Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ANKARA6529
2006-11-29 15:44:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ankara
Cable title:  

TURKEY'S NEW FOUNDATIONS LAW ADVANCES RELIGIOUS

Tags:  PGOV PHUM PREL OSCE TU 
pdf how-to read a cable
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FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0107
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKDAI/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J-3/J-5//
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RUEUITH/ODC ANKARA TU//TCH//
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEUITH/TLO ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/TSR ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/USDAO ANKARA TU
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006529 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2016
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL OSCE TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY'S NEW FOUNDATIONS LAW ADVANCES RELIGIOUS
MINORITY RIGHTS

REF: A. 05 ANKARA 2750


B. ANKARA 5141

Classified By: Political Counselor Janice G.Weiner, reasons 1.4(b),(d)
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 006529

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2016
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL OSCE TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY'S NEW FOUNDATIONS LAW ADVANCES RELIGIOUS
MINORITY RIGHTS

REF: A. 05 ANKARA 2750


B. ANKARA 5141

Classified By: Political Counselor Janice G.Weiner, reasons 1.4(b),(d)

1.(C) Summary: Te Turkish Parliament passed a new Law on
Founations on November 9 -- part of its 9th EU Reform
Package -- to address the issue of properties seized by the
Turkish State from religious minority communities. The EU
has said the law, which now awaits President Sezer's
approval, is a significant improvement over prior GOT
efforts; minority community representatives believe the law
should have gone further. Considering the strong opposition
to the bill and the heated environment in which it was
debated, the bill is an encouraging, if measured, step
forward both for improving the rights of religious minorities
and helping Turkey's EU bid. End summary.

--------------
Parliament Passes Long-Awaited Bill
--------------

2.(SBU) On November 9, the Turkish Parliament passed the
long-awaited new Law on Foundations, part of the 9th EU
Reform package, despite various attacks by the opposition
Republican People's Party (CHP). The law, which awaits
President Sezer's approval, has been in the works for over a
year and is designed to address the conflict over properties
belonging to Turkey's historic Christian, Jewish, and Baha'i
communities -- one of the most enduring sticking points in
Turkey's EU candidacy and its relations with the US.
Although the new law does not address all the concerns of the
minority communities, the US or the EU, on balance it is a
positive step for human rights in Turkey.

-------------- --------------
At Issue: Non-Muslim Properties Seized by the State
-------------- --------------

3.(U) Churches and other non-State religious institutions
have no legal personality in Turkey and cannot therefore own
property in their own right. For this reason, religious
community properties such as churches, monasteries, and
schools tend to be owned by Religious Community Foundations
that come under the authority of the Directorate General of

Foundations, or "Vakiflar". Although Article 40 of the 1923
Lausanne Treaty granted religious minority communities the
right to independently administer their own foundations, the
Turkish state has regularly intervened in the management of
these foundations.

4.(U) In 1936, the GOT required foundations to declare all
their properties in a land registry. In 1974, amidst
mounting tensions over Cyprus, the Turkish High Court of
Appeals (the "Yargitay") issued a ruling that minority
religious foundations had no right to acquire properties
beyond those listed in the 1936 declarations. The State
subsequently seized control of properties acquired after

1936. The ruling also allowed the State to confiscate
property, including those declared in 1936, under certain
conditions. Most of the expropriated properties belonged to
the Greek Orthodox and Armenian Orthodox foundations. The
properties included not only churches but also
rent-generating assets such as apartment buildings.

--------------
GOT Hails New Law As Human Rights Advance
--------------

5.(U) In a November 16 meeting, Vakiflar DDG for Foundations
Burhan Ersoy hailed the new law as a great step forward for
minority rights in Turkey. Ersoy said the law facilitates
the return of properties by establishing an 18-month period
for foundations to apply to recover properties listed in the
1936 declaration and then expropriated by the State. The law
will also significantly ease administrative restrictions on
foundations, Ersoy told us, by allowing foundations to
acquire, exchange, and dispose of properties without
governmental permission, and to establish corporations to
help them to carry out investment activity.


ANKARA 00006529 002 OF 003


--------------
EU Says New Law Is A Vast Improvement
--------------

6.(C) EU Commission representatives in Turkey told us that
their initial view is that the new law is significantly
better than prior draft laws. Sema Kilicer, political
officer at the Commission's Delegation to Turkey, said a main
advance is that the law is not limited to the three
"traditional" minorities (Jewish, Armenian Christian, and
Greek Orthodox) but applies to Chaldeans, Bahai's, and all
other groups. The new law also gives foundations more leeway
in managing their properties, makes it easier to recover some
expropriated properties, and will allow foundations to
legally amend their Charter's purpose, Kilicer told us. The
latter, she said, should prevent the GOT from continuing its
practice of seizing foundation property when it determined a
foundation was not pursuing its original purpose. Kilicer
believes the law makes such significant concessions to
religious minorities that she expects President Sezer to veto
it.

--------------
Minority Communities Expected More
--------------

7.(SBU) Minority communities have consistently complained
about the GOT's lack of effort to resolve this longstanding
problem (see reftels). The new law, according to our
minority communities contacts, makes more progress than past
efforts but fails to accomplish the more sweeping overhaul
for which they had hoped. Although minority community
attorneys are still analyzing the new law, there is general
consensus as to the major shortcomings, summarized in para 8.

--------------
Summary of Law's Shortcomings
--------------

8.(SBU) Properties Seized Prior to 1936: There is no
provision in the new law for reversing allegedly arbitrary
State decisions to confiscate foundations' properties
declared prior to 1936. According to minority communities,
properties associated with these foundations make up the bulk
of the properties seized by the State.

9.(SBU) Properties Sold to Third Parties: The law is silent
on the issue of properties expropriated by the State and then
sold to third parties. Minority communities say that there
are many such properties for which they will not be
economically compensated.

10.(SBU) "Fused" Foundations: The GOT has long followed the
practice of taking administrative control of, or "fusing",
foundations for which there are no descendants of the
original founders or trustees. Minority communities say that
the GOT often arbitrarily and without proper evidence "fused"
(also known as "Mazbut") foundations. The new law does not
allow communities to recover "fused" foundations.

11.(SBU) Council: The 15-member Vakiflar Council, the
highest decision-making body overseeing the foundations,
would include one member (previously there were none) elected
by the "non-Muslim" foundations. The law does not specify
how that one member would be chosen. Attorneys for the
Christian and Jewish communities maintain that one member
cannot represent the various religious minority communities.
They had urged the GOT to include six representatives elected
by religious minority communities with foundations.

12.(C) Comment: Under pressure from the EU, the ruling
Justice and Development Party (AKP),pushed through this
legislation despite vigorous opposition from those who argued
that any expansion of minority rights would threaten the
Turkish State. The CHP hurled accusations that the AKP was
making concessions without seeking reciprocal steps from
Greece, in violation of the Lausanne Treaty. As a result of
exhaustive CHP lobbying, certain elements were eventually
watered down. Although the law is imperfect, and falls short
of EU and minority communities' high hopes, it goes
significantly further than past efforts. One government

ANKARA 00006529 003 OF 003


official candidly told us it was as far as the GOT could go
-- for now. Post will continue to press for further changes.
In the interim, the new law will likely provide Turkey a
much-needed, if measured, boost as it awaits a decision on
its accession status at the EU Summit in mid-December. End
comment.

Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/

WILSON