well documented and includes thousands of eyewitness accounts. Yet Turkey continues to deny it, saying a lot of people died at the time, including Turks (an argument Russia employs in regards to WWII, as Balts are well aware). The country has closed its archives and even banned use of the word genocide. Is this the behavior of someone ready for Europe?

Imagine how different Europe would be today if for the past 60 years Germany had denied the Holocaust. Now transfer that image onto the Anatolian peninsula and you will see what is taking place today - Turks, Kurds and Armenians living side by side and in a state of deep animosity and suspicion.

Thankfully, France has taken the lead in putting the genocide issue on the accession table. (France is one of the only countries that has recognized the 1915 Genocide. The United States hasn't.) Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said last week that France wants Turkey to recognize the genocide as part of its membership requirements. "This is an issue that we will raise during the negotiation process. We will have about 10 years to do so, and the Turks will have about 10 years to ponder their answer," he said.

It was the first time someone has tried to link EU membership with the Ottoman atrocities. As expected, the reaction from Ankara was swift and unequivocal, with one official saying that Turkey would never recognize the "so-called genocide."

If that is the case, then the door to the EU should be closed. As a Polish poet once wrote, "How frightening is the past that awaits us." If a country cannot come to terms with its past - as Germany has - then the future will have precious little to offer it. In Europe, truth and reconciliation must come first.

4. - AFP - "Media group sounds alarm over Turkey as EU talks set":

BRUSSELS / 15 December 2004

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) voiced concern Wednesday over media freedom and standards in Turkey, welcoming
some reforms but saying more needs to be done as Ankara bids to join the EU.

"Turkish journalists still work in difficult conditions below the levels of social and professional standards enjoyed by other journalists within the EU," said the EFJ in a letter to Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.

While Turkey has made progress in improving the situation of journalism and civil liberties, particularly by revising anti-terrorism laws ... more needs to be done," it said in a statement.

"Press freedom is a benchmark of democracy," said EFJ head Arne Koenig, adding that journalists' rights were crucial in a democratic society. "They must be strengthened," he added.

The comments came as Turkish leaders arrived ahead of a European Union (EU) summit widely expected to give a green light to Ankara to start membership talks next year, albeit with a series of strict conditions.

The EU has praised reforms pushed through in recent years by the vast Muslim country, which is vying finally to start EU membership negotiations over four decades after it first made formal ties with the European bloc.

The EFJ is the European arm of the International Federation of Journalists, a Brussels-based lobby group which represents over 500,000 journalists in more than 100 countries.

5. - ROJ-TV / DIHA - "Breadley: The liberty of language will come to Turkey":

Christian Breadley, second clerk of English Embassy to Ankara visiting the Private Kurdish Language Course in Van said the liberty of language would come to Turkey.

Christian Breadley yesterday went to Van to make some examinations on human rights and domestic policy. He visited the Private Kurdish Language Course. The manager of the school, Hasan Guven, said that in the direction of democratization, Turkey has laid down an accordance package with the European Union and taken steps, which has not reflected on practice. Taking attention to 20 million Kurds residing in Turkey, he said: "But this public can not learn the language only with two courses. It cannot be told a public that 'learn your language by yourself '. Some governors of Turkey are afraid that the Turkish state may be separated it Kurdish's being learned."

''We are trying to raise Turkey to the level of civilized states but, a study of our famous Kurdolog Ahmede Xani's has been prohibited due to bearing the phrase Kurdistan. When the courses opened, they also did not want to accept our teachers. What is more, our capacity has been limited to only 73 students for a term; 3 months. A closure case has been opened against Egitim-Sen, which only said ''Every one has the right to be educated in their mother tongue. In one hand Turkey wants to integrate with the EU so a date to start negotiations, and on the other hand goes on implementing such applications. What is the worst, a 12 year-boy (Ugur Kaymaz) and his fathers (Ahmet Kaymaz) as well a shepherd 19 year (Fevzi Can) were killed on the allegation of being terrorists.' Guven says.

'The liberty of language will come to Turkey'

Breadley visiting the classrooms after the statement, to a question ''Do you have any work to provide education in mother tongue for every one answered: ''Yes, like you said a civilized state has this facility, but we believe that freedom will come to here, too.

Guven gave a Kurdish-Turkish dictionary to Breadly as gift.

6 - kurdistanobserver.com / Turkish Daily News - "Erdogan: Kurdish Ad Political Assassination"

16 December 2004

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that an advertisement placed by a Kurdish group, namely, “What do Kurds want from Turkey?” was a political assassination directed against the nation’s will. He described religious, regional and ethnic racism as a cancer that has passed its use-by date.

Speaking at the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) parliamentary group meeting, Erdogan said those who signed the statement were enjoying their political comforts while disturbing national peace.

He said: “Some are running after misconceptions at this critical time. The same game was played in the past. Let no one try to return us to that. Turkey is on the international agenda with its huge advances in democratization. Efforts to cloud this picture are futile. Some may publish advertisement overseas to get a job, but if their aim is to become news they will succeed. If they are after damaging a millennium-old brotherhood, they will fail.”

He said: “Who will benefit from clouding this time of peace. Those who try us to change our stance should beware. Let’s not use language that will embarrass us.”

Erdogan also criticized comparisons made in the advertisement about the autonomous and federative structure in certain European countries, adding: “How dare they compare this special land with completely different environments. This is unacceptable.”

He said Turkey was unjustly compared other countries, noting that a united nation such as Turkey did not deserve such treatment.

He said: “Daring to abuse the democratization efforts in order to subvert national unity, social peace and the will to live together is a political assassination directed against the nation’s will.”

Erdogan said they had not shied away from taking risks in order to fulfill their dreams for the next generation, adding they had announced their intention not to accept any proposal that would prevent them from holding their heads up high. He said the most precious value the history had accorded to the Turkish nation was independence.

He said the day when Turkey’s 40-year dream would be fulfilled was approaching, adding he believed the decision would be in accordance with the people’s wishes. He said: “We announced our intention to never accept a special status. I declare once more, we are asking for an unconditional negotiation date. Don’t come to us with new political criteria.”

“We don’t want preferential treatment,” said Erdogan, adding, “I believe the European Union will not commit a mistake that will make it weaker. Ideals the EU says it stands for will become clear with the decision they will take on Turkey. The decision will be the basis of the EU’s political vision. If the EU is based on universal norms and has certain fears about the outside world, it should say “yes” to Turkey.”