President Erdoğan unveils Human Rights Action Plan

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pledged on March 2 to strengthen freedoms of expression and organization in Turkey and the right to a fair trial as part of a Human Rights Action Plan while emphasizing that the ultimate goal of the plan is to build a new constitution.

"The Human Rights Action Plan that we announce today is an indication of our unwavering resolve for change and reform, "Erdoğan said at a ceremony where he unveiled the plan.

"There is no doubt that the constitution has a fundamental and key role for the implementation of the activities foreseen in the plan. Therefore, the ultimate goal of the Action Plan is a new civilian constitution," he stated.

The government aims to further strengthen the understanding of a state of law based on human rights, and they will regularly review the legislation and implementation in this regard and take necessary measures, Erdoğan stated.

"In this respect, we will be focusing more on our efforts regarding the European Union, especially concerning the Visa Liberalization Dialogue," he said.

The government also aims to enhance the effectiveness of the individual application system in the Constitutional Court. "We are initiating a comprehensive effort to amend political party law and the election law in order to strengthen democratic participation," Erdoğan said.

They focus on enhancing the effectiveness of human rights organizations, Erdoğan said, noting that the decisions of the Ombudsman Institution and the Human Rights and Equality Institution of Turkey would be made publicly available with due care to protect personal data.

The government will establish an independent "Human Rights Monitoring Commission for Penal Institutions" with the participation of representatives...