Erdogan offers to freeze key parts of reform bill

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has offered to freeze key parts of a controversial justice reform bill which has faced widespread opposition.

Ahead of a late-night vote in parliament on Friday, Erdogan said that the legislation relating to the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) would be suspended while other articles of the bill would be voted on.

Erdogan said he had now agreed to “freeze the part on the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors so that we can make progress because the elections are nearing.”

The main opposition Republican People’s Party welcomed Erdogan’s statement as a “very right decision” for Turkey.

The premier, however, rejected the full withdrawal of the reforms as “out of the question.”

The controversial plan strips the judiciary of its powers to pass decrees and obliges the HSYK to report to the Justice Ministry, which would also decide who makes up the board.

The European Union had warned the measures could threaten the independence of state institutions in Turkey and undermine democracy in the country.

The amendments were proposed by Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) earlier in January amid a deepening political crisis in the country.

Turkey plunged into a political standoff on December 17, 2013, after dozens of government officials and prominent businessmen close to Erdogan were arrested on graft charges.

The premier denounced the probe as a “dirty” plot to undermine his government ahead of the local elections in March and sacked hundreds of police chiefs in a major purge.

Erdogan accused US-based cleric, Fethullah Gulen, who enjoys influence in the police and judiciary, of instigating the probe. But Gulen has denied any involvement.