UPDATE - EU report on Turkey focuses on coup attempt

UPDATES WITH EU MINISTER COMMENTS

By Sibel Ugurlu and Can Erozden

BRUSSELS (AA) - The circumstances surrounding the July 15 coup attempt dominated the report released Wednesday on Turkey’s progress in joining the EU.

The annual assessment noted that the attempt to overthrow the government “represented a direct attack on democracy in Turkey” and said the EU had “strongly and immediately” condemned the bid by some sections of the military to seize power.

However, it said the “scale and collective nature” of measures taken by the government since the failed coup -- arrests and detentions, dismissals and suspensions over alleged links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) -- led to EU calls for Turkey to “observe the highest standards in respecting the rule of law and fundamental rights”.

The report added: “Any allegation of wrongdoing should be established via transparent procedures in all individual cases. Individual criminal liability can only be established with full respect for the separation of powers, the full independence of the judiciary and the right of every individual to a fair trial, including through effective access to a lawyer.”

It said several key pieces of legislation regarding the rule of law and fundamental rights, such as data protection, were not in line with European standards.

It also described the lifting of parliamentary immunity and the subsequent arrest and imprisonment of lawmakers from the Peoples’ Democratic Party as “a matter of grave concern.”

The EU also noted the suspensions and arrests of local elected officials in the southeast under emergency powers introduced after the coup attempt. The conflict in the southeast could only be solved by political means, the report added.

There has been “serious backsliding” over the past year for freedom of expression, the report said.

Turkey’s EU Minister Omer Celik criticized the report as having been “written with a sense of not to serve… Turkey-EU relations” and was “far from the spirit of accession negotiations”.

He told a news conference in capital Ankara that the report should have consolidated Turkey’s relationship with the EU, offered guidance and constructive advice and paved the way for negotiations.

Celik said the document had failed to properly evaluate Turkey’s fight against terrorism and progressive steps towards reform.

“We do not accept the viewpoint that disproportionate force is used in the fight against the PKK,” he said, referring the terrorist organization recognized as such by Turkey, the U.S. and EU.

Referring to the reforms needed to qualify for EU accession, the report said Turkey is “moderately prepared” in public administration reform while the judiciary was at an early stage of preparation although there had be “backsliding” following the attempted coup.

Corruption remains a “prevalent in many areas and continues to be a serious problem,” the report said.

In the fight against terrorism, plans to tackle terrorist financing were in place and Turkey had stepped up its involvement in the international coalition against Daesh.

Turkey continues to support the talks on a Cyprus settlement, for which its contribution “remains crucial”, the report added.

In the economic sphere, the economy is “well advanced and can be considered a functioning market economy” although a large foreign deficit makes it vulnerable to financial uncertainty, changes in investors’ sentiment and political risks. The report said Turkey was well-prepared to cope with EU market forces.