Brussels, 31/03/2008 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has reacted prudently and laconically to the decision by Turkey's constitutional court on Monday 31 March to examine a case calling for the banning of the AKP party, currently in power, for anti-secular activities. 'We take note of the fact that the constitutional court found admissible the chief prosecutor's request related to the closure of the AKP party. Before commenting on this new development any further, the Commission needs to get more information on the exact decision of the court,' explained a spokesperson for EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn. On the fringes of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brdo, Slovenia, on Saturday 29 March, Rehn hoped that Turkish justice would take into account Turkey's long-term interests. In a normal democracy, he said, this type of problems is settled by the ballot box rather than at court. Rehn described it as a 'system error' in the Turkish constitutional system that the EU has long been calling to be rectified.
The court case, launched by the Turkish constitutional court's chief prosecutor, aims to ban for five years any political activity by the leaders of the AKP, including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul. The case could take months to go through court. Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan warned that any ban of the AKP could lead to a suspension of the accession talks with the EU launched in October 2005. (H.B.)