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Edition: U.S. Article Comments (0) Save Email Print Reprints NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. NASDAQ delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here. Charter referendum new test for Turkey's PM Erdogan Tweet This Share on LinkedIn Share on Facebook Related News Lose in 2011 and I'll quit as party chief: Turk PM Thu, Aug 12 2010 Analysis: Turkey's government puts generals in their place Tue, Aug 10 2010 Turkish government, army agree on top posts: report Sun, Aug 8 2010 Analysis & Opinion Uneducate people Related Topics World » Turkey » By Ibon Villelabeitia KONYA, Turkey | Mon Sep 6, 2010 2:03am EDT KONYA, Turkey (Reuters) - Shortly before sweeping to power, Tayyip Erdogan pledged at the tomb of state founder Ataturk to revive a secular democracy he said was losing the nation's trust. Turkey would now get the leadership it deserved. Militant secularists saw his sentiments, etched in the ledger of Ataturk's mausoleum, as high treason coming from a man who had recently served a jail sentence for Islamist agitation. Eight years later and facing a new test at the ballot box, Prime Minister Erdogan is a towering figure in Turkish politics; the former Istanbul mayor who challenged the establishment with a reformist agenda that brought the Muslim democracy closer to Europe where his secularist predecessors had failed. Tainted still by the corruption and mismanagement of the 1990s and lacking a strong leader, the secularist opposition shivers at changes Erdogan has introduced and fears while paying lipservice to democracy he could prove its gravedigger. "There is no question that Erdogan has put a stamp on Turkey as none of his predecessors have," said Henri Barkey, a Turkey expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "He has made significant changes by marrying piety with the state and he is willing to break some china to get things done." Turks vote on Sept 12 on plans to reform a constitution rooted in an army coup exactly 30 years earlier. The referendum, though, is as much a vote of confidence in Erdogan, who came to power in 2002 and is likely to seek a third term in 2011. TURKEY IN THE WORLD The reforms focus on reorganizing the high courts -- a last redoubt for conservative secularists. Erdogan says they meet requirements for EU membership, opponents see an attempt to seize control of the judiciary. Erdogan will draw core support in the Anatolian heartland. With its mix of economic prosperity and social conservatism, Konya, a leafy city on the plains of central Turkey, epitomizes the rise of an observant Muslim middle class. In industrial zones on the city's outskirts, firms that have turned Konya into a business hub by tapping into markets in the Middle East display signs reading "From Turkey to the world." Billboards along the city's tree-lined streets advertise public Koran readings during Ramadan -- a sign of an increasingly open religiosity that has mirrored the AK's ascent. "Any Turk who loves his nation should vote 'yes'," said shopkeeper Kemal Akkora, who admitted knowing little of the changes. "Erdogan is the greatest prime minister Turkey has had. Turkey is respected in the world, its economy grows strongly." Ataturk founded modern Turkey on the ruins of the Ottoman empire in 1923. He imposed radical reform, banishing religion from government, promoting the interests of women, changing the alphabet from Arabic to Latin, turning the country to the West. The army, judges and state bureaucrats were the self-appointed guardians of this legacy. That rigid edifice changed with the ascent of AK, created with one clear and unchallenged leader as a broad coalition of conservatives, nationalists and liberals disillusioned with traditional parties riven by infighting. Thanks to market-friendly reforms, AK has transformed Turkey into one of the world's fastest growing economies with a GDP that has almost tripled in the last eight years. But under Erdogan, Turkey -- a U.S. ally that occupies a vital geostrategic position between Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East -- has also moved into uncharted territory. He has pursued a vigorous foreign policy toward the EU but has repositioned Turkey in the Muslim world as a rising power by deepening ties with Iran, Syria and Iraq and by criticizing Israel, prompting concerns the NATO member is changing axis. HAPPY TO BE A TURK Domestically, changes have been equally dramatic. Generals and political rivals have been humbled and religious Turks, long the underclass of society, have moved into positions of power. Erdogan's wife and the wife of President Abdullah Gul both wear headscarves -- redrawing an old debate on the space Islam should have in secular Turkey. The AK Party considers itself a Muslim version of Europe's Christian Democrat parties and rejects the Islamist label. Born of the macho-swagger culture of Istanbul's Kasimpasa district, Erdogan, a devout Muslim who doesn't drink or smoke, works crowds and rallies well. "Think big, you are Turks," is a popular refrain of his that for many could carry echoes of Ataturk's fatherly exhortation: "Happy is he who can say 'I am a Turk'" Critics say he is growing increasingly despotic and fear the constitutional changes are part of a creeping Islamist 'coup'. A multi-billion dollar tax fine levied against Dogan Yayin, Turkey's largest media group and a frequent critic of AK, has raised some concerns about Erdogan's democratic credentials. Cengiz Aktar, a liberal professor at Istanbul's Bahcesehir University, rejects talk of a "Putinisation" of Erdogan. "He is not a democrat at all. He has autocratic tendencies, but if Erdogan goes for an autocratic presidential system it will be the end of him. Turkey has a vibrant civil society and nobody would follow," Aktar said. At a recent rally in Konya loudspeakers blasted campaign music and the refrain: "We are walking toward an AK future. Hand in hand, the whole nation is following you, great prime minister Erdogan!" Turks may argue for years yet over what was going through Erdogan's mind when he wrote his entry at Ataturk's tomb, ending then with the salute: "Rest in peace, the Grand Founder." (Editing by Ralph Boulton) World Turkey Add a Comment *We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language or appear to be spam and review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. © Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters Editorial Editions: Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom United States Reuters Contact Us Advertise With Us Help Journalism Handbook Archive Site Index Video Index Reader Feedback Mobile Newsletters RSS Podcasts Widgets Your View Analyst Research Thomson Reuters Copyright Disclaimer Privacy Professional Products Professional Products Support Financial Products About Thomson Reuters Careers Online Products Acquisitions Monthly Buyouts Venture Capital Journal International Financing Review Project Finance International PEhub.com PE Week FindLaw Reuters on Facebook Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests. NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

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