ANKARA - Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said on Friday that the government wanted to be in cooperation with non-governmental organizations to ensure pluralist democracy, adding that the laws which were adopted in the parliament should not be left on paper.
Addressing the extraordinary meeting of Prime Ministry Human Rights Consultation Board, Gul said that the government attributed importance mainly to strengthening of civil society, lifting of the impediments in front of right to freedom of thought and expression and ensuring transparency in public administration.'' Gul stressed that the best method of having a good democracy was to strengthen the representative democracy on the one hand and the pluralist democracy on the other hand. Gul said that the best way to strengthen pluralist democracy was to make cooperation with NGOs. Gul said that ''our government wishes to be in cooperation with NGOs.''
Noting that there were still certain impediments in front of the right to freedom of expression and thought, Gul said that all sorts of ideas, beliefs and religion should be free as long as they don't disturb the peaceful atmosphere in the country.
''Turkey has to trust itself in a process which does not have any return from the way to modernization. We must take brave steps,'' said Gul, noting that implementation of laws was as important as the adoption of laws.
Gul said that the government was very resolved in implementing the laws.
Pointing out to the importance of transparency in public administration, Gul said that they prepared a draft public administration reform in this framework. ''We aim to make Turkey a transparent, open country in which everybody could follow the developments,'' Gul said.
Gul said that the state had to approach all sections of the society without making any difference among them.
(ÖS-AÖ) 09.05.2003