EUPolitix.com, Belgium
Published: Thu, 21 Sep 2006
MEP fights for Turkish EU entry report
The MEP at the centre of a row over Turkish EU entry
has hit back at Socialist group plans to delay his
controversial report.
Camiel Eurlings’ says he will fight to have his report
on Turkey debated in Strasbourg next week.
"This cannot be postponed again," he told this
website.
"It has been postponed so many times in the past and
with the European commission preparing its Turkey
report for November 8 we cannot afford to let this
timely moment slip."
Socialist MEPs say Eurlings’ report is "unbalanced and
biased" and have pledged to use a Thursday meeting of
political group and committee leaders to press for the
delay.
Concern among centre-left MEPs – the parliament’s
second biggest bloc – focuses on Eurlings’ demands
that Ankara must recognise the Armenian genocide as a
precondition for EU entry.
But Eurlings’ insists it was never his intention to
force the Turks to formally recognise this chapter of
their history.
"This amendment was added when my report was being
debated in the parliament’s foreign affairs committee,
and it is an amendment I regret" the Dutch MEP
declared.
"And the amendment was actually proposed by the
Socialist MEP Veronique De Keyser. I think the
Socialists need to get together to work out what their
line is on my report."
Eurlings report also laments a "slowdown in democratic
reforms" and calls on Ankara to remove or amend
articles that allow judges to limit freedom of
expression.
It also urges Turkey to normalise relations with
Cyprus.
"I will fight to have this report debated as planned
at next week’s plenary," Eurlings insisted.