Overall development

In the 2000 Reports, the Commission concluded that all negotiating countries continued to fulfil the political criteria, and that the overall record in strengthening democratic institutions, in respecting the rule of law and in protecting human rights had improved since the previous year. The Commission drew attention, however, to the need to accelerate the reform or reinforcement of the judiciary, and to tackle the problem of corruption. Furthermore, the Commission called for vigorous measures in fighting the growing problem of trafficking in women and children, and emphasised the need for sustained efforts to improve the situation of the Roma. The Commission urged Turkey to take the necessary decisions to translate its intentions concerning the protection of human rights into concrete measures.

Since the last Regular Reports, the candidate countries have continued to strengthen the functioning of their democratic systems of government. National or local elections were held in Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Malta, Poland, and Romania. Those elections were free and fair.

Considerable further efforts were made to ensure the independence, transparency, accountability and effectiveness of the public administration. In several countries the legal framework for the civil service was reinforced, and training of civil servants and the modernisation of the public administration continued. These efforts need to be sustained.

Further progress was made in reforming and strengthening the judicial system, as a vital element in ensuring respect for the rule of law and in the effective enforcement of the acquis. Several countries advanced in adopting basic legislation, strengthening human resources and improving working conditions. Efforts in this area need to be further stepped up, with particular attention to ensuring the independence of the judiciary.

Previous reports identified corruption as a serious problem ``exacerbated by low salaries in the public sector and extensive use of bureaucratic controls in the economy.'' This assessment remains largely valid, although several positive developments have taken place. In most countries anti­corruption bodies have been strengthened, and progress has been made in legislation, in such areas as public procurement and public access to information. Encouraging developments in several countries as regards the reform of public administration also contribute to the fight against corruption. Notwithstanding these efforts, corruption, fraud and economic crime remain widespread in many candidate countries, where they contribute to a lack of confidence by the citizens and discredit reforms. Continued, vigorous measures are required to tackle this problem.

In previous years, the Commission had underlined the problem of childcare institutions in Romania. The Romanian authorities have taken a number of legislative, administrative and financial measures, supported by PHARE. These efforts must be continued, so as to ensure tangible and long­lasting improvement in the living conditions of the children and families concerned, to prevent abuses and to address the problem of street children.

The alarming trend identified in last year's Reports as regards the trafficking in women and children has regrettably been confirmed this year. Several candidate countries remained countries of origin, transit and destination, and there are no signs that the problem is abating. Vigorous measures are required to counter this trend, with due respect for the rights of victims.

Limited improvement can be noted in the problems surrounding pre­trial detention in several countries. These are primarily related to the excessive duration of the detention, lack of access to a lawyer and, in some cases, maltreatment. These problems need to be addressed.

Further progress was made in several countries in ensuring gender equality, both in terms of legislation and the institutional framework. However, further efforts are needed to promote the economic and social equality of women. The steps taken in a number of countries to assist victims of violence are welcome developments, which should be accompanied by appropriate preventive measures.

As regards minorities, a number of encouraging developments can be noted. Estonia and Latvia further progressed in the integration of non­citizens, and continue to fulfil all OSCE recommendations regarding citizenship and naturalisation. In both countries, due care will need to be taken to ensure that the implementation of existing language legislation takes place in full respect of the principles of proportionality and justified public interest. In several countries, further steps were taken to strengthen the legal and institutional frameworks for the protection of minorities. In Bulgaria, Slovakia and Romania minorities are playing an important role in national political life.

In all countries with sizeable Roma communities, national action plans are now in place to tackle discrimination, which remains widespread, and improve living conditions that continue to be extremely difficult. In most cases implementation of these action plans is underway and, in some countries, national budgetary resources have been reinforced. PHARE funding continues to be made available to support these actions. Further efforts are required to ensure that the various programmes are implemented in a sustained manner, in close co­operation with Roma representatives, and that appropriate budgetary support is made available in all countries.

In its 2000 Report, the Commission concluded that Turkey did not meet the Copenhagen political criteria. Despite a number of positive developments, this assessment still remains valid and further efforts are needed.

Turkey's national programme for the adoption of the acquis set the scene for a major constitutional reform package, building on the work of the Parliament's Conciliation Commission. This package was adopted in record time on 3 October 2001 with an overwhelming majority, showing the Parliament's determination to bring Turkey closer to EU standards.

This is a significant step towards strengthening guarantees in the field of human rights and fundamental freedoms and limiting capital punishment. In particular, the amendments have narrowed the grounds for introducing limitations to freedom of expression and communication, freedom of the press and freedom of association. Attention has now turned to the effective implementation of these important changes. Implementing legislation is under preparation.

Despite these changes, restrictions on the exercise of fundamental freedoms remain. The extent to which individuals in Turkey will actually enjoy an improvement in the exercise of fundamental freedoms will depend on the interpretation given to the constitutional amendments, the details of implementing legislation and the practical application of the law by the authorities.

The Commission strongly encourages Turkey to bring about substantial improvements, not only in the constitutional provisions and the laws concerning the protection of human rights, but above all in the human rights situation in practice. This requires reform of many existing structures and practices. The Commission welcomes the fact that the moratorium on the death penalty has continued and that constitutional reform has limited the death penalty but reminds Turkey that capital punishment itself should be abolished to bring Turkey into line with the principles of the European Union. The Commission urges Turkey to ensure that particular attention is devoted to improving significantly the situation in Southeast Turkey.

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