Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi olarak, Fransa Cumhurbaşkanı ve uluslararası kamuoyuna, yürürlüğe giren karardan duyduğumuz rahatsızlığı iletmek ve parti olarak Fransa Cumhurbaşkanı’nın açıklamalarına ilişkin olarak daha önce yaptığımız açıklamayı yinelemek isteriz.

1915 yılında hem Ermeniler için hem Türkler için büyük bir travma yaratan olaylar, her iki halkın hafızasında derin yaralar bırakan bir trajediyi oluşturmaktadır. Bu trajedinin izlerini silmek ve hafızalarda bıraktığı yaraları onarmak için her iki toplumun aynı kararlılıkla hareket etmesi gerekmektedir. Bu konuyla ilgili olarak üçüncü ülkelerin yersiz kararlar almaları çözümsüzlüğü büyütmektedir.

Macron’un 24 Nisan’ı Anma Günü olarak tanıması, AİHM’in konuyla ilgili kararlarına aykırıdır. Bu “sembolik” hareketin, barışa hizmet etmeyeceği ve Türkiye ile Ermenistan ilişkilerine yarar sağlamayacağı açıktır.

İtalya hükümetinin “sözde Ermeni soykırımını resmi olarak tanıması ve bunu uluslararası alanda savunmasını” isteyen önergenin, İtalya Parlamentosu’nda kabul edilmesi de uluslararası hukuka aykırı atılan bir diğer adımı oluşturmaktadır. Avrupa Parlamentosu seçimleri öncesinde popülist yaklaşımlarla alınan kararlar, Türkiye ile Ermenistan arasında kurulmaya çalışılan köprüleri temelinden sarsacak nitelik taşımaktadır. Bu durumun bilinci ile hareket etmek bütün üçüncü ülkelerin ve toplumların vicdanını ilgilendiren bir konu olmalıdır. Parlamenterler tarihi konuların ilgili ülkelerin kendi aralarında çözüme kavuşturulmasını desteklemeli ve bu konulara taraf olmamalıdırlar.

Sudan’da son olarak yaşanan antidemokratik uygulamalar ve ülkenin içinde bulunduğu ekonomik koşullar toplumsal dinamikleri de harekete geçirmiştir. Yeni oluşacak yönetimin halkın talepleri doğrultusunda hareket etmesi ve suçun cezasız kalmaması ilkesi doğrultusunda uluslararası hukuka da saygı göstermesi bu aşamadan sonra büyük önem kazanmıştır. Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi olarak askeri müdahalelere şiddetle karşı olduğumuzu, Sudan’da hukukun üstünlüğünün ve demokrasinin işletilmesinin ivedilikle sağlanmasını beklediğimizi belirtmek isteriz.

Sudan ile bundan sonrası için ikili ilişkiler devam ettirilmeli, ülkenin demokratik zemine kavuşmasına katkı sağlanmalıdır. AKP iktidarı, Mısır’da yaptığı hataları tekrarlamamalı, ideolojik saplantılarla hareket etmemelidir.

Sudan’da yaşananlar, Afrika ve Orta Doğu ülkelerinin huzur, barış ve istikrarı için büyük önem taşımaktadır. Sudan halkının haklı taleplerinin, sivillerden oluşacak kapsayıcı bir geçiş hükümetiyle karşılanmaya başlanması yönündeki beklentilere katılıyoruz.

I asked for the floor to comment on the report for “Promoting parliaments free of sexism and sexual harassment” and I take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation and congratulations to the rapporteur for the preparation of this report which will become a significant reference document for our future work.

On December 5th, 1934, Turkey accepted women’s right to vote and to be elected. Since then, women are active in Turkish politics. Unfortunately, in the UN’s 2017 “Women in Politics” report, Turkey’s rank is 132 among the UN members. In the 2018 general elections, only 104 women parliamentarians were elected to the Turkish parliament out of 600 seats. This is only 17% and it is a serious underrepresentation. Women’s participation in politics in my country should definitely be improved and presence should be increased.

Turkey was one of the first signatories of “Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence” namely the Istanbul Convention. Turkey is also a member of GREVIO. But Turkey is nowadays facing criticism from some Islamic NGOs and also from a government sponsored NGO named “KADEM”. Main set of criticisms are alleging that gender equality will “violate families,” “create ungendered youth,” “enhance creation of secular generations.” Within the framework of these criticisms, one of the projects of the Ministry of Education funded jointly by the EU and Turkey is now in serious jeopardy.

In Turkey, “The Committee on Monitoring of Violence against Women,” which is an essential mechanism for facilitating organizational coordination at the national level, convenes annually with the participation of representatives from relevant public organizations, universities, and NGOs. The term of sexual harassment is regulated in Article 105 of the Turkish Criminal Code (TCC) and also in the 24th and 25th Articles of the Labor Act. So in theory, women should feel quite confident that they are not facing any challenge of gender inequality, harassment or violence.

But Violence against women is not only “physical”, it can also be “sexual”, “psychological”, “economic” and “verbal”. These kinds of harassments and intimidations make women vulnerable in the society. Women politicians too are targeted because of their gender; they are blamed as “incapable,” and they face “verbal” violence.

In January, together with my colleagues from the Republican People’s Party, we participated and strongly supported the #NotInMyParliamentmovement and carried the concept and the initiative to our own national parliament to promote gender equality in each and every level of employment as well as in politics.

I therefore underline once more the importance of this report and support it entirely.
Thank you.

The report we are currently discussing is quite reassuring in enhancing dialogue between the EU and the Council of Europe and I commend the rapporteur. As I come from a country under the influence of growing populism and authoritarianism, I have to underline that my party, the Republican People’s Party, insists on Council of Europe’s position as “a benchmark for human rights, the rule of law and democracy in Europe.” Also, as I come from a country which is being gradually deprived of its strong ties with EU, my party insists on the maintenance of the perspective for full membership in the EU, therefore for non-suspension of the accession talks.

The European Parliament elections due to take place in May raise our concerns on the rise of right-wing politics in Europe. As we all know, European political spectrum is coming under the influence of right-wing populism and we might witness serious populist advances in the European Parliament elections. One of the essential practices of populism is to control the legal system; a kind of ‘discriminatory legalism’ is put into practice and this discriminatory process targets mostly the opposition parties and civil society. We witness this situation in my country. Yet, it is our duty to remind to the populists the merits of diversity and pluralism and the might of separation of powers, the rule of law and fundamental rights and freedoms which are the basic and founding principles of Council of Europe and of the European Union.

Honorable members of the Assembly,

The European Council’s rule of law dialogue sets a political agenda with the Presidency of the EU. May I add that we should also look for opportunities to raise awareness on the works of different institutions affiliated to the COE, such as Venice Commission and GRECO. For 2019, for instance, we can consider the possibility for a general discussion on Organized Crime and Money Laundering with the assistance of GRECO.

As Yascha Mounk states “Populists are highly skilled at weaponizing forms of resentment: their rhetoric simultaneously aims to turn the growing anger at affluent people against the ruling elite and to turn the growing focus on ascriptive identity against immigrants as well as ethnic and religious minorities.”

We’ve to prevent the “discriminatory legalism” and “intolerance” to protect our democracies.

Thank you.