Presenting raw data on the twelve meetings excluding Istanbul to the parliament, Speaker Cemil Çiçek, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We hope these results will be taken into account when drafting the constitution.”
ANKARA – The results obtained during the Constitution Citizens’ Assembly series, carried out under the secretariat of TEPAV with the initiative of the Constitution Platform consisting of syndicates, professional organizations and civil society organizations were presented to Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek to be submitted to the Constitution Committee.
The Constitution Platform Citizens’ Assembly meetings were carried out in Ankara, Konya, Edirne, Diyarbakir, Izmir, Ankara (with women only), Antalya, Samsun, Bursa, Trabzon, Gaziantep, Erzurum and Istanbul with a total participation of 6,500 people. Raw data from discussions and voting results (excluding those of Istanbul meeting) were compiled in a report of almost 15,000 pages. The Constitution Platform submitted this report to Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek with a ceremony held on the TOBB premises on Wednesday, 9 May 2012.
Speaking at the ceremony, TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Being a regional power is no longer enough for us. We aim to become a global power. Today, Turkey is world’s 16th largest economy. It is my heartfelt belief that we will become bigger and more powerful because we have the courage, persistence and commitment. Our goal is to be one of the ten largest economies of the world by the centennial anniversary of our Republic. Our goal is to be a country of more prosperous and happier people. For this, Turkey urgently needs a new constitution.”
“We have hit the road to make a new constitution”
Stressing that the Constitution Platform initiative had come together with this determination in 2007, he continued:
“With this awareness, we hit the road as the Constitution Platform. We held 13 Citizens’ Assembly meetings throughout the country in order to spread this atmosphere of deliberation built within the Constitution Committee of the parliament. With the method we used during the meetings we accomplished a first in Turkey. Those attending the meetings were citizens randomly invited via text messages. We came together with people with no mediator. In groups of 10, people who had never met before but who have a say in the future of this country discussed the constitution for hours. We asked the attendees approximately 50 questions on current constitutional matters, which were selected in a way that will avoid inducement. The questions were designed as a tool to encourage discussion, understanding and compromise rather than act only as a survey.
These weren’t just yes or no questions. These were questions aiming to drag out the ‘yes, but’s' of the people so that reservations could be discussed. Records of these discussions were kept keenly. Thanks to the Citizens’ Assembly meetings, we have attained a dataset that is far more detailed than any opinion survey carried out in Turkey. Now, we are delivering these records to the Parliament and the Constitution Committee.”
“We will be the advocate of citizens’ demands”
Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the majority of citizens demanded a new constitution, saying “70 percent of the participants stated that they are not content with the present constitution.” He added, “So, today, we are presenting you with a unique set of data for consideration. Our wish is that the results of the negotiations be taken note of during the writing process. That was the wish of all the citizens who spent their time as constitution volunteers. We were always asked, ‘Are our opinions going to matter?’ We will closely follow these requests as the Constitution Platform. We want them to be taken into account.”
Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek said:
“There are anonymous heroes who worked night and day and shouldered all the burden of Citizens’ Assembly meetings in twelve provinces. I would like to thank them all on this occasion. Also, I would like to thank to the people who set their private time aside and spared their holiday for constitution meetings. But maybe the biggest thanks go to honorable leaders of the four political parties. Taking into account the demand of the people for a new constitution and assessing their needs, they have initiated this process and assigned this historic responsibility to make a new constitution to twelve MPs.”
“I hope that the atmosphere of Citizens’ Assembly meetings will be extended to the entire political arena”
Stressing that a new phase was entered in the constitution-making process as of May 1, he said, “Hopefully by the end of the year, we will initiate a great endeavor to reward people a new constitution.” Noting that making a new constitution was not as easy as generally anticipated and was maybe the most difficult legislative process, he maintained that negotiation efforts focused entirely on making a better constitution. He emphasized that representatives of four political parties in the parliament had visited all regions of Turkey to hear the word of citizens in a civilized manner and added, “I believe that this atmosphere is as important as the constitution per se. I hope that this positive atmosphere dominates the entire political area.”
Platform members were awarded with plaques
Following the speeches, Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek and Constitution Committee members awarded certificates of participation and plaques to representatives of Constitution Platform members TOBB, TZOB, Türk-İş, Memur-Sen, Türkiye Kamu-Sen, TUSKON, TÜRMOB, TÜRSAB, the Union of Turkish Public Notaries, TÜMSİAD, TÜRKONFED, TESK, Hak-İş, the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, MÜSİAD, TOFED, Association of the Retired, Youth for Habitat, the Turkish Federation of the Disabled, and TİSK.
