Today’s Zaman,Turkey
March 27 2010

Socialist leader Schulz: package is a step closer to EU and her values

The leader of the Socialists in the European Parliament, Martin
Schulz, has said the latest proposal to amend the Turkish Constitution
is a step closer to the European Union and its values.

Speaking on the `European Desk’ broadcast on STVHaber, Schulz
supported the package, declaring it to be `clearly in the interest of
the modernization of Turkey and aiming to bring Turkey a step nearer
to the European Union and her values.’ Stressing that his first
feeling was that the package was a quite good proposal, Schulz
underlined that he would also listen carefully to the concerns of the
opposition.

`The content of the proposals, to make it more difficult to close the
political parties, to give more rights to women, etc., is clearly in
the interest of modernizing Turkey and bringing Turkey a step nearer
to European Union and her values. I will not comment on any
constitutional change in any country.

It is highly controversial in Turkey, and I need to say that it is up
to the political parties. But my first feeling is that it is a good
proposal. I will of course listen to the remarks of the opposition
carefully,’ he said. After discussing Turkey’s fight for
democratization, the socialist leader also commented on the ongoing
Ergenekon trial, where almost 200 defendants are standing trial for
various offenses including plotting to overthrow the democratically
elected government of the Turkish Republic.

`Ergenekon is a very specific internal issue for Turkey. It is now up
to the judiciary, and it is forbidden for me to comment a lot on this.
But I think a civil government and an independent judiciary have
always the right and even the duty to go ahead and try those who
attempt to undermine the constitutional reality of a democratic
country. If there are suspicions that generals, colonels and other
officers have created plans to bring down democracy, then it is the
duty of the government and the judiciary to go after that. If those
people are innocent, of course they should be released,’ he said.

`Nobody can explain what privileged partnership is to me’
Schulz, who leads the 184-strong Socialist group, which was renamed
the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats after the June
2009 elections, is expected to be the next president of the European
Parliament in 2012. Known as a supporter of Turkey’s bid to join the
EU, Schulz criticized German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the European
Union for the lack of honest approaches vis-a-vis Turkey. On the eve
of her first visit to Turkey in four years, he called on Merkel to be
clear on Turkey’s EU process.

`When I first heard about the `privileged partnership’, I thought it
is like living together without being married. Now I’ve learned that
nobody can explain to me what privileged partnership is. If Merkel
goes to Turkey and openly says that she is against Turkey and
justifies why and proposes alternatives, she will have my full
respect. But here in Brussels people speak differently behind closed
doors. The speeches behind closed doors are very different from the
ones made publicly. Publicly everyone says we are for the
negotiations, behind closed doors lots of European leaders say Turkey
will never join European Union,’ he said.

`Common history commission on Armenian killings a good step’
Schulz also commented on the recent tension over Armenian killings
during World War I. He said Turkey’s proposal to form a joint
commission of scholars to determine the reality of the past was a good
step forward. `The call by the Turkish government to form a common
commission of international scholars on history of 1915 was a very
good step forward. Why take a step now and go back before the
commission starts working? It is not meaningful. It would have been
better to wait for this commission’s findings. I never expected this
government would take such a huge step forward,’ he stated.

The Socialist leader also assessed the prospect of reunification for
the long-divided Cyprus. He said the then-leader of the Greek side,
the late Tassos Papadopoulos, was to blame for the failure of the
Annan plan in 2004. He also noted that the EU did not live up to its
words following the Turkish approval and Greek rejection of the plan.

`For sure the EU made mistakes on Cyprus, and not all the promises
were kept, but it is a complicated issue. Turkey should apply the
Ankara Protocol. To be honest with you, sometimes I am hopeless on
Cyprus. Günter Verheugen, a very close friend of mine, I remember very
well, told me when he came back from Cyprus as the then-enlargement
commissioner that everyone on the island agreed on the Annan plan. But
then Papadopoulos worked against the agreement. We have a word for
that in civil life, but I won’t use it. There is a certain
interpretation of what Mr. Papadopoulos did, but I will not use it
publicly. But it was an enormous damage to the credibility first and
foremost for Mr. Papadopoulos himself,’ he said.

27 March 2010, Saturday
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