How Turkey voted for dictatorship!
Who is President Erdogan and how did he rise to power?
Recep Tayyip Erdogan was born in 1956 in Kasimpasa, Turkey. He entered politics in the 1980s and became the Mayor of Istanbul in 1984, winning praise for making the city cleaner and greener. His Welfare Party was shut down in 1997 and Erdogan was imprisoned for reading a controversial poem. In 2001 he founded the AKP party and won the elections in 2002, serving as the Prime Minister for 11 years. He became the country’s first elected President in 2014.
What was the referendum about?
Following a failed military coup in 2016, the AKP proposed 21 amendments to the constitution and began collecting signatures to move a referendum. After 3 of the proposals were withdrawn, the ruling party asked the voters to endorse an 18 Article package that would replace the current system of parliamentary democracy with executive presidency.
What was the result?
The “Yes” vote which was in support of the amendments, won by a narrow margin, with 51.5% of the votes with a voter turnout of over 80%. The vote has further polarized an already divided country reeling from the failed 2016 military coup that killed over 265 people and injured hundreds. EU leaders accuse Erdogan of compromising on freedoms, while he calls them “fascists” who are guilty of mistreating Turkey.
Why is the nation divided?
Proponents of the reform argue that a strong and clear leadership will address the security threat from Islamic State and PKK militants, kick-start a stagnant economy and stabilize the resurgence of a 30-year old conflict with the militants from Kurdish Workers’ Party. It will also do away with the “two headed system” where both- the President and Prime Minister are directly elected. Opponents say it is step towards constitutional dictatorship.
How does the referendum give dictatorial powers to the President?
The amendments will abolish the office of PM and make the president the sole executive, unanswerable to anybody. He will be able to be the leader of the party and choose cabinet ministers and civil servants and restructure the parliament without accountability. All laws will be forwarded to him for final approval but he can bypass the Parliament by issue of decrees. He will appoint half of the senior most judges. He has complete control over the country’s military force.
What does it mean for Turkey?
Opinions are split with some believing that Erdogan’s victory will put in place a strong, centralized leadership capable of effectively tackling Turkey’s problems while others call this “democratic suicide”. While some experts are of the opinion that this was the best outcome for Turkey as a loss would have meant prolonged instability, others feel that the weakening of the legislature and judiciary will prove to be detrimental in the coming days.
