TURKEY: COURT RAPPORTEUR RECOMMENDS NON-CLOSURE OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001289 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE: FITZPATRICK, MALIK, GARBE E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/17/2018 TAGS: PGOV TU SUBJECT: TURKEY: COURT RAPPORTEUR RECOMMENDS NON-CLOSURE OF RULING PARTY REF: A. ANKARA 1260 ¶B. ANKARA 1227 ¶C. ANKARA 1223 Classified By: DCM Doug Silliman, for reasons 1.4(b,d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY. The Constitutional Court's rapporteur July 16 submitted a non-binding recommendation against closing the ruling AKP or banning any of its MPs from politics. The Court has ignored the rapporteur's views in the past, when it voted unanimously to accept the AKP closure case and when it overturned headscarf legislation. Court president Kilic told reporters that the rapporteur,s recommendation should be seen only as a "guiding document." He said he is prepared to set a date for the judges to discuss the case, but gave no immediate time frame. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) A final outcome in the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) closure case drew closer July 16 when the Constitutional Court's rapporteur Osman Can submitted his summation of the issues and recommendation that the AKP not be closed. Court President Kilic distributed Can's report to all the other judges. Can's recommendation is non-binding. (NOTE: In March, Can recommended that the Court not accept the closure case, but the judges unanimously ruled that the prosecutor's accusations deserved a hearing. In May, he recommended that the Court not overturn the headscarf law, but the Court did nonetheless. END NOTE) Justice Kilic himself underscored for reporters July 16 that Can's report is not binding but should be seen as a "guiding document" to help the judges reach a verdict. He asked the media not to disturb the court during its deliberations. ¶3. (C) Can's recommendation drew intensive media coverage and added to speculation (Ref A) that the closure of the AKP is not a foregone conclusion. Can's report was not made public but, according to media accounts, it argues that the alleged crimes of the AKP remain within the realm of political expression and should not be grounds for closure. It also reportedly notes that in advanced democracies only parties that advocate violence may be banned, and that, if the party is not closed, the 71 AKP members listed in the suit cannot legally be banned from participation in politics. (NOTE: This is indeed a literal reading of the relevant Constitutional provisions. END NOTE) Can also allegedly recommended against any fines or restrictions on government funding for AKP. ¶4. (C) The next step in the process is for Justice Kilic to call the Court to discuss the case, to be followed by a decision and formal opinion. While there is no set timetable for these events, speculation in Ankara is that they will happen within the next few weeks before government officials depart on their traditional August vacations. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey WILSON