Turkish Parliament moved to extend the state of emergency on Monday for another 3 months, only two days after the country marked the first anniversary of a bloody coup attempt.
In a commemoration with great public fanfare at the weekend, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took the lead to pay tribute to the fallen and brave citizens who confronted rogue troops who commandeered tanks and fighter jets in an abortive attempt to topple the government on July 15 last year.
The president pledged a harsher crackdown on coup plotters. He vowed to restore the death penalty, displaying to have no qualms over reaction from outside world. He even dangled the prospect of further humiliating imprisoned generals by dressing them in standardized orange prison uniforms, like the ones wore by Guantanamo prisoners.
The extension granted him the mandate he needs to push forward with his agenda without worries of legal and legislative oversight.
Parliament was quick to respond a request from Cabinet for emergency rule extension. From Wednesday on, Turkey will again be governed by that regime that has now been in place for a year.
