02.05.2007
EGP SPOKPERSONS EXPRESS CONCERN ABOUT
POLITICAL CRISIS IN TURKEY
The Spokespersons of the European Green Party today expressed serious
concern about the political crisis in Turkey. The EGP Spokespersons also
condemned the heavy-handed and violent response by police to a Mayday
demonstration in Istanbul
on 1st May.
EGP Co-Spokesperson ULRIKE
LUNACEK said: “We very much hope that the current dispute
in Turkey
related to the row over who should be the Republic’s next president will
be resolved peacefully and democratically. We believe that the proposal by the
ruling AK party that in future the president should be elected by popular vote,
rather than by parliament, is a sensible one and would help ensure that similar
crises could be avoided.
However, we believe that such a democratic reform should be accompanied
by other reforms which would make Turkish politics more representative of the
diversity of Turkish society and opinion. In particular, there is an urgent need
for electoral reform as the current system, which requires that a threshold of
10% of votes cast nationwide is reached before a party can be represented in parliament
is fundamentally undemocratic. The current system means that millions of
Turkish citizens, in particular, Kurds and other minorities, do not have their
views represented in parliament.”
EGP Co-Spokesperson PHILIPPE
LAMBERTS continued “We understand the anxiety of many
Turkish citizens who are fearful that the secular nature of their government is
under threat. The EGP has constantly advocated a clear and unambiguous
separation of state and religion in all countries, including Turkey. However, we are also
concerned by recent statements by the Military which could be interpreted as
threatening possible intervention by the military in Turkey’s Government. We call
on the Army to refrain from getting involved in politics and trust that all
political leaders will do their utmost to ensure that Turkey’s democracy survives
the present crisis intact and even strengthened.
Both spokespersons also criticised police in Istanbul
for the violent way in which they reacted to a demonstration held in Istanbul on May 1st.
“We condemn in the strongest terms the heavy handed way in which riot
police arrested over 600 demonstrators, sprayed tear gas and kicked and clubbed
demonstrators who were attempting to leave the scene. This type of Police
brutality should never be tolerated and is particularly regrettable at a time
of heightened unrest in Turkey,”
Lamberts and Lunacek
concluded.
Graham Burgess
Communications Officer
European Green Party
Tel no: 0032 (0)2 626 0720
Mobile
: 00 32 (0)477 902 023
Email : graham.burgess@europeangreens.org