The head of Turkey’s Constitutional Court has said he fears it may have to rule on planned judicial reforms that are straining ties between the Islamic-leaning government and the secular establishment.
His comments, published yesterday, will be seen as a warning to prime minister Tayyip Erdogan to seek consensus and tread carefully in a political atmosphere already charged by the detention last week of dozens of military officers suspected of plotting a coup.
The armed forces and the judiciary are the pillars of Turkey’s secular system, while the ruling AK Party has roots in political Islam.
Although Mr Erdogan has not yet unveiled his plans for reforms, rival parties and much of the judiciary have indicated their opposition. Mr Erdogan has said he will take his reforms to parliament and seek to push them through by referendum if they are blocked.
In a vote late yesterday, the AK Party-controlled parliament voted as expected to bring forward the deadline, to 60 days from 120, for a referendum to be held once it has been approved by lawmakers.
The reforms are likely to aim to curb judges’ powers and make it harder to ban political parties, after Mr Erdogan’s party narrowly avoided being outlawed by the Constitutional Court in 2008 for anti-secular activities.
The Hurriyet newspaper reported that court chairman Hasim Kilic said Turkey needed serious constitutional reform, but that it must be achieved through a broad consensus.
“Initiatives to change the constitution in Turkey in recent times have caused a lot of tension,” he said. “Turkey will sooner or later reach the target of being a country of law and democracy. But we are progressing along this path with very heavy damage.”
Turkey wants to improve its democratic credentials to support its bid for EU membership, and it has been encouraged to change laws that facilitate bans on political parties. President Abdullah Gul has invited opposition leaders for talks on the reforms.
Ahead of a meeting with Mr Gul yesterday, Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal threw down the gauntlet and warned of a court challenge to the planned reforms.
“If there are measures which quash the independence of the judiciary we will take it the Constitutional Court,” he was reported as saying by broadcaster CNN Turk.
Mr Erdogan has denied any intention to call an early election if a referendum is thwarted by the courts.
Since it came to power in 2002, the AK Party has repeatedly clashed with conservative, nationalist secularists who believe it aspires to make Turkey an Islamic state, which Mr Erdogan denies. There is speculation that chief prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalcinkaya could launch a fresh bid to ban the ruling party.