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News & Comment
Why did the Constitutional Conciliation Committee Dissolve?
News
AKP Deputy chairman Omer Celik announced that the third meeting of the Constitutional Committee planning a new constitution dissolved. (Source: Agencies)
Comment
AKP Deputy chairman Omer Celik held a press conference declaring the reasons for the Constitutional Committee's dissolution, whereby his following statements were quite remarkable: "The CHP wants to create an atmosphere of regime change," and he continued, "The AKP proposes a legitimate system for the agenda. CHP still acts upon a single-party mentality. They can't get rid of this mindset." These words constitute the centre of the reason of the commission's dissolution. Scanning our memories and going back a little further, then the words of Burhan Kuzu, who was the head of the constitutional commission set up in 2011, will shed light on today. Kuzu said, "The Parliamentary system is a straitjacket," and added, "This system is a scourge laid upon us by the Brits." And he continued, "This is a rotten model of the British. The Brits have scourged the world with this system." Now it will become easier to understand why the CHP fled or was made to flee the table. The question here should be, "Did the CHP flee the table or did the AKP make it to flee." According to Omer Celik's explanations, the CHP sabotaged the process; while according to the CHP's claims, the process was sabotaged by the AKP's persistent attitude towards the presidential system. It is a fact that the Ottoman State adapted the parliamentary system as a result of Britain's plots and political manoeuvres, and entered a period of dispersion, leading to its collapse and eventually to the extinction of an entire great state. Therefore, the British parliamentary system substantially caused the ruin of the Uthmani Khilafah "Caliphate" State.
Implementing the parliamentary system, alongside the establishment of the Republic of Turkey, the British somehow managed to preserve their survival until now. Whenever they felt or saw a danger on this issue, they immediately ensured their own survival and system through a coup d’état. And the current constitution of 1982 provided the British a serious political manoeuvring.
However with AKP coming to power, this manoeuvring area narrowed. And the situation for the British worsened day by day. Hence they lost their position here, and still continue to lose it. The time, when the AKP manages to change the constitution and thus to replace the British parliamentary system with the American presidential system, that time will be signing the British's death warrant. Therefore my previously asked question gains even more sense. In that case, the CHP might have seen such a danger, and upon its master's order, it might have overturned the table intentionally and thus sabotaged the process. Or the AKP might have anticipated the CHP's intention, and aimed to put the CHP in the situation of being the deal breaker, and thus might have sabotaged the process itself. However, alongside bearing in mind these possibilities, I have a different view on this issue. Just as it was the case in 2011, the parties in fact knew that this commission was not going to produce a new constitution. Nevertheless they came together to deliver a message to the people. As a consequence - just like after the June 1 elections during the coalition talks - the AKP managed to manipulate the process and became the side toppling the coalition table. Just as with the constitutional conciliation commission. Therefore - Allah knows - in my opinion the AKP holds a finished constitution at the moment. It is very probable that it will want to push through its own constitution by the means of a referendum in autumn or the end of 2016.
Indeed, just as President Erdogan somehow succeeded in the November 1 elections, he will want to succeed by conducting a referendum for the constitution and the presidential system by hook or by crook. Will he have success? Let's wait and see.
Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut-Tahrir
Yılmaz ÇELİK