Origins

The EU Turkey Civic Commission(EUTCC) was established in November2004 by the Bar Human Rights Committee (UK), the Kurdish Human Rights Project (UK), medico international (Germany) and the Rafto Foundation (Norway), and supported by members of the European Parliament. It originatedas a result of the first international conference at the European Parliament on ‘The EU, Turkey and the Kurds’.

The EUTCC is registered in Belgium as a non-profit organization.

The work of the EUTCC

The mandate of the EUTCC is to promote the accession of Turkey as a member of the EU, and to help to guarantee respect for human and minority rights and a peaceful, democratic and long-term solution to the Kurdish situation.It achieves this by bringing together leading academics, writers, legal experts, human rights institutions and prominent Turkish and Kurdish intellectuals from all over the world to discuss and debate key issues and obstacles to accession.

The EUTCCmonitors and conducts regular audits of Turkey’s compliance with the accession criteria, as defined within the meaning of the accession agreements. It also makes recommendations, act as a point of contact, and exchanges information with the institutions of the EU and other governmental and non-governmental organizations, and disseminates accurate, objective information both in Turkey and Europe about the progress made by Turkey, but also about any shortcomings which may still persist.

Structure

Patrons

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, South Africa

Dr. Shirin Ebadi Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Iran

Leyla Zana European Parliament's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, Rafto Prize Laureate, Turkey

Bianca Jagger Council of Europe Goodwill Ambassador Chair of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation, UK

Professor Noam Chomsky Writer, USA

Yasar Kemal Writer, Turkey

Vedat Turkali Writer, Turkey

Board of Directors

Chair: Kariane Westrheim, PhD, Chairperson (Rafto Foundation Norway)

Secretary General: Michael Gunter, Professor, (United States)

Treasurer: Hans Branscheidt, Journalist and Writer, (medico International Germany)

Members:

  • Essa Moosa, Judge, Board of Directors (South Africa)
  • Jan Beghin, Brussels Parliament, Board of Directors (Belgium)

Advisory Council

John Austin,MP Labour, UK; Estella Schmidt, human rights activist, England; Dogu Ergil, Professor of Sociology, Turkey; Conny Fredriksson, Chairman of Socialist International Working Group on Kurdish issues, Sweden; Stuart Kerr, Solicitor, UK; Jean Lambert, MEP Green Party, UK; Sarah Ludford, MEP Liberal Democrat UK;Konrad Melchers, Dr., Editor of “Zeitschrift for Entwicklungspolitik”, Germany; Margaret Owen, Women and Children's Advocate for the Kurdish Human Rights Project and Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales UK; Denzil Potgieter, Senior Counsel, Cape Bar, South Africa; Jon Rud, Human Rights Lawyer, Spain; Prof. Wolf Dieter Narr, Lawyer and Adviser, Germany; Raimund Rütten, Professor, German Attac, European Social Forum, Germany; Alyn Smith, MEP Scottish Socialist Party UK; Reyhan Yalcindag, Vice-President of HRA, Turkey; Andrew Duff, MEP Liberal Democrat UK; Nicholas Hildyard, Policy Analyst, UK; Mark Thomas, Comedian and Broadcaster, UK; Lord Rea, House of Lords, UK; Hywel Williams, MP Plaid Cymru, Wales; Jill Evans, MEP Plaid Cymru, Wales; Hugo Charlton, Chair Green Party, UK; Desmond Fernandes, Political scientist, UK; Dogan Ozguden, Editor, Info-Turk, Belgium; Tove Skutnabb Kangas, Professor, Roskilde University, Dept. of Languages and Culture, Denmark; Robert Phillipson, Professor, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark; Stuart Kerr, human rights lawyer, England.