Turkey’s ’Lawgiver’ will be watching
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 17, 2009 00:00
It is difficult if not impossible to articulate the solemnity entailed in the exercise of writing a constitution. One exercise that may come close is to stop for a moment and consider the legacy of the Turkish Sultan Süleyman, who served from 1520 to 1566.
Süleyman is remembered in Turkish by the name "Kanuni" or "The Lawgiver." That he personally wrote the body of canonical law that effectively became the first Ottoman constitution was among the reasons for Süleyman to become Europe’s most prominent monarch of the 16th Century. The basic structure of Süleyman’s work was to last almost 400 years.
Constitutions are not about the next election, or securing short-term privilege. Constitutions are about vision and the creation of an institution to last years if not centuries. And the writing of constitutions is also about compromise, about the accomodation of diversity.
Virtually all parties in Turkey agree that the current constitution, written by the military after a coup in 1980, does not do justice to the needs of contemporary Turkey. We agree. But past efforts to produce a new and democratically-drafted document have foundered on the shoals of political posturing.
In the past, the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, has sought to use the constitutional amendment process to advance its own legislative agenda. Similarly, the main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, has declined to be helpful. Last year the party refused to nominate members to a new parliamentary committee tasked with writing a new constitution.
Now the AKP is proposing a new constitutional effort. We are not confidant it will fare better than past efforts. It is far beyond our station to suggest an alternative. But we do believe it possible in Turkey to create an assembly of wise personages broadly acceptable to the diverse interest and political groups of Turkish society. The initial process should be completed externally to Parliament. It can be roundly discussed and debated. When complete, it can be returned to Parliament for an up or down vote.
We will point out that nearly 500 years after his death, a bas relief portrait of Sultan Süleyman watches over the deliberations in the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives. We reproduce it here. This is testament to the greatness of his gift of law to the Turks.
This is the legacy that will be watching over Turkey’s new constitution-creating process. It should be a process worthy of this legacy.
Constitutions are not about the next election, or securing short-term privilege. Constitutions are about vision and the creation of an institution to last years if not centuries. And the writing of constitutions is also about compromise, about the accomodation of diversity.
Virtually all parties in Turkey agree that the current constitution, written by the military after a coup in 1980, does not do justice to the needs of contemporary Turkey. We agree. But past efforts to produce a new and democratically-drafted document have foundered on the shoals of political posturing.
In the past, the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, has sought to use the constitutional amendment process to advance its own legislative agenda. Similarly, the main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, has declined to be helpful. Last year the party refused to nominate members to a new parliamentary committee tasked with writing a new constitution.
Now the AKP is proposing a new constitutional effort. We are not confidant it will fare better than past efforts. It is far beyond our station to suggest an alternative. But we do believe it possible in Turkey to create an assembly of wise personages broadly acceptable to the diverse interest and political groups of Turkish society. The initial process should be completed externally to Parliament. It can be roundly discussed and debated. When complete, it can be returned to Parliament for an up or down vote.
We will point out that nearly 500 years after his death, a bas relief portrait of Sultan Süleyman watches over the deliberations in the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives. We reproduce it here. This is testament to the greatness of his gift of law to the Turks.
This is the legacy that will be watching over Turkey’s new constitution-creating process. It should be a process worthy of this legacy.