Turk president urges consensus on new constitution

President Abdullah Gul urged Turkish lawmakers at the opening session of parliament on Saturday to search for consensus on a new liberal constitution so it would be representative, Reuters reported. Pro-Kurdish deputies ended their boycott of parliament to remove a threat to Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's plans to rewrite a constitution drafted after a 1980 military coup. Erdogan's AK Party won a third consecutive term in June and he wants to draft a new constitution, with the opposition's support, by the first half of 2012. "All segments of the Turkish population, without any exception, have the will for a new constitution," Gul said. "Because everyone is uneasy about the current constitution which does not meet our people's requirements, restricts Turkey's democratic diversity and ignores Turkey's assets. "Our people entrusted MPs with the duty and the honour of preparing a new constitution on the basis of the people's will for the first time since the constitutions of 1921 and 1924. "The new constitution should have flexible and liberal characteristics. Lawmakers should refrain from escalating tension between the state and its people in defence of different political tendencies."