Turkish Opposition Criticizes İntelligence Agency Law

Turkey's main opposition leader criticized a new bill that would give the country's intelligence agency more powers during his speech at a party caucus meeting Friday.



The Republican People's Party (CHP) leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, said that thanks to the new law, giving more powers to country's spy agency, MIT, Turkey will turn into an "intelligence state".



Kilicdaroglu said this new law is a shame for Turkey and it could damage the country's democracy.



His party has also said it will appeal to the Constitutional Court to repeal the legislation. 



Meanwhile, speaking at a press conference, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) deputy, Hasan Huseyin Turkoglu, criticized the new bill saying that the AK Party will be able to collect any information and documents it wants thanks to the new law.



Turkey's parliament Thursday passed a draft law designed to give MIT broader powers, including the right to maintain contact with any domestic and foreign institution and an extended scope for eavesdropping.



The new law still needs to be ratified by the Turkish president and published in the Official Gazette, a daily printed record of legislative acts and notices, before it comes into force.



englishnews@aa.com.tr - Ankara