BY OKAY GONENSIN
VATAN- The 1982 Constitution, which is currently in force, is our narrowest constitution, despite all the touching up it has undergone. Its logic is based on erecting measures to prevent civilians from making a mess and stirring up a crisis. It's a product of the idea that civilians may bring the country to the verge of breaking up. The logic of our original 1921 Constitution was forming a legal basis for fighting the War of Independence. Our 1924 Constitution laid the foundation for a newborn republic. The 1961, 1972 and 1982 Constitutions were prepared after coups, under undemocratic conditions. Although the 1961 and 1982 Constitutions are opposed to each other, they were submitted to public referendums and both were approved. When the 1961 Constitution was approved there was military rule, and when the 1981 Constitution was approved not only was there military rule but expressing contrary views was expressly forbidden. After these experiments, many have said that a constitution is needed which protects the people, safeguards their human rights, and lays the foundations for its legal and democratic basis. When he was at his strongest, the late Turgut Ozal didn't take up the issue. It came up in the Suleyman Demirel-Erdal Inonu coalition but was later forgotten.
It's high time that Turkey had a real constitution. `Real' here means the protection of the people. A lot of different claims have been made in recent days about the new draft constitution the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) asked a group of academics to draw up. Those who believe some sections of that draft constitution may take the country to Islamic rule started to issue warnings even before the text becomes public. This is normal and will continue under the AKP's second term. Whether these voices will grow louder or become unheard will depend on the actions of the AKP, one of which is the preparation of the first civilian constitution since Turkey's evolution to multi-party democracy. The level of discussions and the size of contributions will determine the civilian nature of the draft constitution. Everyone who follows or takes part in the in the discussions should know that this is a historic opportunity. The draft constitution is the first big test of not only the AKP but also new President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In order for them to pass it, the draft constitution should be discussed in a healthy way, free of prejudice.