EU MUST HONOUR ITS PROMISE TO TURKEY

FT
September 5 2005 03:00

Amid predictable jostle and dissent, the European Union still looks
likely to agree to start accession negotiations with Turkey in a
month’s time. Even though the EU is now paralysed by the French and
Dutch rejection of the constitutional treaty this summer, most member
states appear to understand that to welch on the commitment made to
Turkey at last December’s summit would further damage the Union.

That commitment is conditional on Turkey meeting the Copenhagen
criteria on human, democratic and minority rights reforms – a charter
that has already gone far to transform Turkish political and civic
life. But this exercise is about a great deal more than carrying out
a sort of moral inventory on a prospective new family member.

France, Germany, Austria and Cyprus have all raised objections to
Turkish entry, some of which they could turn into roadblocks.

For some, especially Christian Democrat politicians in the heart
of what was once the Austro-Hungarian empire, the Turks are, as it
were, still at the gates of Vienna. Beyond the challenges of the EU
embracing a poor and populous country, for them the point is that
Turkey is Muslim and not really European. That is the nub of German
and Austrian objections.

In France, Dominique de Villepin, prime minister, has said it is
inconceivable that the EU can start talks with Turkey until Ankara
recognises Cyprus – the Greek Cypriot state granted entry to the
Union last year despite rejecting a United Nations compromise over
the divided island that Turkish Cypriots endorsed.

But things are not quite as bad as they look. Mr de Villepin’s
opportunist remarks are aimed at stealing a march on his rival,
the openly rejectionist Nicolas Sarkozy. But the man they both want
to succeed, Jacques Chirac, the president, looks set to assent to
accession talks. Germany, which will be in the process of forming a
new government, will probably follow suit, and Austria, still intent
on offering a “privileged partnership” rather than membership to
Turkey, would probably hold fire if the EU put Croatia on the path
to membership. The Greek Cypriots are unpredictable but may not want
to risk isolation. The real battles over Turkey, in other words,
will take place down the long road of negotiations that could last
more than a decade.

But by then, Turkey will need to have demonstrated not just that
it can implement the EU’s economic legislation. It must show it has
overcome its authoritarian political instincts.

It is, to say the least, unfortunate that in the run-up to this
historic decision Istanbul prosecutors have brought charges of
denigrating the Turkish state against Orhan Pamuk, the world-renowned
novelist. His “crime” was to complain about the conspiracy of silence
about the mass murder of the Ottoman empire’s Armenians during and
after the first world war.

In the real world, it is inconceivable that Turkey will ever enter
the EU if it cannot face up to this blood-sodden chapter of its
history. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the neo-Islamist prime minister,
has gone further than his predecessors in calling on international
scholars to establish the facts, and offering them access to the
Ottoman archives. Yet a conference to discuss the issue was cancelled
this spring after pressure from the justice ministry.

It is not just that Turkey must eventually settle this account with
history. There could hardly be anything more basic to EU rules than
free speech.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress