51st anniversary of establishment of constitutional coutr marked

A ceremony was held on Thursday to mark the 51st anniversary of the establishment of the Constitutional Court in Ankara. Attending the ceremony were top state officials, including President Abdullah Gul, Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Parliamentary Deputy Speaker Sadik Yakut, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Supreme Court of Appeals President Ali Alkan, Council of State President Huseyin Karakullukcu, Court of Audit President Recai Akyel, Deputy Prime Ministers Bulent Arinc, Bekir Bozdag, Ali Babacan and Besir Atalay, other Cabinet ministers and political party leaders, as well as presidents and members of constitutional courts of 14 countries. Speaking at the event, Kilic said that human honor should be the only red line which should not be changed in the new Constitution. Reiterating that the need of a new Constitution was agreed by all parties during the last general elections in Turkey, Kilic said that the Parliamentary constitutional reconciliation Committee worked with great patience and maturity on it, and that this was a serious gain for democracy. Kilic added that individuals may show "democratic reaction or support" for ongoing court cases but affiliation with a political party should not mean challenging or threatening courts and judges.