EU Parliament endorses compromise package on standards for returning illegally staying third-country nationals

Distribution: immediate - June 18, 2008, 12:19 pm

After almost three years of long, complicated and tough negotiations with Council, the European Parliament now endorsed the compromise package establishing EU-wide rules on how to return illegally staying third country nationals in a fair and transparent procedure. The compromise package promotes the principle of voluntary return and provides for a minimum but comprehensive set of procedural safeguards. It also limits the use of coercive measures and set standards for use of the re-entry ban as well as of detention.

ALDE-spokesperson on migration Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert (VVD, Netherlands) supported the deal that was agreed upon a few weeks ago by the Slovenian presidency and a majority of the parliamentary political groups' spokespersons: "The return policy cannot be looked upon in an isolated way. It should be seen as an integral and necessary part of a total package on migration, including legal as well as asylum. If we want to push Europe's forward-looking strategy on legal migration, we simply need an effective, though fair and transparent, return policy."

"It is high time to take up our responsibility and to introduce common minimum standards on a European level. Guidelines of the Council of Europe are now made legally binding for all Member States."

"Community Control mechanisms, such as infringement procedures, competence of the European Court of Justice, Commission reporting and EP monitoring, will become available. Furthermore it should be crystal clear that this compromise package puts in place rules where none exist at present. Member States with more favourable conditions in place should maintain these. On the insistence of Parliament, we also secured a political commitment from Council that this Directive will not and cannot be used as an excuse to lower existing standards."

ALDE-Group Leader Graham Watson adds: "We are moving towards a European migration policy at a quicker pace. Just a day after the European Commission presented its asylum plan and stepped up the search for a common approach to immigration, there is agreement on the handling of illegal non-EU citizens. I hope that our commitment to a human, efficient and sustainable management of migration will be taken on by the French presidency and put into action."

Chairman of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Gérard Deprez (MR, Belgium) concludes: "Today the realists have won the vote over the idealists. Of course we also would have liked to see a directive that would set higher common standards. But political reality shows that by amending this directive we would have ended up with nothing at all. It would have given the Member States the possibility to bury the directive. Illegal migrants would have been the victims of good intentions."



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59th EU-TURKEY Joint Parliamentary Committee Mtg in Brussels

Turkish MPs and Foreign Minister on reforms, accession prospects - and Cyprus
Relations extérieures - 28-05-2008 - 18:28

Secularism, freedom of speech and Cyprus were among the issues debated at meetings between MEPs and Turkish MPs on Tuesday and Wednesday. The 59th EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee Meeting discussed ongoing reform efforts in Turkey, the state of accession negotiations, and foreign affairs. Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan and Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn were among the participants.

"Turkey is a focal point for its geographic position," said co-Chair Yasar Yakis, who is the Chair of the Turkish National Assembly's EU Integration Committee, adding that Turkey "can give impetus to Europe’s economy once it joins the EU." From the EP side, co-Chair Joost Lagendijk (Greens/EFA, NL) noted that there have been "a lot of misunderstandings in recent months between European and Turkish parliamentarians," explaining that the goal of such Joint Parliamentary Committees (JPCs) was to make sure that the discourses connect, and such misunderstandings can be brought into the open, if not necessarily solved.

Accession negotiations

Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said his country was committed to EU membership, and warned that "if we were to lose the target of EU membership, we would have trouble keeping the momentum for reform." "Privileged partnerships, or other forms of association are not acceptable to us," he added, warning that some EU Member States seem to want to prevent Turkey from achieving its aims. He added that "while we are asked to give concrete dates for reforms, there has been no date hinted at for a deadline for Turkish accession to the EU." Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said "it was always clear that for Turkey, accession negotiations were never going to be a fast-track procedure," adding that the fundamental principle of all enlargements was that "the pace of negotiations depends on reform and especially implementation" in the candidate states.

The author of the Parliament's report on Turkey, adopted at last week's plenary session, Ria Oomen-Ruijten (EPP-ED, NL), said "when Turkey becomes a modern country where the rule of law prevails, and all individual freedoms are respected, it will be a prosperous place with social cohesion." She nevertheless warned that "the EU once gave a date for accession to two countries, Bulgaria and Romania, and very much regretted doing so." "The EU," she said, "would most likely not do so again," adding that "you don't need a date in order to affect reforms."

Political reforms in Turkey: freedom of expression; the AKP closure case

Several MEPs asked about the recent amendment of Article 301 (of the Turkish penal code on "insults to Turkishness"), noting that the revised law still does not guarantee freedom of expression as understood by the EU. Mr Babacan replied: "The approach taken to the Article is more important than the actual words," of the current legislation, as "the change made is at least a sign which shows that our Parliament is not satisfied with the current situation in Turkey."

Marios Matsakis (ALDE, CY) asked about the court case against the ruling AKP party, warning that a decision to ban the party "would spell the end of accession negotiations for Turkey." The Foreign Minister replied that the AKP did not want to increase tensions in Turkey by submitting a constitutional amendment to the Parliament on this issue, which could lift the basis for the legal case. He nevertheless said that he "hopes this subject will soon be off Turkey's agenda," so that the reform plans can continue.

Cyprus the main focus of Foreign Affairs Committee in exchange of views with Babacan

On Wednesday, the Foreign Minister also appeared before the EP's Foreign Affairs Committee, where MEPs concentrated on Turkey's immediate neighbourhood. Hannes Swoboda (PES, AT) asked why Armenian-Turkish relations have not improved, István Szent-Iványi (ALDE, HU) urged Mr Babacan to respect the territorial sovereignty of Iraq, and Chairman Jacek Saryusz-Wolski (EPP-ED, PL) asked about Turkey's energy policy, especially concerning the Nabucco pipeline. Mr Babacan replied that his government had contacted the Armenian authorities and were hoping for official contacts in the near future, and assured MEPs that Turkey was respecting the sovereignty of Iraq, and "only targeting terrorists from the PKK in Northern Iraq." On Nabucco, he said his government supported the project, but the involvement of so many countries made progress much slower than expected.

The largest number of questions to the Foreign Minister concerned Cyprus. Ioannis Kasoulides (EPP-ED, CY) asked about the implementation of the Ankara Protocol (requiring access to Turkish ports and airports for all EU Member States, including Cyprus), while others wondered about the ongoing negotiations for the future of the island. Mr Babacan replied that on the Ankara Protocol, Turkey "has a different interpretation about the meaning of the protocol," but that a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue would automatically solve its problems. He urged MEPs to "give full support to the process on the island, since the window of opportunity may not stay open forever," and noted that Turkey has an official "guarantor role on the island," including "responsibility for the security of the people there," and intends to live up to this responsibility.




27/05/2008
Chair, Committee on Foreign Affairs : Jacek Saryusz-Wolski (EPP-ED, PL)
Co-chair, EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee : Joost Lagendijk (Greens/EFA, NL)
Co-chair, EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee : Yasar Yakis (Turkish National Assembly)

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/expert/infopress_page/030-29928-148-05-22-903-20080526IPR29927-27-05-2008-2008-false/default_fr.htm

Babacan: O teröristi salondan çıkarmazsanız konuşmam

Türkiye’nin PKK’yla mücadelesinde “destek değil köstek” olan Avrupa’dan son salvo; Avrupalı Parlamenterler, Türk Dışişleri Bakanı ile, Türkiye’nin interpol kırmızı bülteniyle aradığı PKK üst düzey yöneticisini, aynı salonda, üstelik Avrupa Parlamentosu’nun çatısı altında bir araya getirmeye kalktılar.

Türkiye’nin kırmızı bültenle aradığı PKK’lı Gülabi Dere’nin Avrupalı Parlamenterlerle birlikte tezgahladığı tuzak, Dışişleri Bakanı Ali Babacan’ın Türk diplomatlar tarafından uyarılması ile aşıldı. Olay, Babacan’ın AB toplantıları için gittiği Brüksel’de yaşandı. Brüksel’de dün, Türkiye ile AB arasında iki toplantı vardı. Bunlardan ilki, Türk Dışişleri Bakanı’nın AB Dışişleri Bakanları ile AB Komisyon binasında bir araya geldiği, “Türkiye-AB Ortaklık Konseyi toplantısı” idi.

Komisyon binasının biraz ilerisinde, Avrupa Parlamentosu binasında ise, Türk ve Avrupalı milletvekillerinin katılımıyla, “Türkiye-Avrupa Parlamentosu karma komisyon toplantısı” gerçekleştiriliyordu.

Babacan, Dışişleri Bakanlarıyla toplantısının tamamlanmasının ardından, milletvekillerinin toplantısına da katılıp, bir konuşma yapmak üzere Avrupa Parlamentosu binasına geçti. İşte skandal da burada ortaya çıktı; Avrupalı vekiller, Babacan’ın da katılıp bir konuşma yapacağı toplantıya, Türkiye’nin kırmızı bültenle aradığı PKK’nın yurtdışındaki ele başlarından Gülabi Dere’yi de davet etmişlerdi.

Brüksel polisi de, kırmızı bültenle aranan Dere’yi değil tutuklamak, normal insanların bile izinsiz alınmadığı, pek çok arama ve güvenlik soruşturmasından sonra girebildiği Avrupa Parlamentosu’na kabul etmişti.

Amaç, Türkiye Dışişleri Bakanı ile PKK’lı teröristi aynı salonda bir araya getirip, terör örgütüne bir şekilde “tanınma” sağlamaya çalışmaktı. Babacan daha Avrupa Parlamentosu salonuna girer girmez, Türk diplomatlar tarafından uyarıldı. Türk Dışişleri Bakanı, AP’deki muhataplarına, PKK’lı terörist Dere ile aynı salonda bulunmasının mümkün olamayacağını söyledi;

Dere salonda olduğu sürece, girmeyeceğini ve konuşma yapmayacağını bildirdi. Avrupa Parlamentosu yetkilileri, Babacan’a “Gülabi Dere, salonda sadece 15 dakika kalıp çıkacak” gibi bir de “traji komik” açıklama yapmaya çalıştılar.

Babacan’ın buna karşı tavrı değişmedi ve “o şahıs orada olduğu sürece, o salona girmem” ısrarını sürdürdü. Bunun üzerine, Avrupa Parlamentosu yetkilileri, salondaki Dere’yi “ikna etmeye” çalıştılar. Terörist, önce çıkmak istemedi, ancak daha sonra, “bir şekilde” salondan ayrılmaya “ikna edildi.”

TERÖRİST ÇIKTI, SALONA TÜRK BAKAN GİRDİ

Gülabi Dere'nin çıkmasının ardında, Avrupa Parlamentosu toplantı salonuna giren Babacan, konuşmasını yaptı. Ancak Babacan, konuşmasında sert bir ton kullanarak, “senin töriristin, benim teröristim olmaz”

Zeynep GÜRCANLI