Turkey’s Constitutional Reform Package Erdogan’s Step on Path toward Authoritarianism
TEHRAN(basirat) :The new reform package shows that the country is moving toward authoritarianism more than any time before. The interesting point is that under the new mechanism, which still has to be put to a national referendum for final approval, Erdogan would be allowed to serve two five-year tenures in office, meaning he could be leading Turkey until 2029
Turkey's Constitution has undergone major amendments in 1924, 1961, and 1982. The changes were all made in an undemocratic atmosphere and without taking into account the Turkish nation’s demands. During those years, the amendments to the Constitution were endorsed not by the Turkish parliament and lawmakers but by certain groups that considered themselves to be upholders of people’s rights.
Although Turkey’s new constitution bill is under discussion at the parliament, which now is different from previous times, but it seems that results and changes will be the same and will add to President Recep Tayyib Erdogan’s authoritarian and totalitarian power.
Under the 18-article bill, which was passed recently at the parliament, the new reforms would be another step on the path towards an executive presidency. In fact, Turkey would be taken away from its current parliamentary system. Accordingly, the position of prime minister, which once was one of the most important executive positions in the country, will be dissolved and the president and his deputy will be given new powers to draft legislation directly, pick ministers, without parliament’s vote confidence, and rule the ruling party and the country.
Erdogan could deal with the annual budget, removal of the Council of Ministers and the judicial system, regulations on presidential and parliamentary elections, and a provision that allows the president to retain ties to his or her political party.
Moreover, the number of parliamentarians will be increased from 550 to 600, the minimum age to be a lawmaker will be lowered to 18 from 25, and parliamentary and presidential elections will be held together every five years.
Under the new reforms, it would be more tough for the parliament to remove the president and his government by calling for a no confidence vote.
The new reform package shows that the country is moving toward authoritarianism more than any time before. The interesting point is that under the new mechanism, which still has to be put to a national referendum for final approval, Erdogan would be allowed to serve two five-year tenures in office, meaning he could be leading Turkey until 2029. Therefore, Turkish presidency no longer seems to be just a formality.
The constitutional reform is also an indication that Erdogan wants everything for himself and has the intention to be an authoritarian president who can retain his political party and respond to no organization. As a result, the controversial move has drawn opposition across the country by different parties which believe the reforms would pave the way for more tyranny and totalitarianism in Turkey.
Leaders of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) have expressed strong opposition to the changes, saying the reforms would place absolute power in the hands of the country's president and would be just the beginning of "Erdogan’s Dictatorship”.
However, the AKP and far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) maintain that constitutional amendments will create a strong executive leadership contrary to the fragile coalition governments of the past. They believe expansion of president’s authorities would help him better counter potential crises in the future and that opposition parties can no longer disrupt the executive system’s measures aimed at tackling future problems.
It seems, nevertheless, that Erdogan has the required power to affect Turkey’s political structure despite opposition dissent. The only issue that here needs to be addressed would be a national referendum for final approval. Although Erdogan will have tough path ahead to win the Turkish nation’s vote but he has proved that he is able to change the public opinion for his own benefit via resorting to propaganda campaigns and security measures.
Therefore, there is a high possibility that people will vote in favor of the new constitutional reform package and change the country’s current parliamentary system to a presidential one. This could lead to more personal authoritarianism and partisanship in Turkey.
