By John Cooley

A T H E N S, Greece, Jan. 1 — Much more than prison reform is at stake after last month’s riots at 20
prisons in Turkey.

How the country follows up the Dec. 19-23 riots could also determine whether Turkey enters
the European Union, and as a result, the future of its 66 million citizens.

Prison reform, including cessation of frequent torture and abuse of prisoners and detainees,
is high on a list of criteria that, according to the U.S.-based organization Human Rights Watch,
the European Commission will insist on Turkey’s carrying out before it can even begin
negotiations for EU inclusion.

Furthermore, strong anti-EU statements from Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit have done nothing to
palliate the situation.

In late November, Ecevit issued a harsh warning to the European Union saying Turkey would
not be fooled by “nonsense” on Kurdish minority rights.

Turkey’s 12 million Kurds are not recognized as a minority and broadcasting and publications
in Kurdish are banned.

Ecevit also pointed a finger at the EU for meddling in Turkey’s long-standing territorial disputes
with Greece.

Chief among the issues is Cyprus, which has been divided in ethnic Greek and Turkish zones
since the 1974 Turkish invasion.

Ecevit was unhappy that Cyprus had been given a separate bid for EU membership. He also
said the EU had “duped” Turkey into believing that its territorial disputes wih Greeks would not be
an impediment to negotiations, only to reinstate them as requirements.
And in remarks published last week, Turkey’s justice minister said the prison riots were
triggered by instructions sent from Belgium. The EU is based in Brussels, and the comments
reflect increasing suspicion in Turkey that groups it considers “terrorists” at home can find
sanctuary in the countries of Western Europe.

One Step at a Time

Turkey became a candidate for membership at the EU summit conference in Helsinki, Finland, a
year ago after Germany and Greece dropped their objections.

Germany had objections rising out of the massive emigration of Turkish workers into West
Europe, and Greece has often chafed against Turkey, its traditional adversary — and NATO
partner.

But the EU outlined a number of reforms Turkey must take before negotiations for its
membership can begin

According to a basic document on expansion of the union, these include ensuring “stability of
institutions, guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and protection of minorities.”
Those steps are largely untaken so far, both Turkish and outside commentators say.

The latest prison crisis ended Friday when security forces stormed the last of 20 institutions
where prisoners had been holding a hunger strike to protest the government’s efforts to move
prisoners from dormitories to small cells.

When it was over, at least 30 people, 28 of them inmates, were dead. Officials said many of
the leftists burned themselves to death rather than let paramilitary police enter jail dormitories
they controlled.

Prison Crisis Explosion

During the prison crisis in Turkey, emigré Turks and Turkish Kurds, human rights activists and
others in Greece, Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries
demonstrated against the massive crackdown on Turkish prisoners.

In a letter to the speakers of the U.S. Congress, the Canadian parliament and European and
other international legislative bodies, the Greek parliament’s speaker starkly contrasted Turkey’s
“brutal repression” with its efforts to join the EU.

The letter condemned “this latest expression of anti-democratic behavior on the part of
Turkey, which goes against every notion of justice and human decency … I am certain that you
share our strong outrage, and our skepticism regarding the course of relations between Turkey
and a democratic and humanistic Europe.”

A prelude to the December prison troubles erupted in October. Political prisoners — including
convicted terrorists, leftists, and Islamists accused of plotting against the Turkish army’s fiercely
secular view of separating the republic’s institutions from the Muslim religious faith — rioted and
took their guards hostage in Istanbul, Ankara and the southern city of Adana.

At trials linked with these disorders, prisoners testified in detail in open court about how they
were tortured by beatings, suspensions, electric shocks, immersion in water and other methods,
reported as prevalent in Turkey for many years by Amnesty International and other human rights
groups, as well as by Turkish lawyers.

Bending the Rules

Coinciding with the prison crises and with many concurrent reports of other human rights
violations in Turkey was a nationwide financial crisis. It followed the failures of many major
banks and bankruptcies of businesses, in an economy that suffers from chronic unemployment,
sub-poverty living standards and chronic inflation often exceeding 100 percent.

The International Monetary Fund bailed Turkey out with an emergency $7.5 billion credit.
Turkey’s all-powerful military, which habitually gives “recommendations” to civilian authorities
and parliament on how to run the country, came as close as it has in recent years to eating
humble pie.

It acceded to a government promise to the IMF to trim the military budget in return for the
credit. But the army general staff has since been criticized for two major defense bids worth
together about $11.5 billion to buy 145 attack helicopters, like those used against the prisons
Dec. 19-23, and 1,000 main battle tanks.
*******************
The Kurdistan Observer
www.kurdistanobserver.com