MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

21.9.2005

to wind up the debate on statements by the Council and Commission
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit, Monica Frassoni, Joost Lagendijk and Cem Özdemir
on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
on the opening of negotiations with Turkey

B6‑0484/2005

European Parliament resolution on the opening of negotiations with Turkey

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions on Turkey, particularly that of 15 December 2004 on the 2004 regular report and the recommendation of the European Commission on Turkey’s progress towards accession,

–  having regard to the Recommendation of the European Commission on Turkey’s progress towards accession,

–  having regard to the Presidency Conclusions of 16-17 December 2004,

–  having regard to the negotiating framework adopted by the Commission and sent to the Council for adoption,

–  having regard to the declaration of 19 September 2005 by the European Community and its Member States on the declaration made by Turkey regarding the Republic of Cyprus at the time of the signing of the Additional Protocol establishing an Association between the European Community and its Member States, on the one hand, and Turkey, on the other,

–  having regard to its resolution on Cyprus of 21 April 2004,

–  having regard to Rule 103(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas the European Council of 16 and 17 December 2004 decided that Turkey fulfilled the Copenhagen political criteria sufficiently well for accession negotiations to be opened, provided that Turkey brought into force the six pieces of legislation identified by the Commission and signed the Protocol regarding the amendment of the Ankara Agreement, taking into account the accession of the ten new Member States,

B  whereas Turkey signed the above-mentioned protocol on 29 July 2005,

C.  whereas Turkey decided to add to the signature a declaration specifying that ‘the signature, ratification and implementation of this protocol in no way signify a recognition of the Republic of Cyprus referred to in this protocol’ and that Turkey does not feel obliged to open up its ports or its airspace to Cypriot ships and aircraft,

D.  underlining that the Commission’s and Council’s legal experts reached the conclusion that the unilateral statement did not call into question the legal relevance and full implementation of the protocol,

E.  stressing that in the negotiating framework adopted by the Commission it is clearly stated that the shared objective of the negotiations is accession, even though this is an open‑ended process whose outcome cannot be guaranteed in advance, and that in the event of a serious and persistent breach by Turkey of democratic principles, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the rule of law, the Commission will recommend the suspension of negotiations and propose the conditions for any possible resumption,

F.  pointing out that in April 2004 the European Union promised to find ways to end the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot community in northern Cyprus and that in spite of that statement no step has been taken and the draft regulations on financial aid to northern Cyprus and direct trade are still stalled at Council level,

G.  recalling that recognition of the Republic of Cyprus was not a condition laid down by the Council for the opening of negotiations and that in any case the negotiations will be conducted at an Intergovernmental Conference with the participation of all Member States, on the one hand, and the candidate State concerned, on the other, which implies mutual recognition by all the parties involved,

H.  pointing out that any recognition by Turkey of the Republic of Cyprus is linked to the outcome of the negotiations for a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue, which are stalled at present after the rejection by the Greek Cypriots of the so-called Annan Plan in the referendum held in April 2004,

I.  extremely worried by the renewed insurgency of the PKK guerrillas in south-eastern Turkey, bringing daily clashes with the Turkish army which have already claimed many victims,

J.  deeply concerned by the efforts of some sectors of the Turkish judiciary to resist the implementation of the reforms adopted by the Turkish Grand Assembly, leading, for example, to the indictment of the writer Orhan Pamuk for his remarks about Turkish history,

1.  Takes the view that Turkey has fulfilled the conditions set by the European Council on 16 and 17 December 2004 for the opening of negotiations on 3 October 2005 and calls on the Council to adopt the negotiating framework;

2.  Regrets, nevertheless, the adoption by Turkey of the above-mentioned unilateral declaration and calls for the full implementation of the protocol to the Ankara agreement which requires the opening up of Turkish ports and airports to the ships and aircraft of all 25 Member States;

3.  Calls on the Council at the same time to unblock quickly the two regulations aimed at ending the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot community and to find ways to remove all the obstacles that hinder the opening up of ports and airports in the northern part of Cyprus;

4.  Highlights, in this connection, the Turkish Government’s active support for the UN‑brokered resolution for the island, which resulted in a referendum that the Greek Cypriot community rejected;

5.  Urges the government of the Republic of Cyprus to make clear which are the points of the Annan Plan that it wishes to renegotiate in order to restart the UN-led process with a view to reaching a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus question;

6.  Calls on the Turkish Government to press on with reforms and remain committed to modernising the country towards EU standards;

7.  Acknowledges the recent legislative improvements in the area of women’s rights; calls on the Turkish Government to continue along this path with a view to ending discrimination against women, as spelled out by the European Parliament in its report on the role of women in Turkey, with particular reference to guaranteeing girls’ education, promoting female political participation and supporting efforts to end domestic violence;

8.  Encourages the Turkish Government to continue on the path taken by Mr Erdogan this summer, when he recognised the Kurdish problem and the need to address it by democratic means;

9.  Condemns the renewed violence in south-eastern Turkey and the PKK terror attacks; strongly denounces all kinds of violence;

10.  Welcomes, in this connection, the initiative by Turkish intellectuals, who voiced the wish of the population to put an end to violence and achieve peace in Turkey and called on ‘the PKK to cease all armed activity immediately and without preconditions’ and on the Government of Turkey to make ‘the necessary legal arrangements in order that a lasting peace may be established and everyone may participate in democratic social life’;

11.  Calls on the Turkish Government to ensure that the action of the security forces is accountable and transparent, thus putting an end to the human rights abuses of the past;

12.  Emphasizes the democratic principle that only elected government officials may determine policy in matters of domestic and international security;

13.  Welcomes the new legalisation in Turkey on minority languages, but takes the view that their use is still limited and further access to local radio and TV stations is needed; urges, in this connection, the Turkish courts to reconsider the prosecution of the teachers’ union Egitim Sen for its demand to teach native language courses and for promoting Turkish cultures;

14.  Takes the view that the complaints by the public prosecutor against Orhan Pamuk are in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, and calls on the Turkish Government to guarantee freedom of opinion and to further reform the penal code with regard, in particular, to Article 301/1 thereof;

15.  Takes the view that Turkey, as a candidate country, has a responsibility to share and implement the European Neighbourhood Policy, which implies the establishment of good neighbourly relations with all the countries concerned; calls on Turkey, therefore, to open its border with Armenia ; encourages Turkey to seek a constructive debate on its past, including the Armenian genocide accusations, and welcomes in this context the conference on the Armenian question, and its possible embrace by the Government, to be held in Istanbul on 23-25 September 2005;

16.  Calls on the Coucil to be fully consulted and associated in case the Commission recommends the suspension of negotiations;

17.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Turkish Government and the Turkish Grand Assembly.