Even though the tutelary system has been undermined, politics has not acted bravely to actualize radical changes because of the different attitudes of the opposition. In the past, it faced the obstacles posed by terror and the pro-coup state bureaucracy, but now it is facing the obstinate attitude of political parties and the pressure of elections that came one after another.
Apart from this, it was not that easy to take revolutionary steps in the Kurdish issue while terror continued. This was not only because the state had difficulty changing itself or that society had difficulty accepting the reconciliation process, but also because any step that would be taken under the shadow of arms would unavoidably promote those who were engaged in politics through violence. This played a role that justified violence.
Likewise, the elections that came one after another played a role in the deceleration of reforms. We have now entered a period in which this vicious cycle changed with the Nov. 1 general elections and the two risks have minimized when the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) garnered support from 49.5 percent of the electorate. Apart from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), the Republican People's Party (CHP), which announced that it would support reforms on all occasions, received 25 percent of the vote. The AK Party and CHP represent a large majority of voters, as much as 75 percent. Meanwhile, we are undergoing a process that strengthens the hand of the government and politics regarding the abovementioned pressure from terror and elections. In other words, Turkey will not experience election pressure in the next four years. Moreover, the PKK lost prestige because of its "ditch politics" and the HDP lost prestige as it did not keep its distance from violence in its struggle for rights.
This context is a good opportunity to carry out reforms. It is known that the government is making significant preparations for a number of issues, but the first step should be giving parliamentary approval to the 60-point constitutional package about freedoms on which the four political parties in Parliament agreed to, as previously announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Alternative reform packages should also be prepared in parallel with this process while studies on a new constitution that encapsulate the political system continue.
There are two important issues here. The first is the amendment of Article 66 and Article 42 of the Constitution, which concern citizenship and the prohibition of mother tongue education, respectively. The government made considerable progress on this issue, which will alleviate the Kurdish question and have a major contribution to the elimination of terror. The second one concerns the law on political parties and elections. All legal regulations that concern financing politics and giving state support to political parties should be readdressed. I think Parliament is preparing for this. Even though the state financially supports political parties in Western democracies, parties usually survive with public support. This step will both strengthen parties' ties to the public and encourage them to produce politics.
