Dark clouds gathering on European front

Yet another clash has erupted between the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and Europe, this time regarding the Venice Commission's highly critical report on the constitutional amendments to be voted on in the April 16 referendum. 

The Venice Commission, which consists of constitutional experts and advises the Council of Europe, has defined the proposed constitutional amendments as "representing a dangerous step backwards in the constitutional democratic tradition of Turkey." The Justice Ministry's reaction to the report was pretty harsh. 

At the beginning of the week, the Justice Ministry issued a statement saying that the report was not objective, but was biased and deliberate and that the text prepared by the commission "almost matched with the one devised by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) claims."  

Truly, we are face to face with a report full of very strong criticisms. 

In its detailed 30-page report, the commission emphasizes the argument that the constitutional amendments adopted by the parliament seriously weaken the separation of powers and checks and balances in Turkey. 

The commission has also issued two other reports, one on the duties, purviews and functioning of the criminal courts of peace and the other on the measures detailed in the recent emergency decree laws with respect to the freedom of the media. 

Well, what do all these reports mean? 

We will hear the Venice Commission, whose complete name is the "European Commission for Democracy through Law," more often in the coming weeks, months and maybe years. This commission is regarded today as the most respected independent institution in Europe in the fields of...