That is, if conciliation is achieved, the system will persist; but if it’s not resorted to, the system will be locked. Moreover the factor to determine this is neither people’s will nor law the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and a small faction in society acting around the CHP’s axis will have the final say. Therefore it will be beneficial to scrutinize this word and check to see for what purpose it is used in political polemics.In its lexical meaning, “conciliation” means harmony, compatibility, agreement or consensus -- namely, something on which people agree. It’s possible to achieve this state through a diverse set of methods and paths. The history of the new meaning of the word is not so old; we can say that it actually has a past of two months (though I don’t know if it’s possible to call two months “past”). As you will remember the CHP -- having settled the interpretation of Article 102 referred to in presidential races on a totally different level of meaning and purpose, claiming that a two-thirds majority was necessary to hold a session -- attempted to legitimize the claim by taking it to the Constitutional Court, attaching a whole new actual value to the term “conciliation.” Although the matter seems to be a legal one, it was actually a completely political one. The Constitutional Court made a decision at the speed of light, bewildering many experts, and found the CHP’s appeal valid, ruling that 367 deputies were the necessary quorum to “hold a session.” What’s more, it also made an interpretation and stated that 367 meant “conciliation in the presidential election.” As a result, when the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN) and the True Path Party (DYP) deputies joined the CHP in not attending Parliament, the president couldn’t be elected.
Because of this the general elections had to be held earlier than their scheduled time. In the July 22 elections, the AK Party the sought support from the people that would give it 367 deputies, and half of Turkey’s voters responded favorably. Immediately following the elections the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) (which has 70 deputies), the Democratic Society Party (DTP) independents and other independent deputies announced that they would be present in Parliament on the voting day. In this way, the “numerical conciliation” envisaged by the Constitutional Court was reached. In other words, except those from the CHP, all the deputies having decided to participate in the presidential elections means the quorum will have been reached. If the MHP and independent deputies don’t vote for Abdullah Gül, no harm will have been done to the process. Gül will be elected on the 24th or at worst on the 28th if not on Aug. 20, the date of the first gathering. There are no problems posed in regard to the legal shape of the procedure.
The political scene that formed after the elections is the best indicator of the fact that the CHP’s thesis wasn’t recognized at all. The CHP suffered a landslide defeat while ANAVATAN and the DYP disappeared from the political scene because they hadn’t participated in the presidential elections. However the CHP is trying to change the meaning of the term this time, rather than respecting the process by adopting as its principle respect for law. Now conciliation is no longer a legal term -- it means “a candidate compatible with CHP ideals.” The CHP wants someone in line with its political views to be elected. Otherwise it fiercely opposes any candidate without even knowing him, saying “no conciliation was reached.” There are neither legal nor political obstacles that could prevent Gül’s presidency. The AK Party emerged from the elections with a great victory by garnering 47 percent of the vote, and so this party, as well as its candidate, represents all segments of society. With the exception of the votes received by the AK Party, 85 percent of the population is represented in Parliament. In other words, there is no political weakness in question. The attempts to introduce an additional condition by putting forward the term “conciliation” are being used as a new means to block the system. Now everybody knows that what is meant by conciliation is definitely not agreement. The CHP is putting up a desperate resistance, though its chances of blocking the system are nearly nonexistent.
