Banned Turkish Party Vows to Regroup

A day after the Constitutional Court banned their party for anti-secular activities, leaders of the pro-Islamic Welfare Party announced Saturday that they will form a new party to give their millions of supporters their political voice again.

“We will continue our mission under a new name and a new leader,” said Lutfu Esengun, a close aide to Welfare chairman and former Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan.

Erbakan, who has led three pro-Islamic parties over a 30-year political career, was barred from participating in party politics and lost his seat in parliament as part of the court’s decision.

Several of his aides already have formed a new party, the Virtue Party, but it was unclear whether that or another party would be chosen as Welfare’s successor.

“It could be that [Virtue] party or another party, but there will definitely be a new organization,” Esengun told reporters. He declined to mention names of possible successors to Erbakan.

In response to Esengun’s announcement, Turkey’s chief prosecutor, who brought to the court the case to ban Welfare, said he would not tolerate any attempt to continue the pro-Islamic movement under a new party.