Divisive Turkish referendum passes

A divisive national referendum in Turkey over 26 proposed amendments to the country's constitution was set to become a resounding victory for the prime minister and the ruling party, results showed.
With more than 96 percent of the votes counted, 58 percent of voters favored the referendum, while 42 percent were opposed, Turkey's electoral board reported. Geographically, Western provinces along Turkey's Aegean and Mediterranean coasts voted against the reform package, while much of the central Anatolian highlands and eastern Turkey voted in favor.

The proposed amendments include articles that would allow collective bargaining for public sector workers and affirmative action measures for women. But when asked what was the most important achievement of the reform package, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made it clear that the main goal was to alter the judiciary system.

Analysts say Sunday's vote is the latest confrontation in a power struggle between Erdogan's Islamist-rooted party and Turkey's secularist establishment, which have repeatedly clashed since AKP swept to power eight years ago.

The AKP narrowly avoided being banned from politics in 2008 when it was fined by the country's constitutional court -- one of the last bastions of secular opposition -- for alleged anti-secular activities. The court has also blocked legislation to lift a ban on Islamic headscarves at public universities.

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