Turkey: Post-Election Human Rights and Strategies for Accountability

American Progress Senior Fellow Alan Makovsky briefs the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission on the recent constitutional amendments passed in Turkey that changed the nation from a parliamentary system to a highly centralized presidential system.

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Thank you. I would like to thank the Co-Chairmen for calling this important and timely briefing and for giving me the opportunity to participate. I worked for Tom Lantos for seven years. He was a passionate and eloquent defender of human rights around the globe. It was an honor to work for him, and it is an honor for me to speak at this body that so appropriately bears his name.

I was asked to say a few words about the state of rule of law in Turkey, particularly as seen through the lens of the judiciary, and with some reference to elections. That is what I hope to do in the brief time allotted me here.

The above excerpt was originally published in Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. Click here to view the full article.

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