A recent debate over the judiciary's continuous habit of overstepping its authority and blocking parliamentary and legislative process has heated up with a response from the prime minister to a top jurist.

A statement from Supreme Court of Appeals President Hasan Gerçeker accusing the government of trying to take the judiciary under control is not only false, but the complete opposite is true, with the judiciary placing both the executive and legislative branches under siege, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Saturday.Sharing his views on a Gerçeker's statement accusing the government of trying to control the judiciary with its new reform package, which seeks to introduce changes to judicial structures including the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), Prime Minister Erdoğan said at a speech on Saturday at the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON) general assembly that the opposite of Gerçeker's observation was the case in Turkey.Referring to Gerçeker as a “good friend of mine,” Erdoğan recalled a Constitutional Court that had annulled legislation passed by the votes of 411 deputies that would have allowed wearing headscarves on university campuses. “If the votes of 411 deputies are considered nonexistent in this country, you can't really speak of the legislative and the executive controlling the judiciary.” PM Erdoğan attends TUSKON meeting with 8 ministersPrime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan participated in the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON) general assembly on Saturday. Transportation Minister Binali Yıldırım, Industry and Trade Minister Nihat Ergün, State Minister and chief EU negotiator Egemen Bağış, Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Çağlayan, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan, State Minister Hayati Yazıcı, Agriculture Minister Mehdi Eker and State Minister Kürşad Tüzmen were also present at the third general assembly of TUSKON. Prime Minister Erdoğan presented awards to businessmen for their success in various parts of the world. Indeed the judiciary has blocked Parliament's decisions and processes in many cases. Such a situation occurred ahead of the 2007 presidential election, when the Republican People's Party (CHP) threatened to quit Parliament, a situation that would have forced a referendum to prevent President Abdullah Gül from being elected president. The CHP later challenged the April 27, 2007 presidential election rounds in Parliament at the Constitutional Court, saying less than 367 deputies had voted in the election, falling short of the quorum to elect a president. This was the first time the “367 rule” was ever brought up in Parliament.The government is not alone in its willingness to reform the judiciary. According to a poll conducted last week by the Ankara-based MetroPOLL Strategic and Social Research Center 78.7 percent of the public believes Turkey needs judicial reform, while only 17.8 percent disagrees. The government is currently seeking compromise among political parties in Parliament for the approval of a long-planned judicial reform package.Though the Justice Ministry drafted a package of European Union-driven judicial reforms in August, the proposed changes have faced strong resistance from opposition parties.The package, which would introduce comprehensive reforms in line with EU requirements, including a change to the structure of HSYK, is still pending approval in Parliament. The HSYK only recently displayed yet another example of the judiciary's control over legal and administrative process in Turkey with its move to revoke the authority of several prosecutors who were conducting an investigation into Erzincan Chief Public Prosecutor İlhan Cihaner, who is now jailed and accused of being a member of the alleged terrorist Ergenekon gang as well as of falsifying documents. Government representatives including Prime Minister Erdoğan and many jurists and intellectuals condemned the HSYK, stating that the board had made a political decision to protect criminals from being brought to justice, Gerçeker stood behind the controversial decision and argued that the board had acted lawfully.Speaking on Saturday at the third regular general assembly of TUSKON at the İstanbul Sütlüce Culture and Congress Center, the prime minister also pointed to failed coup plots recently exposed in Turkey through the investigation into Ergenekon – a clandestine network charged with plotting to overthrow the government – saying that the country was facing a test of democracy. He said his government would never allow interventions into democracy, stating, “I am ready to pay the price for this, whatever it might be.”Military tutelage mentality recedingErdoğan said the recent developments were part of a struggle for democracy. He said his government had built tens of thousands of kilometers of roads during its term in office, adding that it was not enough to build roads and highways by itself, emphasizing that a “democracy highway” was crucial. He also talked about his government's initiatives taken in the field of diplomacy, saying 23 countries had waived visas for Turkey. He said his government's “zero problems with neighbors” policy has striven to take up important issues with the country's neighbors, with Turkey compelling neighboring countries to find solutions. “Only 10 years ago, there was talk of a possible border conflict between Syria and Turkey. Today we are clearing mines along our borders,” he said. He emphasized that Turkish travelers were greeted with warmth when they visit foreign countries.He emphasized the importance of improving democracy, saying that without democracy being strengthened, the economy would also fail to improve. He said under the AK Party government, Turkey has seen the biggest wave of democratization in history, adding that the mentality of military tutelage was fading away.In a part of his speech he addressed Turkey's judicial institutions. “In those periods when you had to be most effective, you always created an obstruction. I have to talk about this now, and I will, no matter what the cost,” he said, He said his party had no prejudices toward any individual or institution but complained that he did not see the same sincerity on the other side. On Sunday, the prime minister, who was inaugurating various new facilities in the province of Şanlıurfa, harshly criticized the opposition for opposing judicial reform and also a possible referendum on the government's judicial reform package. He said his government was going to use the authority vested in it by the nation according to the orders of the nation.He also said that the opposition had vowed to challenge the judicial reform package without knowing its full content but noted he was willing to talk to all parties to reach consensus.In addition he criticized the opposition for expecting early elections. Saying frequent government changes are a thing of the past in Turkey, Erdoğan said the government has ended that habit, adding that now every government serves until the end of its term of four years, recently reduced from five by an amendment. 08 March 2010, MondayTODAY'S ZAMAN  İSTANBUL