SABANCI: FANATICS IN TURKEY AND ABROAD SHOULD NOT DETERMINE OUR AGENDA
By Economy News Desk
Zaman, Turkey
Oct 5 2006
Discussions are still taking place about Turkey’s future membership
in the European Union, an organization that started accession talks
with the Turkish government on October 3, 20005.
Omer Sabanci, head of the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen
Association, or TUSIAD, reiterated the point of Turkey having the
utmost willingness to join the European Union, as formalized in its
decision dated Oct. 3.
There are extremists both in Europe and in Turkey setting the agenda
for us, complained Sabanci, but pledged full support to the Turkish
government in its march towards the European Union.
There is a tendency among most Europeans not to want further
enlargement, a situation worsened with the publication of some
demeaning pictures of the Prophet Mohammed, with the terrorist attacks,
and with Muslims living in Europe as a minority with difficulties
in adapting to the European way of life, said Sabanci at a panel
discussion in Europe. "The European Union is now a playmaker in the
Middle East. Turkey’s resolve to send troops to Lebanon was a sign
of its cooperation with the European Union. The European Union has
to count on Turkey for provision of security, with energy as well as
of elasticity in demand."
Sabanci restated the need to remove Article #301 from the Turkish
Penal Code as a clause that restricts freedom of expression in Turkey
when he said, "There’s a marked contradiction between the Turkish
government wanting to improve freedom of thought and the French
government attempting to restrict freedom of expression."
Sabanci characterized this kind of attitude as belonging to a country
that does not want to face facts.
Kursad Tuzmen, Turkish State Minister, was also on the panel.
Tuzmen spoke of a draft bill scheduled for parliamentary discussion in
France on Sept. 12 that penalizes denial of the so-called Armenian
genocide, and went over the point of Turkey never having a mass
execution in its history.
"The 1915 Ottoman cabinet had two ministers of Armenian origin, who
remained in the cabinet even after the forced emigration. If there
had really been a mass execution of Armenians, they would not have
remained in the cabinet. Even a look at Russian history would tell
us that there were not any mass executions at that time," said Tuzmen.
"I hope the French parliamentarians will be listening to common sense
in their evaluation of this proposal from the Socialist Party. I have
the self-confidence to argue that there was not a mass execution
of Armenians. I would like to raise this question: How can French
historians and academicians ever do free research on this alleged
mass execution of Armenians if the bill receives parliamentary
approval? I’m a Turkish State Minister. Will I go to prison as a
minister when I come back after Sept. 12 and deny the alleged mass
execution of Armenians? Or, will I be fined for it? That’d be a
disaster on a global scale."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
