ERGENEKON CASE KEY TO TURKEY’S DEMOCRATIZATION, SAYS REHN

Today’s Zaman
Jan 22 2010
Turkey

Olli Rehn addressed a plenary session at the European Parliament in
Strasbourg on Wednesday.

The ongoing investigation into Ergenekon, a clandestine organization
accused of attempting to create chaos and undermine the stability of
Turkey in order to trigger a coup d’état, is key to democratization
efforts in the European Union candidate country, a senior EU official
has stated.

In 2009, important progress was made in regards to civilian-military
relations in Turkey, EU’s outgoing Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn,
the nominee for the post of EU commissioner for economic and monetary
affairs, said late on Wednesday while speaking at a plenary session
at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

During the session, titled "Democratization in Turkey," members
of the European Parliament debated Turkey’s democratization process
particularly following the recent banning of the pro-Kurdish political
party Democratic Society Party (DTP) by the Constitutional Court
in December.

"The ongoing Ergenekon case is the key to democratization efforts in
Turkey. Turkish citizens really deserve to see the finalization of
this investigation and they rightfully expect a fair trial for the
all suspects," Rehn was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency.

In its annual progress report, made public on Oct. 14, 2009, the
European Commission referred to the Ergenekon investigation as an
opportunity for Turkish democracy. "This case is an opportunity for
Turkey to strengthen confidence in the proper functioning of its
democratic institutions and the rule of law," the report said.

The murders of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and three
missionaries in Malatya were mentioned in many EU documents and
referred to in the progress report. "Reports by civil society
organizations and statements by witnesses, in particular regarding the
alleged criminal network Ergenekon, the murder of three Protestants
in Malatya and the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink
cases, highlighted these concerns in specific cases. As regards the
latter case in particular, a report from the Prime Ministry Inspection
Board questioned the security forces’ role prior to the murder.

According to the report, the security forces appeared to refrain from
taking action after having received credible information about death
threats against Mr. Dink. The trials in Istanbul, Samsun and Trabzon
on this murder are continuing, but have not been merged, as has been
requested by the lawyers representing the family of Mr. Dink," the
report said.

According to Rehn, in addition to the Ergenekon issue, citizenship
rights, reforms in the field of fundamental rights and fair
representation of women are the core issues concerning Turkey’s
democratization.

"Freedom of expression in Turkey is not in line with EU standards,"
Rehn remarked, while underlining that many journalists in Turkey are
still being tried just for doing their jobs.

"The time has come and is already passing for Turkey to make necessary
legal reforms in order to show that this problem belongs to the past,
not to the future. Freedom of expression, which is fundamentally
important for an open and democratic society, is also important for
being able to hold more discussions on sensitive issues in Turkey
such as the Armenian issue, the Kurdish problem and Cyprus," Rehn
was quoted as saying.

While expressing concern over the closure of the DTP, Rehn said he
expected Turkey to make necessary amendments in its political parties
law to bring the law in compliance with suggestions by the Council
of Europe and rulings by the European Court of Human Rights.

In the eyes of the EU, Turkey can strengthen internal and regional
stability as long as it becomes more democratic, the commissioner
said. Calling the Turkish government’s democratization initiative,
which includes expanding rights for the Kurdish population, a very
important step, Rehn said this step would raise the standard of living
for all citizens of Turkey.

Images from the jubilant reception of several members of the outlawed
Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) returning to Turkey through the
Habur border gate in October were used by "nationalist forces as
an opportunity to attack the government," Rehn said, while voicing
pleasure over the fact that the government declared its determination
to go ahead with the democratization initiative despite such negative
attitudes.

Spanish Secretary of State for EU Affairs Diego Lopez Garrido, whose
country took over the six-month rotating presidency of the EU from
Sweden on Jan. 1, also addressed European deputies during Wednesday’s
discussion on Turkey.

Reiterating Madrid’s willingness to open more negotiation chapters
with Turkey, Garrido cautioned that Turkey has still a lot to do in
the fields of "judicial reform, fundamental freedoms, freedom of press,
minority rights, women’s rights and labor rights."

A majority of the European deputies who delivered their opinions
on Turkey during the discussion focused on the closure of the DTP
and expressed concern over the detention of mayors of towns in the
predominantly Kurdish Southeast, Anatolia noted.