THE COMPELLING CASE OF TURKEY’S CONSTITUTION
By Liam Hardy

Today’s Zaman
Dec 15 2008
Turkey

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Turkish Foreign Minister and chief negotiator for
the EU Ali Babacan, speaking at a NATO foreign ministers meeting two
weeks ago, mentioned that the Turkish Constitution as it stands now
will not help Turkey move forward with its reform agenda.

This resonates with a statement made in September by EU Commissioner
for Enlargement Olli Rehn that constitutional reform would greatly
accelerate Turkey’s EU accession process and could "break the cycle"
of political crises in the country — such as last year’s presidential
election crisis and this year’s Constitutional Court case to disband
the ruling political party.

Although debate over changing the Constitution has waned immensely
over the past year, Babacan has rightly called attention to an issue
that has important implications for Turkey. The current Constitution,
which was implemented under Turkish military rule in 1982, has caused
some serious headaches. Many elements within Turkey argue that the
current Constitution limits basic rights and freedoms, including the
freedom of speech, religious expression and association.

Both for internal steadiness as well as greater EU compatibility,
debate has focused in the past on creating a new constitution that
functions more democratically and better ensures the rights and
freedoms of all Turkish citizens. A renewed energy must emerge from
Turkey’s political parties and civil society for action to take place
anytime soon. However, recent history and the government’s current
workload also make this a challenging task.

Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) made an
effort to draft a new constitution after the 2007 elections, but the
party made some serious missteps. They attempted to create a draft in
secrecy without involving other political parties or institutions. The
draft was then leaked to the press.

Soon thereafter, the constitutional amendments to allow headscarves
in universities and the trial charging the AK Party for violating
secularism created a major distraction. Meanwhile, other events have
taken center stage: increased violence from the Kurdistan Workers’
Party (PKK), the Russia-Georgia conflict, renewed ties with Armenia,
mediation between Syria and Israel, the global economic crisis and
the scandal surrounding the clandestine group Ergenekon, which some
allege was plotting a coup and others believe was an excuse used by
the government to arrest its critics.

As a result, debate over a new constitution has been sitting on
the shelf.

More conservative Turks have argued that the current Constitution
has been amended so frequently (79 articles have been changed and 13
amendments added in 26 years), that only some additional amendments
would be necessary. Others, particularly in academia and civil society,
insist that a constitutional convention should be called and a complete
revision generated, claiming that the spirit of the document needs
to be renewed.

A new draft would most likely strengthen the parliamentary system,
reduce powers of the presidency, reform the judicial process and
clearly define individual freedoms.

An attempt to renew Turkey’s Constitution could be as daunting, and
perhaps as dangerous, as open heart surgery. However, many sectors
of society have been calling for change, claiming that Turkey
has progressed far beyond its days of military rule and that its
Constitution must reflect this.

Yet, convincing political leaders that such reforms are necessary
sooner rather than later, and sustaining the political will to
carry them out, will be challenging. Still stinging from the
embarrassment of the recent attempts to change the Constitution,
those in power are unlikely to risk taking up this issue again in the
near future. Additionally, there are many regional issues involving
Turkey that will keep the government occupied.

However, judging from the comments of Foreign Minister Babacan and
other leaders, addressing challenges and moving ahead with reforms
must be done within a solid constitutional framework, and a renewed
and vibrant debate over the Constitution would be healthy for Turkey’s
future.

*Liam Hardy is an independent researcher on issues related to Turkey
and the region. This article was written for the Common Ground News
Service (CGNews).