Babacan rejects "secular education" line in EU report as "unnecessary"
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Haziran 01, 2006 11:39
Chief Negotiator for Turkey in the EU talks, Ali Babacan, has reportedly rejected as "unnecessary" a line referring to secular education in Turkey which was to be included a report to the EU on the "Education and Culture" section of the ongoing accession talks.
The report, which had been being prepared since late April by Babacan and other authorities, was in its final stages when the EU General Secretariat advised Babacan to include the sentence "The education system in Turkey is secular" in it. Babacan reportedly rejected this line, noting "The EU has made no such request of Turkey," and the report was then sent off in this fashion.
Responding to controversy over the incident, Babacan released a two page written statement yesterday evening in Ankara, in which he reminded citizens that the Turkish Republic was a "government based on secular and social justice," and that, as such "these characteristics (secularity and social justice) are clearly defined in our Constitution. The EU side knows this, which is why these are aspects that have never even come up in the screening process."
Responding to controversy over the incident, Babacan released a two page written statement yesterday evening in Ankara, in which he reminded citizens that the Turkish Republic was a "government based on secular and social justice," and that, as such "these characteristics (secularity and social justice) are clearly defined in our Constitution. The EU side knows this, which is why these are aspects that have never even come up in the screening process."