Turkiye commission to begin drafting new constitution

A commission of legal experts from Turkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) will begin drafting a new constitution beginning on June 4. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appointed the commission last week, arguing that Turkiye’s constitution was outdated and in need of reform.

Constitutional reform comes amidst fears that Erdogan is continuing to consolidate power. Erdogan has served as president since 2014, and before that served as the prime minister for ten years. Under the current constitution, Erdogan is ineligible to run for office after his current term ends in 2028. In March, authorities arrested Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the leading opposition figure who was seen as a likely (and popular) challenger to the AKP in 2028. Critics have claimed that the amended constitution will allow Erdogan to run again, without a viable opposition candidate running against him.

The AKP does not have enough parliamentary support to ratify a new constitution, meaning that Erdogan will need to build a coalition with other parties. Observers have interpreted Erdogan’s recent olive branch to pro-Kurdish groups (including the left-wing DEM Party) as an attempt to shore up support for the new constitution. However, disagreements between the AKP and the DEM parties are already surfacing; last Saturday, the DEM rejected a series of judicial reforms that omitted amnesty for Kurdish political prisoners. This, coupled with the already-significant protests against the arrest of Ekrem Imamoglu, greatly increase the chances that the constitutional committee will trigger even greater unrest in Turkiye.