EUParliament warns Turkey: Human Rights=Condition to EUFunds. Media, Prisons, Islamic Terrorism eyed

*Strasbourg/EU Parliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- While CoE slamed the situation in Turkish Prisons, It's with an exceptionaly quasi-Unanimous Vote that EU Parliament clearly Warned Turkey that Human Rights' respect is a Condition for EU Funds, particularly on Freedom of Expression and Press Freedom, the same week that Extremist Islamist Terrorists murdered 17 defenseless People in France, mainly Journalists of "Charlie Hebdo" satyrical Weekly, provoking a Giant Row of Popular reactions against the heavily armed Killers.

To which Ankara responded Negatively, by launching Accusations against several among those who Demonstrated for Solidarity with the Victims, and/or by attempts to further Restrict Free Speech, at the same time that Police found that the Killers' Arms had been given to them by a Turkish Trafficker, while Documents leaked at the Web denounced Weapons' delivery from Turkey to Al Quaida/ISIL Terrorist Gangs, and even more Djihadists returning back to Europe after joining, through Turkey, various Extremist Islamist Armed Groups in Syria and/or Iraq, were found ready to launch Bloody Terrorist Attacks inside the EU now, where Turkish lobbies are attempting to Curb Free Speech at any pretext, (etc).

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The above-mentioned Key Text, inserted as a Paragraph in a Resolution on "Freedom of Expression in Turkey", which denounced particularly "Recent Arrests of Journalists and Media Executives", as well as a "Systematic Pressure against Media" in Turkey, was adopted with an exceptionaly Strongt, quasi-Unanimous Vote of ... 551 MEPs in favour, against only 11, and 31 Abstentions !

Again, among the only 11 opposed MEPs, were either Turkish origin or assimilated persons, such as Kyuchyuk, Ali and Omarjee, or Mrs Mussolini from Italy, etc., as well as MEPs who, on the contrarty, wanted to immediately Cut any EU Funds towards Ankara, (as some of them revealed later, during the Explanations of Votes)...

In that Text, EU Parliament "stresses" that  an "enhanced Coherence" must exist "between the Financial Assistance" given, or not, by the EU to Countries like Turkey, "and the overall Progress made", or not, regarding particularly "full Respect for Fundamental Rights and Freedoms", (§7).

I.e. practically Returning Back to the pro-1999 era, when almost all EU Funds towards Turkey had been notoriously Blocked by Ankara's refusal to comply with a series of Obligations and Commitments made by Ankara vis a vis the EU, European Parliament's 2015 Resolution points, in this regard, at "the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA III) for the period 2014 - 2020", as it was "concluded by the (EU) Council on 16 December 2014".

- Denounced by that New EU Parliament's 2015 Resolution, which, f.ex. criticizes "an Increasing Intolerance of Political Opposition, Public Protest and Critical Media", revealed in the Turkish "Government's response to the allegations of Corruption in December 2013" ; "expresses Concern over Backsliding in Democratic Reforms, and in particular the government’s Diminishing Tolerance of public Protest and Critical media", and a "Fall into a Deplorable Pattern of Increased Pressure and Restrictions on Press and Media outlets";  while, at the same time, "Serious Doubts" are "casted over the Independence and Impartiality of the Judiciary" in Turkey, particularly since "December 2013", (etc).      

+ "Pressure against Media has Increased over the Last Years" in Turkey, "including against owners and executives of Media groups, as well as OnLine and social Media platforms", in addition to various "Restrictions on Media", "including Internet-based, Social Media and Fora", while even Total "Website Bans are of Disproportionate scope in Turkey", further denounces EU Parliament's quasi-Unanimously adopted Resolution, while Modern Journalism (even of "Classic" Media, as f.ex. that of "Christian Science Monitor", etc) is notoriously more and more developed at the World Wide Web.

++ Moreover, at the same time, "Turkey Holds a Great Number of Jailed Journalists awaiting Trial",  and EU Parliament "Deplores the Number of Journalists that are in Pre-Trial Detention", closed inside Turkish Prisons, (Comp.  also Infra, on CPT's latest Report).

+++ In addition, "the Turkish Government mostly Charges Journalists under the country's Anti-Terrorism Act (TMK), and the Penal Code articles related to "Terrorist Organizations", so that "the Anti-Terror Law or the Criminal Code ... have been Used to Limit Freedom of Expression" MEPs denounced, "Stressing the Need to Reform these Laws, as a matter of Priority".

Recently, "on 14 December 2014, the Turkish Police Arrested Journalists and Media Executives", among whom only some were released, later-on, while even on 8 and 7 January 2015 the Turkish Authorities Arrested and Questioned for a Day 2 Dutch Journalists, MEPs add.

++++ Even beyond all that, "Intimidating Statements by (Turkish) Politicians, and (Criminal) Cases launched against Critical Journalists, combined with the Ownership structure of the Media sector" in Turkey, "led to Widespread Self-Censorship", both "by Media Owners and Journalists, as well as Dismissals of Journalists", EU Parliament denounced, "Calling" Ankara "to Stop Pressure and Intimidation against Critical Outlets and Journalists".

Mainly because, as EU Parliament's quasi-Unanimous Resolution "reminds the Turkish Authorities", "Utmost Care must be observed when dealing with Media and Journalists, as the Freedom of Expression and .. of the Media, (as well as "Pluralism"), remain Fundamental to the functioning of a Democratic and Open Society", "are at the Heart of European Values, and an Independent Press is Crucial to a Democratic Society as it Enables Citizens to take Active Part in the Collective Decision-Making processes on an Informed Basis".

In such circumstances, it would obviously be a blatant and incomprehensible Contradiction for the EU to Threaten and/or Block EU Funds even for EU Member Countries, claiming Democracy, Human Rights and/or Rule of Law concerns, as it has already done at various occasions, f.ex. vis a vis Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, etc., mutatis-mutandis, in addition to several Foreign 3rd Countries, while eventualy abstaining to do the same vis a vis Turkey...

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+ CoE slams Turkish Prisons : Too Many Prisoners + Impunity of Ill-Treatments...
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    + Almost at the Same Time, PanEuropean CoE's Anti-Torture Watchdog, CPT, published, in parallel, in Strasbourg, its latest Report on the situation of Prisons in Turkey :

    - An Excessive and Growing Number of Persons deprived from their Liberty, and a scandalous Impunity of Turkish State Agents for various Abuses, ill-Treatments and/or Torture on Defensless Prisoners, are the main Findings :

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+ CPT :  Sharp Increase of the Number of Prisoners recently + even More targetted in the Future !
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    CoE's "Committee to Prevent Torture" (CPT) clearly "expressed its Grave Concern the Actual – but also Predicted – Rise in the country’s Inmate Population" :

    (a) In particular, "the Increase in the size of the Prison Population in Recent Years" in Turkey, " has continued: At the time of the 2013 visit, the total number of Prisoners being held in Turkish prisons was 131,650, compared to some 112,000 at the time of the CPT’s previous periodic visit in 2009",   i.e. about + 20.000 Prisoners more !

    (b) "Moreover", "the size of the prisoner population ...was expected to Further Increase to 180 - 190,000", (i.e. + 50.000 - 60.000 more), while the Turkish "Authorities planned to bring into service 207 new prisons ... by the end of 2017, thereby Increasing the total capacity of the Turkish Prison estate to some 245,000 places", i.e. +113.000 More Prisoners, (almost the DOUBLE of now !) CPT denounces !    

+ A supplemenary Fact that gives the Shivers is that, in addition to the above-mentioned Big Numbers of Prisoners in Turkey noted by CPT, there had been also .... "140.549 other Prisoners in Turkey which were "released on Probation", during recent years, as it results from the Turkish Government's Reply in this regard.

    And these almost + 140.550 additional former Prisoners were particularly Fragile persons, such as "Juveniles" or "Female .. with Children aged up to 6 Years" (Sic !), and/or exceptionaly Long-time Inmates, who had become "Unable to spend their Lives alone, due to Severe Ilness, Disability or Ageing"....

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+ On Ill-Treatments :
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- CPT was obliged to express once again its Concern for Persistent Problems to the detriment of Detained Persons' Rights to Access to Lawyer and/or Doctor of their own Choice, without being Spied over by Turkish Policemen even on Medical Examinations, as well as for various Obstacles to direct and/or Timely Contacts with their Family.

+ In addition, it had to ask anew to be informed about the Investigation of a Deadly Fire which Killed 13 Prisoners on 2012, because Nothing was said to the CoE by the Turkish Authorities since CPT's previous visit. As well as to learn what happened after a Child denounced that it had been ill-treated by Turkish Policemen, since the Turkish Prosecutor's pretext that he couldn't even identify those policemen despite the fact that their ID Numbers were known, left CoE's body "Puzzled" !...

=> Therefore, CPT had decided to ask officially Ankara's Government to provide an overall view on the Numbers of Ill-Treatment complaints by Prisoners since 2011, the Number of Proceedings initiated in this regard,  as well as their Outcome and the Sanctions imposed on those found Responsible.

>>> The Turkish Government's Reply looks really Frightening :

Because Facts such as Dates and particularly Numbers provided in regard to CPT's Question, clearly reveal a scandalous quasi-Total Impunity of Turkish State's Agents for any Abuses of Power, Ill-Treatments and/or Torture that they might have inflicted on defenseless Prisoners, (many of them being "Politcal" Dissidents, including several Journalists, etc. : Comp. Supra) !

Indeed, out of almost 1.700 cases of Prisoners' formal Complaints for Abuse of Power by Turkish State's Agents, between 2011 - 2014,  only ... One (1) was condemned, 4 Years earlier (2011), just to pay a "Fine", (without even disclosing now its sum)....
In all the other cases, the Suspects were either "Aquited", or "Non-Prosecuted", the "Proceedings" were "Terminated" or "Suspended", "Discontinued", Without Penalities, Nor Decision, etc.

+ Similarly, among 286 Cases of Criminal Prosecutions for "Torture" during 2011 - 2014, .. NONE was condemned : 9 Suspects were "Acquitted", and 377 others "Non-Prosecuted" in fine..

++ Only some Non-Criminal, but merely "Disciplinary" Sanctions were pronounced for "Torturing" : Just One (1) Suspect "Dismissed from Duties", or for "Beatings" : Out of more than 1.600 Complaints, only about 60 Suspects simply saw their ..."Promotion Suspended" for a Few Months (most of the times Less than 1 Year, and in some other cases less than 2 Years), ... i.e. practically Nothing Serious.

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+Growing Series of Worrying supplementary Facts on Turkey's behavior vis a vis Europe since the Charlie Hebdo massacre :
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Meanwhile, in addition, as far as Freedom of Expression and Press Freedom is concerned, even inside Europe, as well as the "Charlie Hebdo" Terrorist Massacres  :

* Turkish President Erdogan was cited by many Media for attacking Israeli Prime Minister Netanuahu for his participation to Paris' popular Demonstration, together with many other Heads of State/Governments, against the "Charlie Hebdo" Massacres, which included also 5 Jewish Civilian Victims targetted and killed merely  because of their Religion.

* + Turkish Prime Minister, Davutoglou, reportedly Accused the European Countries to react more against the recent Massacre of Journalists and Jewish People in France by armed Islamic Extremist Terrorists,  than vis a vis "Aggressions" that had affected certain Mosques in the Past, (f.ex. with Graffiti, Dirt, Fire, etc.), curiously placing at the same level Human Lives, and f.ex. a Fenced Wall, an extrernal Door of a closed Building, etc....

* A Turkish Court has just Outlawed and condemned the Publication of Cartoons on Mohamed, Hindering even the re-publication of this week's "Charlie Hebdo"s Frontpage, edited by the Survivants from the recent Massacre, which simply pictures an apparently Sympathetic "Mohamed" looking Sorry and sheding Tears for the Brutal Killings of French Journalists, under the Heading : "Everything is Forgiven".

* A World Union of Islamic Ulemas, whose Assembly had earlier convened in Turkey (Istanbul), even if its official Headquarters are located in Qatar, (which had notoriously made recently an unprecedented raprochment towards the Turkish Government), reportedly warned against  publishing Cartoons on Muhamad.

* Turkish Authorities reportedly launched a call to Block any Website which would publish Muhamad's cartoons.

* Initialy, just 1 Day before "Charlie Hebdo" Massacres, the ChristianCatholic ArchiBishop of Strasbourg, Mgr Grallet, heading a reportedly unanimous grouping with all Religious Leaders, including Jews and Muslims, officially proposed to Abolish the Criminalisation of "Blasphema", which still remains in Alsace/Lorrain Regions' "Local Law", dating since the Pre-1920 Historic Period, when the area had been ruled by Bismarc's Legislation of the 19th Century. But, on the Contrary, according to a Website for "Mosques" in France, ("D&M"), an obscur Chief of Local Imams, also in Strasbourg's area, reportedly Eyup Sahin, from Turkey (and Regional Head of the controversial Turkish "Mili Gorus" Group, which means : "National View" in Turkish, i.e. a notoriously Nationalistic Grouping from a Foreign State, working closely with Turkish Government's Agents, etc)., asked to Impose, throughout the entire France, a Criminal Penalty for "Blashema" against all Media who publish any Muhamad Cartoon, (i.e. against French Press).

A move which brought that Turkish Nationalism's Agent in Contradiction with the Leadership of all Muslims in France, whose Majority stems from French-Speaking Maghreb Countries with long History linked to Paris, since they had, on the contrary, just accepted to Abolish that Blasphema old rule, (Comp. Supra).

* Al Queda supporters reportedly staged open Demonstrations in Turkey to honour Paris' Killers, who murdered 17 innocent Civilians in France, (without the Turkish Police taking any action to Stop them).

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But, in fact, things look even much More Nasty :

* An Armenian Boy aged 16, Mickael Asaturyan, was Brutaly Killed at his School, after being Violently attacked with Iron Bars and probably Knives by several Aggressors, just 1 Day after last Sunday's Giant Demonstration in Paris against the "Charlie Hebdo" Massacres, in Marseilles, a French city with particularly numerous Muslim Communities, at the Beginning of an exceptional Year, marked by the Anniversary of 1 Century since the 1915 Armenian Genocide in Turkey, (against the Negation of which, ECHR is due to hold a Public Hearing, on January 28 in Strasbourg, on the occasion of a case concerning Swiss Authorities' reaction to the Total Negationist Propaganda professed by a Turkish politician speaking to the Media in public, where Turkey had tried to Deny the existence of the Armenian Genocide, despite its Recognition by many Countries and European/International Organisations.

* A suspect arrested in Belgium for providing the Weapons which Killed 17 People at the "Charlie Hebdo" Massacre in exchange of a Killer's girlfriend's Car, according to mainstream French Newspaper "Le Monde", is a convicted Trafficker, Metin Karasular, from Turkey !

(Coulibaly's Girlfriend had escaped to Turkey a few Days before the "Charlie Hebdo" Massacre, and sold her Car to a Trafficker Turk of Charleroi in Belgium, through another Turkish intermediary from Paris, linked to Terrorism).

According to Belgian Media, Karasular met Coulibaly, the Armed Islamic Terrorist who took Hostages at a Paris' Super Market from whom 4 were killed, "through a Turkish intermediary from Paris", who "is linked to Terrorist" activities. The Police reportedly found in his Shop, at Charleroi, several "Documents' with "Lists of Weapons", some of which were used by Coulibaly". This would include more than Ten Kalachnikov, several Revolvers, 30 kg of Explosives, etc.

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* A recently released "Wikileaks" document reportedly would reveal, according to Press Reports, that Turkey gave Arms to ISIL and other Extremist Islamic Terrorists, at the Turkish-Syrian Borders.

* More than Three Thousand (+ 3.000) individuals in Turkey have close relations with ISIL's Extremist islamic Terrorists, in addition to more than 700 Turkish Jihadists who have already joined Armed Groups' Deadly Attacks in Syria and/or Iraq, according to Data reportedly acknowledged even by Ankara's Authorities themselves.

* These same Days, an Armed Group of Extremist Islamic Djihadists was reportedly dismantled in Belgium, just before committing a planned Deadly Attack, but its Chief escaped, until now, and is suspected to have fled towards the Borders of Greece to Turkey.

+ * Meanwhile, a Monster Killer of an entire Armenian Family inside its Home, who stabbed to Death even a small Child aged 2, and Wounded seriously by Bayonette a 6 Month Baby currently struggling to survive, a Soldier from a Muslim area of Russian Siberia in Asia named as Permyakov, was reportedly caught by Russian Guards while "trying to cross the Border from Armenia to Turkey".

This unprecedented, Horrible Crime, also against Innocent Civilian People, took place just 1 Day after the Giant Demonstration against the Murder of 17 other innocent People in Paris, by a team of 3 Islamist Extremist Terrorists, reportedly linked to shady Al Queda Groups, at least one among whom had earlier visited Turkey, as well as ISIL-held areas in Syria.

(Etc).

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=> A German Media published Today (15.1.2015), to commemorate "100 Years since the Armenian Genocide", (reminding, inter alia, also Photos of Turkish Gendarmes holding Armenian "Trophees" : Cut Heads of killed Armenian viictims, just as ISIL does Today with its Atrocious BeHeadings at the Internet), raises an obvious Question :

- "A hundred years ago the Christians of Turkey have been destroyed.

 Today we are witnessing that, once again, Christians are persecuted and killed around Turkey and elsewhere in its Southern Neighbourhood. Tracking Areas of then and now, partialy overlap , as f.ex. in the northern Syrian region of Aleppo.

What had Europe done then? The German Empire and Austria-Hungary looked  away on 1915/1916, because the Ottoman Empire was their ally in World War II. And the victorious Western powers looked the other way when the Massacres of 1920-1922 took place (in Smyrne/Izmir, Ancient Greek City at nowadays Turkey), and subsequently endorsed the ethno-religious cleansing. Whether or Central Powers Entente, the Christians of the East, Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, Chaldeans, have not received support from neither the one nor the other. At That Time.

And today?"

- Today, the reply is obvious : Christians (as well as Jews, Atheists, etc) are Killed by Islamic Extremist Terrorists in Toulouse, Paris, Marseille, Brussels, etc., i.e. at the Heart of Europe, in addition to Iraq, Syria, Turkey (f.ex. Father Santoro on 2006, Mgr. Pedovese on 2010, etc), nowadays Armenia, etc.

+ But, another Difference is also the Fact that now Turkey is even Paid almost 1 Billion € in full Grants each Year by the EU (in addition to much More Loans, etc), Money which notoriously Lacks Today from the European Research and innovation, Economy, Education, etc., and even from EU's International Humanitarian action...

What a "Progress" !

=> Today's quasi-Unanimous EU Parliament's Vote on that crucial Article 7 stressing the Link between Human Rights and EU Funds (Comp. Supra), clearly indicates that, from now on, MEPs start to think twice, about it all... 

 EU Parliament's sources told "EuroFora" that the 2015 Annual Report on Turkey's controversial and unpopular EU bid (the 1st since the latest, May 2014 Europeann Elections) is due to be debated and voted, first in Committee, about March, and afterwards in Plenary, probably on April 2015, leaving, until then, apparently enough Time for New MEPs to take a Clear Look, Reflect and Decide how they are going to forge the Next 5 Years' EU principles and relations vis a vis Ankara.