News / Turkey

Turkey passes controversial anti-protest bill

Friday, 27 March 2015 3:14 PM [ Last Update: Friday, 27 March 2015 3:14 PM ]

Turkish lawmakers raise their hands during a debate on a legislation to boost police powers against protesters at the Turkish parliament in Ankara on February 20, 2015. © AFP

Turkish lawmakers have passed a controversial security bill that will expand the powers of police in confronting anti-government protesters.

Of 231 deputies present in parliament, 199 lawmakers voted for the bill on Friday after 16 hours of deliberations in an assembly dominated by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

Based on the legislation, the Turkish government is allowed to imprison demonstrators who carry Molotov cocktails and other such weapons, while police forces can use firearms to prevent an attack on a public place or against people using Molotov cocktails and similar arms.

The measure also enables the police to detain people for up to 48 hours without court authorization, empowering governors to instruct police to act without prior judicial authorization.

Those protesters who hold insignia, signs, or put on uniforms resembling those of “illegal organizations” or unfurl illegal banners or shout banned slogans could be given up to three-year jail terms.

The law further says that anyone who hides or partially conceals their face during a protest or public assembly that “turns into propaganda for a terrorist organization” could be imprisoned between three and five years.

The draconian law, whose 63 articles have been sent back to a parliamentary committee for further discussion, have created several brawls in parliament over the last weeks as critics fear that it would be used for arbitrary arrest of protesters and more severe crackdown on dissent.

Opposition’s reactions

The legislation should still be endorsed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to be signed into law, but the main opposition party has said it would challenge the bill with Turkey's Constitutional Court.

“There are no winners but losers. Freedoms and democracy will lose,” Republican People's Party (CHP) lawmaker, Akif Hamzacebi, said, adding, “I believe that the blow dealt to the constitution and law will be reversed by the Constitutional Court.”

The pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) also denounced the bill as a “dark law.”

Turkey saw huge anti-government protests in 2013 when Erdogan was prime minister. The country came under harsh criticism from its Western allies for its heavily-handed police tactics.

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