Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro
EU Again Tells Turkey It Must
Be More Democratic
By Stephen Kinzer
New York Times Service
ISTANBUL - As European officials renewed
their calls on Turkey to become more democratic,
a court sentenced former Prime Minister Necmenin
Erbakan on Friday to one year in prison for
a speech he gave in 1994.
The sentence seemed likely to bring a new
round of criticism from European leaders. Several
have visited in recent weeks to warn that Turkey
has no hope of entering the European Union unless
it repeals laws like the one under which Mr.
Erbakan was convicted.
Mr. Erbakan, 74, has headed three religiousbased
political parties, all of which have been
banned. He served as prime minister for one year,
but resigned in 1997 under intense pressure from
military commanders and others who accused him
of plotting to overthrow the secular order.
In the speech for which he was convicted Friday,
Mr. Erbakan asserted that Turkey had diifted
away from its Islamic roots, and that secular
politicians had driven a wedge between ethnic
Kurds and other citizens.
He was found guilty of "provoking hatred."
His lawyers said he would appeal.
Mr. Erbakan's conviction was announced a day
after a senior European Union oIfidâl described
Turkey as the only country among the 13 official
candidates for EU membership that was not yet
democratic enough to join.
Guenter Verheugen, the EU cOmmissioner for
enlargement, called Turkey "historically, economically
and culturally part of Europe, " but said
it needed "fundamental political change" before
it could qualify for EU membership.
"Is Turkey a country that doesn't meet the
criteria?" Mr. Verheugen asked during a speech at
Bosporus University in Istanbul. "The answer is a
simple 'yes.' Turkey does not yet meet the political
criteria, and we can start political nepotiations
de la Prensa-Baszn Özeti
only on the basis that Turkey does ...
Asked to estimate ho"" long it would take for
Turkey to become an EU member, Mr. Verheugen
told his Turkish hosts: "It depends completely on
you."
,'There will not be very much pressure from my
side, but I think it is in Turkey's interest not to be
sluggish," he said. "If you start the process now
and determine to continue in a major way, it' s only
a couple of years and then we're in a completely
different situation." .
Mr. Verheugen said that before Turkey could be
admitted to the union, it must address "sensitive
issues like freedom of expression" and become
"a stablè democracy' that respects the rule of law
and human rights. "
"IfTurkey wants it," he said, "ifTurkey wants
it really, the EU is prepared to accept Turkey as a
full member in the family of democratic European
nations. "
By phrasing his challenge that way, Mr. Verheugen
seemed to be recognizing that Turkish
leaders have lately appeared undecided about
whether they were prepared to make the profound
political changes necessary for EU membership.
In public, all senior political and military leaders
in Turkey agree that joining the union should
be a transcendent national goal. Over the last few
weeks, however, there have been signs that powerful
forces in Turkish society disagree.
European diplomats interpreted the arrest of
three ethnic Kurdish mayors last month as one
such sign. Some will probably view the verdict
Friday against Mr. Erbakan as anottier.
Senior prosecutors, security officers and others
have begun suggesting that the Turkish state
would be in danger if laws that restrict free speech
are repealed, if limits on religious political parties
are lifted, or if ethnie Kurds are granted new
cultural rights. Yet Turkey will probably not .be
able to join the European Union unless it takes
such steps.
Khatami Ally
IsShotand
Woundedin
Tehran Attack
By Geneive Abdo
Spedal to the ITllernational Herald Tribune
TEHRAN - The political
strategist behind the reformers' victories
in parliamentary voting in
Iran last month was shot at close
range and seriously wounded in
Tehran on Sunday.
Saeed Hajjarian, an adviser to
President Mohammed Khatami and
the editor of an outspoken progressive
daily newspaper, was hit in the
left cheek from less than three meters
(lD feet) away as he approached
the Tehran city council
building early in the morning.
A gunman with an accomplice
on a high-powered motorcycle
frred the shots, witnesses said.
"The gunman aimed his gun at
Hajjarian's temple but because his
hand was shaking, the frrst bullet
struck him in the face," Mahmoud
Alizadeh- Tabatabaei, a city council
member, told the official news
agency IRNA. A second bullet appeared
to have missed.
Both assailants then fled on the
lOOO-cc m6torcycle, which only
police and security personnel are
permitted to own.
The motorcycle has led investigators
to speculate that the attackers
were from the Intelligence
and Security Ministry or the Is-
lamie Revolutionary Guards. Both
institutions are dominated by conservatives
who are waging a national
struggle with the reformist
movement.
Another indication that the
shooting may have been part of a
wider plot was that police guarding
the city council building, who are
armed with submachine guns,
showed no reaction, witnesses and
members of the city council said.
IRNA said witnesses had given
the police descriptions of the attackers
and the motorcycle.
Mr. Hajjarian, 46, was in critical condition
Sunday night, suffering from
swelling in his brain and respiratory
problems, doctors said.
"One bullet entered through his left
cheek and remains lodged at the back of
his neck," said Dr. Mohammed Reza
Zafarqandi, head of the Sina Hospital
emergency team that treated Mr. Haj-
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