MILLIYET- Columnist Fikret Bila writes about the likelihood of Parliament passing the European Union adaptation laws and the possible approaches of political parties to the issue. A summary of his column is as follows:
Parliament is set to convene next Monday, and the political parties seem to have reached an agreement to hold elections on Nov 3. The debate over whether a decision on elections or the EU adaptation laws should take first place on Parliament's list of priorities seems to have been resolved. Motherland Party (ANAP) leader Mesut Yilmaz looks as if he has accepted the 'elections first' argument put forward by True Path Party (DYP) leader Tansu Ciller. Right now the debate is centred on whether it will be possible to pass the necessary EU laws after a decision on elections has been taken in Parliament. Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit believes that it would be difficult for anything other than elections to be discussed once a decision to hold elections is made. However, he has said that his Democratic Left Party (DSP) would support efforts to pass the EU laws. The DYP, as well as the newly established party New Turkey (YT), has promised to vote in favor of the laws once a decision to hold elections is reached. Both the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Felicity Party (SP) are in favor of passing these laws. However, all the parties are stipulating different conditions. The AKP and DYP, for instance, would like to amend the Constitution on the subject of the death penalty to make sure that terrorists do not benefit from amnesties. The parties don't seem to have reached a full agreement on the law enabling broadcasting and teaching in the mother tongue languages. So the plan right now is to try and pass the EU laws, with the exception of the laws concerning the death penalty and broadcasting/teaching in mother tongues. The YT is also in favor of leaving these issues out because it believes that only laws all parties agree on will be accepted after Parliament decides on elections. If the parties can keep their parliamentary groups together, then there is a chance that the EU laws will be passed with the exception of the ones concerning controversial issues. The parties seem to have agreed to leave the issue of the death penalty aside until after the elections.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION