EU pushes Turkey on rule of law after coup crackdown

Turkey must protect the rule of law as it cracks down after the failed
coup, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on July 18, as the
bloc said it looked like the government had prepared a list of people
to arrest beforehand.

“We are the ones saying today rule of law
has to be protected in the country, there is no excuse for any steps
that take the country away from that,” Mogherini said as European Union foreign ministers met in Brussels.

“As
we have been the first ones to say that in that tragic night (of
Friday’s coup attempt), the democratic and legislative institutions
needed to be protected,” she told reporters.

“Today
we will say together with ministers that obviously doesn’t mean that
rule of law and the system of checks and balances in the country does
not count. On the contrary it needs to be protected for the sake of the
country.     

“So we will send a strong message on that.”  

Would-be
EU member Turkey carried out fresh raids on Monday as the EU ministers
were meeting, prompting growing international concern over the scale of
the crackdown.
 
Judges and military commanders are among 6,000 people who were detained over the weekend as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vows to stamp out the “virus” of the coup plotters.
 
The
EU commissioner dealing with Turkey’s long-stalled bid for membership
of the bloc meanwhile said it appeared that the government had already
prepared a list before the coup of people to be rounded up.

“I
mean, (that) the lists are available already after the event indicates
that this was prepared and at a certain moment should be used,” EU
enlargement commissioner Johannes Hahn told reporters.

   
But the EU agreed to speed up its membership bid and give visa-free travel to Turks as part of a migrant crisis deal in which Ankara agreed to take back people landing in the Greek islands.
 
French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said that “the rule of law must prevail”.

“France
has condemned the coup, you can’t accept the military taking power,” he
said. “At the same time we have to be vigilant that the Turkish
authorities don’t put in place a system which turns back democracy.”
  Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders also urged restraint,
saying: “It’s normal to punish those involved in the coup, but it’s
normal to ask for respect for the rule of law.”