Turkish parliament curbs military courts

(ANKARA) - Turkey's parliament has passed legislation to curb the powers of military courts, a long-standing European Union demand, amid renewed political turmoil between the army and the government.

The amendments were voted hastily before dawn Friday after a last-minute proposal by the ruling Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP), which dominates parliament, according to minutes on parliament's website.

The bill paves the way for civilian courts to try military personnel in peace time for attempts to topple the government as well as offences related to national security, organised crime and constitutional breaches.

It also transfers to civilian courts the power to try civilians in peace time for offences outlined in the military penal code.

The amendments coincided with a simmering row in Ankara over a purported plan by the influential military to discredit the AKP, leaked to the media earlier this month.

The army categorically rejected the paper as forgery and called on civilian prosecutors to investigate "who fabricated the document and for what reasons... and whether their objective was to tarnish the Turkish Armed Forces."

Chief of general staff Ilker Basbug said Friday the paper was part of a "growing and organised" smear campaign against the military.

Several retired generals are among dozens of suspects currently on trial as part of a controversial probe into an alleged plot to plunge Turkey into political chaos and prompt a military coup against the AKP.

The Turkish army, which has unseated four governments since 1960, has often clashed with the AKP, the offshoot of a now-banned Islamist movement, on grounds the party is flouting the mainly Muslim country's secular system.

The army however has kept a low profile in the past two years and Basbug has often emphasized respect for democracy.