Sunday’s Zaman, Turkey
Dec 27 2009

The year of initiative should precede a year of implementation

by
HELENE FLAUTRE*

It is not only a dazzling business to monitor Turkey from Brussels; it
is also an enjoyable one.

In this respect, the year 2009 that we are leaving behind is not only
an interesting year but also a recent history of how Turkey is
developing in all aspects, discovering itself and changing. If the
year 2009, which we may describe as a year of initiatives, is followed
by the year 2010, the year of implementation, then Turkey’s EU process
will not only accelerate, but the issue of its membership will also
enter the agenda of EU countries. We can say that it is a considerably
exciting perspective, especially for a French politician, to promote
the EU membership of Turkey, which is a focal point of democracy,
economic development and stability in a region characterized by the
most severe crises in the world. Indeed, advocacy for membership of
such a country is synonymous with defending the establishment of an EU
based on multiculturalism, universal values, tolerance and dialogue of
cultures. We can say that things are getting harder for the forces
against Turkey’s membership. A closer examination of the last 12
months not only reveals interesting developments but also shows that
moves have been made to handle long-standing taboos. I would like to
draw attention to and share my observations concerning some points
before wishing everyone a happy and successful new year.
In Brussels, we observed the democratic initiative process before it
started to be discussed by the Turkish general public. Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an paid his first visit to Brussels in four
years in January of this year and provided detailed information about
developments in Turkey and the policies the government is following to
the Bureau of the Assembly. Newly appointed State Minister and chief
EU negotiator Egemen BaÄ?ıÅ? was sitting next to him as if he was the
physical and institutional proof of the importance he attaches to the
EU process. Yet, the major political message in his baggage was the
start of broadcasting in Kurdish via the state-owned Turkish Radio and
Television Corporation’s (TRT) TRT 6. The Turkish general public and
Kurds could not make much sense of this delayed `reform’ politically.
Instead, it was emphasized that the channel was satisfactory, but the
content of the programs wasn’t attractive to Kurds and the
establishment of special TV channels was still not possible. These
criticisms were justified to a great extent, but they also implied
that something that must be discussed was being ignored. With TRT 6,
the Turkish Republic put an end to the assimilation policy it had
pursued since its establishment. This is truly a turning point. Now,
it is only a matter of time for the Kurdish language to become one of
the ordinary languages spoken in Turkey and even a language used as a
medium of instruction, and for the cultural rights of Kurds to be
fully implemented. This is particularly so considering the fact that
even the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) did not
oppose to the `teaching’ of the Kurdish language.

Recognizing democratic initiative

The `political’ aspect of the `democratic initiative’ was realized
only in August, when Brussels could not register the developments as
it was on leave that month. The Turkish president’s visit to eastern
provinces and the Turkish prime minister’s address to his party’s
parliamentary group were overlooked by European circles. Europe could
take cognizance of the political aspects of the `democratic
initiative’ only when the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants who
came from Iraq in uniforms were not arrested in the fall. Terrorism is
not a problem specific to Turkey; it concerns the EU as well. To give
certain cultural and political rights, as we see in the cases of Spain
or Northern Ireland, it is necessary to overcome the terror issue, but
it is unfortunately insufficient to solve this problem. For this
reason, the Turkish government’s political initiative project, whose
main features we do not know, but could only perceive, is a project
that must be supported for the sake of political stability and
internal peace in Turkey and that all political forces must contribute
to. We must accept that this project is hard to implement, and we must
be ready for future attempts to sabotage it, as seen in Tokat, and for
the decisions that might complicate it, like the closure of the
pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP). Political common sense,
courage and social and political support are vital for the success of
this process.

I would like to draw attention to two `small’ observations of mine
which made me happy in 2009 as the head of the Committee on Human
Rights of the European Parliament. We, as the Council of Europe and
the European Parliament, have long been critical of the isolated
imprisonment of [PKK leader Abdullah] Ã-calan on Ä°mralı. The transfer
of five prison inmates to İmralı, which was welcomed by the prisoner
there, is important in that this has led to the problems being reduced
to trivial matters such as the size of his room or the location of its
windows. I would like to underline my second `small’ observation. In a
meeting held in the European Parliament in which we discussed the
status of women in Turkey, the Diyarbakır-based Women’s Center’s
(KAMER) chairperson, Nebahat Akkoç, drew attention to a study. Ten
years ago, nine out of 10 women regarded her spouse beating her as
normal, while according to a study conducted in 2009, nine out of 10
women reject such violence. These changes in awareness signify
heart-refreshing developments concerning social transformation.

The government securing the majority of seats in Parliament should
boost this process and ensure that the state and political structure
evolve from resistance to social transformation to becoming a
facilitator of this transformation. Today Turkey has become a modern
and dynamic society that can no longer be governed with a constitution
shaped in the shadow of the military coup of 1980. I know that it is
very unlikely to discuss the drafting of a new constitution when the
elections are nearing. Still, the democratic projects that do not
require constitutional amendments should be implemented in the next
year. These include a new political parties bill and a new elections
bill that will abolish the 10 percent election threshold.

Turkish foreign policy has taken important steps in recent years. In
2009, we testified to interesting developments in Turkey’s being
perceived as a major political player in its region and around the
world, which was discussed in Europe with reference to the term
`neo-Ottoman.’ The protocols signed with Armenia are a striking
example in this regard. The `Armenian initiative’ concerns not only
Turkey’s history, its domestic policy or the thousands of Armenian
living in Turkey. It also adds impetus to the peace dynamics in the
Caucasus. This initiative has set in motion the `Minsk process,’ which
has not made any substantial progress for the last 15 years and which
resembles a car without an engine, and started to act as a driving
force in the Azerbaijani-Armenian issue. We hope the positive
developments of the new year include the return of about 1 million
people to their homeland and that the process of settlement is
triggered on the Karabakh issue. The Armenian initiative is also an
important development with respect to the EU process of Turkey. It is
no coincidence that the forces that are cool to Turkey’s membership
are not delighted by this initiative, which is vitally important for
Armenia in political and economic terms.

Referring to Turkey’s relations particularly with Iran, some argue
that Turkey is experiencing a shift of axis in its foreign policy. It
is true that we really do observe a shift of axis in the Turkish
foreign policy. But this shift is not taking it away from the West,
but rather toward it. Turkey is discovering itself, its region, its
past and its unique place in the foreign policy arena. In Brussels, we
are not suspicious of Turkey’s Iran policy, and we regard Turkey’s
attempts to deter Iran from a nuclear adventure as a facilitator in
EU-Iranian dialogue. Turkey and the EU can implement a joint policy
against nuclear armament in the Middle East. Turkey’s reluctance to
make dangerous, dirty and expensive nuclear technology part of its
energy policies is not only a source of joy for the Greens, but also a
cause of persuasiveness in its Iran policy. Indeed, Iran’s nuclear
adventure is not the result of its lack of sufficient energy
resources. The only point that must be seriously taken into
consideration in the Israeli press, which is rife with axial shift
debates, is to pay the utmost care to not permanently damage
Turkish-Israeli relations. Israel’s Gaza operation, in which crimes
against humanity were committed, and the fact that a government with a
foreign minister who can be described as a `xenophobe’ at best took
office in Israel have considerably strained Turkish-Israeli relations.
Yet, the source of the problem is not in Turkey, but in Israel. Israel
should return to the peace process in Palestine and accept Jerusalem
as the capital of two states.

Cyprus issue awaiting solution

I cannot go on without touching an issue that represents a major
problem in EU-Turkish relations. The Cyprus issue is a major issue in
many respects. The term presidency of Sweden, and particularly Foreign
Minister Carl Bild and EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, should
be congratulated. These two politicians not only were aware of the
fact that this issue requires a permanent and comprehensive settlement
but also have shown that the EU is not a toy of any member country.
Now, the historic opportunity for settlement in Cyprus is left to the
common sense of these two leaders. In this respect, Turkey should
dispense with the convenience of the support it once gave to the Annan
plan and engage in a more active and constructive policy to facilitate
any search for settlement. We hope the Cyprus issue, which has turned
into a Gordian knot of entanglements, taboos and dogmas, will be
settled in the coming months without causing much tribulation to the
two peoples of the island.

I can hear my friends in Turkey and Brussels say: `Not everything in
Turkey is a bed of roses. Doesn’t this lady see many negative
developments in the country?’ This article is a New Year’s article, so
it is written to encourage and support positive developments and
congratulate the new year of my friends and their good prospects for
2010. I wish everyone a hopeful and peaceful new year.

*Hélène Flautre is the chairwoman of the Delegation to the EU-Turkey
Joint Parliamentary Committee.

27 December 2009, Sunday