Brussels, 03/03/2008 (Agence Europe) - EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn has appealed to the Turkish authorities to make use of the reform of Turkey's constitution to reinforce the rule of law and fundamental freedoms for all citizens, including Kurds, thereby establishing the political conditions needed to pursue the process of joining the EU. 'Fundamental freedoms must be in the heart of the constitutional reform,' said Olli Rehn on Monday 3 March at a conference in Brussels organised by MEPs Joost Lagendijk (Greens/EFA), Hannes Swoboda (PES) and Andrew Duff (ALDE) on the new civil constitution and the Kurdish question in Turkey. Rehn said the European Commission had not yet seen the draft constitution and it was therefore impossible to assess the work in progress, but he said he hoped there would be an inclusive debate to ensure the future constitution had a 'broad basis in civil society'. After a slowing of the political reform process in 2006 and 2007, the Commission feels that all the conditions are now in place for 2008 to be the year of reform in Turkey. The adoption of a new Basic Law in February, crucial for ensuring proper protection of non-Muslim communities in Turkey, was a good start but has to be followed by further reforms like the scrapping or amendment of Article 301 of the penal code, warned Rehn. In its reforms, he said Turkey had to follow the priorities set out in the new accession partnership (see EUROPE 9593), which also include measures to improve the social, economic and cultural rights of the Kurds in Turkey. Their situation has improved over recent years but much progress remains to be made, said Rehn, adding that he was encouraged by the plans of the prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for things like a Kurdish language television channel.
The conference was attended by high-ranking Kurdish representatives, including the head of the Kurdish Party of Turkey (DTP), Ahmet Türk, but no official representatives of the Turkish government. (H.B.)