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Submitted by ctv_en_6 on Sun, 09/12/2010 - 10:55
Turkish voters will go to the polls on September 12 in a crucial referendum on constitutional reform which could bring about the biggest change to the country's political landscape in three decades.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spearheaded the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) campaign in favor of the reform package, arguing that the 26 amendments will bring greater freedom and democracy.

The proposed reforms include amendments to the country's judicial system, curbs on the power of military courts and an article abolishing the immunity currently enjoyed by the leaders of the 1980 coup. Other measures would guarantee gender equality and put in place measures to protect children, the elderly and the disabled.

Turkish lawmakers approved the package earlier this year but not by the two-thirds majority necessary for the government to press ahead without a referendum. The measures have also been ratified by Turkish President Abdullah Gul, Erdogan's AKP ally.

But Turkey's opposition argues that the reforms would further undermine the secular foundations on which modern Turkey was established in 1923.

They claim the reforms would give the prime minister too much power over the judiciary, making him a "modern-day sultan." Hasan Gerceker, the head of Turkey's Supreme Court of Appeals, this week warned that the changes would politicize the judiciary.

Analysts say the vote is the latest confrontation in a power struggle between Erdogan's Islamist-rooted party and Turkey's secularist establishment, which have repeatedly clashed since AKP swept to power eight years ago.

VOVNews/CNN

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