Cicek: Views Of President Are Very Important For Us, Parliament Will Take Them Into Consideration

ANKARA - Justice Minister Cemil Cicek said on Tuesday that offices and institutions were trying to convince each other regarding the legal arrangements made during adjustment process to the European Union (EU) and added, ''President's views are very important for us, parliament will take them into consideration.''
When a reporter asked whether he considered right President Ahmet Necdet Sezer's reasons for vetoing the Law no:4903 on 'Amendment to Several Laws' which envisioned annulment of Article Eight of Anti-Terrorism Law, Cicek said that it was not the first time that a law was sent back.
Cicek said that Sezer expressed his drawbacks regarding a draft, which was adopted at Parliament unanimously, by using Constitutional authority. He added that the issue would be presented to Parliament again and would be evaluated.
Noting that the decision would be taken by Parliament, Cicek said that the number of drafts and proposals which Parliament adopted unanimously was very few and the Sixth Adjustment Package was a law which ruling power and opposition party adopted by taking all concerns into consideration. He added that President evaluated in that way and they would evaluate the reasons again and if it was not for the benefit of Turkey, they would exert efforts to make it law by revising it again.
Cicek said that the aim of those laws was to assure basic rights and freedoms and to broaden the field of freedoms. He added, ''this is both Turkey's need and the demand of the world in which we are trying to take part.''
Noting, ''we have been failing on a basic point since EU issue has been brought onto agenda,'' Cicek said, ''we are trying to convince each other. Convincing each other is not pre-condition of accession to EU. EU does not say, 'you convince each other as different offices, organizations and institutions, then we accept you when you adopt a draft unanimously.' What they say is 'we have a project that we are implementing. There is a point we have reached. If you want to be with us, you have to raise your standards to this level.' We, by acting with this logic, are making these arrangements. I think that this important point should not be overlooked in current and future arrangements. Otherwise, either we will try to convince each other or Turkey will lose time with discussions. We will exert effort to take into consideration and evaluate every word seriously. President's views are very important for us and Parliament will also take them into consideration.''
(GC-AÖ) 01.07.2003