1. "Turkish parliament probes killing of Kurdish boy, father", the Turkish parliament launched an investigation Monday into allegations that a 12-year-old Kurdish boy and his father were killed by security forces who either mistook them for Kurdish rebels or shot them deliberately.

2. "Inquest about shepherd killed by soldiers", a committee from Van and Hakkari Branches formed by the General Center of the Human Rights Association (IHD) has gone to Semdinli ,Hakkari, to hold an inquest about Fevzi Can who was claimed to be killed by soldiers.

3. "Turkey Must Recognize Cyprus to Open EU Entry Talks", Turkey will have to accept tough conditions, including de facto recognition of Cyprus and a permanent emergency brake on labour migration, to open European Union entry talks, a draft EU summit statement showed on Monday.

4. "Turkey Must Recognize Cyprus to Open EU Entry Talks", Turkey will have to accept tough conditions, including de facto recognition of Cyprus and a permanent emergency brake on labour migration, to open European Union entry talks, a draft EU summit statement showed on Monday.

5. "EU draft draws fire in Turkey", Turkey will have to recognize the Republic of Cyprus, if only tacitly, if it wants to begin membership negotiations with the European Union, according to a draft document that was leaked here Monday.

6. "EU eyes green light for Turkey but with tough warnings", the EU seems ready to give Turkey a green light to start entry talks, but wants a string of conditions and cannot guarantee the vast country will eventually join the bloc, a draft document indicated Monday.

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1. - AFP - "Turkish parliament probes killing of Kurdish boy, father":

ANKARA / 29 November 2004

The Turkish parliament launched an investigation Monday into allegations that a 12-year-old Kurdish boy and his father were killed by security forces who either mistook them for Kurdish rebels or shot them deliberately.

Authorities said after the November 21 incident in the southeastern province of Mardin that two armed "terrorists" plotting attacks on government targets were killed in a shoot-out with security forces during an operation against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

A human rights group that probed the incident concluded that Ahmet Kaymaz, 34, and his son Ugur were unlikley to have used weapons against the police, and their killing outside their home in the town of Kiziltepe was either a blunder or an extra-judicial killing by security forces.

"Such incidents have not taken place for a long time in the region. We will investigate the incident in detail," member of parliament Huseyin Guler told reporters before he flew to Mardin along with a fellow lawmaker.

The two deputies, members of the parliament's human rights commission, will draw up a report on their findings. Respect for human rights has become a key concern for Turkey as the country's bid to join the European Union enters a crucial stage.

Extra-judicial killings were frequent in southeastern Turkey in the 1990s, which saw bloody clashes between separatist Kurdish rebels and government forces in the PKK's 15-year campaign for self-rule in the region.

According to the Human Rights Association report, Kaymaz and his son were shot dead while they were carrying blankets to Kaymaz's truck, parked outside their house.

The autopsy found 13 bullets in the body of Ugur Kaymaz and eight in the body of his father.

A neighbor who was asked by police to identify Ugur Kaymaz immediately after the incident said the boy was lying in a pool of blood near the truck and that his right hand was resting "awkwardly" on a rifle.

Police looked amazed when they were told the boy was a primary school pupil and asked the neighbor to check the body once again, the report said.

The prosecutor handling the case told the association that the police had been watching Kaymaz's house for some time on suspicion that armed PKK rebels had taken refuge there, but were also aware that a family with children was also living in the house.

She insisted that the security forces were fired on when they ordered the two to stop and that the deaths occurred in the ensuing shoot-out.

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2. - DIHA - "Inquest about shepherd killed by soldiers":

HAKKARI / 30 November 2004

A committee from Van and Hakkari Branches formed by the General Center of the Human Rights Association (IHD) has gone to Semdinli ,Hakkari, to hold an inquest about Fevzi Can who was claimed to be killed by soldiers.

Yesterday the group including Necip Erol,the member of administrative board of the IHD, Attorney Zeki Yuksel, the Chairman of Van Branch of the IHD, Ismail Akbulut the President of Hakkari Branch of the IHD and Leyla Ciftci, the Secretary of the same branch went to Semdinli's Orencik Village, Hakkari to make an inquiry about death of Can. The commission in the scope of the inquiry will establish contacts with the governor, prosecutor, military officials of the county (Semdinli) as well as the relative of Fevzi Can.After forming their touches into a report the board will declare it.

After the corpse of the shepherd (19) was delivered to his family, it was yesterday buried in his village.

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3. - DIHA - "12-year imprisonment has been demanded for the graduate student hanging the bill of TTB":

ANKARA / 29 November 2004 / by Veli Ay

With the a demand of 12 years' jail sentence for 6 medical students Ankara Republic Prosecutor Ibrahim Coskun Aciksoz has brought a case before the court against the 6 students of medicine of Hacattepe University who hang the posters of the Turkish Medicals Union (TTB) '' Identity is enough for Free Health Service'' and '' War kills, No War''.

The posters and journals of TTB including demands concerning NATO summit held in June, American occupation on Iraq and the Fundamental Public Bill Project have become chargeable offenses. The officials of Ankara Security Directorate determined the sudents and kept the minutes of them who had hung on the posters of the TTB; ''... A salary by which one can decently live, special service compensation, the bonus of deprivation, 8 hour's work in a day ,pay-increase in work risk ,justice in additional indicators ,Permission for education soon improvement fee in duty, No to NATO war kills, No war, we do not want to be unemployed, Identity is enough for free health service''.

Totally 12 year's imprisonment has been demanded

Public Prosecutor Acikoz carrying police records in his indictment litigated a cause against Ozgur Sinan Cengiz, Kazim Rollas, Izzet Dogan, Ozge Taskin, Hasan Baris Ilgaz ve Engin Kirmizigul at Ankara's Criminal Court of Peace and requested them to be sentenced to 2 years' imprisonment as well as a small fine, in accordance with article 537/2 of the Turkish Penal Code.

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4. - Reuters - "Turkey Must Recognize Cyprus to Open EU Entry Talks":

BRUSSELS / 29 November 2004

Turkey will have to accept tough conditions, including de facto recognition of Cyprus and a permanent emergency brake on labour migration, to open European Union entry talks, a draft EU summit statement showed on Monday.

The draft circulated by the Dutch EU presidency left blank the crucial wording of the decision on whether, when and how to open entry negotiations with Ankara for leaders to fill in at their Dec. 16-17 summit.

It welcomed "the decisive progress made by Turkey in its far-reaching reform process" but set a strict framework for negotiations, saying membership talks could not be concluded until the bloc had agreed on its post-2014 budget.

That means the large, mostly Muslim nation of 70 million could not join the 25-nation bloc before 2015 at the earliest.

Turkish markets fell on news. The main share index was down 2.12 percent to 22,800.24, compared to a loss of just over one percent before the release of the draft. The lira weakened to 1,432,000 against the dollar from 1,424,000 last Friday.

The draft, to be debated by EU ambassadors for the first time on Wednesday, anticipates that Turkey will commit itself to amend its 1963 association agreement to take account of the accession of 10 new member states last May, including Cyprus.

"The European Council welcomed Turkey's (decision) to sign the protocol regarding the adaptation of the Ankara Agreement, taking account of the accession of the new Member States," it said.

An EU diplomat said this would be tantamount to de facto recognition of the Nicosia government, removing the key Greek Cypriot objection to opening entry talks with Ankara.

Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos said on a visit to Slovakia that Cyprus was not against the start of entry talks on "condition that Turkey conforms to all conditions and meets all obligations to the EU, as well as to Cyprus as an EU member".

Turkey's leaders have insisted they will accept no special conditions for their accession talks that have not been applied to previous candidates.

They may be angered by a phrase that specifies "long transition periods may be needed and specific arrangements, in areas such as structural policies (regional aid) and agriculture, as well as permanent safeguards, notably in the area of the free movement of persons".

The Dutch draft negotiating framework went beyond the executive European Commission's recommendation issued last month, giving one-third of EU members the right to seek a suspension of talks if Ankara goes back on reforms.

The Commission has proposed that only the EU executive would have the power to propose halting the talks.

In London, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of Ankara's strongest supporters, said Turkey should face no more hurdles in the negotiations than other prospective members.

"It should be determined according to the same criteria and in same way as any other application," he told reporters.

The document said EU governments would set "benchmarks" for opening and concluding negotiations on each policy area -- giving Brussels the ability to make Turkey reach certain standards just to start talks on individual issues.

The draft did not spell out any explicit alternative to membership, as sought by France and Austria, if Turkey does not meet all EU requirements.

It left a blank paragraph on "the goal and outcome of the negotiations", referring to the Commission recommendation that talks would be an "open-ended process whose outcome cannot be guaranteed beforehand."

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5. - International Herald Tribune - "EU draft draws fire in Turkey":

BRUSSELS / 30 November 2004 / by Graham Bowley

Turkey will have to recognize the Republic of Cyprus, if only tacitly, if it wants to begin membership negotiations with the European Union, according to a draft document that was leaked here Monday.

The document emerged as intense maneuvering began in anticipation of a decision by EU governments on whether Turkey can begin accession negotiations. The decision is set for Dec. 17.

The issue of Turkish membership has split the Continent, with skeptics doubting that the EU could absorb a large Muslim country.

Worries that richer Western European nations would be forced to subsidize Turkey, which would be one of the EU's biggest but poorest members, and that Turkey's entry into the EU could trigger a wave of migration have combined with concerns that Turkey does not share European values.

These doubts have hardened public opinion in some countries and led some governments, such as in France where a majority of citizens oppose Turkey's membership, to suggest that Turkey be given a loose association with the EU rather than full membership.

The focus on new conditions and obstacles, such as Turkey's lack of recognition of Cyprus, has dismayed Ankara.

It insists it will not recognize Cyprus, which joined the EU in May, despite Cypriot threats to veto accession negotiations. Turkey is the only European country that does not recognize the Cypriot government, which it claims represents only the majority Greek Cypriot community on the divided island.

The draft document, prepared by the Dutch government, appeared to hold out the prospect for negotiations between the EU and Turkey to begin next year, as Turkey desires.

But the draft underlined that Turkey's entry into the EU was not guaranteed. If Turkey failed to make progress on human rights and democratic reforms during the negotiating period, then the talks could be suspended by the European Commission or at the request of at least nine EU member states, the paper said.

The draft, to be discussed by EU ambassadors on Wednesday, is to form the basis of negotiations in anticipation of the Dec. 17 vote by EU leaders. The issue of Turkey's membership has become so sensitive that the supposedly restricted document was leaked within an hour of it being circulated among embassies in Brussels.

It would require Turkey to commit to "good neighborly relations" and a "resolution of remaining border disputes," which one EU diplomat said would imply a tacit recognition of Cyprus.

The draft also foresees Turkey recognizing the 10 member states that joined the EU in May this year, which includes Cyprus.

According to the draft, Turkey's membership was not envisioned to begin until after the EU had finalized its post-2014 budget, which puts the earliest possible entry of Turkey into the EU at 2015.

The draft's skeptical tone hit Turkish financial markets. The main share index fell by more than 2 percent, while the lira weakened.

Abdullah Gul, Turkey's foreign minister, hit back Monday at the idea that Ankara could be presented with a weaker "association" agreement.

He said that Ankara would agree to "no alternative" other than full EU membership.

"Turkey expects a clear date for the opening of accession negotiations," Gul told reporters in Ankara. He added that the negotiations should have no "special clauses" and aim only for Turkey's full EU membership.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the former French finance minister who took over as leader of France's governing party on Sunday, and who has exploited the rising tide of opposition toward Turkey, said he was opposed to Turkey's entry to the EU, preferring instead to see Turkey "associated" with Europe.

In London, Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of Ankara's strongest supporters, said Turkey should not face more hurdles than any other prospective members. "Turkey is not actually asking for favorable treatment; it's asking for the same treatment," Blair said during his monthly Downing Street news conference.

"There should be no special obstacles put in its way, but the criteria that have to be applied should be applied to Turkey fairly and properly."

The document appeared to be preparing a tougher line than that recommended by the commission in October.

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6. - AFP - "EU eyes green light for Turkey but with tough warnings":

BRUSSELS / 29 November 2004

The EU seems ready to give Turkey a green light to start entry talks, but wants a string of conditions and cannot guarantee the vast country will eventually join the bloc, a draft document indicated Monday.
The draft conclusions for a crunch mid-December European Union (EU) summit, obtained by AFP, notably says that the vast mostly-Muslim country could face a permanent ban on Turkish workers moving to EU countries.
The EU also wants Ankara to formally recognize the government of Cyprus -- a demand immediately rebuffed by Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, who said Ankara will only consider such demands after it wins a date to start EU talks.

According to the draft, a December 16-17 summit is to "welcome the decisive progress made by Turkey in its far-reaching reform process, and reiterate its determination to enable Turkey to join the European community of values."

The EU also reaffirms its "confidence that Turkey will sustain the process of reforms to that end."
But the draft reiterates that EU entry talks would be an "open-ended process whose outcome cannot be guaranteed beforehand" -- a reference to a warning by the European Commission that the talks could still stall.

Specifically the EU warns that EU talks with Turkey, as with other EU candidates such as Bulgaria and Romania, could be suspended in case of a violation of fundamental EU principles.
"The (EU) commission will, at its own initiative or at the request of at least one third of (EU) member states, recommend the suspension of the negotiation process and propose conditions for eventual resumption," it said.

In any case Turkey can't hope to be in the EU for at least a decade: the EU draft says that candidate countries "whose accession could have substantial financial consequences" will have to wait until after 2014, when the EU's next-but-one long-term budget period starts.

The prospect of Turkish accession has triggered fierce debate in Europe, with critics warning that the EU simply cannot cope with such a vast, relatively poor and culturally and politically different new member.
In a bid to ease fears of the EU being swamped with cheap Turkish workers, the Brussels draft suggests that it should retain the right to to maintain "permanent safeguard clauses, notably in the area of free movement of persons."

Meanwhile the EU also used EU-speak to underline that it wants Ankara to formally recognize EU member Cyprus as a condition for joining the bloc.
Turkey's foreign minister reacted to the draft document by insisting that Ankara will only consider recognizing Cyprus after the 25-nation bloc gives Ankara the go-ahead to start accession talks.
"We have expectations. We will consider these issues when our expectations are met, a decision is taken and membership talks begin," said Gul. "The European Union should meet its obligations."

Turkey recognizes only the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Cyprus has been divided along ethnic lines since 1974, when Turkish troops occupied the northern third of the island.
Whatever the wrangling over the coming three weeks, next month's EU summit appears set to follow the commission's recommendation and approve that Turkey begin EU talks, but with a series of conditions.
Only two EU states -- Austria and Cyprus -- oppose starting negotiations with Ankara, but most agree there will be an approval.

"Most of the member states would like to get a decision in December and to get a date for talks to start," said one Brussels diplomat.