(18 Jun 1997) Turkish/Nat
Turkish Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan handed over his premiereship Wednesday, in attempt to head-off a military coup.
The resignation follows a media conference in which the former Islamist Premier joined secular politicians in announcing a new alliance.
Tension between Turkey's military and its government has increased since the newly resigned Prime Minister began taking the country down a path many in the military saw as too Islamist.
Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan, leader of the Islamic-oriented Welfare party, resigned Wednesday in favor of his centre-right deputy premier, Tansu Ciller.
Since coming to office 11 months ago on an overtly Islamic platform, Erbakan has angered the country's generals, who regard themselves as the protectors of the modern Turkish state and its secular, Western-oriented policies.
Arriving for a media conference Wednesday, he hoped to allay their fears.
Scores of journalists and cameras came to record the event -- a crisis which has kept the Turkish public on the edge of their seats for weeks.
Erbakan and Ciller made a joint announcement, saying they had backing in Parliament for a new government under Ciller's leadership.
The ultra-nationalist Great Unity Party promised to endorse the new government, giving Ciller enough deputies for a majority.
SOUNDBITE: (Turkish)
"So, remaining loyal to this agreement of ours, we presume the situation of our country in order to improve present activities for the good of our Turkey, with a stronger Parliament, in order to continue with our stability we decided that it would be useful to go for elections as early as possible for the good of our country."
SUPER CAPTION: Necmettin Erbakan, former Prime Minister
Erbakan's Welfare Party is allied in Parliament with the True Path Party, led by Ciller, who is foreign minister and a former prime minister.
Ciller said the government would come to an end "very shortly," but declared it had never engaged in any activities which threatened the secular republic.
SOUNDBITE: (Turkish)
"Everyone should be relaxed everything will happen on a legal basis. Everything will happen within the law, everything will happen legally. Decreasing the political tension, providing all the factions in the society to embrace, uniting with the public, declaring the independence of democracy will be the most important issues of the following days.
SUPER CAPTION: Tansu Ciller, Prime Minister elect
And the leader of the new coalition partner made no secret of his motives.
SOUNDBITE: (Turkish)
"To prepare the basis for the election to take Turkey into elections in a free atmosphere, bringing the ballot boxes in from of our nation to help the formation of the national conscious we are supporting this new formation."
SUPER CAPTION: Muhsin Yaziciodlu, Leader of the Grand Unity Party
It was not clear if the strategy to allay the military's fears would work.
Military leaders are not likely to be satisfied with a power swap because Welfare would retain key positions in the Cabinet.
The military, which has staged three coups since 1960, issued a sharp warning last week, declaring it would use force if necessary to crush what it called an Islamic threat to the secular republic.
Erbakan angered the secular establishment with his attempts to allow female civil servants to be clad in Islamic outfits and a decision to change working hours to fit fasting hours during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
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