OPINION : THE GHETTO OF EUROPE
Baris Sanli , JTW Columnist
Journal of Turkish Weekly
Sept 28 2005
It seems like not ending. Condition after condition after condition….
What is next? Leave the East Anatolia to Armenians, give Izmir to
Greeks? Okey, if Turkey has satisfied these points, will the Europeans
feel satisfied? Unfortunately, it is impossible.
On the one hand, it was possible to bridge cultures, on the other
hand there is no difference between the Brussels’ diplomats and the
medieval Europeans. Are they visionaries? I doubt this. Now, it is
better to leave everything to time. Turkey and Turkish government
tried everything to be part of EU, be part of a historic integration.
I believe, with his conservative and religious background Turkish
PMTayyip Erdogan is a case study to be teached to European diplomats.
>>From another perspective, what has Europe done for Turkey? They just
talked, gave orders and agitated the carefully balanced power triangle
in Turkey. I am wondering is there some kind of meaning for adherence
or keeping promises in the dictionary of European Diplomacy. Turkey’s
membership is not sine qua non for both parties, but it was certainly
a historic chance. Historic chances should be left to more open minded
people and politicians those know the importance of being a human
despite cultural differences. Now this is the time to see the reality.
Reality is this, Europe is a ghetto. Not a physical but a cultural
and prejudicial ghetto. The history starts with the white man, the
science starts with the white man, democracy, human values start
with the white man. That is their unbreakable cultural ghetto, even
if they form the most complex political organization in the history
of man kind. With chains of prejudices and a elitist understanding
of the God’s religion, it is impossible to expect Europeans to get
out of this ghetto. Other cultures? Probably, they must be defining
other cultures as “the mentally primitive, should be colonized life
forms resembling us”.
We, Turks, are stupid, why are we trying to integrate with western
values? It is clearly idiotism to believe in such an integration.
Turkey’s EU adventure will be another example of Europe’s understanding
of the “other”. So the radicals’ “They will never accept you, they
just play with you until they got bored” theory may found ground to
flourish. At least we, naïve Turks, expected some kind of adherence
not from Christians or Europeans but statesman and diplomats. But
there is no adherence either. After the latest proposal, the Turkish
people’s faith in Europe has been shattered beyond limits. At this
time, for me and other middle class Turks, EU adventure seems to be
finished. The reason is not Cyprus or Armenian allegations; it is
the Ghetto in which Europe lives happily.
–Boundary_(ID_aUOwcRfTQ6DQqmMhMvBkzQ)–
From: Baghdasarian

MEETING WITH THE SPEAKER
Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Sept 28 2005
On September 26 the speaker of the National Assembly of NKR received
the delegation of the USA Western Region branch of the Democratic
Liberal Party. According to the head of the delegation, the chair of
the department Ara Aharonian, the aim of the visit was to decide the
further plans of the department. “All that was carried out in Artsakh
in the past years should be developed consistently. This is a rather
complicated and intensive process and in this we need the support of
our compatriots abroad,” said the NA speaker in his greeting speech.
In this context he emphasized the importance of the Armenian Diaspora
and the role of its political, religious and other organizations,
including the Democratic Liberal Party in the projects of Hayastan
Foundation. Then the speaker dwelled upon the tendencies in the
public, political, social and economic life in NKR. The chairman
of the standing committee for foreign relations Vahram Atanessian
and the head of the administration of the National Assembly Arthur
Sarghissian were also present at the meeting.

IRAN, ARMENIA TO WORK ON JOINT RAILWAY PROJECT
Persian Journal, Iran
Sept 29 2005
Sep 28, 2005
The official in charge of the Public Relations Department of Armenia’s
Ministry of Transport, Arthur Sarkisian, said on Wednesday that the new
government in his country will examine a new project on Armenia-Iran
railway track.
Speaking at the joint meeting of the “UN Economic and Social Commission
for Asia and Pacific Affairs” and “Russia’s Railway Company”, he
added that the new railway line will connect Armenia to Iran without
passing through Turkey and Azerbaijan.
He noted that at present the technical and economic dimensions of the
project are being assessed and that the prospect of connecting it to
the railways of Georgia, Abkhazia and Russia is likely to be examined.
Turning to Armenia’s geopolitical position, he said that given his
country is situated at the intersection of North-South and East-West
corridors, its transport facilities can help develop these corridors.
Referring to Armenia’s political discord with Azerbaijan and
Turkey, Sarkisian noted that using such facilities will cause many
difficulties.
The railway connection from Armenia to Azerbaijan has practically been
disrupted since disintegration of the ex-Soviet Union in early 1990s.
Meanwhile, Iran-Armenia railway connection has also been disrupted on
account of breakout of relations between Armenia and the Autonomous
Republic of Nakhichevan.

EU PARLIAMENT SAYS TURKEY MUST RECOGNIZE “GENOCIDE”
Tehran Times
Sept 29 2005
STRASBOURG, France – The European Parliament said on Wednesday that
Turkey must recognize the killing of Armenians under Ottoman rule in
1915 as genocide as a pre-requisite for joining the European Union.
The EU legislature also postponed a vote on Turkey’s extended customs
union with the EU in a potential last-minute snag for Ankara’s EU
entry talks, due to start next Monday.
The non-binding resolution on the Armenian issue is likely to anger
Turkey, which insists that the killings of Armenians were not a
systematic genocide.

EASTERN PROMISE: NO ALTERNATIVE TO TALKS ON FULL TURKISH EU MEMBERSHIP
The Times, UK
Sept 29 2005
The formal opening of accession talks with Turkey in London due to
begin on Monday would mark a pivotal moment in the development of
the European Union. Turkish membership would alter the character of
the EU more profoundly than the accession of any other country in
almost 50 years. It would extend the EU some 900 miles to the east,
taking its external frontier to the borders of Syria and Iran. It
would bring into the EU some 70 million Muslims, profoundly altering
its demographic and cultural profile and admitting a country that
would soon become the EU’s largest member.
The opening of accession talks will also be the most substantial
achievement of Britain’s otherwise lacklustre EU presidency, a
step to which this country has been committed for longer and more
wholeheartedly than any of its partners. The nearer the formal start
comes, however, the greater the dissent, backsliding and outright
opposition to Turkish membership by EU governments and fretful
publics. Yesterday the European Parliament postponed ratification of
the customs union – a prerequisite of full EU membership – and added
two conditions to entry talks: that Ankara recognise the present
(solely Greek) Government of Cyprus and that it acknowledge the
killings of Armenians during and after the First World War as genocide.
The conditions, as provocative as they are politically disingenuous,
pander to an increasingly hostile EU opinion by citing issues that
appear reasonable but are calculated to anger Ankara. The same is true
of those European politicians, especially Angela Merkel in Germany
and Nicolas Sarkozy in France, who are now talking of “privileged
partnership” as a substitute for full EU membership. The phrase may
sound emollient, but it signifies a dishonour-able reneging on past
promises and a humiliating rejection of Turkish aspirations for
the past 42 years. “Privileged partnership” is knowingly vacuous,
offering no decision-making powers and little more than the vague
relationship promised to Russia, North Africa and the Middle East by
the 2003 European Neighbourhood Policy.
What politicians in Strasbourg, Paris and Berlin are hoping is that
a piqued Turkey will itself flounce out of the talks. For what they
fear has, at heart, little to do with agricultural costs, Turkey’s
human rights record or the tortuous Cyprus negotiations. It is, more
crudely, the atavistic clash of civilisations – the contention that
a Europe based on Christian values and culture has no place in its
midst for a Muslim nation. Beneath the rumblings in France, Germany,
Austria and the Netherlands also lie popular hostility to Islam and
a rejection of any more Muslim immigration.
To reject Turkey on these grounds is not only dishonourable but wrong;
it is to ignore the entire Ataturk legacy and the huge strides that
Turkey, as a secular nation (as are also all the members of the EU),
has made towards democracy. Of course there is a way to go. But it
is the promise of membership that has removed the death penalty,
upgraded civil status laws, expanded minority rights and overhauled
the criminal code. If the EU now reneges on its negotiating framework,
it loses all power – unprecedented in Turkish history – to influence
domestic policy. Difficult details, such as freedom of movement of
labour, can be worked out in the lengthy accession talks.
What cannot be worked out is any alternative to immediate talks on
full membership.

TURKEY LIKELY TO SHUN EU TALKS
GEO World News, GeoTV
Sept 28 2005
ANKARA: Turkey hinted Wednesday that it may shun the start of
EU membership talks next week as political tensions rose over the
country’s place in Europe, leading Britain to warn of a “huge betrayal”
if the door was slammed shut on Ankara.
Raising the risk of a political showdown, the European Parliament
issued a stern warning to Ankara to recognize Cyprus and acknowledge
that the Ottomans committed “genocide” against Armenians during World
War I, two highly sensitive issues that have already strained ties.
The parliament did, however, endorse the start of talks set for
Monday. The EU’s British presidency, meanwhile, battled to resolve
a deadlock over the negotiating framework — the guiding procedures
and principles of the talks — with Austria insisting on a reference
to an eventual “partnership” instead of full membership for Turkey.
“It is natural that we shall make the necessary evaluations following
the clarification of the negotiating framework and take our final
step accordingly,” Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Namik Tan told
reporters.”It is out of the question that we accept any formula or
suggestion other than full membership,” he said.
EU ambassadors were scheduled to meet later Wednesday and throughout
Thursday to try to end the dispute before the talks, which were
given a green light by the EU at a December 17 summit, get under
way in Luxembourg.Noting the atmosphere of uncertainty and possible
last-minute wrangling, a senior Turkish diplomat said that it was not
even clear when Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul would fly to Luxembourg.
“The airplane will be waiting at the airport and when everything is
resolved, we will go,” he told AFP on condition of anonymity. Other
than the Austrian obstacle, he explained, some EU countries are pushing
for tougher terms that go beyond the principles outlined in the EU’s
December 17 decisions concerning Turkey, but declined to elaborate.
Turkish newspapers reported that one draft provision that particularly
irked Ankara was a demand that Turkey abstain from obstructing the
membership of EU countries in other international organizations.
The provision is widely interpreted as an attempt to block a Turkish
veto to an eventual bid by Cyprus to join NATO.
Turkey’s refusal to recognize Cyprus is a major obstacle to
its EU hopes, with the EU demanding that Ankara endorse the
internationally-recognized Greek Cypriot government of the long-divided
island during the accession process.
Throwing Britain’s weight behind Turkey, Foreign Secretary Jack
Straw warned that “it would now be a huge betrayal of the hopes and
expectations of the Turkish people and of Prime Minister (Recep Tayyip)
Erdogan’s program of reform if, at this crucial time, we turned our
back on Turkey.”
“Anchor Turkey in the West and we gain a beacon of democracy and
modernity, a country with a Muslim majority, which will be a shining
example across the whole of its neighboring region,” he told the
Labour Party’s annual conference in Brighton.
Turkey has been trying to join the EU for decades but its place
in Europe has come increasingly into question, particularly since
French and Dutch voters rejected a planned EU constitution, partly
over concerns about the membership of this sizeable and relatively
poor Muslim country.
Underscoring increasingly hostile public opinion in parts of Europe,
the heated debate Wednesday at the European Parliament also saw
deputies harshly criticize Turkey’s record on human rights and
religious freedoms.
Ankara urged EU countries to reflect on a “strategic vision.” “Our
membership carries great importance with respect to the contribution
(it would make) to the future of Europe as well as the Middle East
and the Caucasus and particularly to the building of an alliance
between civilizations,” Tan said.

EU PARLIAMENT SLAPS TURKEY OVER ARMENIANS
By Jeremy Smith
Reuters, UK
Sept 28 2005
STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) – EU lawmakers gave only a grudging
blessing on Wednesday to membership talks with Turkey starting next
week and said Ankara must recognise a 1915 massacre of Armenians as
genocide before it joins the bloc.
They also criticised Turkey’s human rights record and held up a vote
to ratify an extended customs union with the 25-state European Union
in a bid to pressure Ankara to open its ports and airports to traffic
from EU member Cyprus.
The European Parliament’s non-binding resolution on the Armenians
was a political slap in the face for predominantly Muslim Turkey,
which insists the killings were not genocide.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan played down the moves, telling
reporters: “The European Parliament’s decision will not affect the
EU process. It has no power of sanction,” according to NTV television.
The Turkish lira and stock market lost ground on the events, although
traders said they did not believe the October 3 opening of accession
talks was at risk.
The EU legislature has no say over the start or conduct of the talks
but its assent is needed before Turkey can join, which is at least
a decade away.
DEADLOCK ON MANDATE
EU governments meanwhile remained deadlocked on the mandate for the
talks, with Austria seeking a more explicit mention of an alternative
to full membership.
EU foreign ministers will have to hold an emergency meeting on Sunday
in Luxembourg, hours before negotiations are to start, unless their
ambassadors clinch a deal earlier in Brussels.
The opening ceremony could slip to Monday evening because Turkish
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will not board a plane until the
EU ministers have formally endorsed a framework for negotiations,
diplomats said.
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, whose country holds the revolving
EU presidency, said it would be “a huge betrayal of the hopes and
expectations of the Turkish people and of Prime Minister Erdogan’s
programme of reform if, at the crucial time, we turned our back
on Turkey”.
The EU legislature demanded that Turkey recognise EU member Cyprus
soon and said negotiations could be suspended unless it granted access
to Cypriot aircraft and shipping by next year.
Turkey, which invaded Cyprus in 1974 in response to a short- lived
Greek Cypriot coup, has some 35,000 troops in the north of the island
and refuses to recognise the Greek Cypriot government in the south,
which is recognised by the European Union.
The vote by the parliament followed an emotional debate in which many
deputies attacked Turkey’s record on human rights, religious freedom
and minorities, reflecting widespread public hostility to the poor,
populous nation ever joining the bloc.
Greens party leader Daniel Cohn-Bendit caused an uproar by accusing
some right-wing critics of Turkey of “surfing on a wave of racism”.
EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn regretted the decision to delay
ratification of the customs union, saying it would weaken Brussels’
hand with the Turks, but stressed it would have no impact on the
start of negotiations.
CIVIL RIGHTS
Rehn warned Turkey it would have to amend a new penal code, adopted
to meet EU criteria, if hardline judges were still able to prosecute
Turkey’s leading novelist for expressing his views on the killings
of Armenians under Ottoman rule.
An Istanbul judge is prosecuting writer Orhan Pamuk for “denigrating
Turkish identity” by endorsing the term genocide. He faces up to
three years in jail if convicted.
Other judges tried in vain to halt an academic conference in Istanbul
on the Armenian issue last week.
Opinion polls show a majority of EU citizens, especially in France,
Germany and Austria, oppose Turkish membership.
(Additional reporting by Marcin Grajewski in Brussels; Zerin Elci in
Ankara and Mike Peacock in Brighton, England)

TURKEY REJECTS EU PRESSURE ON GENOCIDE
Al-Jazeera, Qatar
Sept 29 2005
Turkey’s prime minister has rejected a European Parliament resolution
calling on Ankara to recognise the mass killings of Armenians during
the first world war as genocide.
“That resolution is not binding. It does not matter whether they
took such a decision or not. We will continue on our way,” private
CNN-Turk television quoted Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as
saying during a visit to Abu Dhabi.
Turkey is scheduled to open accession talks with the EU on Monday.
The EU lawmakers said in their resolution that recognition of the
1915-1923 killings as genocide should be a prerequisite for Turkey
to join the European Union.
Armenians across the world have been commemorating the anniversary
of what they brand as genocide on 24 April each year.
Ottoman Turks
Armenians say that 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of the second world war, which Armenians
and several nations around the world recognise as the first genocide
of the 20th century.
Turkey denies that the killings were genocide, saying the toll is
inflated and that Armenians were killed in civil unrest as the Ottoman
Empire collapsed.
Speaking to Turkish reporters in Abu Dhabi, Erdogan also reiterated
his view that the EU has to admit Turkey or risk being branded a
“Christian club”.
“The EU … has to prove that it is not a Christian club. To say
‘the EU is not a Christian club’ will not save it from becoming a
Christian club,” he said.
“What will the EU achieve by admitting Turkey? It will become a bridge
between the 1.5-billion strong Muslim world and the EU. It will start
an alliance of civilisations,” he added.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

TURKEY MUST RECOGNIZE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE TO JOIN EU
BBC News, UK
Sept 28 2005
The European Union parliament has backed plans to start talks on
Turkish accession, but insisted on a number of provisos before it is
allowed entry.
MPs insisted Ankara recognise the killings of thousands of Armenians
in 1915 as genocide. Turkey denies that the killings were systematic.
MPs also postponed a vote on ratifying Turkey’s customs arrangements
because of its refusal to recognise Cyprus.
Neither decision affects entry talks which are due to start on
3 October.
The negotiations, once started, are expected to take about 10 years.
The European Commission said the postponement of the vote was an
“own goal” by the parliament.
The Armenian killings have long been a taboo subject in Turkey.
Armenians, supported by 15 countries, including France, Switzerland,
Russia and Argentina, accuses the then Ottoman rulers of carrying out a
“genocide”.
Turkey disputes the charge, saying that a few hundred thousand died
and that the deaths occurred in a civil war in which many Turks were
also killed.
But Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan did condemn a Turkish
court’s decision to order the cancellation of a conference about the
killings which was due to have been held last week.
Vetoes await
Further talks about Turkey’s accession are set for Thursday to try
to resolve a deadlock over the question of the negotiating framework
for Turkish membership.
Turkey has been clear that it will not accept the option of privileged
partnership, which Austria is pushing to be inserted into the
negotiating framework; only full membership will do.
The BBC’s Jonny Dymond says that even if they get the framework they
want, the membership process will be a long and painful one.
This is partly because so much needs to be done by Turkey to adapt
itself to EU rules. It needs to absorb the 80,000 page long EU rule
book into its domestic law.
One member state has already boasted about the number of potential
vetoes it has during the negotiations process. There is also the
question of Turkey’s continuing human rights reform process.
Expectations
The European Commission has promised to monitor closely how Turkey
proceeds. If it is deemed to be slipping backwards in theory or
practice, then the commission will not hesitate to make its misgivings
public.
To add to all the difficulties, there is the question of public
expectations in Turkey.
Our correspondent says many Turks see the membership process as a
genuine negotiation, a process of give and take. But by and large,
Turkey has simply to do what it is told if it wants to join the club –
which for many is a sharp change in culture, he adds.

CRUSHING TURKEY’S HOPES FOR EU ENTRY IS A DEATH SENTENCE FOR ITS REFORM DRIVE
The Daily Star, Lebanon
Sept 29 2005
Editorial
Although the European Parliament’s resolution to add new conditions
to Turkey’s accession to the European Union will not affect the start
of negotiations toward this end, the move was yet another example
of Europe’s deep reluctance to welcome Turkey into the union. It has
been over 40 years since Turkey first applied to be a member of what
was then the ECC, and during the course of a long and tedious journey
toward membership, Turkey has patiently waited for a sign that the
desired outcome is within reach.
The Turkish government has now made it clear that its patience
is running out. Yesterday, the Foreign Ministry reiterated that
Turkey will reject an offer of “privileged partnership” and will only
participate in negotiations that are geared toward full membership. A
failure on the part of the EU to offer membership will likely disrupt
the process of engagement that Europe has maintained with Turkey in
recent years.
We have already seen the benefits of Europe’s engagement with the
Turkey. To get this far in the process, Turkey has made great strides
in implementing a number of wide-ranging political reforms. The
government has abolished state security courts, reformed the penal
code, scrapped the death penalty and allowed Kurdish to be taught and
spoken in schools. There is still much more that needs to be done
in terms of political reform, improving human rights, protecting
minorities, recognizing Cyprus and acknowledging the Armenian
genocide. But keeping the process of negotiations alive will ensure
that there is continued progress on these and other fronts.
Breaking away from this process prematurely, however, would be a
recipe for disaster. Without the goal of membership in view, there
is little motivation for Turkey to continue on its current path.
Turkey’s accession could take as long as 10 years and it stands to
reason that during the lengthy process of negotiation, there will
be ample time for Turkey to make even greater advancements toward
a democratic state. The start of membership talks should therefore
be viewed as the beginning of a prolonged dialogue in which Europe
has an opportunity to promote democracy in Turkey, and by extension,
in the entire Middle East.