Turkey prepares to vote in constitutional referendum

[eppur_se_muova]

Source: BBC

The people of Turkey are set to vote in a referendum on changing the nation's constitution.

The government wants to make a number of alterations that would bring the constitution more in line with the European Union's standards.

Some critics say the changes would give the government too much control over the judiciary, others that the process has been rushed.

Supporters of the move say the 28-year-old military constitution must change


Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11274027

[Judi Lynn]

1. Turkey votes in referendum to amend constitution

Source: Associated Press

Turkey votes in referendum to amend constitution
By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA
The Associated Press
Sunday, September 12, 2010; 5:46 AM

ISTANBUL -- Turks voted Sunday on whether to amend a military-era constitution in what the government says is a key step toward EU-style democracy, despite opposition claims that the proposed reforms would shackle the independence of the courts.

The referendum on 26 amendments to a constitution that was crafted after a 1980 military coup has become a battleground between the Islamic-oriented government and traditional power elites that believe Turkey's secular principles are under threat. The outcome will set the stage for elections next year in a strategically located NATO ally whose regional clout has surged in recent years.

Voting stations close at 4 p.m. (1300 GMT, 9 a.m. EDT) in eastern Turkey, and 5 p.m. (1400 GMT, 10 a.m. EDT) elsewhere in the country, with results expected in the evening. About 50 million Turks, or two-thirds of the population, were eligible to vote.

The day of the referendum evoked Turkey's traumatic past. It was the 30th anniversary of a coup that curbed years of political and street chaos but led to widespread arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings, and Kurdish militants launched a rebellion a few years later that continues today. The military's long shadow over Turkish politics has begun to wane only in the last few years.



Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/12/AR2010091200948.html

[Lasher]

2. It won't be good if this leads to a less secular government.

Not good at all.

[pampango]

3. BBC: Turkey votes on reforms to constitution

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11274027

The government says it wants to bring the constitution more in line with European Union standards. Opponents argue that the governing party, which has its roots in political Islam, is seeking dangerous levels of control over the judiciary.

The 26 amendments, many of them backed by the EU, are being presented to voters as improvements on the 1982 constitution, says the BBC's Jonathan Head in Istanbul.

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has argued the changes will strengthen Turkish democracy. But two are seen by the opposition as granting the government excessive influence over the judiciary.

In 2008, the AKP narrowly avoided being outlawed by the Constitutional Court for allegedly undermining Turkey's secular system. The AKP has clashed repeatedly with Turkey's highest courts, which see themselves as guardians of the country's secular values.