Erdogan expands powers
Referendum leaves Turkey deeply split
ISTANBUL — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has fulfilled his long-held ambition to expand his powers after a referendum on Sunday. But success came at cost.
His victory leaves the nation divided and facing increasing tension with former allies abroad, while international monitors and opposition parties have reported numerous voting irregularities.
An unofficial tally carried by the country’s state-run news agency gave Erdogan’s “yes” vote a narrow win, with 51.4 per cent approving a series of constitutional changes converting Turkey’s political system from a parliamentary to a presidential one. Critics argue the reforms will hand extensive power to a man with an increasingly autocratic bent, leaving few checks and balances in place.
Opposition parties called foul, complaining of a series of irregularities. They were particularly outraged by an electoral board decision to accept ballots that did not bear official stamps, as required by Turkish law, and called for the vote to be annulled. International monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, who also listed numerous irregularities, said the move undermined safeguards against fraud.
The referendum campaign was heavily weighted in favour of the “yes” campaign, with Erdogan drawing on the full powers of the state and government to dominate the airwaves and billboards. The “no” campaign complained of intimidation, detentions and beatings.
In Istanbul, hundreds of “no” supporters demonstrated in the streets on Monday, chanting “thief, murderer, Erdogan” and banging pots and pans.
“We are protesting today because the results announced by the government are not the real ones. Because actually the ‘no’ we voted won. But the government is announcing it as ‘yes’ has won,” Damla Atalay, a 35-year-old lawyer, said of the voting irregularities.
Erdogan was unfazed by the criticism as he spoke to flag-waving supporters in the Turkish capital, Ankara.
“We have put up a fight against the powerful nations of the world,” he said as he arrived at the airport from Istanbul.
“The crusader mentality attacked us abroad. … We did not succumb. As a nation, we stood strong.”
In a speech before a massive crowd at his sprawling presidential palace complex, Erdogan insisted Turkey’s referendum was “the most democratic election ... ever seen in any Western country” and admonished the OSCE monitors to “know your place.”