Europe Council warns Turkey judicial moves 'danger for democracy'

Ankara (AFP) - The Council of Europe has warned that Turkish moves to "politicise" the judiciary would weaken trust in the entire state and jeopardise democracy in the aspiring EU member state.

The comments by Nils Muiznieks, the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights, come amid a new purge of top prosecutors and a government push to tighten its grip on Turkey's top judicial body.

"Curtailing the independence of the judiciary would be a threat to it and would weaken public trust not only in the judiciary but in the state as a whole," he told AFP in an interview Thursday.

"Pressure exerted on the judiciary would be a danger for Turkey?s democratic fabric, no matter what motivates it."

The proposed judicial reforms are being debated with the country in deep political turmoil after a corruption probe last month targeted top political and business figures in Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's inner circle.

The government has embarked on a series of retaliatory measures against the police, prosecution service and the judiciary which he believes is using the investigation to undermine him.

Erdogan, still the most popular leader in Turkey after almost 11 years in power, accuses supporters of Fethullah Gulen -- a moderate Islamic cleric exiled in the United States -- of waging a "coup plot" ahead of key March local elections.

But his actions have raised concerns both at home and abroad, particularly in the European Union which Turkey has long sought to join.

"I think that for Turkey to remain in compliance with human rights standards, it is necessary to reinforce judicial independence and impartiality, not to curtail it," Muiznieks said.

"Any step taken by a politicised judiciary would be suspicious," said the commissioner, whose international organisation promotes democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

Crisis mars Erdogan EU visit

The outcry over the judicial reforms comes ahead of Erdogan's visit to Brussels next week in what he had hoped would be the "year of the EU" for Turkey.

It is his first visit since accession talks resumed in November after a three-year freeze, but EU officials warn that the crisis has spoilt the "new momentum" in relations between predominantly Muslim Turkey and the 28-member bloc.

EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule said Wednesday that any change to the judicial system "must not call into question Turkey's commitment as regards the Copenhagen political criteria," referring to the steps required for EU membership including the respect for democracy and human rights.

Muiznieks said the rule of law was a fundamental pillar of a democratic society.

The judicial bill submitted by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) set of a firestorm of anger from the opposition, and even led to fists flying during a parliamentary debate on the reforms at the weekend.

"This bill throws 90 years of democratic gains in the garbage," Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), declared this week.

President Abdullah Gul stepped in to resolve the deadlock by pushing for any reforms to the top judical body, the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), to be enshrined in constitutional amendments that would require cross-party support.

The AKP initially called for the government to appoint members of the HSYK but it later revised the proposals, suggesting instead that they be appointed by MPs in accordance with their representation in parliament.

"My main concern is that the proposals take away some of the powers of the general assembly of the HSYK and give them to the minister of justice, going in the opposite direction of what Council of Europe bodies, including my Office, have recommended to Turkey," Muiznieks said.

He said Turkey has achieved enormous progress in the past in the field of judicial reforms, notably with the help of the Council of Europe.

"This is why I was surprised to see the speed at which such proposals came out, without proper consultation with national and international experts".