The new legislative year of Parliament, which will be opened on Oct. 1, will focus on works for a new constitution, guarantees for headscarf freedom as well as a bill for work on a potential Istanbul earthquake, an official of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) said.
During the parliamentary recess, only the general assembly was closed, while the commissions continued their work and lawmakers were in the field, AK Party Group Chair Abdullah Güler told Anadolu Agency (AA).
He elaborated that a legislative proposal, including regulations on tourism areas and tourist guides, would also be discussed at Parliament, after which the Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Ministry's measures against the possible Istanbul earthquake would be submitted.
"They are carrying out serious studies on both risk analyses of buildings and ground surveys of our 39 districts. They also express different suggestions specific to Istanbul and the need for a different legal regulation. I guess these studies will be completed in October. After these studies are completed, we will have moved on to a text of the legal regulations,” Güler pointed out.
He reiterated that a certain number of buildings need to be transformed in Istanbul and that the legal regulations would aid in determining these and making the right infrastructure and ground analyses.
The city that last suffered heavy damage from earthquakes in 1999 is on edge in light of the repeated warnings by experts about the anticipated "big one," an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 or higher.
Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Mehmet Özhaseki had told Daily Sabah previously that a road map for Istanbul would be submitted to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Güler also reiterated that Erdoğan recently underlined the need for a new, civilian, democratic and pluralist constitution in accordance with the "Century of Türkiye" agenda.
Güler said that the AK Party has been meeting with opposition officials to discuss the issue.
“The approach of the political parties is important here. Even though everyone stressed the need for a civilian constitution in past periods, we see that they are dragging their feet. I have hope for this term. At a time when the world is evolving, our country has to get rid of this Constitution, which is a product of the 1980 coup,” Güler said, indicating that although some articles of the Constitution were changed, it still bears the putschist understanding.
Since 1982, the current Constitution, drafted following a military coup, has seen several amendments. The bloody 1980 coup, which led to the detention of hundreds of thousands of people along with mass trials, torture and executions, still represents a dark period in Turkish political history.
The proposed changes focus on the topics of freedom, the right to security, the right to a fair trial, freedom of speech as well as the rights of women and the disabled. The enhancement of these rights and liberties has seen setbacks in the bureaucracy that have prevented these rights and liberties from being implemented properly. The plan has been prepared in accordance with the observations and reports of the international mechanisms that monitor human rights in cooperation with several human rights groups.
Güler added that if the opposition fails to support works for a new constitution, the proposal will be submitted to the decision of the people.
Güler stated that the Bill on Amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Türkiye, which introduced a constitutional guarantee for the headscarf and defined the marriage union, was accepted by the Constitutional Commission of Parliament but that the works were halted as Parliament went into recess.
