Thursday, October 13 2016 17:54

ArmInfo.On October 13, at PACE Plenary Session within the framework of debate of the theme "Situation in Turkey in the Light of the Attempted Coup d'Etat" the Vice President of the RA National Assembly and PACE, the Head of the Armenian Delegation Hermine Naghdalyan handed over her report to PACE  Secretariat, where she sharply criticized the anti-democratic  processes in Turkey after coup d'etat, at the same time opposing the  statements voiced from PACE tribune by the Foreign Minister of Turkey  Cavusoglu the day before.

As the press-service of the Armenian parliament informs Hermine  Naghdalyan's report reads as follows:  "Ladies and Gentlemen,Today's  discussion is the best evidence that the situation in Turkey remains  one of the "hot spots" of the international community attention. We  all realize that the volatile situation in the country can be  explosive not only for the region, but in a larger sense.

I am from Armenia, a country directly bordering Turkey, a country  that feels negative consequences right immediately.

What is the situation today - after the coup d'etat attempt...?

The scope and depth of President Erdogan's reaction is devastating,  leaving no hope to country for any democratic processes to take  place. The Turkish authorities started to use the coup attempt as an  excuse for the crackdown in the country. Thousands of military  officers, judges, educators and civil servants have been abruptly  arrested or fired. The recently prolonged state of emergency means  the suspension of basic human rights, while the death penalty is  being discussed to be re-imposed.

The authorities closed several Kurdish TV and radio channels,  including one for kids. Can you imagine - Turkey sees a source of  threat in a cartoon channel?

The conclusion is inescapable, Dear Colleagues - Turkey is becoming  more autocratic and unpredictable, which results in separation of the  society.

Just very recently, we were discussing the state of play with regards  to functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey. As you remember  various standpoints have been expressed during our debates; we were  much concerned with the misdevelopments in the country and supported  the idea to re-open the monitoring process. Today this issue is more  crucial because of the U-turn that Turkey made in its democratization  path.

The Turkish authorities totally disregarding the rule of law are  using the situation to fight their political opponents and national  minorities in the country.

So, Minister Cavusoglu would better concentrate on these serious  problems rather than sharing with the Assembly his personal stories.

Another reference to Minister's yesterday's misleading remarks - his  vision on Nagorno-Karabakh negotiation process lies in a parallel  reality with illusive withdrawal from five regions. Whereas in  reality the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh issue is aimed at the  determination of the final status of Nagorno-Karabakh through the  legally binding expression of will of its people.

One more attempt of misleading: the Minister also touched upon the  Armenian-Turkish relations. If Turkey intended to normalize the  relations with Armenia it would have then ratified and started to  implement Zurich Protocols signed in 2009: the only closed border of  Europe will be open".