Turkey shows the world how not to hold just and fair elections Turkey shows the world how not to hold just and fair elections Presidential candidates -- Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (L), Selahattin Demirtaş (C) and Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu -- are shown together in this collage prepared by Todays Zaman. August 09, 2014, Saturday/ 17:00:00/ ALİ ASLAN KILIÇ / ANKARA Share Tweet Share Print A A Turkish voters will elect a president directly for the first time in the nearly century-long history of the modern republic, but so far it has failed the initial test of democracy, as the government has been criticized for ignoring or outright violating the regulations and laws governing presidential elections. Many critics, including international bodies such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), have also drawn attention to several loopholes in election legislation. Politicians and analysts who have talked to Sundays Zaman say the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has been exploiting its parliamentary majority to benefit from legal loopholes. In fact, criticism of how the government approaches elections started seven years ago, in April of 2007, when Turkey held its last presidential election. The people voted in a referendum on whether to hold direct elections to elect the president as opposed to leaving it to a parliamentary vote. Following the April 27, 2007 referendum, a memorandum was issued by the military accusing the government of Islamization and vaguely threatening it. The idea of holding popular elections was put forth by Erkan Mumcu, who was at the time leader of the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN), and the idea was accepted by the AK Party. People voted in favor of the proposal in a referendum held on Oct. 21, 2007, with 68 percent voting in favor. However, this did not end the debate on how to hold popular presidential elections. Many individuals and organizations have expressed criticism of the current election, saying that the procedures have so far have not been democratic. Criticism on the right to candidacy One of the criticisms about how Turkey holds presidential elections concerns restrictions on presidential nominations. As per Article 101 of the Constitution, a presidential candidate must be nominated by at least 20 deputies. The candidate must be at least 40 years old and have graduated from an institution of higher education. The article also notes that the presidential candidate can be nominated from outside Parliament. The constitution also allows for parties represented in Parliament to nominate a joint candidate. Experts say that for more democratic elections there should be less restrictions on the procedures concerning candidate nomination. Many say that there should be a lower threshold than the current 10 percent of the vote needed for representation in Parliament to be able to nominate a candidate. This would allow political parties that have been left outside Parliament, but nevertheless have their own political traditions, to nominate candidates. Mustafa Kamalak, head of the Felicity Party (SP), has told Sundays Zaman that the presidential race would be more democratic if nominating a candidate were possible through signatures from citizens. Kamalak, who is a constitutional law professor, said: “For us to be able to say that the president is elected in a popular vote, the right of the people and civil society organizations to nominate a candidate should have been in place [as it is for parliamentary deputies]. Denying this right is unacceptable in a democratic society. It amounts to the usurpation of a democratic right of the people.” Criticism about campaign periods The Higher Election Board (YSK) accepted candidate applications until July 3 and announced the official list of presidential candidates on July 11. The campaign period officially started on July 12, leaving only 26 days for the candidates to reach out to voters until the campaign deadline of Aug. 8, which many experts say is not adequate. This amount of time puts lesser-known candidates, such as Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu -- joint candidate of the Republican Peoples Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) -- at a disadvantage. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Selahattin Demirtaş, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (HDP), have been in politics for quite a while, but İhsanoğlu is new to the political arena. The CHP and the MHP announced İhsanoğlus candidacy on June 16, and he was the least-known candidate by the public. CHP Deputy Chairman Gürsel Tekin, who noted that it is wrong to squeeze the campaign for such an important event as the presidential election into less than a month, said: “The government did this on purpose. They knowingly prevented a legislative change from being introduced on this issue.” Indeed, a shorter campaign period is an advantage for the AK Party candidate, Prime Minister Erdoğan. Tekin told Sundays Zaman: “The president is not elected after a 26-day campaign in any democratic country of the world. In most countries, the process starts at least one year prior to the election date.” Criticism about use of state resources There are no clear restrictions on the use of state funds to support the election campaign of presidential candidates. Legislation does impose certain campaign restrictions that begin 10 days ahead of the elections (on July 31). According to these restrictions, the candidates are barred from using official vehicles designated for the use of the prime minister or deputies, and candidates are not allowed to hold official receptions or other events in support of their campaigns. Also, no bureaucrats or civil servants can accompany a presidential candidate on trips that take place as part of the candidates campaign. In addition to this, public associations and organizations shall not, according to the law, make any announcements that might influence voter opinion. Erdoğan, the AK Party candidate, has faced criticism for using funding opportunities provided by the state budget and been accused of violating the rules of a fair race between the presidential candidates. In many campaigns and rallies held both in Turkey and abroad, Erdoğan called on voters to support his partys candidate before the official announcement of his candidacy. On July 1, he was announced as the official candidate of the party. Since that time, he has continued to ask for support in many events he attended in his capacity as the prime minister. Erdoğan has also been criticized for using opportunities provided by the local facilities of ministries and governors offices in provinces he visits in his capacity as a presidential candidate. Some have also expressed concerns that Erdoğan might have used state discretionary funds to boost his campaign. A recent report filed by the OSCE voiced significant criticism about the use of taxpayer money to support Erdoğans election campaign. On July 25, 2014, the Istanbul-Ankara high-speed train made its first ceremonial run, the timing of which a visiting OSCE delegation criticized, as the election campaign is officially between July 11 and July 31. MHP Deputy Chairman Oktay Öztürk said winning the election as a result of unfair competition is not acceptable in a democracy: “If a candidate is using taxpayers money, then measures of equality and fairness in the race disappear. Using state money means usurping the rights of every individual citizen. This is not democracy. Winning under these conditions is not democracy. In many of the countries where the Arab Spring transpired, the overthrown administrations had won at the ballot box. You cant call it a democratic race if the citizens are not given an equal opportunity to assess each candidate. The citizens see only one candidate on television or when they go out on the street. This inequality is not democracy” Criticism of the candidate not leaving office In Turkish legislation, it is explicitly stated that a presidential candidate should resign from his or her post if he or she is holding public office, but there are no direct provisions related to the resignation of the prime minister. This issue had come up in Parliament during the drafting of the Presidential Election Law, but a clear provision wasnt added to the article. Article 101 of the Constitution states that once a person is elected president, his or her ties to their party, and their membership in Parliament, ends. MHP Deputy Chairman Ruhsar Demirel said to ensure fairness, every candidate should resign from whatever office they are holding, even if their job is in a private company. She told Sundays Zaman: “Not only the prime minister but even deputy candidates should resign from their jobs in public agencies or professional unions. It is completely unacceptable for the prime minister, who is a presidential candidate, to continue to stay in office as prime minister. But this has been done knowingly.” She said after the constitutional changes of 2007, not democratic values but parliamentary majority has been the determinant in the drafting of new laws. “No regulations have been passed since 2007 to address these loopholes in the legislation.” Use of polarizing language The AK Partys Erdoğan has also been criticized for using polarizing language during the presidential election campaign. He has declared that he is a Sunni, in a Sunni majority country, and called on CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to publicly declare that he is an Alevi. He also emphasized that Selahattin Demirtaş, a Kurdish politician, has a Zaza background. He also used offensive language in a recent televised statement, offending Georgians and Armenians. Candidates İhsanoğlu and Demirtaş have criticized Erdoğans toxic language. Both candidates have noted that Erdoğan, for the sake of consolidating his supporters in hopes of more votes, is endangering Turkey. Criticism of media management Another criticism regarding unfair practices has been how the state-owned and taxpayer funded Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) has given considerably more airtime to Erdoğan than the two other candidates. More than 90 percent of the TRTs presidential election broadcasts have covered Erdoğan. CHP Secretary-General Tekin accused the TRT and other government-controlled media -- which now make up most of the mainstream press -- of trying to manufacture the popular perception that Erdoğan will win in the first round. He also said billboards in Turkeys 81 provinces display campaign posters of Erdoğan. “They are trying to make voters who are anti-Erdoğan to feel defeated and not show up to vote by creating the impression that Erdoğans victor is certain. They want to win by decreasing voter turnout. They know that half of the 52 million voters will not vote for Erdoğan.” Problems with expat voting In this years elections, Turkish expats had, for the first time, the opportunity to vote in the Turkish diplomatic missions in some countries. However, less than 10 percent of the more than 2,700,000 registered expat voters have so far cast their votes. Both the government and opposition think an online-scheduling system for voting that made it difficult to arrange vote casting is the culprit. AK Party Deputy Chairman Mustafa Şentop said: “The online appointment system was a method to be used only if needed, it was not a legal rule. Voters who had made no appointments were turned away from ballot stations where there were less people voting.” Problems with the counting of expat votes Suspicion of possible election fraud has arisen over the plan to bring votes cast abroad to Turkey. AK Party Deputy Chairman Mustafa Şentop told Sundays Zaman: “We cant possibly count the votes in host countries. They will be counted together with the expat votes cast at customs gates.” However, CHPs Tekin said not counting the votes at the place they were cast is bound to raise suspicion, recalling that the March 30 elections had been marked with controversy over alleged election fraud and irregularities. Worries over election fraud Thousands of instances of fraud and irregularities were reported in this years local elections on March 30, and the voters are now worried that the same situation will occur in the presidential elections. MHP Deputy Chairman Demirel said: “Even those who are already thinking of voting for the AK Partys candidate say that Erdoğan will find a way to get himself elected. Concern over the electoral fairness is a direct product of this government. Not only because the government has not made the slightest effort to address these concerns, but it has aggressively tried to control the legislative organ and the judiciary.” Timing of the presidential election August is simply the wrong time to hold any elections, CHPs Tekin has said. World examples seem to agree with Tekin, who notes that the government insisted on holding the elections in August. The opposition has made several proposals to change the election date, but the government has rejected these. “Given the heat of summer and the fact that many people are on vacation, August is the last month you should think of for organizing elections. The government has prevented a reasonable solution to this.”
Posted on: Sun, 10 Aug 2014 07:54:45 +0000
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