Turkey’s 3- month state of emergency could end sooner

Erdogan punishing thousands for coup

Turkey’s government assured the public Thursday that the three- month state of emergency, instituted after a weekend coup attempt, could end sooner just as the country’s parliament ratified the measure.

“Our aim is to keep the state of emergency as short as possible,” the country’s deputy prime minster Numan Kurtulmus said in Ankara, state- run Anadolu Agency reported.

Turkey’s parliament endorsed sweeping new powers for the president as legislators in the 550- member parliament Thursday voted 356- 115 to approve the state of emergency across Turkey.

“Hopefully, we [ will] finish our jobs in one or one and a half months without the need for three months and complete this process by taking necessary steps and Turkey will return to normal,” Kurtulmus said, the agency reported.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the moves were intended to preserve Turkey’s democracy, according to Anadolu Agency.

Human rights groups, however, said Erdogan’s harsh measures threaten the country’s democratic tradition.

“In the wake of the violence surrounding the attempted coup, taking measures prioritizing public security is understandable. But emergency measures must respect Turkey’s obligations under international law, should not discard hard won freedoms and human rights safeguards, and must not become permanent,” said Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s Turkey researcher, in a statement Thursday.

The government suspended nearly 22,000 education ministry employees, including university professors and schoolteachers, and said it would revoke the licenses of 21,000 private educators, according to Anadolu. Another 1,000 officials at an education union have been suspended.

TOLGA BOZOGLU, EPA Turkish policemen secure an area Thursday with barriers in front of an Istanbul courthouse.