|
Turkey broadens scope of anti-terrorism
laws
30.6.2006
|
|
|
|
ANKARA, June 29
(Reuters) - Turkey's parliament passed a law on
Thursday increasing the number of crimes classified
as terrorism; legislation which has worried the
European Union and been criticised by rights groups
as an invitation to torture.
The government says the law is needed to fight
resurgent Kurdish separatist rebels who have stepped
up attacks in the last two years after calling off
their unilateral ceasefire.
The new law will delay guaranteed access to a lawyer
for the first 24 hours of detention and expand the
definition of acts classified as crimes of
terrorism.
Critics say the law would make it a crime simply to
espouse views shared by rebels groups or even to
publish a statement by an illegal organisation.
Critics also say the anti-terror law gives too much
leeway to conservative nationalists who dominate
Turkey's judiciary and who see their main task as
defending their view of the state.
The European Union, which began accession talks with
Turkey last October, has expressed concern over the
legislation.
The last two years have seen an upsurge in Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK) rebels attacks, which had
subsided after the 1999 capture of the group's
leader, Abdullah Ocalan.
The outlawed rebel group, considered a terrorist
organisation by Ankara, the United States and the
European Union, launched a campaign in 1984 for an
ethnic homeland in the country's predominantly
Kurdish southeast.
Reuters
Southeastern Turkey:
North Kurdistan (
Kurdistan-Turkey) wikipedia
Top |
Kurd Net
does not take credit for and is not responsible for the content of news
information on this page
|
® 