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Key EU politicians urge participation in referendum
“Everybody having the opportunity to express themselves is a principle of democracy,” Oomen-Ruijten said in a written statement.
She also encouraged all citizens of Turkey to go to the ballot boxes. Oomen-Ruijten’s statement was apparently referring to the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party’s (BDP) stance concerning the referendum. The BDP is urging its followers to boycott the Sept. 12 referendum that looks to establish a mandate for constitutional amendments. But the BDP and also the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, are attempting to use the referendum as a bargaining tool by sending the message that if their demands are accepted, they may tell their supporters to vote in favor of the constitutional amendments. The BDP demands that the Turkish government halt military operations in Kurdish areas, release pro-Kurdish politicians arrested during security forces operations and accept Öcalan as an interlocutor, while lowering the election threshold below 10 percent.
Another key European politician, meanwhile, ruled out assumptions that the approval of the constitutional reform package would lead to a civilian dictatorship in Turkey – a candidate for EU membership. Johannes Swoboda, the vice president of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament, in a recent interview with the Austrian newspaper Der Standard, said he was unconvinced by allegations that the reform package was aimed at putting pressure on the high judiciary.
“I wished the CHP [main opposition Republican People’s Party] would reach reconciliation with the government via putting forth alternatives instead of putting forth these claims,” Swoboda was quoted as saying. Prospects of a civilian dictatorship are “not convincing,” Swoboda said, adding: “Here the basic question is: What the opposition has put forth?” He also underlined that the opposition parties should support the government in its efforts for EU membership, resolving the Kurdish issue and rapprochement with Armenia, instead of blocking such efforts.
Turkey’s Constitution, dating back to 1982, is a legacy of the coup d’état of Sept. 12, 1980, a military intervention that has had long-lasting implications for Turkey. Moves to change provisions protecting the generals behind the coup ended in misery for those involved. Attempts to pass a new and more democratic constitution have been blocked, and endeavors to limit the military’s control over politics -- the strongest legacy of the Sept. 12 coup -- have all failed. “The constitutional amendments are the first significant step for Turkey’s further democratization and modernization. The constitutional amendments will help increase the welfare of both Turkey and its people,” Oomen-Ruijten said.
Recalling that the constitutional reform package was adopted by Parliament and reviewed by the Constitutional Court, Oomen-Ruijten added: “Now, each citizen should clearly send a message. Each citizen should take the opportunity to say either ‘yes’ or ‘no’.”
At the time, Oomen-Ruijten had urged the CHP and all political parties to vote “yes” in the referendum. She called the referendum a unique chance to cooperate for the good of Turkish society, as neither the CHP nor the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) was satisfied with the outcome of the Constitutional Court’s consideration of the reform package.
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