Brussels, 11/12/2002 (Agence Europe) - On 17 December, the European Parliament will be celebrating, in Strasbourg, the 15th anniversary of the Sakharov Prize for freedom of spirit, to which all prizewinners are invited. Leyla Zana, a Kurd from Turkey, is one of the prizewinners who have not yet received their prize. She was awarded the prize in 1995 but was unable to go to Strasbourg to receive it, being condemned to fifteen years imprisonment. The president of the Socialist Group, Enrique Baron has written to the Turkish Ambassador with the EU, Oguz Demiralp, calling on the Turkish government to authorise Leyla Zana to attend the ceremony on 17 December. For the European Parliament, this would be an "important symbol … of the seriousness of Turkey's intent to fulfil the political criteria of Copenhagen and to begin negotiations for accession to the European Union", Mr Baron says in his letter, recalling that he had raised the matter with Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the latter's meeting with the conference of presidents of the political groups, on 21 November in Strasbourg.
This year's prizewinner is Cuban dissident Oswaldo Payà Sardinas, the Liberal Group candidate (see EUROPE of 9/10 September, p.15). Spanish Prime Minister José Maria Aznar wrote to Fidel Castro calling on him to authorise him to go to Strasbourg to receive the prize in person. Mr Aznar told the Cuban President he was sure this would help to "contribute to improving relations between Cuba and the EU".