Turkey’s opposition to campaign against constitutional reforms ahead of September vote

Turkish opposition to fight constitutional reforms

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s pro-secular opposition vowed Thursday to campaign for a “no” vote in a September referendum on constitutional reforms that it fears will increase the Islamic-oriented government’s power over the judiciary.

The comments came a day after Turkey’s highest court rejected the opposition’s attempt to get the reforms canceled and approved a Sept. 12 referendum.

“We will say ‘no’ to these constitutional changes,” Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the new leader of the opposition Republican People’s Party told party supporters.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government insists the amendments will strengthen democracy, expand the rights of women and children and enshrine the right to privacy.

The reforms, which include putting military commanders before civilian courts and giving parliament a say in appointing judges, were approved in parliament in May. They failed to get sufficient votes to be adopted outright, but enough for them to be decided by a referendum.

The court made slight adjustments to two fiercely contested measures that the opposition says will reduce the independence of the courts. But the party said the adjustments did not go far enough.

“The Constitutional Court’s ruling did not satisfy our demands,” Kilicdaroglu said.

The opposition accuses the government of trying to dilute the independence of the courts — including the Constitutional Court — by giving parliament or the president more say in the appointment of justices as well as members of a council that oversees judges and prosecutors.

Erdogan’s party commands a majority in parliament while the president is a former ally.

Erdogan’s party narrowly escaped a ban by the Constitutional Court for allegedly undermining secularism in 2008. The opposition fears that if the amendments become law the party will be able to operate unchecked.

Turkey’s secular establishment, which draws support from the military and judiciary, has long accused Erdogan’s party of trying to increase Islam’s profile in the country — a charge the governing party denies. Erdogan’s government, meanwhile, has championed EU-backed reforms.

The proposed changes to the Constitution — a legacy of Turkey’s 1980 military coup — include increasing the number of Constitutional Court justices to 17 from 11, and giving parliament the power to appoint three of them.

A council that oversees prosecutors and judges nationwide would also increase to 22 members, from seven, and four of the members would be appointed by the president.

Those accused of committing crimes against the state, including military officers who are suspects, would be tried in civilian courts if the proposed changes are approved. Officers fired from the army for alleged links to radical Islamic or other groups would be able to appeal.