EU debate on Turkey heats up as membership decision nears

The debate on Turkey's bid for membership of the European Union heated up Monday as those against entry warned that Ankara's entry into the 25 nation bloc would turn Europe into a Muslim-dominated continent. Those in favour argued equally fiercely, however, that the EU needed Turkey to boost its global role.

The increasingly acrimonious exchanges, pitting EU centre- right politicians against their left-leaning and secular counterparts, are expected to become fiercer ahead of a European Commission report expected in early October on whether Turkey meets the EU's political standards and is, therefore, ready to open membership negotiations.

Union leaders meeting in Brussels in December will then decide on whether or not - and when - to start the talks.

Voicing his opposition to the prospect of Turkish membership, a leading EU official warned that Turkish entry, combined with immigration from North Africa, were leading to an "Islamisation" of Europe.

"Current trends are moving in only one direction: the United States will remain the only super power, China will be an economic giant and Europe will be Islamized," said European internal market Commissioner Frits Bolkestein in a speech to the Leiden University in the Netherlands.

Only Dutch and German transcripts of the speech were made available to reporters. Bolkestein, a Dutch politician and member of the European Commission - the executive arm of the EU - is known for his opposition to Turkish membership.

In contrast to Bolkenstein's views, however, the Commission has promised a fair and factual evaluation of Turkey's entry bid. The outspoken Bolkenstein said any EU move to accept Turkey should go hand in hand with acceptance of Ukraine and Belorussia because the two countries were "more European" than Turkey.

"Turkey has to change completely before it can join the EU," Bolkestein insisted. The Commissioner's vociferous anti-Turkey sentiments are echoed by a number of other conservative European politicians - including many in France and Germany - who fear that Turkish membership will dilute Europe's Christian heritage. Many also worry about the financial cost of bringing in a country which still lags behind most EU states in terms of economic development.

But those in favour of Turkish entry are also stepping up their campaign. An independent panel of senior European politicians - including the former premiers of France and Finland - are insisting that there must be a quick opening of accession talks with Ankara.

The group, including some of the bloc's most-respected politicians, said there must be no delays in launching entry talks with Turkey if the European Commission gives the go-ahead to negotiations in October.

The bloc should not impose additional and more rigorous membership conditions on Turkey than those applied to other candidate countries, the panel said, adding that EU leaders who meet in December to decide on Turkey's membership bid must not put off a decision on starting negotiations.

"Accession negotiations should be opened as soon as Turkey fulfils the EU's political criteria...further delay could damage the EU's credibility," warned Martti Ahtisaari, the commission's chairman and former president of Finland.

"Fairness demands that no candidate state should be submitted to more rigorous conditions than others," Ahtisaari insisted. The former Finnish president warned that negotiations with Turkey could take up to ten years but said the current "unprecedented" reform in the country would continue during this process.

The view was reinforced by Emma Bonino, a former European Commissioner and current member of the European Parliament, who said women in Turkey believed the start of accession talks would reinforce their fight for equality.

The current "impressive trend" for reform in Turkey would be strengthened with the opening of negotiations, Bonino said, adding: "This will be an enormous incentive for implementation."

The commission, also including former Dutch foreign minister Hans Van Den Broek, Bronislaw Geremek, former Polish foreign minister and former French premier Michel Rocard, said the EU stood to gainpolitical and economically fromTurkish membership.

Turkey's relations with the Islamic world, its role in securing Europe's energy supplies and its military might would add to Europe's security, the panel said. The commission recognised fears among many in Europe about the entry of a largely Muslim nation, but said membership of the Union was a guarantee of the country's secular nature.

"Turkey has every reason for expecting to be welcome in the Union provided it fulfils the relevant conditions," the commission report said, adding: "The EU must treat Turkey with all due respect, fairness and consideration."

Panel members said they had decided to comment on Turkey's membership bid in order to allow for a "rational" public debate on the issue. The European Commission - whose report will be decisive in determining whether membership negotiations are opened with Turkey - has promised a fair and factual evaluation of the country's efforts at political reform. The report will be released in Brussels on Oct 6.

Engineering faculty frustrations: Campus Round-up

The tardy follow up on the syndicate's decision pertaining to revival of the engineering faculty at the Karachi University is causing anxiety among students who were admitted to the department of chemical technology/ engineering last year.

This group is confused about its status as the academic facilities and arrangements made so far in their case are not in line with the university's commitment that they would be entitled to a bachelor's degree in engineering and not in science.

The university syndicate had approved a proposal for establishment of a separate department of chemical technology/engineering in its meeting on October 19, 2002, following which revival of the engineering faculty was also found necessary.

The engineering faculty, which used to administer the academic programme of NED College of Engineering, became inactive after the establishment of the NED University of Engineering & Technology.

However, Karachi University reintroduced the bachelor of chemical technology course in the evening programme in 1995 and changed the name of its applied chemistry department to the department of applied chemistry and chemical technology in 1999.

In the meantime a team of the Pakistan Engineering Council visited the university and put some requirements to be fulfilled by the university for affiliation of the technology/engineering programme.

In September, 2003, the registrar issued a letter stating that the bachelor's students in chemical technology would be treated as students of the Department of Chemical Technology/Engineering, while the chairman of the applied chemistry department would look after the new department as well.

About 50 seats were offered for admission to the chemical technology/engineering department in 2004, under its morning programme, and at present about 35 students are studying in the four-year engineering programme comprising 41 courses, which is yet to be shaped up and recognized by the PEC.

The dean of the science faculty of the university, Dr. Mohammad Qaiser, says that efforts are being made for implementation of the engineering programme in a meaningful way.

According to the PEC requirements, the engineering programme has been shifted to the morning as a regular programme, but work pertaining to housing the department in a building other than that of the applied chemistry, appointments of engineers as regular faculty members, appointment of a separate chairperson for the department, and establishment of the department under the faculty of engineering has yet to be done, the dean pointed out.

The students, who find themselves in an unsecured environment, want the authorities to ensure that they are given an engineering degree. They say that their department can be shifted to the building of the genetics department which is now being moving to its new building.

Senior university teachers are of the view that the university should have made all arrangements, including equipment and faculty and sought approval of the statutory bodies before launching any new academic programme.

It is learnt that the Higher Education Commission, in principle, has also approved a grant of Rs 12 million for the building of the chemical technology/engineering department.

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As a part of the academic training and professional grooming activities, the students of the KU's economics department are organizing an exhibition in the university gymnasium on September 18.

Students of business management and marketing are required to establish a business enterprise through which they can generate ideas and manufacture and launch their products, says Rabia Arshad, a teacher of the economics department.

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The civil engineering department at the NED University of Engineering and Technology held a symposium on "infrastructure engineering in developing countries on the campus on September 4.

The chairman of the Sindh Public Service Commission, Muhammad Hassan Bhutto, was the chief guest of the inaugural session. It was observed that Karachi was a metropolis and mega city without a master plan and it had now made professionals to think of how urban centres have to be treated and groomed for the future.

"As academics we have a duty to take the lead in providing a base and a platform to discuss urban issues not as an activity oriented exercise but as a result oriented endeavour", the chairman of the symposium organizing department, Prof S. H. Lodhi, said.