Turkish Court Orders Retrial of Activists

An appeal to quash convictions for subversion failed in April this year, prompting a fierce rebuke from Brussels, which declared that all political prisoners must be released before Turkey can begin negotiations to join the EU. Zana was later released after it emerged that procedural flaws dogged the initial retrial, pending further legal action. The case will now be tried in a recently established court free from the military influence of the State Security Court which hosted the original case. A Commission report on the country’s readiness to join the Union is expected in the fall. (EUobserver.com)