9 September 2004

1. "Verheugen says Turkey needs to improve Kurdish rights", Turkey has made a start on improving cultural rights for its Kurdish minority under EU-oriented reforms, but must go further, European Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said on Tuesday.

2. "Top EU official says Turkish adultery law 'a joke'", a government-sponsored bill to outlaw adultery is a joke which could scupper Turkey's hopes of joining the European Union, Turkish television quoted EU enlargement commissioner Guenter Verheugen as saying on Thursday.

3. "EU warns Turkey on adultery law plan", Turkish proposals to outlaw adultery would send the wrong message to the EU as it considers whether to open entry talks with Ankara, EU Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen has been quoted as saying.

4. "Turkey Should Be Welcomed in The EU", an "independent Commission" comprising of prominent European politicians such as Martti Ahtisaari former Finland president and former EU commissioner Hans van den Broek concludes that Turkey is eligible for EU membership negotiations.

5. "Turkey to recognise Republic of Cyprus ‘by year’s end’", Turkey has made promises to EU enlargement commissioner Gunther Verheugen that it would be recognising the Republic of Cyprus, and entering a customs union agreement with the island, the EU representation in Cyprus said yesterday.

6. "Kurdish leader ups the ante over disputed Iraqi city", Iraq's Kurds are ready to fight to preserve the identity of the ethnically-divided and oil-rich city of Kirkuk in northern Iraq, one of their historical leaders told AFP Thursday.

1. - Reuters - "Verheugen says Turkey needs to improve Kurdish rights":

DIYARBAKIR / 8 September 2004

Turkey has made a start on improving cultural rights for its Kurdish minority under EU-oriented reforms, but must go further, European Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said on Tuesday.

Kurdish language education and broadcasting were key areas for more action, said Verheugen, on a final fact-finding trip to Turkey ahead of a European Commission report on the country’s EU entry bid.

“I am satisfied (broadcasting) has started, with some delays, but I have to say what we have seen so far can only be the beginning,” he told reporters during a visit to a village near the city of Diyarbakir in southeast Turkey.

The region has suffered in a 20-year armed conflict in which more than 30,000 people have been killed, making it a major arena for human rights abuses that have long delayed Turkey’s EU entry bid.

EU leaders will decide in December whether to give Ankara a firm start date for accession talks to the wealthy bloc, drawing on the Commission’s progress report due on Oct. 6. Eventual talks would be expected to last for many years.

Ankara has kept a tight lid on the use of the Kurdish language for decades, seeing it as a political rallying point for separatists.

But a swathe of reforms aimed at winning a start date for EU talks paved the way in June for the first, very limited Kurdish-language broadcasts on state radio and television.

Kurds, who make up an estimated 12 million of Turkey’s 70 million population, say they also want Kurdish language education in schools. Many speak Kurdish, an Indo-European language unrelated to Turkish, in everyday life.

A few private Kurdish language courses have been allowed to open since April, but all schooling remains firmly in Turkish. Verheugen said political and social tensions in the southeast were closely linked to economic conditions in the region, which has some of Turkey’s poorest people, lowest investment and highest unemployment.

“You can’t achieve political stability here without a better perspective for the people,” he said, adding that the poverty would not in itself influence the European Commission’s report.

He said Turkey also needed to step up efforts to help displaced Kurds return to villages destroyed in the conflict.

“I think one should strongly support the wish of people to return to their villages,” he said. Tens of thousands of Kurds fled or were evacuated from their homes during the worst of the bloodshed, which largely subsided after the capture of guerrilla leader Abdullah Ocalan in 1999.

Violence has crept up again after Ocalan’s Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) called off a six-year unilateral ceasefire in June.

2. - AFP - "Top EU official says Turkish adultery law 'a joke'":

ANKARA / 9 September 2004

A government-sponsored bill to outlaw adultery is a joke which could scupper Turkey's hopes of joining the European Union, Turkish television quoted EU enlargement commissioner Guenter Verheugen as saying on Thursday.

"I cannot understand how a measure like this could be considered at such a time," Verheugen said, according to an interpreter who dubbed his remarks into Turkish for the news channel NTV.

"It can only be a joke," he added. Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) introduced a bill last week to bring back prison sentences for adultery, eight years after the crime was struck from the statute book.

The bill is to go before parliament -- where the AKP has a nearly two-thirds majority -- on Tuesday as part of a vast overhaul of the penal code.

The government says its legal reforms, which include a ban on torture and an extension of civil liberties, are designed to bring Turkey into line with legislation in EU member states. The previous government abolished the death penalty in August 2002 for the same reason.

European Union leaders will decide at a summit in December whether Turkey has filled the political criteria needed to sit down at the negotiating table for eventual membership.

They will base their decision on a report which the European Commission is to release next month, assessing the progress Turkey has made in hauling itself up to EU standards.

CNN-Turk television quoted Verheugen as saying that "European countries would not understand" an attempt to make adultery a crime. "I am very surprised by this bill," he said, according to a Turkish voice-over of remarks made in English to reporters.

"It would be a mistake to try to restore it to the criminal code," he went on, adding that some EU member states might see it as a sop to "Islamic tendencies" in Turkey, an overwhelmingly Muslim country which has had a secular form of government since it became a republic in 1923.

Verheugen, who was due to wind up a four-day visit to Turkey later in the day, told reporters that he had raised his concerns with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and had recommended that they think again.

The bill has provoked a furious reaction from secular and women's rights organizations in Turkey.

The AKP leadership decided at a meeting behind closed doors on Wednesday night that the courts could take action under the new law only if a husband or wife made an official complaint against his or her spouse, Anatolia news agency said.

On Wednesday, Verheugen gave Turkey's EU ambitions a fillip when he told reporters in the western port city of Izmir that the EU Commission report would judge the country on its determination to enact the reforms, rather than perfect implementation.

Hailing the legislative progress achieved in improving the country's widely criticised democracy and human rights record, he said: "Nobody can expect, of course, 100 percent implementation of such an important reform project."

3. - Reuters - "EU warns Turkey on adultery law plan":

ANKARA / 9 September 2004

Turkish proposals to outlaw adultery would send the wrong message to the EU as it considers whether to open entry talks with Ankara, EU Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen has been quoted as saying.

"If Turkey tries to include crimes that are not in other countries' laws in its penal code, European Union countries could interpret this as Islamic law entering Turkish law," Verheugen said in an interview with Vatan newspaper on Thursday.

"Turkey should not give other countries the impression that it's putting Islamic elements into its legal system," he said in comments translated into Turkish.

The Turkish government, led by devout Muslims such as Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, wants to ban adultery as part of an overhaul of the country's penal code designed primarily to bring it into line with European norms.

The government says the move would protect the family and strengthen women's rights.

But the proposal has outraged women's groups and liberal commentators, who say it would be used against women and pushes the secular Muslim state closer to an Islamic legal model.

Verheugen is on a final fact-finding trip to Turkey ahead of a European Commission's progress report due on October 6, which will form the basis for EU leaders to decide in December whether to open accession talks.

Turkey's EU entry bid has been delayed for years by the country's poor human rights record, but the government has passed a swathe of reformist legislation aimed at clinching a start date for next year.

Negotiations would be expected to take many years.

4. - Bianet - "Turkey Should Be Welcomed in The EU":

An "independent Commission" comprising of prominent European politicians such as Martti Ahtisaari former Finland president and former EU commissioner Hans van den Broek concludes that Turkey is eligible for EU membership negotiations.

ISTANBUL / 8 September 2004

An Independent Commission to examine the challenges and opportunities presented by Turkey’s possible membership of the European Union concludes that Turkey is already eligible for negotiations with the European Union (EU) for the country’s membership in the EU.

Released coincidentally with the visit of Günter Verheugen Member of the European Commission responsible from Enlargement the Commission report is welcomed by most Turkish media and political analysts.
Albeit it bears no official responsibility and powers, the commission, comprising of former Heads of State and Government, Foreign Ministers and European Commissioners, is believed to reflect a particular weight of opinion among Europe’s politicians.

Most Turkish political analysts are optimistic that taken together with Verheugen’s positive statements, the Commission report signals that the EU summit would arrive at a positive conclusion for giving a date to Turkey for starting negotiations for membership.

Turkey has every reason for expecting to be welcome in the Union

In their 9 point “conclusion” the Commission members set forth the following arguments concerning Turkey’s membership in the EU:

1. The Independent Commission on Turkey is of the view that accession negotiations should be opened as soon as Turkey fulfils the Copenhagen political criteria. Further delay would damage the European Union’s credibility and be seen as a breach of the generally recognised principle that “pacta sunt servanda” (agreements are to be honoured).Turkey, on the other hand, must accept that fulfilment of the political criteria includes the implementation of all legislation passed by parliament. Accession criteria apply to all candidate countries alike and there can be no shortcuts in individual cases. Equally, fairness demands that no candidate state should be submitted to more rigorous conditions than others. It is incumbent on the European Commission to assess whether Turkey’s compliance with the Copenhagen criteria has reached the critical mass necessary to recommend opening accession negotiations.

2. As far as Turkey’s European credentials are concerned, Turkey is a Euro-Asian country, its culture and history closely entwined with Europe, with a strong European orientation and a European vocation which has been accepted for decades by European governments. In this, Turkey is fundamentally different from countries of Europe’s neighbourhood in both North Africa and the Middle East. Its accession to the European Union would therefore not necessarily serve as a model for the Union’s relations with these states. Any objections in principle against Turkey joining the European integration process should have been raised in 1959 at the time of Turkey’s first application, in 1987 when Turkey applied for the second time, or in 1999 before Turkey was given candidate status. No government can claim that these decisions, including the conclusions of the Copenhagen European Council of 2002 on accession negotiations, were not taken in full knowledge of all circumstances.

3. The decision the European Council is taking in December will not be on Turkey’s membership of the EU, but on the opening of accession negotiations. Their duration and outcome will depend on progress made, in particular with regard to economic criteria and the acquis communautaire. It is expected that this process will take a long time, reflecting the scale of difficulties faced by such a large and complex country and the need for consolidation of the Union following the accession of ten new member states. This interval will present an opportunity for both sides to address the most urgent problems and to mitigate any negative effects Turkey’s accession could have. In other words, by the time a final decision is taken both Turkey and the European Union will have profoundly changed.

4. Turkey’s accession would offer considerable benefits both to the European Union and to Turkey. For the Union, the unique geopolitical position of Turkey at the crossroads of the Balkans, the wider Middle East, South Caucasus,Central Asia and beyond, its importance for the security of Europe’s energy supplies and its political, economic and military weight would be great assets. Moreover, as a large Muslim country firmly embedded in the European Union, Turkey could play a significant role in Europe’s relations with the Islamic world.

For Turkey, EU accession would be the ultimate confirmation that its century-old orientation towards the West was the right choice, and that it is finally accepted by Europe. EU membership would also ensure that the country’s transformation into a modern democratic society has become irreversible, enabling Turkey to fully exploit its rich human and economic resources.

A failure of the Turkish accession process would not only mean the loss of important opportunities for both sides. It could result in a serious crisis of identity in Turkey, leading to political upheaval and instability at the Union’s doorstep.

5. In spite of its size and special characteristics, and although it would unquestionably increase the Union’s heterogeneity as a member, Turkey would be unlikely to fundamentally change the EU and the functioning of its institutions. Turkey’s entry may accentuate existing divergences on the future of the integration process, but it would not cause a qualitative shift in the debate. It should be borne in mind that the decision-making process in the European Union is based on ever-changing alliances, and that the political influence of member states depends at least as much on economic power as on size or demographic weight.

As far as the costs of Turkish membership are concerned, Turkey is likely to require financial assistance from the European Union for many years, the level of transfers depending on the EU’s financial policies and the economic situation in Turkey at the time of accession.

A considerable problem could develop in several European countries in connection with the ratification of an accession treaty with Turkey, should public resistance persist and government policy continue to diverge from popular opinion. This issue must be addressed in a common effort by governments concerned, Turkey and the European Commission.

The best answer to the fears in parts of Europe about Turkey’s different religious and cultural traditions and perceptions of a danger that Turkey could become a fundamentalist Muslim state is to ensure the continuation of the ongoing transformation process, and to protect Turkey’s long-standing secular political system by firmly anchoring Turkey in the union of European democracies.

6. Unprecedented reform efforts undertaken by the Turkish Government and substantial support for EU membership in Turkish public opinion should not hide the enormous task that the ongoing and far-reaching transformation of the country’s legal, political and societal system represents for Turkey. It would be wrong to underestimate the latent resistance to such profound changes in many parts of Turkish society. Sustaining the reform process will to a large degree depend on whether the momentum of Turkey’s accession process can be maintained.

7. Turkey’s economy has traditionally been plagued by macroeconomic instability and structural deficiencies, many of which persist today. But the crisis of 2001 has shown the resilience of the Turkish economy, leading to a swift recovery and to far-reaching reforms of the institutional and regulatory frameworks. It is now of vital importance that the Turkish Government persists with the economic reform process in close cooperation with the International Monetary Fund and the European Union.

In view of the country’s size, geographic location and young and dynamic workforce Turkey’s economic potential is undeniable. It is equally evident that EU membership would be highly beneficial for the Turkish economy, providing a firm link to a stable system. The opening of accession negotiations by itself would considerably strengthen confidence in Turkey’s economic stability.

8. Migration pressure from Turkey, which raises concern in some countries, would depend on several factors, including economic and demographic developments in Turkey and the European Union. Free movement of labour is likely to apply only after a long transitional period, so that governments would retain control of immigration for many years after Turkish accession. Based on the experience of previous enlargement rounds, migration flows from Turkey are expected to be relatively modest, at a time when declining and aging populations may be leading to a serious shortage of labour in many European countries, making immigration vital to the continuation of present generous systems of social security.

9. Turkish eligibility for EU membership having been confirmed on many occasions over the past decades, Turkey has every reason for expecting to be welcome in the Union, provided it fulfils the relevant conditions. The Independent Commission therefore feels strongly that in dealing with this issue the European Union must treat Turkey with all due respect, fairness and consideration.

Members of the Independent Commission

The Commission is made up of Europeans who have previously held high positions in public office. Martti Ahtisaari is the Chair of the Commission. Albert Rohan will act as Rapporteur.

* Martti Ahtisaari (Finland) Former President of the Republic of Finland, 1994-2000

* Kurt Biedenkopf (Germany) Former Minister President of Saxony

* Emma Bonino (Italy) Member of the European Parliament and Former European Commissioner, 1994-1999

* Hans van den Broek (Netherlands) Former European Commissioner, 1994-1999

* Bronislaw Geremek (Poland) Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, 1997-2000

* Anthony Giddens (UK) Professor of Sociology, University of Cambridge

*Marcelino Oreja Aguirre (Spain) Former European Commissioner, 1994-1999

* Michel Rocard (France) Former Prime Minister of France, 1988-1991

* Albert Rohan (Austria) Former Austrian Secretary General for Foreign Affairs, 1996-2001

5. - Cyprus Mail - "Turkey to recognise Republic of Cyprus ‘by year’s end’":

9 September 2004 / by Jean Christou

TURKEY has made promises to EU enlargement commissioner Gunther Verheugen that it would be recognising the Republic of Cyprus, and entering a customs union agreement with the island, the EU representation in Cyprus said yesterday.

Adriaan van der Meer, the representation’s head on the island, said the promises were made during Verheugen’s visit this week to Turkey.

Verheugen angered some Greek Cypriot politicians on Monday with statements he made suggesting Cyprus should not be linked to Ankara’s EU accession date. Turkey comes under review in December.

DIKO said the enlargement commissioner’s statements were provocative and unacceptable.
However Van der Meer said yesterday, echoing statements by opposition DISY on Tuesday, that the EU’s position on Turkey and Cyprus was clearly outlined in the European Council’s June conclusions that Turkey made a substantial contribution towards solving the Cyprus problem and that the issue of the Cyprus problem and the future of Turkey’s EU accession process should be separate.

“However its quite clear for the commission that Turkey needs to fulfil its legal obligations under the customs union and that it needs to recognise the Republic of Cyprus and during the visit promises have been made by Turkey to that effect,” said Van der Meer.

“It’s also understood that there is no link between the two proposals presently under discussion for the northern part of Cyprus at the Council and the accession course of Turkey.”
Van der Meer was referring to the EU’s proposals to give 259 million euro in aid to the north, and also the controversial proposal for direct trade between the EU and the Turkish Cypriots, which the Cyprus government opposes.

Yesterday Verheugen said the EU would not set Turkey any fresh conditions to fulfil to gain a date to start entry.

"There will be no new conditions, of course," Verheugen told reporters during a final fact-finding trip to Turkey ahead of a European Commission progress report on the country's entry bid, due on October 6, which will form the basis of the December decision.

"What we have to do is very clear. We have to make a judgment on whether the political criteria are met or not, and these criteria are very well-defined," he said.

Verheugen added that Turkey would be assessed in exactly the same way as any other candidate country.

Turkey has approved a broad raft of political and legal reforms in its drive to persuade the EU to open entry talks, including a crackdown on torture, more cultural rights for its large Kurdish minority and curbs on the power of the military.

Despite the positive tone of his comments, Verheugen made clear that Turkey faces a hard slog before it becomes a full member of the Union.

"Much of the work is still in front of you and Prime Minister (Tayyip) Erdogan and Foreign Minister (Abdullah) Gul share my view. The real work will begin after the decision of the Commission and the Council (of EU leaders)," he said.
Verheugen repeated his concerns about implementation of the reforms, which critics say have not been fully applied on the ground, but made clear Turkey still had time to put them into practice.
"What we need to see is enough critical mass which will allow us to make a judgment ... that implementation will be completed in time," he said.

Verheugen, who earlier visited the city of Diyarbakir in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast region, said none of the human rights activists he had met wanted the EU to delay opening accession talks.

"It is obvious that the process of European integration enjoys full support here," he said.
Opinion polls regularly show around three quarters of Turkish people favour EU membership.
The question of Turkey's accession remains controversial within the wealthy bloc, with sceptics arguing that the Muslim if secular country of 70 million is too big, too poor and too culturally different to be absorbed.

The pro-Turkey lobby, led by Britain and Germany, say accession would boost the EU's strategic weight, help cement stability on its south-eastern flank and form a bridge to the wider Muslim world.

6. - AFP - "Kurdish leader ups the ante over disputed Iraqi city":

ARBIL / 9 September 2004

Iraq's Kurds are ready to fight to preserve the identity of the ethnically-divided and oil-rich city of Kirkuk in northern Iraq, one of their historical leaders told AFP Thursday.

"Kirkuk is the heart of Kurdistan and we ready to wage a war in order to preserve its identity and to sacrifice ourselves for what Iraqi Kurds have already achieved," said Massud Barzani.

He is the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party -- one of the two main Kurdish factions opposed to the ousted regime of Saddam Hussein -- and son of the Kurdish nationalist leader Mustafa Barzani.

Kirkuk is an ethnic tinderbox of Sunni and Shiite Arabs, Turkmens and Kurds who have all been vying for influence over the oil-rich city since the US-led invasion in March 2003 that toppled Saddam.

A recent announcement by Iraqi Planning Minister Mehdi al-Hafez that a nationwide census was planned for October this year has fueled tensions in the city, which the Kurds want to bring into their sphere of influence.

They claim there was a majority of Kurds in Kirkuk in the 1950s and are trying to reclaim land later lost during Saddam's "arabisation" campaign.

Neighbouring Turkey is concerned that Kurdish control over Kirkuk would bolster separatist ambitions that could spread over the border to Turkish Kurds.