Church in France Express Concerns for Human Rights in Turkey
The president of the French bishops' conference sent a letter to President Jacques Chirac expressing the Catholic Church's concern over respect for fundamental rights in Turkey.
The president of the French bishops' conference sent a letter to President Jacques Chirac expressing the Catholic Church's concern over respect for fundamental rights in Turkey, sources reported Sunday. The letter comes just days before the European Union is to decide on whether to start membership talks with the predominantly Muslim nation.
In the letter, Archbishop Jean-Pierre Ricard of Bordeaux stressed that "some fundamental rights, in particular religious freedom, are not totally respected in Turkey, despite the reforms undertaken," according to a statement published by the Episcopal conference.
As the European Council will be meeting Dec. 16-17, Archbishop Ricard appealed to Chirac to see that France "exacts as a condition for eventual negotiations with Turkey respect for religious freedom, the recognition of religious minorities, and a juridical status in keeping with conventions in force."
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The archbishop also expressed his regret that "the opening of eventual negotiations with Turkey was not subordinated to complete respect for all fundamental rights, whether freedom of expression and association, the status of women, or religious freedom, rights that constitute the foundation of the European Union's cohesion."
Turkey, which has waited 40 years to become a part of Europe, has made EU membership its top priority. As the European Union decides whether to open membership talks with Ankara, Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a devout Muslim, is reportedly keen to project a positive image of the country's treatment of minorities.
However, according to a report by New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) released earlier this year, though there had undeniably been “constant improvements” in Turkey, the “present situation concerning press freedom, religious freedom and respect of minority rights is far from perfect.”
In the report HRW said that public demands for change, a strengthening civil society, and EU candidacy requirements were working together to force positive change in Turkey despite continuing determined resistance within the civil service, judiciary, and security forces.
“The past year has brought substantial legislative reform, but established patterns of violations are proving hard to eradicate,” HRW reported. “Police still routinely ill-treat detainees, and reports of outright torture in police custody persist. Prosecutors continue to indict writers and politicians who express a religious or ethnic perspective on politics, charging them with racial or religious hatred, as well as ‘insulting state institutions.’”
HRW was particularly worried that some people are still in prison for their opinions and that torture is still used in many penitentiaries.
Meanwhile, sources say Christians are still precluded from military careers and the higher levels of public office because they are held to be a “suspect” social group for the country’s security. "Christians cannot attend religious schools, since seminaries, novitiates and schools for vocational formation have been abolished," one source reported. "If a young man, for example, feels called to the priesthood or to consecrated life, he must go abroad. Furthermore, new churches cannot be built to meet the religious needs of the Christian communities."
A Vatican representative in Turkey recently told AP, "Turkey's Catholic citizens cannot claim a title of ownership on the churches they use, let alone request permission for new ones when there is need."
In a statement issued by the EU, the bloc also mentioned that in Turkey, "religious freedom is subject to serious limitations as compared with European standards."
While a recommendation by the EU’s head office on Oct. 6 boosted Turkey’s long-standing aspirations to join the European club, the European Commission—the EU's executive arm—warned it would suspend or even halt EU membership negotiations over any serious and persistent failure to respect democracy and human rights.
