国际英语资讯:Spotlight: Turkeys main opposition party in dismay after referendum setback_时事

国际英语资讯:Spotlight: Turkeys main opposition party in dismay after referendum setback

The CHP campaigned very hard for "no" vote at the referendum. In an exclusive interview to Xinhua ahead of the vote, Kilicdaroglu was confident that his camp will win and the powers now entrusted to Erdogan would drive Turkey head-on into "catastrophe."

His party challenged the results of the vote, which they claimed have been rigged, appealing for an annulation of the referendum but the bid has been rejected by every court, leaving supporters and some dissidents of CHP in rising dissent.

A congress of this historic political party founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkish Republic on the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, is planned for the end of this year, but several heavyweights are appealing for an immediate extraordinary congress to challenge Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

"With the central executive board meeting held on May 3, we have commenced the regular congress process," CHP Deputy Chair Tekin Bingol told reporters last week after the party's weekly meeting.

"We held our 35th regular congress on Jan. 15 and 16, after which we commenced the congress process in 2017. Our regulations oblige us to hold a congress every two years. For this reason, within this year, we must schedule our party congresses and hold our regular congress on the date that our party assembly will decide on," Bingol added.

His comments came after former CHP leader Deniz Baykal urged Kilicdaroglu to convene an extraordinary congress to determine the party's presidential candidate and even mentioned the name of former President Abdullah Gul, one of Erdogan's historic ally, stirring a bitter debate.