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

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro de la Prensa-Basm Özeti
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The head of the European Parliament's Greens ro CI d' R •
Parliame!'1taryCommission outside Ankara's Uluc~nl~~'Pri:r1I~n ~th~nd thheco-chairman of t~e Turkey-EU Joint
pro-Kurdishdeputy Leyla Zana was refused She vowed t "k !le ay w .ere Roths applicallon to meet former
there were people imprisonedfor their thoughts. 0 eep on InterferingIn Turkey's domestic TDN affairs" Selahalun as long SÖßmn as
~meof the few unsolved problems nalizing certain crimes considered
Turning to other tôpics, Çiller m the wo~ld.
"thought crimes," many people
said the conclusion of the customs She said the format for a solu- were subsequently put back into
union with the EU in 1995 represented
a watershed in Ankara's ties b~:n accepte~ by the two commu- . Roth also expressed her aston-
tion drawn up under the U.N. had jail.
with the Union.
mues on the island as well as the ishment at Interior Minister Meral
She said that while the EU had EU.
Alqener who recently made
not fulfilled its commitments under "But the biggest obstacle in derogatory remarks about the
this accord, Turkey had still been implementing this has been the fact Armenians.
able to display its competitiveness that there has been no dialogue for Alqener subsequently apolothe
~ast two years," she said. gized to members of Turkey' s
under the customs union.
Çiller also said that Turkey Çiller added that the leaders of Armenian minority, saying she
should not be discriminated against the two communities on.the island ~hould not .have lI:sed words equathad
now come to the pomt of mg Armemans With terrorism and
in terms of its bid for EU membership
and that the same criteria re.suming talks: The rem~ks by indicating she had really meant to
applying to other applicants now Çiller concermng Ankara s refer to the Armenian terrorist
should be applied to Ankara. attempts at human rights reform organization ASALA which has
She said, "Europe should not were considere~ unconvincing by slain scores of Turkish diplomats to
erect a new Berlin wall on the the European Side. Diplomats say date. Meanwhile, JPC co-chairman
basis of religion and culture," in a her credibility in EC circles is at an Democratic Left Party (DSP)
reference to growing sentiments all ti.":lelo~ since she entered a deputy Mümtaz Soysal told the
among Europe's conservatives that coahtlOn With the pro-Islamic ~N that Roth exaggerated while
there is no place in the EU for Welfare Partyafter having Çiller had disclosed nothing and
Turkey, with its different religion pr?mised Europe she would keep was vague in her commentary.
and distinct civilization.
thiS part~ out of power.
"Y'f.e, as Turkish deputies, cannot
Çiller added that Turkey supported
the bids of other prospective coffee break after the opening ses- expect to meet her when we can-
Speaking to reporters during the ViSitLeyla Zana, so Roth cannot
members and "friendlv" countries sion, the most vocal of the Euro- not," said Soysal referring to
such as the Czech Republic and deputies, Claudia Roth, who has Roth's words about permission to
Poland to join the EU,
been involved with Turkey for the meet Zana in jail.
Çiller also referred to Greek- past decade, said that Çiller had not 0!1 the issue of Greek-Turkish
Turkish relations and the search for an~w~red any of her questions. relatlO~s, Soysal said the Turkish
a settlement to the Cyprus problem. PomtlOg out that the Turkish for- comrmttee had prepared. a report
She said that in the case of the eign minister had not once men- with nine provisions intended to .
former, it was not a question of tioned the Kurdish problem, Roth better relations with Greece and is
separate problems but a collection ,expressed surprise given that this awaiting discussion and acceptance
of related problems. She said the ~as "one of the main problems fac- of the report by the European paronly
way of solving these problems 'mg.Turkey today." She added that liamentarians, in which case a great
was by means of dialogue.
whtle some people may have been deal could be achieved. The JPC
On the Cyprus issue, Çiller said released after a revision to article 8 meeting is to continue on
that while the means to resolve the of the Tyrkish penal code decrimi- Wednesday and end later in the
problem were apparent, it remained
day.
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