Eurasia Insight:
TURKEY EYES EUROPEAN UNION IN WAVE OF REFORMS
Mevlut Katik: 8/12/02

Amid Turkey’s ongoing political and economic turmoil, which includes the recent resignation of Economics Minister Kemal Dervis, parliament has adopted a series of reforms that could enhance civil liberties and potentially hasten integration into the European Union. Some local analysts have portrayed the legislation as one of the three major reformist efforts in Turkish history since the founding of the Ottoman Empire.

The EU has insisted on several changes in Turkey’s legal framework, including more humanitarian support to Kurds and the abolition of the death penalty, before it will consider Ankara’s accession possibilities. Given the protracted Turkish government crisis this summer, many Turkish observers doubted that parliament could meet the EU’s demands. However, Parliament and the MPs met on August 5, and in a 17-hour session, approved a package known as the EU Adaptation Laws.

The vote reflected the divisions that define Turkish politics – 253 MPs voted for it while 152 from the Nationalist party and the pro-Islamic AKP, which leads in the polls currently, voted against it. But it did not fall victim to those divisions. Turkish politicians hope that the EU will announce that it is formally prepared to hold accession talks with Turkey, when European leaders convene at a December summit in Copenhagen.

The laws directly address European misgivings about Turkish policy. They allow teaching and broadcasting in Kurdish, and they outlaw the death penalty. Predictably, these measures spurred protests by relatives of Turkish soldiers who have died fighting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, an extremist group known as the PKK. The leader of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan, has received a death sentence, though Turkey has kept a moratorium on capital punishment since 1984. A day after parliament passed the EU adaptation package, demonstrators blocked the main bridge over the Bosphorus. On August 9, language-institute owner Nazif Ulgen applied to run the country’s first Kurdish language courses in three big cities.

In addition, parliament eased restrictions on public demonstrations, lifted penalties for criticizing state institutions, articulated new freedoms for the media, made it easier for international organizations to work in the country, and allowed non-Muslim religious organizations to buy property. The package also outlined tougher measures against illegal immigration and altered the duties of police.

So far, reaction to the reform measures in European capitals has been restrained. While EU officials in Brussels welcomed the parliament’s action, they indicated that Turkey’s accession aspirations would depend more on how the legislation was implemented. Turkey, which received candidate status in 1999, is one of 13 states aspiring to EU membership.

Despite the adoption of the legislation, Turkey’s EU integration hopes are clouded by questions concerning the government, which has been hampered by the fractious nature of Turkish politics. New parliamentary elections are scheduled for November 3. Given that Turkish law requires a political party gain at least 10 percent of the vote to secure parliamentary seats, the political campaign season is already in full swing.

Dervis announced his long-expected resignation August 10, saying that he sought to forge and lead a broad-based alliance of center-left parties to win a sound majority in the parliament after the elections.

At the time of his resignation, Dervis, who was a former director of the World Bank, had served as Turkey’s chief shepherd of an International Monetary Fund loan agreement since March 2001. Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit named a back-bench MP and political ally, Masum Turker, as Dervis’ replacement.

Although many expect Dervis will join the New Turkey Party (YTP) formed by Ismail Cem, the former foreign minister, he could upset these expectations. He said on August 10 that he would continue to work together with Cem. However, Dervis wants to establish a broad campaign coalition. Among his chief aims is to woo the People’s Republican Party (CHP), which is not keen to cooperate with the YTP. A senior CHP official accused Dervis of "designing politics from above."

Center-left parties in Turkey have a long history of infighting that has perhaps alienated voters. Dervis is striving to raise the appeal of the political center in Turkish politics through coalition building. On August 11, for example, he met with Mehmet Ali Bayar, leader of a center-right party called the Democratic Turkey Party. The two pledged that they would "seek ways to act together before and after the elections."

Such spirit of cooperation on the political level may prevail as Turkey seeks EU membership. But there is a risk that the EU adaptation laws could heighten social tension and raise concerns about the state’s cohesion. Kurds now free to learn Kurdish, for instance, may find themselves marginalized and question their national allegiances. More important, though, the Turkish majority may also come to realize that enhanced freedoms do not divide the country. If it can produce a coherent and energetic government to enact its laws, Turkey may extend European democracy closer to Central Asia, restoring a tradition of tolerance that dates back to Ottoman times. That achievement would dwarf any person’s, or any party’s, short-term fortunes.

Editor’s Note: Mevlut Katik is London-based journalist and analyst. He is a former BBC correspondent and also worked for The Economist group.