Turkish PM signals lifting of state of emergency before potential referendum

Prime Minister Binali Yıldrım has signaled that Turkey's state of emergency could be lifted before the country votes in a potential referendum on a new constitution, while Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş also said the government wanted to see it lifted soon.
 
Speaking to daily Hürriyet on Nov. 27, Yıldırım said his government would not allow any situation to emerge that would result in people arguing that "a referendum took place under a state of emergency," suggesting that emergency rule, which was imposed after the July 15 coup attempt, would be lifted before a potential vote.

"For the presidential system we will make a limited change. There will not be any early elections," he also added. 

Yıldırım said "there is no such thing as lifting it as soon as we enter 2017," but reiterated that the government does not want to hold a referendum on constitutional changes while the state of emergency is ongoing. 

Kurtulmuş, meanwhile, stressed that they hope the practice will be finalized "as soon as possible before going to the referendum," adding that this would mean the start of "Turkey's normalization process." However, he also noted that "the state of emergency will continue for as long as necessary, as there is a great fight ongoing."

Prime Minister Yıldırım was speaking after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had signaled on Nov. 25 that the state of emergency might be extended for additional three-month periods next year. 

"Amid the failed military coup attempt and terrorist acts … We may extend the state of emergency for maybe three months, maybe three more months after that," said Erdoğan. 

The first three-month-period of state of emergency was introduced on July 21 after Turkey survived a coup...