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Ecevit to meet coalition chiefs to avert crisis

ANKARA: Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit said on Monday he would meet government party leaders later in the day to decide the fate of a package of laws which has threatened to split the year-old three-way coalition.

Ecevit announced the planned meeting before leaving for talks at the presidential palace with President Suleyman Demirel.

Since arriving back from a visit to India on Sunday night he has given no indication of whether he has made any progress in negotiations to save a legislative package he sees as important to the stability of his coalition. Ecevit faced rebellion from within government ranks last week when he tried to pass the first stage of a constitutional change that would allow Demirel to seek a second term in office.

The bill failed by a sizeable margin, in a first reading, to obtain the required two-thirds majority.

Ecevit wants the bill passed to avoid squabbling over a successor to Demirel. Such a debate could threaten Turkey's hard-won political stability that is vital to a $4 billion IMF-backed anti-inflation programme as well as to negotiations for eventual entry to the European Union. Ecevit has until a final vote on Wednesday to bring renegade MPs back in line or strike a bargain with opposition Islamists.-Reuters