Baykal overwhelmingly regains CHP's leadership

Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal was re-elected his party's leader for the 10th time at the 32nd CHP congress over the weekend, after receiving 1,021 of 1,105 votes. Baykal was the only candidate in the election thanks to the CHP's charter, which stipulates the approval of 20 percent of party delegates for party leadership. Other possible candidates couldn't gather necessary signatures from delegates for electoral participation. In his victory speech, stressing the case seeking the closure of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) on charges of anti-secular activities, Baykal said, "Everyone will freely be able to exercise their beliefs. Everyone will have the right to teach their children their religion, but Turkish state will remain secular. Legal and education system and politics in Turkey will continue to be secular. The golden synthesis of Islam and secularism only exists in Turkey in the Islamic world." Stressing that Turkish people had gained its independence by its own struggle without any support from foreign powers, Baykal added, "We are not enemies of the West but we want the West to respect us. They never supported us when we were building our democracy." Baykal also signaled that the CHP would pursue a more liberal policy on the Kurdish issue. Losing also their seats in the party assembly as well as leadership of the party, the intra-party opposition took pounding in the elections. Baykal's list for the assembly was elected en bloc. The representatives of intra-party opposition harshly criticized Baykal's administration, and anti-democratic structure and charter of the party. In response to the criticisms, Baykal said, "I have quit twice, but you called me back. Those who abandoned the party in 1994 when it received only 4.7 percent of votes are running for leadership today."