2010 ilerleme raporu - Avrupa Birliği Bakanlığı

The amended Law on fundamental principles of elections and the electoral registry entered
into force on 10 April 2010, de facto allowing use of Kurdish in election campaigns.
However, use of any language other than Turkish in political life is still illegal under the Law
on elections and political parties. The courts have been issuing contradictory decisions in
court cases against Kurdish politicians.
Diyarbakır High Criminal Court No 4 banned 13 members of Bahar Cultural Centre (BKM)
from performing arts for one year. The court ruled that the 13 artists ‘may not take part in any
social and artistic events’. Members of the BKM Music and Theatre Group were punished for
performing at the Batman Cultural Festival, Newroz celebrations and press gatherings. The
musicians and artists were charged with ‘violating the law on assembly and demonstrations’.
One musician has been in pre-trial detention. 13 artists and musicians were each given 10-
month prison sentences.
In practice, children whose mother tongue is not Turkish cannot learn their mother tongue in
either private or public schools.
No measures have been taken to facilitate access to public services for non-speakers of
Turkish. While interpretation during the investigation phase and court hearing is possible
under the current legislation for suspects, victims or witnesses, it is not consistently applied in
practice.
There have been improvements in use of the Kurdish language in prisons. However, this is
still restricted because of security concerns and implementation varies between prison
administrations. (See chapter on Prisons).
As regards Roma, the government launched an ‘opening’, including a workshop and a
meeting with the Prime Minister in March.
The government submitted to parliament a proposal to amend a discriminatory clause in the
Law on the movement and residence of aliens 30 , which authorises ‘the Ministry of the Interior
to expel stateless and non-Turkish gypsies and aliens that are not bound to the Turkish
culture’.
In June, the Ministry of the Interior asked all governors about the housing needs of the Roma
population in each province. It also issued a circular requesting all governors to facilitate the
registration of all ‘persons without a civil registry’. The registration of Roma is an important
step to ensure their access to public services.
However, in the absence of a comprehensive policy to address the situation of Roma, the
latter still face social exclusion and marginalisation in access to education, discrimination in
health services, exclusion from job opportunities, difficulties in gaining access to personal
documentation and exclusion from participation in public affairs and public life.
The Roma population continues to face socio-economic problems, such as poverty,
displacement and lack of social services in the aftermath of the demolition in Roma districts
under urban renewal programmes in various cities. In January, in western Manisa province,
30
Law No 5683 on the movement and residence of aliens (Article 21).
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