Constitutional Referendum in Turkey
Since the establishment of the Turkish Republic, four constitutions have been adopted (1921, 1924, 1961, and 1982), which were significantly amended by the successive parliaments in light of new developments, yet remained short of meeting universal democratic standards. The last two constitutions were drafted in the aftermath of military interventions, and none of them have been produced out of negotiation, bargaining or a compromise process. Within the framework of the EU reforms, Turkey’s most recent constitution of 1982 has been amended several times – so much so that almost one third of the constitution has been reconstructed. There have been demands for the drawing up of a new constitution from both right and left wing parties, but the idea has never been realized.
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Kılıçdaroğlu's CHP: What Lies Ahead?
The unexpected switch of the CHP’s leadership from Deniz Baykal to Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu led to a series of debates about the party’s political future and its new place in the party system of Turkey. Most of the debates have focused on what exactly changed and what remained the same as a result of this switch. Kılıçdaroğlu’s speeches revealed signs for new directions in CHP’s discourse indeed, as they included novel issues such as intra-party democracy and empowering the party’s women and youth branches. The purpose of this policy brief is to propose ideas to the CHP as a socialdemocratic party, so it can be a serious political alternative to the conservative AK Party. The CHP’s major target should be democratization to be achieved at two different levels: (a) institutional and (b) ideological. Institutional democratization requires establishing intra-party democracy, decentralization of power, as well as bringing ideological heterogeneity and political debates back to the party. Ideological democratization is about bringing ‘the left’ back to Turkish politics by embracing a progressive and social democratic discourse. This entails moving leftwards, a de-emphasis of nationalism and the adoption of a more egalitarian, less elitist, more libertarian, and more multiculturalist world vision.
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SETA PUBLIC LECTURE By Ş. İlgü Özler, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science and International Relations, State University of New York-New Paltz Date: January 14, 2010 Thursday Time: 11.00 – 12.30 Venue: SETA Foundation, Ankara
SETA D.C. PANEL Moderator: Kadir Üstün Doctoral Candidate at Columbia University Speakers: Taha Özhan Director-General of the SETA Foundation Ömer Taşpınar Brookings Institution Date: December 9, 2009 Venue: SETA D.C. 1025 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite #1106 Washington, D.C.
SETA D.C. PANEL Speakers: Taha Özhan (Moderator) Director-General of the SETA Foundation Cengiz Çandar Columnist, Radikal Newspaper Prof. Bülent Aras the SETA Foundation Prof. Fuat Keyman Koç University Date: December 8, 2009 Monday Venue: Grand Ballroom, Mayflower Hotel, Washington D.C.
SETA PUBLIC LECTURE By Ali T. Akarca Department of Economics, University of Illinois at Chicago Chair Talip Küçükcan SETA Date: June 23, 2009 Tuesday Time: 16.00 – 18.00 Venue: SETA Foundation, Ankara
Turkey, the Region and US-Turkish Relations: Assessing the Challenges and Prospects
A Brookings-SETA Policy Conference on Turkey University of California, Washington Center 1608 Rhode Island Ave, NW Tuesday, October 28, 2008
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Goal of Judicial Coup PM Erdoğan, Not AK Party
If there is one golden rule for understanding Turkish politics, it is this: You can never take anything for granted in Turkey. A case filed against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has come as a shock to many Turks as well as international observers.
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The debate over lifting the headscarf ban has turned into a larger debate about freedoms in Turkey. While the vast majority of Turks support the expansion of civil liberties, there seems to be a fundamental disagreement as to how freedoms should be prioritized. The problem with this is that until and unless the question of freedoms is taken as a whole, there will be no guarantee for civil liberties in Turkey.
A debate over the headscarf is revealing new dimensions of political discourse in Turkey. While conservatives and liberals use the universal language of basic rights and liberties, laicists use a heavily religious language to prove that the headscarf is not a religious obligation.
Turkey is deadlocked again over the headscarf issue. The matter is about more than lifting or enforcing the headscarf ban. As in all critical issues, it goes to the heart of the established order.
Last week Turkey witnessed a first. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan broke his fast with 1,000 Alevis in Ankara. The fast was in observance of the beginning of the month of Muharram.
Turkish President Abdullah Gül’s visit to the White House, his first such visit to the US as president and the first visit by a Turkish president in 11 years, comes at a time when US-Turkish relations have taken a new turn.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s visit to Ankara last Tuesday is important for the current state of Turkish-Iraqi relations. The visit focused on trade and security, and these are two crucial areas for both countries
The short-term winner of the July 22 elections is the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) but the big winner is the traditional periphery of Turkish society. The AK Party’s challenge now is to turn this victory into an asset for those who voted for the party. And this means electing a president who will not be a disappointment for the vast majority of the public.
The expectation from the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) when it came to power in 2002 was that political discussions would be shaped by internal agenda issues.
The deadlock created by the discussions on judicial independence and impartiality during the presidential election process and the extension of the discussions to the realm of fundamental rights and freedoms with a particular reference to the headscarf issue drew attention to what policy the AK Party would pursue to address these issues in the new term.
Opposition is one of the major elements in a democracy’s becoming institutionalized, putting down roots and developing in a healthy manner.
We’re only five weeks away from April 16, when the candidates for the new president of Turkey will be announced. According to the rules, the new president has to be elected within 10 days of April 16. While the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) continues to keep silent on its name(s), the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) is moving ahead under the assumption that Recep Tayyip Erdogan will have himself elected president.
