Gov’t to bring reform package to Parliament in a week

AK Party Deputy Chairman Salih Kapusuz, speaking to Today's Zaman, said the need for a new and civilian constitution has become evident, while noting that the government would press ahead with a constitutional reform package as soon as possible.

The package will be sent to Parliament within a week and a referendum is likely to be held in March. Last week, the Constitutional Court overturned a reform package approved by President Abdullah Gül last year that requires civilian courts to try members of the military in peacetime.

The law, aimed at meeting European Union membership criteria, gave civilian courts the power to prosecute military personnel accused of crimes against national security, constitutional violations and attempts to topple the government during peacetime for the first time.

Turkey’s secular opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) challenged the law in the Constitutional Court, however.

Taking into consideration the fact that narrow-scoped constitutional reform will not meet Turkey’s democratization demands, the government has decided to press for radical constitutional amendments. AK Party parliamentary group deputy chairman Bekir Bozdağ said Turkey’s need for a new and civilian constitution was increasing day by day, noting that the government was trying to give the final shape to the constitutional reform package.

“Amendments will certainly be made this year,” he added. The AK Party’s reform package is expected to be made up of 22 articles. The articles in the package will be on issues which exist in the party programs of all the parties. After the passage of this package, the government has plans to bring a 175-article new and civilian constitution package to Parliament this week.

If the AK Party fails to ensure that the constitutional reforms are passed before the general elections of 2011, it will explain the obstacles facing change in Turkey to the public.

The AK Party’s Burhan Kuzu, who is the head of the Parliament’s Constitution Commission, said the 22-article reform package will include legislation that will open the way for members of the military to be tried in civilian courts. With an amendment to the 145th article of the Constitution, members of the military will be tried in civilian courts for crimes not related to their military profession.

Kuzu described the Constitutional Court’s decision on military tribunals last week as a “wrong decision,” while noting that such court decisions were proving how much Turkey is need of a new and civilian constitution. “It has become indispensable for the government to bring the new constitution to Parliament,” he said.

22-article package ready

According to the new package, the AK Party plans to amend the conditions required for party closures, taking into consideration the criteria set by the Venice Commission, according to which only parties that openly support violence are subject to closure. The AK Party also aims to reduce the 10 percent threshold for political parties to be represented in Parliament to 1 percent.

Another article in the package will be on the terms of the president and Parliament. Parliament’s term will be set at four years while the president’s term will be set at five years.

In line with changes planned for the Political Parties Law, there are also changes planned for the organizational structure of the Constitutional Court, which hears political party closure cases. Under the new law, ordinary citizens will be given the right to individually apply to the Constitutional Court. The number of judges on the panel of the court will be raised to from 11 to 18 and a bicameral structure will be formed.

Some other topics to be covered in the constitutional package are the establishment of a committee on political ethics, the right of civil servants to engage in collective bargaining and go on strike and the protection of personal data.

Another article to be included in the package will be on measures against child abuse.