P.A. Turkey

Erdoğan: Economic and social problems should not take the new constitution efforts off the agenda

President Erdoğan spoke at the 156th foundation anniversary of the Council of State.

Giving a message of ‘détente’ and ‘civilian constitution’ in his speech, Erdoğan said that the talks between political parties would accelerate this process and that the constitutional debate should not “fall off the agenda due to social and economic problems”.

Emphasising that the state is strong to the extent that it ensures the manifestation of justice, Erdoğan said, “Without justice, there is no peace, no trust.”

Erdoğan argued that they trust in justice, but they have witnessed many injustices in recent years and mentioned the military coup on 27 May 1960 and the 28 February process.

Claiming that many regulations protecting citizens and speeding up the functioning of, are subjected to unfair accusations that exceed the limits of criticism. The judiciary is not beyond criticism. We can express our dissatisfaction with the judiciary. As long as it does not lead to insult, people can freely share their opinions.

“TALKS BETWEEN PARTIES ARE INTENSIFYING”

Repeating his call for a new constitution and claiming that this would be ‘a milestone’ in Turkish politics, Erdoğan concluded his speech as follows

“The future of our country can be built on more democracy, economic prosperity and security. Democracy is the basis of security and security is the guarantee of democracy. We have brought Turkey together with the biggest democracy steps in its history, but we could not prepare a new constitution drafted by civilians. This is the reason for our proposal for a new and civilian constitution.

We do not find it right that the political establishment wants to put the need for a civilian constitution off the agenda by citing economic and social problems. The intensification of consultative talks between different political parties with the softening in politics constitutes an important opportunity in this respect. We hope that Turkish politics will turn this opportunity into a permanent gain for our nation and democracy. We will continue to play our constructive role within the framework of the expectations of our nation.”