Turkey's EU reform laws passed by parliament
Turkish MPs Vote for Kurdish TV
ISTANBUL, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The following list summarizes a package of reform laws approved by Turkey's parliament on Saturday in an important step towards meeting the criteria for joining the European Union.

Reformists hope passage of the laws will convince Brussels to set a date for membership talks later this year although the bloc may prefer to wait to see how they are implemented.

The package tackles sensitive issues such as abolishing the death penalty in peacetime and raising cultural rights for the country's Kurds, reforms opposed by nationalists who fear they could reignite troubles in Turkey's mostly-Kurdish southeast.

The following are the reforms passed by parliament which now only need the president's ratification to become law.

• Abolition of the death penalty: The death penalty will be removed from the civil code for all crimes other than those committed during times of war or near-war. People convicted of "terror crimes" will be imprisoned for life with no parole.

• Kurdish TV: Television programmes may be broadcast in languages other than Turkish but must not contravene principles of national sovereignty laid out in the constitution. The Higher Board of Radio and Television (RTUK) will act as regulator.

The Nationalist Action Party (MHP), and many nationalists in other parties, worry that allowing Kurdish broadcasts might encourage armed separatism in Turkey's mainly-Kurdish southeast. The step, which allows Kurdish TV on the condition it follows constitutional principles and does not incite violence, is partly a recognition that satellite technology means Turkey's ban on Kurdish-language broadcasts is impossible to enforce.

"We are doing a completely humanitarian thing here. Forget the European Union, we are doing the right thing here...The country will not be divided. This will be good for us," Islamist MP Mehmet Bekaroglu told the assembly during a calm and restrained debate of an often heated issue in Turkey.

Expatriot Turkish Kurds in Europe have been broadcasting via satellite to Turkey for years, much to the anger of the Turkish state, which accused the channels of acting as a mouthpiece for separatist rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

• Kurdish language education: Private schools may teach in languages other than Turkish provided they do not compromise constitutional principles. The Ministry of Education will be responsible for the courses' regulation.

• Freedom of speech: Punishment will no longer apply to written, vocal or pictorial criticism of the military, state institutions, parliament, the government, justice system or Turkish identity.

• Illegal immigration: Prison terms will be increased for people and organ smugglers or those aiding and abetting people smugglers, particularly if the lives of immigrants are endangered.

• Forced labour: Sentences of up to 10 years will be levied against persons found profiting from forced labour.

• Foundations: Curbs will be eased to allow religious and minority institutions to buy and sell property. Turkish foundations will be allowed to cooperate closely with similar institutions abroad and foundations abroad will be permitted to set up branches in Turkey with government permission.

• Non-governmental organizations: Laws governing the operation of local and foreign NGOs will be revised. Foreign NGOs will be permitted to operate in Turkey with government permission.

• Rights of assembly: Laws and regulations restricting public meetings and marches will be eased. Demonstrations will be permitted with 48-hour notification to the authorities.

• Laws of the press: Laws and regulating the press will be revised.

• Policing: Some laws and regulations defining the duties of the country's police force will be overhauled.