国际英语新闻:Spotlight: Turkey's main opposition party in dismay after referendum setback

ANKARA, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Dissident voices inside Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) have sharply criticized their leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu of failing to win the crucial referendum which granted executive powers to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and pressing the leadership to hold an extraordinary congress amid growing dissent.

The intra-party unrest took a drastic turn on Saturday evening when one of the prominent figures of the party, Selin Says Boke announced her resignation as vice-chairman responsible of economy and spokeswoman, accusing the leadership of weakness and insufficient reactions against the referendum results.

In a written statement, Boke, a young and energetic lawmaker from the western Izmir province and seen as a rising star of CHP, criticized the party for its stance following the constitutional referendum.

"I do not think it is suitable for me to be a part of the current administration's mentality," said Boke, who suggested that the CHP should boycott the parliament after the referendum.

Erdogan, who is leading Turkey for 15 years, cemented his authority at a very tight referendum win on April 16th that granted him sweeping new powers. Turkish voters narrowly (51.4 percent) approved a raft of constitutional amendments that will transform the country from a parliamentary democracy into a presidential one.

The changes allow Erdogan to run for office for two more terms, potentially governing as the head of a powerful executive until 2029. They remove key oversight powers from the legislature and abolish the role of prime minister.

The CHP campaigned very hard for "no" vote at the referendum. In an exclusive interview to Xinhua ahead of the vote, Kilicdaroglu was confident that his camp will win and the powers now entrusted to Erdogan would drive Turkey head-on into "catastrophe."

His party challenged the results of the vote, which they claimed have been rigged, appealing for an annulation of the referendum but the bid has been rejected by every court, leaving supporters and some dissidents of CHP in rising dissent.

A congress of this historic political party founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkish Republic on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, is planned for the end of this year, but several heavyweights are appealing for an immediate extraordinary congress to challenge Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

"With the central executive board meeting held on May 3, we have commenced the regular congress process," CHP Deputy Chair Tekin Bingol told reporters last week after the party's weekly meeting.

"We held our 35th regular congress on Jan. 15 and 16, after which we commenced the congress process in 2015. Our regulations oblige us to hold a congress every two years. For this reason, within this year, we must schedule our party congresses and hold our regular congress on the date that our party assembly will decide on," Bingol added.

His comments came after former CHP leader Deniz Baykal urged Kilicdaroglu to convene an extraordinary congress to determine the party's presidential candidate and even mentioned the name of former President Abdullah Gul, one of Erdogan's historic ally, stirring a bitter debate.

Following Baykal, deputy and former minister Fikri Saglar also criticized Kilicdaroglu, vowing to stand as a candidate for the party leadership if an extraordinary congress is held.

"Kilicdaroglu campaigned against the 'one man' in the referendum, but he himself became the only man in the campaign," Saglar said.

However, Kilicdaroglu, who has led the CHP since 2010, blasted dissident voices in the party.

"We will never allow an inner-party fight ... We will get rid of those who cause such fights. I will show the door to whoever harms this party," he said after which the CHP's central board launched initial disciplinary proceedings against Saglar.

Bingol also stated that the CHP will continue to reject the referendum results in the coming period, as legal works to complete the appeal to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) continue.

Prominent CHP deputy Muharrem Ince, who had in the last years challenged party leader Kilicdaroglu, has once again called for an extraordinary general assembly to hold a leadership election one of the many of the latest years.

"This general assembly should be consecrated to elect a new president," he said to journalists. He was in fact referring to the presidential election scheduled for 2019, when Turkey's first executive presidential election will be held, in line with the constitutional revision adopted by Turks.

Ince said that the CHP must fight against "internalizing the spirit of defeat," calling the party who lost each and every election against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) since the later came to power in November 2002.

"There is need to refresh the party," argued Ince, but his remarks do not convince many of fellow CHP members.

"The CHP is a democratic party. Everyone has the right to speak their mind but at this stage the majority don't think that a change of the leadership is needed," Yildirim Kaya, a prominent member of the party said to Xinhua.

Kaya argued that CHP's referendum campaign was successful, because the "no" prevailed in the three biggest cities of Turkey, Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.

Spokeswoman Boke's unexpected resignation may have come as a shock, but according to experts others will not follow and this action will not have a big impact on party matters.

"This resignation is something very personal. No other high ranking official of the party is expected to do the same," said to Xinhua political commentator Deniz Zeyrek.

"I just spoke to Kemal Kilicdaroglu and he told me that an extraordinary congress is out of the question," he said.

The CHP has become for many an anchor to the Turkish democracy after the coup attempt against Erdogan last summer, engineered according to Ankara, by followers of the US exiled muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen.

In the aftermath of the coup attempt, Erdogan and his government carried out a massive crackdown targeting the Gulen network but also other opposition circles, dismissing tens of thousands of civil servants, army and police members and also academics.

At first, the CHP mobilized in support of the government, but in the wake of the crackdown, the party slammed Erdogan more than ever for his "authoritarian" rule, accusing him of being aware of the coup plot and "controlling" it for his benefit in order.

Now, the oldest party of modern Turkey is facing yet another dissidence which may weaken her hand against the governing AKP, where Erdogan returned in line of the constitutional changes. Erdogan will retake the presidency of the party that he founded in 2012 at a congress.

"It is realy disturbing to see the party being swirled into chaos on such a difficult time. Everyone has to think first at the welfare of CHP," urged vice chairman Erdal Aksunger, in televised remarks.