Turkey
Huda Par leader Zekeriya Yapicioglu speaking to Rudaw on September 18, 2024. Photo: Rudaw/screengrab
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The leader of the Kurdish Islamist Free Cause Party (Huda Par) on Wednesday said that amending the constitution should be a right of members of the parliament, reiterating the need to have a discussion on non-amendable articles.
Huda Par leader Zekeriya Yapicioglu’s comments about Article 4 of the Turkish constitution have sparked political controversy. The lawmaker has said that the article should not be in the constitution, because it “is putting a mortgage on the will of future generations.”
The first three articles of the constitution define Turkey as a democratic, secular, and social republic. It also sets Turkish as the official language of the state, adding that Turkey “with its territory and nation, is an indivisible entity.”
Article 4 states the provisions of the first three articles “shall not be amended, nor shall their amendment be proposed.”
“According to political science and legal science, changing the constitution is the right of members of parliament,” Yapicioglu told Rudaw’s Hevidar Zana. “As an MP, I wanted the points that prevent the amendment of the constitution to be discussed. In particular, I wanted to discuss Article 4, which prevents the amendment of the constitution. After that, the attacks began.”
Following his win in last year’s election, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been openly critical of the constitution and said it is time for a new one. The current Turkish constitution was created in 1982 following a military coup. Despite amendments made in 2017 that swapped the country’s parliamentary system for a presidential one, Erdogan remains unhappy with what he has labeled the “1982 coup constitution.”
“Does an MP have the right to amend the constitution or not? Can an MP prepare a new constitution or not? Or can only soldiers stage a coup and prepare a new constitution?” posited the Huda Par leader, adding that they are seeking to eliminate articles contradicting the beliefs of the people.
Yapicioglu also touched on how the current constitution prohibits minorities, including Kurds, from studying in their native language, and the need to provide this “natural right.”
Article 66 of the constitution states that all citizens of Turkey are Turks.
“As long as this constitution remains like this, no one can talk about federalism and autonomy, and no one can talk about Article 66 of the constitution. Now in Turkey, no one can change the constitution and open this discussion,” said Yapicioglu, claiming that even if the parliament moves forward with the previously-suggested amendments, it would not resolve the country’s problems, because the constitution is in need of a complete change.
Huda Par leader Zekeriya Yapicioglu’s comments about Article 4 of the Turkish constitution have sparked political controversy. The lawmaker has said that the article should not be in the constitution, because it “is putting a mortgage on the will of future generations.”
The first three articles of the constitution define Turkey as a democratic, secular, and social republic. It also sets Turkish as the official language of the state, adding that Turkey “with its territory and nation, is an indivisible entity.”
Article 4 states the provisions of the first three articles “shall not be amended, nor shall their amendment be proposed.”
“According to political science and legal science, changing the constitution is the right of members of parliament,” Yapicioglu told Rudaw’s Hevidar Zana. “As an MP, I wanted the points that prevent the amendment of the constitution to be discussed. In particular, I wanted to discuss Article 4, which prevents the amendment of the constitution. After that, the attacks began.”
Following his win in last year’s election, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been openly critical of the constitution and said it is time for a new one. The current Turkish constitution was created in 1982 following a military coup. Despite amendments made in 2017 that swapped the country’s parliamentary system for a presidential one, Erdogan remains unhappy with what he has labeled the “1982 coup constitution.”
“Does an MP have the right to amend the constitution or not? Can an MP prepare a new constitution or not? Or can only soldiers stage a coup and prepare a new constitution?” posited the Huda Par leader, adding that they are seeking to eliminate articles contradicting the beliefs of the people.
Yapicioglu also touched on how the current constitution prohibits minorities, including Kurds, from studying in their native language, and the need to provide this “natural right.”
Article 66 of the constitution states that all citizens of Turkey are Turks.
“As long as this constitution remains like this, no one can talk about federalism and autonomy, and no one can talk about Article 66 of the constitution. Now in Turkey, no one can change the constitution and open this discussion,” said Yapicioglu, claiming that even if the parliament moves forward with the previously-suggested amendments, it would not resolve the country’s problems, because the constitution is in need of a complete change.
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