TURK OPPOSITION ATTACKS RIGHTS REFORM BEFORE DEBATE

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
April 29 2008

Turkey’s nationalist opposition accused the government on Tuesday of
betraying the country’s identity, and instead pandering to EU demands
that it reform laws prohibiting Turks from insulting their nation.

The comments were made ahead of a parliamentary debate on a reform
of article 301 of the penal code, which has been used to prosecute
hundreds of writers including Nobel Literature Laureate Orhan Pamuk
for insulting Turkishness .

The government was expected to win the vote in parliament but the
comments by the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) nonetheless
highlighted tensions in Turkey over how far it should compromise to
win membership of the European Union.

The EU has said the free speech reform is a test of Turkey’s commitment
to political reform as Ankara looks to advance slow-moving membership
talks which began in 2005.

Far-right MHP leader Devlet Bahceli told a meeting of his party the
reform would be a historical mistake .

Slandering Turkey’s honourable history, insulting the Turkish nation
and the values of Turkishness has become a habit with the AK Party’s
political thinking, which lacks a sense of identity, he said.

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) also opposes the
reform, but it is expected to be passed without difficulty as the
ruling AK Party enjoys a large majority in parliament.

The debate was expected to continue on Tuesday until the legislation
is passed. Parliament convened at 1200 GMT and the reform was the
second item on the agenda.

Under the bill, it will be a crime to insult the Turkish nation,
rather than Turkishness, and the justice minister’s permission will
be required to open a case. The maximum sentence will be cut to two
years from three.

Writers and publishers fear they will continue to face frequent trials,
arguing that the proposed changes are minor and other laws restricting
freedom of expression remain intact.

Brussels has given a lukewarm response to the reform. On a recent
trip to Turkey, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso
said it was a step in the right direction.

Article 301 has notably been used against writers such as Pamuk
for comments on the massacres of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in
1915-16. Turkey denies claims by Armenians and many Western historians
that the killings constituted genocide.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress