CoE Secretary General welcomes constitutional referendum results
"Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjorn Jagland welcomes the positive outcome of yesterday's referendum on the amendments to the Turkish constitution as a significant step in Turkey's further democratic development.
"The constitutional reform which was approved yesterday by the Turkish citizens is an important step forward towards bringing the country closer to European standards and practices" declared Jagland.
"I also welcome the introduction of a direct constitutional complaint by the citizens to the Constitutional Court. This provides a domestic remedy against human rights violations and not only reinforces the protection of the human rights in Turkey, but can also reduce the caseload of the European Court of Human Rights with respect to Turkey".
Turkey will hold the chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe from November 2010 to May 2011.
