ANKARA, Aug 31: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged on Friday to draft a new, liberal constitution and focus on reforms that would strengthen both the economy and Ankara's bid to join the European Union.
Presenting his new government's five-year programme to parliament, Erdogan said reforms would continue “at a rapid pace” regardless of progress in EU accession talks.
Turkey's bid is “a reconstruction process that is raising Turkey's political, economic and social standards,” he said.
Relations between Turkey and the EU, Erdogan said, are “of great significance in easing tensions that threaten global peace and expanding cooperation in risk areas such as international terrorism, cultural confrontation and energy security.” His government will also draft a new constitution that will “protect individual rights in the most efficient manner and bring basic rights and freedoms in line” with universal standards, he said.
Erdogan's governing Justice and Development Party (AKP) has already started work on drafting a new constitution to replace the current one, which is the legacy of a military coup in 1980.
The 1980 constitution has been amended several times but its many critics say a fundamental overhaul is needed to stamp out its authoritarian spirit and bring it in line with contemporary standards of democracy.
One planned amendment, media reports say, would allow cashiered military men to appeal against their expulsions, a move likely to irk the military which is already mistrustful of the AKP because of its Islamist roots.
Soldiers suspected of Islamist activities are routinely cashiered and have no right of appeal under current legislation.
Erdogan also pledged “zero” tolerance of torture and other human rights violations.
Turkey began accession negotiations with the EU in 2005, but Brussels froze the talks last year in eight of the 35 policy areas candidates must complete.
The move was a response to Ankara's refusal to grant trade privileges to
EU-member Cyprus, which it does not recognize.
The talks have also snagged on strong opposition in some EU countries, notably France, to Muslim-majority Turkey obtaining full membership in the bloc.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday softened his stance, saying France would not block negotiations on Turkey's accession.
Erdogan said his government would stick to fiscal discipline and press ahead with policies aimed at reducing inflation, attracting more direct foreign investment and speeding up privatisation.
He promised measures to decrease the tax burden on employers as a means of reducing unemployment and battling Turkey's giant underground economy.
The AKP, which has its roots in a banned Islamist party, won a landslide victory in snap elections last month, prompted by a political crisis over its presidential candidate, Abdullah Gul, a former Islamist who was elected head of state this week.
The AKP has disowned its religious past and pledged commitment to secularism and democracy.
Erdogan's new government is expected to formally assume office after a confidence vote in parliament on Wednesday, which it is expected easily win.—AFP