Turkish court blocks Islamist's bid for presidency

Turkey's top court yesterday intervened in the country's biggest political crisis for years, striking down the result of a vote among MPs for the key post of president.

The decision increases the likelihood of fresh parliamentary elections and may help to avoid a confrontation between Turkey's Islamist government and the military, which sees itself as the guardian of the secular Turkish state.

Amid mounting tension that saw hundreds of May Day protesters detained by police, the Constitutional Court in Ankara ruled in favour yesterday of an opposition request to block the election by MPs of the Foreign Minister, Abdullah Gul, who represents the ruling Islamist AK Party.

In a bid to resolve the stand-off, the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said that general elections could be held as early as 24 June. Mr Erdogan said: "The earliest possible date for elections is June 24 or July 1." He also called for a constitutional amendment to allow popular vote to elect the president. Parliament currently elects the president.

The court decided that not enough MPs were present when the first round was held last week. "What we have cancelled is the first round of voting," Hasim Kilic, deputy head of the court, said.

Turkey's secular establishment has reacted with alarm to the prospect of Mr Gul taking over the presidential palace once occupied by the founder of the secular Turkish state, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. They fear that, if the AK Party secures control of the presidency, it will use its unprecedented power to chip away at Turkey's secular system. The party, which in recent years has sought unsuccessfully to criminalise adultery and restrict alcohol sales, denies the charge

The army warned the government on 27 April to stick to Turkey's secular principles after Mr Erdogan nominated Mr Gul as his candidate for president. The declaration from the military high command provoked alarm abroad because the Turkish army has forced four governments from power since 1960. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to protest as the stand-off developed into a full-blown political crisis.

Cemil Cicek, a government spokesman, said last night that the government was willing to bring elections forward provided parliament passes constitutional changes reducing the minimum age for lawmakers to 25. However, the government is expected to proceed with the second round of voting for the post of president, scheduled for today, even though the opposition is likely to boycott the vote.

The Constitutional Court ruled that 367 members of parliament had to be present during voting for its results to be valid. A total of 361 deputies voted in the first ballot on Friday, 357 of them for Mr Gul. Parliament is required to call for a new general election if it cannot elect a new head of state. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer's term ends on 16 May.

Earlier, nearly 600 people were arrested in Istanbul as left-wing demonstrators tried to hold a May Day rally to mark the 30th anniversary of "Bloody May Day", when 34 people were killed after a stampede.