EU enlargement chief fule praises recent judicial elections

EU Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fule said on Tuesday that he was pleased with the conduct of the recent Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) elections in Turkey. Fule, addressing the Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Commission in Brussels, welcomed the election of 10 members to the HSYK directly from the votes of 12,000 judges and prosecutors. The commissioner said the European Commission's progress report on Turkey, set to be released on Nov. 10, would praise the reforms implemented by Ankara over the last year, including the constitutional amendment package passed last month, while underlining that certain steps still need to be taken. Fule said the amendment package was a landmark for Turkey in many areas, including basic rights and liberties and public administration, but also urged the adoption of a brand-new constitution after next year's general elections. On EU countries who are blocking the opening of negotiation chapters with Turkey, such as France and Greek Cyprus, Fule said both sides would be put to the test of trustworthiness. Fule stressed that Turkey should be committed to its reform process and that EU countries should live up to the promises they made when the accession negotiations first began.