Turkish parliament backs election reform plan

ANKARA, May 7 (Reuters) Turkey's parliament approved today, in a first reading, a major constitutional amendment under which the country's president would be elected directly by the public, Turkish media reported.

State-run Anatolian news agency said 356 deputies voted for the reform, part of a package which must be debated and approved a second time before it can be sent to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer for him to sign it into law.

Many commentators expect Sezer or the courts to block the far-reaching proposals. Each article needs 330 votes to pass on the first reading and at the end of a second round of voting in three days, the entire package is voted and requires approval by two thirds of the deputies in parliament, or 367 votes.

If the number of votes in favour of the entire package is between 330 and 367, the reform would go to a referendum.

Earlier, parliamentarians approved another part of the reform package under which general elections would be held every four years, instead of five years currently.

The ruling AK Party proposed the reforms after opposition parties boycotted a vote in parliament to stop Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul becoming president, citing his Islamic roots.

Turkey's top court ruled without a quorum in parliament, or 367 deputies, the vote for Gul, the only candidate, was invalid.

He withdrew from the election yesterday and national elections will be held on July 22.

Another reform would make it possible for the president to be elected for two five-year terms. At present, the parliament elects the head of state for a single seven-year term.

The AK Party, suspected of harbouring Islamist sympathies by the secular establishment, including the army generals, has 352 lawmakers, but has secured the support of the centre-right ANAP party for the package. ANAP has 20 deputies.

The debate in parliament was at times rancorous. On Saturday, members of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) stormed out of parliamentary committee talks on the package.

Turkey is due to elect a new parliament on July 22, more than three months ahead of schedule, because of the deadlock over the presidential election.

The new parliament would then elect the successor to the incumbent president, Sezer, who would normally have retired on May 16 but will stay on as interim head of state.

The package of constitutional reforms has raised at least the theoretical possibility of the people electing the next president, though legal analysts say the proposals may be blocked either by Sezer or by the courts.

The AK Party says the reforms are aimed at making Turkey more democratic, but critics say they have not been properly thought through and risk upsetting the checks and balances in the nation's constitution.

The AK Party denies its secularist foes' accusations of having a secret Islamist agenda. It has championed economic and political reforms since sweeping to power amid a deep financial crisis in 2002.

REUTERS RS RAI2310