Some of the major points of tension between Turkey and the European Union
Associated Press Worldstream
November 3, 2006 Friday 6:01 PM GMT
CYPRUS
EU: Turkey must open its ports and airspace to Greek Cypriot ships
and recognize Cyprus’ customs union with the EU.
Turkey: Before it recognizes the government of Greek Cyprus, the EU
must keep its promise to help lift the international isolation of
the Turkish side of the divided island.
FREE SPEECH:
EU: Turkey must amend or abolish an article in the Turkish penal code
that makes it a crime to "insult Turkishness" and which is frequently
used to try academics and authors, notably Orhan Pamuk, this year’s
Nobel literature laureate.
Turkey: No one has gone to jail for expressing opinions so far,
and the problem is not with the article itself but with its
implementation. More time is needed.
HUMAN RIGHTS:
EU: Turkey is regressing after years of steady improvement.
Turkey: Rights have been strengthened and laws overhauled even
as Turkey deals with resurgent violence by Kurdish separatists,
considered terrorists by the United States and the EU.
WOMEN, MINORITIES:
EU: Expand their rights.
Turkey: It takes time to modernize a largely conservative Islamic
society, and granting greater rights to minorities particularly Kurds
could threaten the unity of the state.
ARMENIANS:
The EU: Turkey must recognize that the killing of as many as 1.5
million of its Armenian minority around the time of World War I
was genocide.
Turkey: Calling it genocide is "an international lie"; they died in
interethnic fighting as the Ottoman Empire collapsed.