Turkey's main opposition party files for referendum annulmentAnkara, 18 April 2017 (MIA) - Turkey's prime minister on Tuesday called on the opposition to respect the result of a referendum that will give sweeping new powers to the office of the president, but the main opposition party formally requested the vote be annulled, AP reports.
Sunday's vote gave President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's "yes" camp a narrow win for constitutional changes that will abolish the office of the prime minister and convert Turkey's system of government from a parliamentary to a presidential one.
Bulent Tezcan, deputy chairman of the opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, said the party filed a formal request seeking the referendum be annulled due to voting irregularities. He said the party would use all legal paths to challenge the vote.
"We demand the cancellation of this referendum," Tezcan said.
The opposition has listed a series of irregularities, but has been particularly outraged by an electoral board decision announced late Sunday to accept ballots that didn't bear the official stamps used to verify they are genuine, as required by Turkish law. Monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, who also listed numerous problems, said the move undermined important election safeguards.
That drew a harsh rebuke from Erdogan and criticism from Prime Minister Binali Yildirim.
"Efforts to cast a shadow on the result of the vote by spreading rumors of fraud are futile and in vain," Yildirim said. "The will of the people was freely reflected into the ballot boxes and this business is over. Everyone and all sections — and the main opposition party in particular— must show respect. It is wrong to speak after the people have spoken."
Opposition CHP head Kemal Kilicdaroglu accused the electoral board of bias and of favoring the governing party.
"It is clear that the High Electoral Board is not receiving its power from the people, the law or the constitution but rather from a specific center, a specific political authority," he told his party's lawmakers during a speech in Ankara Tuesday. He accused the board of "changing the rules midgame."
In Ankara, hundreds of people were queuing outside the election board's offices to submit petitions requesting the board reverse its decision to accept the ballots without official stamps.
In their petitions, the residents of Ankara said the decision and other reported irregularities were in open violation of the law. Similar queues were also reported in front of an election board office in Istanbul.
Sunday's referendum allows Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey first as prime minister and now as president since 2003, to fulfill his long-held ambition for a presidency with executive powers.
The referendum approves 18 constitutional amendments that allow the president to appoint ministers, senior government officials and to hold sway over who sits in Turkey's highest judicial body, as well as to issue decrees and declare states of emergency.
The new system takes effect at the next election, currently slated for November 2019. Other changes are to be implemented sooner, including scrapping a requirement that the president not be a member of any political party. This would allow Erdogan to rejoin the governing AK Party he co-founded, or to lead it.
On Tuesday, Yildirim said Erdogan would be invited to join the party as soon as the official results are declared.
"We will invite our founding chairman to our party and we will feel a huge elation to see him among us," he said. lk/17:05
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Albanian President calls on the two embattled parties to initiate dialogue over the elections
Tirana, 19 April 2017 (MIA) - Albanian President Bujar Nishani called on the two main political parties, the Democrats and the Socialists, to initiate talks and to reach compromise on the contested elections that are supposed to take place on June 18th.
The opposition Democratic Party said that it will not participate in the elections and missed the deadline to field a list of candidates. It demands that socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama steps down and that a technical Government is formed to implement electoral reforms. Rama said that he will take part in the elections even without the main opposition party.
"Mutual respect, respectful political behavior and working through the institutions are hallmarks of a mature country. History teaches us that dialogue is the best way forward", Nishani said in his appeal to both parties.
Rama has counted on international support from fellow socialist parties and had the German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel in Tirana to call on the opposition to participate in the elections. Gabriel, who comes from the German Social-Democratic Party also dismissed the request that a technical Government is formed.cc/09:07
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Serbia strongly condemns Rama's statement about Albanian unification
Belgrade, 19 April 2017 (MIA) - Serbian Foreign Affairs Minister Ivica Dacic strongly condemned the statement by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, who hinted at the possible unification of Albania and Kosovo. Speaking with Politico, Rama said that he does not wish this unification to happen, but that it might be on the table if the European Union integration of the Balkans fails.
"Rama's statement is another conformation that all Albanians are standing behind a joint ideological program to create a Greater Albania. This constitutes danger for the peace and stability of the Balkans and whole of Europe. Imagine what would happen if Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said that it is possible to unite Serbia with Republika Srpska in Bosnia, unless we are allowed to join the EU?", Vucic said. Serbia considers Kosovo to be part of its territory.
In the interview, Rama was also asked about his interference in the political process in Macedonia. He said that he did not prepare a joint platform for the parties that represent ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, but facilitated its preparation.cc/11:08
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EU reacts after Rama opens the option of Albania - Kosovo unification
Brussels, 19 April 2017 (MIA) - European Union spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic criticized a recent comment by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, who said that, if EU perspective for the Balkans is lost, the option to unite Albania and Kosovo may be put on the table.
|The Western Balkans region has a clear European perspective, as just recently confirmed at the European Council. We are working with all partners in the region towards this goal, based on principles of reconciliation and regional cooperation. Any form of political interference is detrimental to the consolidation of good neighbourly relations", Kocijancic said.
In the Politico interview, which caused reaction across the region, Rama was also asked about the accusations of his interference in Macedonian politics, where he pushed three parties that represent ethnic Albanians to form a joint platform. The adoption of this platform blocked the Government formation process in the country, after President Gjorge Ivanov found it to be unconstitutional.cc/13:43
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CNN: Erdogan says Turkey reforms don't make him a dictator
Ankara, 19 April 2017 (MIA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has insisted that his plans to assume sweeping new powers do not make him a dictator.
In an exclusive interview with CNN, Erdogan said that a constitutional reform package -- backed by a narrow majority of Turkey's voters in a referendum on Sunday -- was not about him.
"I am a mortal really, I could die at any time," he told Becky Anderson inside Ankara's presidential palace Tuesday, in his first interview since the vote.
Turkish voters on Sunday passed an 18-article constitutional reform package that will transform the country's parliamentary system into a powerful executive presidency. The plan, put forward by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), gives Erdogan sweeping and largely unchecked powers.
Erdogan rejected accusations that he supported the new powers out of a desire to empower himself rather than improve Turkey's political system. "The system represents a change, a transformation in the democratic history of Turkey," he said.
Under the revised constitution, Erdogan will be able to abolish the post of Prime Minister and assume broad new powers to rule by decree. The new arrangements give him the power to appoint a cabinet and some senior judges. The power of Parliament to scrutinize legislation is curbed.
Erdogan has already transformed a largely ceremonial office into a strong powerbase, instituting a widespread crackdown on dissent that intensified after a failed coup last year. More than 47,000 people have been arrested since the foiled coup, and nearly 200 journalists are behind bars.
Erdogan denied claims that the new reforms were a step towards dictatorship. "Where dictatorships exist, you don't have to have a presidential system," he said.
"Here we have a ballot box... the democracy gets its power from the people. It's what we call national will."
The margin of victory for the "Yes" vote was razor-thin. Despite a state of emergency and a widespread crackdown on dissent, Erdogan succeeded in persuading only 51.4% of voters to back the constitutional reforms.
Erdogan showed no sign of conciliation, despite of the narrowness of his victory. Invoking a sporting analogy, Erdogan said a win was a win. "I come from a football background," he said. "It doesn't matter if you win 1-0 or 5-0. The ultimate goal is to win the game."
That is unlikely to wash with opposition parties, which have promised to challenge the outcome.
The referendum was widely seen as a plebiscite on Erdogan, who has led his country through more than a decade of economic growth and development, first as prime minister and then as president.
Addressing Turkey's long-stalled bid to join the EU, Erdogan accused its member states of failing to keep their side of the bargain. The EU had "made us wait at its door for 54 years," Erdogan told CNN.
"This from a political relationship point of view, is not tolerable. We have tried hard to accept all the requirements of the EU... the EU has not kept its promises... the European Union must keep its promises."
Unlike European leaders who expressed reservations about the referendum, US President Donald Trump telephoned Erdogan to congratulate him on his victory. The call was well received by Erdogan, who suggested taking things further.
"It would be better to have (a) face-to-face meeting and take our relationship forward," he said.
As a member of NATO and a key bridge between the Middle East and Europe, Turkey is an important but difficult ally in the efforts to combat ISIS, and to stem the migrant flow from Syria. Turkey is sheltering around 3 million refugees from Syria, and is keen to see a resolution to the conflict on its doorstep.
Asked if he felt US and Turkey could work together, Erdogan said: "The way President Trump is approaching these matters makes us happy. US and Turkey as allies... we can resolve significant problems. We do not have any difficulties on that front.
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