Outcome of the trial against Leyla Zana and others in Ankara

Mr President, Commissioner Nielson, ladies and gentlemen, we are deeply disappointed by the decision in the case of Leyla Zana. I, too, am far from agreeing with all her views; to judge by her latest letter – which I have here – to, among others, Javier Solana and President Prodi, her assessment of Öçalan and of the PKK´s successor organisations is perhaps somewhat naive, rather exaggerated or understated, depending on your chosen way of putting it, but – as has already been said – none of these things are reasons for someone to be locked up for many years and their sentence confirmed in the teeth of rulings by European courts. I entirely agree with the Commissioner that this shows that there is still a great discrepancy between a parliamentary decision in favour of reforms, and those reforms being implemented.That is not to be taken as criticism of the government, which, as I see it, has, in so far as it has been able to do so, made quite plain its interest in a different decision on Leyla Zana being reached. We really do, though, have to urge, beg, or urgently petition the government to really put its whole weight behind the reforms in order to push them through, especially in the justice system, for I do think we will have major problems if the government proposes the right things, if the parliament backs them up, but the necessary democratic practices are not in place in the administration or in the law courts to make them happen. This government, too, when decisions are taken in December, is sure to have the charge laid at its door that too little has been done by way of implementation and that too little effort is being made to bring Turkey´s administration and its justice system up to modern European standards.