Campaign Song of Turkey's Ruling Party Banned for 'God' References
Turkey's electoral commission has banned the campaign song of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AFP) for November's general election as too religious, a senior member of the Islamic-rooted party said Wednesday.
Bekir Bozdag, one of the AKP's deputy leaders, said the commission had ruled that the song, "Haydi Bismillah" (Let's Go, In The Name Of God), contravened Turkey's electoral law by exploiting a religious symbol for political purposes.
The main opposition Republican People's Party brought the complaint, arguing the tune violated a Turkish law banning parties from using religious symbols in campaigning.
"Upon the CHP's objection the YSK (electoral commission) has decided that 'Bismillah' cannot be used in the polls," Bozdag tweeted.
The electoral commission had yet to confirm the decision.
The folk-pop song, which was uploaded onto YouTube this week, with a video depicting Turks in everyday situations, opens with the words: "In the name of God/We take the road/We are renewed, refreshed/In the name of God."
A defiant Bozdag declared that the party would continue to use the "Haydi Bismillah" slogan to kick off campaign rallies.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, co-founder of the AKP, already fell foul of the electoral commission during his campaign for the presidency last year, with a video featuring images of a prayer mat, set to the sound of the Muslim call to prayers. The video was subsequently banned.
The AKP draws its support chiefly from the pious masses.
Erdogan, who peppers his speeches with religious references, is accused by the opposition of trying to "Islamicize" the country, which has been secular since the foundation of the Turkish Republic by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923.
Source: Agence France Presse
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