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Europe
Turkey |
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| Last reviewed: 27 January 2009 |
Country information
POLITICS
Recent Political Developments
Presidential elections were originally arranged for April 2007, but the AK Party candidate Abdullah Gul's presidential candidacy was strongly opposed by the opposition party CH Party, because of Gul’s supposed background in political Islam. The role of President has often been held by the secular establishment, and so the CH Party refused to attend the voting. The failure of Parliament to elect a President precipitated early parliamentary elections on 22 July 2007.
The governing AK Party were re-elected by popular vote, and gained a solid majority of seats. The official results were as follows:
- Justice and Development Party (AKP): 46.5% (341 seats)
- Republican People's Party (CHP): 20.9% (112 seats)
- Nationalist Action Party (MHP): 14.3% (70 seats)
- Independent Candidates: 5.3% (26 seats)
Following the parliamentary elections, AK Party candidate and former Foreign Minister, Abdullah Gul was elected President by the new parliament on 28 August 2007.
In October 2007, the UK-Turkey Strategic Partnership was signed in London by both Prime Ministers. This document outlines the key areas of UK-Turkish co-operation, including regional stability, bilateral trade and Turkey’s EU accession.
In February 2008, the government introduced constitutional changes aimed at lifting the ban on women’s right to wear the headscarf in universities while outlawing more extreme forms of Islamic dress such as the veil. The right of women to wear the headscarf is one of the most debated issues in Turkish politics. It is directly related to the ongoing divide between secularists and Islamists in Turkey. The opposition CH Party challenged these changes in the Constitutional Court, arguing that they threaten the secular nature of the state, and this challenge was upheld by the Court. There remains a de facto ban on the wearing of head scarves in the civil service and universities.
On 14 March 2008, the Chief Prosecutor of the Appeals Court filed an indictment at the Constitutional Court for closure of the AKP. He accused the AKP of violating secular principles and demanded a five-year ban from involvement in politics for 71 prominent AKP figures, including Prime Minister Erdogan and President Gul (the inclusion of Gul was particularly controversial as the President is politically neutral and can only be indicted for treason). Since 1970 24 political parties have been closed including the AKP’s predecessor parties, the Welfare Party (1998) and the Virtue Party (2001), both closed for ‘threatening the secular order’.
On 30 July the Constitutional Court decided to only impose a fine on the AK Party, thus allowing them to remain in government and thus respecting the democratic choice of the majority of Turks who had voted for them in 2007.
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Contacts
Address:
Embassy of the Republic of Turkey
43 Belgrave Square
London SW1X 8PA
Consulate General
Rutland Lodge
Rutland Gardens
London SW7 1BW
Telephone:
(020) 7393 0202 (Switchboard)
(020) 7393 0222 (Ambassador's Office)
020 7235 1959 (Military)
(020) 7235 6968 (Press)
(020) 7235 4991 (Commercial)
(020) 7235 2743 (Economic)
(020) 7245 6318 (Financial & Customs)
(020) 7839 7778 (Cultural and Information)
(020) 7724 1511 (Education)
(020) 7823 1632 (Religious Affairs)
(020) 7591 6900 (Consulate General)
Fax:
(020) 7393 9213 (Ambassador's Office)
(020) 7393 0066 (Chancery)
(020) 7591 6922 (Consulate General)
Email:
turkish.emb@btclick.com
Email:
turkishconsulate@btconnect.com
Website:
www.turkishembassylondon.org
Website:
www.turkishconsulate.org.uk
Office hours: