-Caveat Lector- Turkey faces EU wrath as court bans Islamic party http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,511377,00.html Chris Morris in Istanbul Saturday June 23, 2001 The Guardian Turkey's difficult relations with the European Union suffered another setback yesterday when its highest court banned the largest opposition party in parliament. The Islamist Virtue party was found guilty of being a "focal point" for anti-secular activities. A second charge - that it was an illegal continuation of the Welfare party, which was banned in 1998 for similar activities - was rejected. As well as complicating ties with Europe, the verdict will increase political instability within Turkey as it tries to rebound from months of economic turmoil that has seen the value of the Turkish lira fall by half. The original indictment against Virtue, drawn up more than two years ago, demanded that its leaders be banned from political activity for five years and the dismissal from parliament of all its 102 deputies. It described Virtue activists as "vampires roaming the land" feasting on political ignorance. In the event, the court decided to expel only two deputies; the rest can keep their seats as independents. The verdict means Turkey will avoid mass by-elections, which could have altered the parliamentary balance, but there could still be parliamentary unrest, as existing parties try to attract new members. Senior Virtue party members denounced the verdict, although many expected it. "A shadow has fallen over Turkey's democracy once again... a party that neither committed nor encouraged crimes has been closed down", the leading Virtue MP Abdullah Gul said. Many observers argue that closing down political parties is counter-productive because it forces moderates into more extreme positions. Plans for constitutional reform have been bogged down in parliament for some time. A law making it harder to shut down parties could be approved soon, but it will come too late to save Virtue. There is no right of appeal against this verdict. Ankara is braced for renewed criticism from abroad. There had already been warnings that Europe would not look kindly on a decision to rule against Virtue. Turkey became a formal candidate for EU membership in 1999, but actual talks on joining cannot take place until it makes reforms in the field of democracy and human rights. Hardline secularists argue that Turkey should be seen as a special case due to the threat it faces from radical Islam. But Virtue followed a relatively moderate line - its programme differed little from other centre-right parties, it supported Nato membership and backed the bid to join the EU - and appeared to be a fading political force anyway. In the 1999 general election, Virtue won just 15% of the national vote, enough to make it the largest opposition party in a deeply divided parliament. However, Virtue itself was riven with splits. It looks likely that two separate parties will now emerge. Traditionalists are still loyal to the veteran leader of Turkey's Islamist movement, the former prime minister Necmettin Erbakan. But a group of reformers may break away to form a new centre-right party. Turkey's military leaders will probably be pleased with this verdict. They have always seen themselves as the guardians of the modern secular Turkey founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in the 1920s. The generals carried out three military coups between 1960 and 1980 to keep Turkey on Ataturk's path. In 1997 they intervened again - albeit behind the scenes - putting immense pressure on the first-ever Islamist-led government, and demanding action against what the military viewed as creeping "Islamisation". Despite the moderate line taken by Virtue, the military was never convinced. After the court began its final deliberations last week, Turkey's chief of staff, General Huseyin Kivrikoglu, issued an ominous warning. "Radical Islam has not come to an end," he said. "It is simply lying low for the moment." <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. 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