EXPANDING THE POWERS OF THE TURKEY’S PRESIDENT: NEW LEGAL ORDER AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

Abstract

The article provides a comparative legal analysis of the articles of the Constitution of Turkey in 1982 and amendments to it in the executive branch, which were submitted to the national referendum of Turkey in 2017. The consequences of the constitutional reform on the further democratic development of Turkey are analyzed, as well as the possible transformation of Turkey into a country with an authoritarian form of government. The article examines the work of Turkish and foreign researchers on the impact of the new political system on the independence of all branches of government, and analyzes the international legal position of the European Union on constitutional changes in the context of fulfilling the Copenhagen criteria for Turkey’s membership in the European Union and the possibility of closing negotiations on Turkey’s accession to the European Union. It is stated that under the 1982 constitution, Turkey was a parliamentary republic in which real power belonged to the head of government, and the country’s president performed mainly representative functions. The latest amendments to Turkey’s basic law were made after a referendum on September 12, 2010 to bring it in line with European Union standards. The referendum began the demilitarization of the 1982 constitution and changed the foundations of Turkish statehood, laid in the 1920s by the founder of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. In particular, the influence of the army on the political and social life of the country has decreased. It is said that by applying draconian laws and judicial repression the President seeks to reduce the influence of the democratic opposition, which will not have the courage or ability to challenge the growing authoritarianism in the country. For this reason, the party’s legal regime combines the full subordination of the judiciary to the executive with a combination of strategies to use judicial repression to demobilize all sources of opposition and to suppress any possible alternatives within the current political bloc.