Islamists May Form New Party in Turkey

Turkey’s Islamist party, targeted by a government attempt to shut it down, has made plans to regroup under a new banner, a newspaper reported Saturday.

Vural Savas, Turkey’s chief prosecutor, asked the nation’s Supreme Court on Friday to permanently disband the Islamic Virtue Party after one of its deputies, Merve Kavakci, tried to take her oath of parliament while wearing a head scarf.

The secular establishment regards the Islamic-style head covering as a threat to Turkey’s strict laws, which bar mixing religion and politics. Head scarves are banned in schools and public offices.

Sabah newspaper said Virtue Party members were planning to form a new party even before the Supreme Court rules on whether Virtue should be shut down.

The Virtue Party was also considering joining one of two existing small conservative parties that are not represented in parliament, the report said.

The Virtue Party was created after the Islamic Welfare Party was banned for anti-secular activities last year. In 1997, the powerful, pro-secular military pressured a Welfare-led government out of power.

Two of Welfare’s predecessors were also shut down by the court.

The military issued another reminder Saturday that it would stand firm against all pro-Islamic challenges to the country.

“No matter how many traitors are within us, the Turkish armed forces are strong enough to eradicate them,” said Lt. Gen. Sami Zig, the army corps commander.

In his indictment, Savas accused the Virtue Party of being a continuation under another name of the Welfare Party. By law, a new party cannot be based on the same principles as a banned one.

Savas asked the court to remove the Virtue Party’s 111 deputies from the 550-member parliament and ban them from politics for five years. It could take a year for the court to deliver a verdict.