HELEN FLAUTRE / COHN-BENDIT : EU politicians say HSYK law would cancel AK Party’s 10-year reforms
TR_ISTA – 16-1-2014 – CIHAN – Co-chair of the European Parliament Greens Daniel-Cohn Bendit and co-chairwoman of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee Hélène Flautre said in a statement on Wednesday that they are worried about the recent developments in Turkey and claimed that the newly proposed law to restructure the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) would undermine the judicial independence in the country.
Bendit and Flautre said in the joint statement that the unfolding events in Turkey are a cause for concern. They recalled that the Turkish government has responded by massively reorganizing the police forces and now is attempting to reform the HSYK after facing allegations of the corruption.
“The reform project that is being discussed in the Turkish Parliament raises very serious concerns: If adopted, this bill would gravely undermine the independence of the judiciary. This would cancel the positive reforms undertaken by the government over the past 10 years, which we have consistently supported,” the statement said.The EU politicians said this is a “test for the Turkish democracy” and while there is a need to reform the judicial system in Turkey to prevent its politicization, these reforms must not be a reactionary response to a corruption scandal but based on democratic principles and broad consensus.
“We call on the Turkish government to abstain from intervening in the ongoing corruption scandal,” the statement said. Instead, Flautre and Bendit said, the Turkish government should only undertake reforms designed to ensure the independence of the judiciary, in close cooperation with the Council of Europe and the EU.” The European Union commissioner responsible for enlargement and European neighborhood policy, Stephen Füle, also released a statement on Wednesday saying he brought up the same issues during his meeting with newly appointed European Union Affairs Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu. (Today’s Zaman /Cihan)