Turkish government pushes to put presidential vote to the people

In an initial round of voting Monday, legislators voted in favor of holding presidential elections by popular vote and staging general elections every four years ??” the first step of the lengthy procedure to amend the constitution.

Parliament must approve the whole package, with a two-thirds majority, in two separate rounds of voting.

On Sunday, pro-secular lawmakers boycotted a parliamentary vote ??” for the second time in just over a week ??” on the ruling party's choice for president, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.

Gul then dropped his bid for the post, saying: "Parliament is deadlocked," and saying the vote must now go to the people.

At issue is the opposition's fear that Gul, as a member of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamic-rooted party, would allow religion to have an increasing influence on politics in this predominantly Muslim but secular country.

In Turkey, secularism is enshrined in the constitution and fiercely guarded by the judiciary and the powerful military.

Erdogan's party, which advocates European Union membership and has done more than many other governments to introduce Western reforms to Turkey, refutes the label "Islamist."

"We have worked harder than any party in Turkey's history to make Turkey a member of the EU," Gul told Newsweek magazine in the May 14 issue. "Why would we do this if we are trying to Islamize Turkey?"

But the issue has touched a nerve among pro-secular Turks. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets in recent weeks to protest the nominating of a candidate with Islamic leanings.

As the rift widened, Erdogan called early parliamentary elections, and proposed overcoming the deadlock in Parliament with a constitutional amendment allowing a popular vote for president.

Legislators from Erdogan's party have said that if the amendment is passed on time, Turkey could hold general and presidential elections on the same day, July 22.

However, President Ahmet Necdet Sezer has the power to veto the amendment and could even call for a referendum on it.

Sezer has publicly shared his concerns over the government's attempts to increase the profile of Islam in Turkey. The military also stepped into the debate, threatening to intervene to ensure that secularism is enforced.

On Monday, the government named independent officials to head three key ministries in the run-up to the July elections, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported. Law requires nonpartisan leaders for the justice, transport and interior ministries during campaigning.

Justice Minister Cemil Cicek was replaced by his undersecretary, Fahri Kasirga. Osman Gunes, the governor of the city of Kayseri, was named interior minister to replace instead Abdulkadir Aksu, and Transport Ministry Undersecretary Ismet Yilmaz replaced Binali Yildirim. The Associated Press

/The International Herald Tribune/