The main opposition party of Turkey, already beaten by an unprecedented legal repression, could see his chief ousted by a court on Monday in what some consider a test of the trembling balance of the country between democracy and autocracy.
An Ankara court should decide to cancel the opportunity of the party congress in 2023 for alleged procedural irregularities – a decision which removes its president, Ozgur Ozel, of its title and would further erode the management and the opposition authority.
Hundreds of members of the Republican Popular Party (CHP) were imprisoned while waiting for the trial in a sprawling investigation into alleged bonds of transplant and terrorism, including the main political rival of President Tayyip Erdogan, the mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu.
The centrist CHP, who denies the accusations against her, is at the AK Plus conservative party of Erdogan (AKP) in the polls. Ozel, 50, his disjointed and raucous leader, has increased significantly since the detention of Imamoglu.
Anti-Erdogan Street demonstrations broke out again last week, including in Ankara on Sunday, for legal repression, criticisms call politicized and anti-democratic. The government rejects this, saying that the judiciary is independent.
“This is a serious moment which signals a change of regime in Turkey, a competitive authoritarianism, in which the opposition parties could still gain elections, to a kind of hegemonic authoritarianism, in which they are more symbolic and unable to win,” said Seren Selvin Korkmaz, co-founder and co-director of Istanpol Institute, an Istanbul reflection.
Turkish shares, bonds and Lira have slipped before the court’s decision. They crashed in March when Imamoglu was imprisoned while waiting for the trial, stressing the concerns concerning the rule of law in the major emerging market economy where inflation remains greater than 30%.
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If the court cancels the congress and ousted Ozel, he could appoint a trustee to lead the party or reintegrate former President Kemal Kilicdagllu, which Erdogan defeated in the 2023 elections but has since lost much confidence within the CHP.
He could also reject the case, provided by a member of the CHP or delay a decision.
The legal repression of the party, which began in October of last year, displayed concerns about what criticisms call the autocratic slide from Turkey in which the courts, the media, the military, the central bank and other more independent institutions have looked at the will of Erdogan during his reign of 22 years.
Government representatives and some analysts claim that the local elections from last year – in which the CHP has swept most of the major cities in the greatest defeat ever for ever -defined for Erdogan AKP – has shown that democracy has supported Turkey by NATO, despite the concerns of criticism.
Ozel’s ouster could throw the opposition into disarray and intestine struggles, stimulating Erdogan’s chances of extending his reign.
“Now, for the first time, we can see the government intervene in the internal affairs of the main opposition party (and) select who can govern it,” said Korkmaz.
On the weekend, the authorities arrested 48 other people, including a district mayor, as part of the CHP investigation, which is separate from the decision of the Ankara court and was centered on its power base Istanbul.
