The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) is preparing to consult the Turkish public on a new constitution, which has gained momentum since last year’s general elections.
In addition to the contributions from experts and academics, the party is set to host public gatherings to take suggestions from ordinary citizens on new fundamental laws.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government has been pushing to overhaul Tükiye’s Constitution for over a decade now, which was enforced in 1982 following a military coup that led to the detention of hundreds of thousands of people along with mass trials, torture and executions, which still represents a dark period in Turkish political history.
Erdoğan insists the Turkish nation is “owed a civilian, libertarian and inclusive” new constitution, and his AK Party has a comprehensive draft prepared by a scientific council during the pandemic.
AK Party ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) also has a constitutional draft including over 100 articles.
The goal is to produce a final draft that utilizes the two parties’ preparations, as well as the opinions of the general public, which officials said could include clashing opinions and provide a valuable framework to find common ground.
When the new legislative term begins in October, the party will be launching a workshop to discuss a road map to a new constitution with the participation of academicians and legal experts.
Until then, aiming to persuade the public for a new constitution with a detailed action plan, AK Party officials will host public presentations outlining the gaps in the current constitution and the problems arising from these.
Officials believe expressing differing opinions in a participatory environment will generate the constructive debate required for making a new constitution.
The party, which wants an entirely new, civilian document, guarantees the new constitution will be long-term and the decision-maker’s fundamental goal is to preserve public interests at the highest level.
Since its founding, the modern Turkish state has been governed under four constitutions, with the first adopted in 1921, changing in 1924 and 1961 before the Constitution of 1982 was implemented.
The document has undergone nearly 20 amendments over the years to keep up with global and regional geopolitical conjectures. The most notable changes were introduced via referendums in 2010 by enabling the trialing of the 1980 coup plotters in civil courts and in 2017 by replacing the parliamentary system with an executive presidency.
The AK Party attempted an overhaul in 2007 when it employed a commission to produce a draft, but it was shelved upon heated criticism from the opposition. Since then, the party has been working on “stronger” material. Its proposed changes focused on freedom, the right to security, the right to a fair trial, freedom of speech and the rights of women and people with disabilities.
After meeting with most political parties over the past six months, Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş too has said the general consensus is positive towards a new constitution, although the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) “still remains far from the table.”
