Brussels: Europe and the Arabs

A statement issued in Brussels by the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament addressed the reactions to the Turkish police raid on the offices of the Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition party. In the statement, Fula Tsitsipas, co-chair of the European Greens/EFA group, said:

"We call on the EU General Affairs Council, scheduled for Tuesday, May 26, and the EU Foreign Ministers' meeting in Cyprus on May 27 and 28, to urgently address the situation in Turkey.

The EU must move beyond statements and take action on this candidate country. It must assess the consequences of the systematic dismantling of the democratic opposition, including political parties and elected parliamentary representation, under Erdoğan. This cannot be allowed to undermine the EU's democratic commitments. The time for action and agreement on concrete measures has come.

This issue transcends Turkey; it undermines the EU's credibility as a defender of democracy, weakens its enlargement policy, and diminishes its strategic influence in the region." Ciaran Cough, co-chair of the European Greens, said:

“The targeting of opposition figures and elected members of parliament represents a dangerous escalation in the erosion of democracy in Turkey and a deterioration of human rights.

It is a clear step towards authoritarianism and has serious consequences for democracy in Turkey and for the credibility of the European Union as a defender of democracy. Turkey cannot be exempt from democratic standards, the rule of law, and respect for political freedoms.”

The statement concluded by noting that from Monday, May 18, to Wednesday, May 20, a high-level delegation from the European Greens visited Turkey to follow the ongoing trial of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and hundreds of other defendants. Following the visit, a statement issued by the European Greens Presidency said: “The imprisonment of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu last year, along with hundreds of other opposition members, is part of a wider pattern of the political exploitation of the judicial system. In a democracy, the government cannot replace the elected leaders of opposition parties. Political competition takes place at the ballot box and within democratic institutions, not by dismantling opposition parties.”

Erdogan is pushing the country further toward authoritarianism. We stand with the Turkish people and demand an immediate, clear, and firm response from the European Commission and the Council. The EU cannot remain silent while democratic standards erode before our eyes in a candidate country; it must defend fundamental rights and the rule of law.