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| Turkish reformist Gul named presidential candidate |
| Ankara, 24.04.2007 |
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| By Hidir Goktas and Paul de Bendern
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's ruling AK Party picked reformist Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul as its presidential candidate on Tuesday, a decision that may ease tension with the army and boost the Islamist-rooted party's electoral chances.
Gul's candidacy is the first time in modern Turkey's history the post, traditionally held by the secular elite, is poised to go to a former Islamist. It will complete the AK Party's capture of all key posts in Turkey's political hierarchy.
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan had come under intense pressure from the secular elite, which includes army generals and judges, not to run for president himself because of fears he would undermine the republic's separation of state and religion.
By standing aside, Erdogan, Turkey's most popular politician, can focus on preparing and campaigning for parliamentary elections that must be held by November.
Despite the Gul's candidacy the powerful military still issued a veiled warning to the ruling party, saying the next president should be a faithful follower of the secular order.
"The next president should be tied to the Turkish republic's main principles which were defined in the constitution -- secularism, social state and democracy," the deputy chief of the armed forces, General Ergun Saygun, told reporters.
Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), which is fiercely secularist, said it would boycott the vote in parliament on Gul's candidacy but this should not stop him being elected thanks to the AK Party's big majority. It raises the prospect of political turmoil that could upset financial markets, however, particularly if the CHP asks the Constitutional Court to annul the result as it threatened to do.
The CHP said after talks with Gul it had decided not to take part in the voting process because of the AK Party's lack of consultation. The first voting round falls on April 27.
Turkish financial markets recovered some lost ground after the news on Gul. The lira currency gained against the dollar and Istanbul's main share exchange index also trimmed losses.
Gul is a respected diplomat who has overseen the launch of European Union accession talks as foreign minister and was briefly prime minister when the party came to power in 2002.
ISLAMIST AGENDA
Both he and Erdogan deny an Islamist agenda. Gul pledged that if elected he would act in line with the country's basic secular principles -- established by modern Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. Turkey is predominantly Muslim.
"This is a good choice that would all appeal to all the constituencies. Keeping Erdogan as leader of the party would improve the AK Party's standing in general elections later this year," said Serhan Cevik, an economist at bank Morgan Stanley.
The presidential campaign has again brought to the surface the great divide among Turks over the role of religion in a country seeing fast economic and social change.
Gul's appointment may still stir some concern in the army, which has removed four governments in the past 50 years. His wife wears the Islamic headscarf, seen by Turkish secularists as a provocative symbol of religion.
Gul would be commander-in-chief of the military -- a possibly uncomfortable experience for an institution that sees itself as the ultimate guardian of the state. Gul spent his honeymoon in a military jail during a 1980 coup.
"Despite the fact that his wife wears the headscarf, Gul, a gently spoken moderate politician, is more trusted by the military and the secularist establishment than other AK Party leaders," said Wolfango Piccoli, a Turkey analyst at the Eurasia political risk consultancy.
Senior members of the AK Party had feared the party would lose votes in the national election if Erdogan became president and quit party politics. If the AK Party loses votes there is a strong chance it would have to form a coalition government with nationalist parties, jeopardizing reforms.
Under Erdogan Turkey has achieved strong economic growth and secured the 2005 launch of EU entry talks.
But the government was shaken earlier this month, when more than 350,000 people rallied in Ankara against a possible Erdogan presidency. It was one of the largest protests in years.
Outgoing President Ahmet Necdet Sezer has joined military leaders in warning of threats posed to the republic.
In Turkey, the government holds most power but the president can veto laws, veto appointments of officials and appoint judges. The president carries great moral weight.
Gul's appointment would remove a key thorn in the side of the AK Party. Sezer frequently vetoed laws and promotions.
(Additional reporting by Gareth Jones and Selcuk Gokoluk)
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