HUMAN RIGHTS GAINED ACCELERATION WITH THE EU PROCESS

Speaking at the TAIEX seminar on the "Institutionalization of Human Rights" held in Ankara, Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis said that such a meeting gained more importance in a period in which reforms regarding human rights were carried out and that Turkey made important developments in the area of human rights.

Bagis said to protect and develop the rights of every one living in Turkey and to attain the highest living standards were the primary issues they attached importance. Stating that the steps they had taken for protecting and developing human rights as from 2002 brought a new dimension to the EU process which had gained a serious acceleration; Bagis summarized the steps taken in the area of human rights during the AK Party ruling.

Reminding that under the framework of these steps, they came together with the representatives of religious groups in Turkey, State Minister Bagis said, in the light of these meetings, they prepared a report and submitted it to the Council of Ministers meeting that was held on the previous Monday. Stating that these processes were not experienced in Turkey frequently in the past, Bagis said that Turkey became a transparent country in every area, existing taboos were broken and Turkey also became a country where every issue can be discussed freely.

Bagis said since full satisfaction in the area of human rights could never be achieved, works regarding it would continue. Pointing the works regarding democratic expansion, Bagis said new dialogues with different sections of the society were established during this process.

Bagis said that the Reform Monitoring Group would convene on the 28th of February in Istanbul under the presidency of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the first time.

Pointing out the judicial reform discussions in his speech, Bagis reminded that following the workshops which lasted for months, Turkey's judicial institutions signed a joint declaration and released a judicial reform strategy document under the presidency of the Ministry of Justice.

Stating that the EU Commission attached great importance to the document and appreciated it in terms of Turkey's determination, Bagis said "It's time to transform the document into practice."

Stating that laws were the most important assurances of democracy and human rights in Turkey, Bagis said that if the laws didn't function well, neither democracy nor fundamental rights and freedoms could be mentioned.

Source: AA