A new democratisation package of reforms aimed at strengthening fundamental rights and freedoms came into force after its publication on the Turkish parliament’s official publication. The reform package, the last major piece of legislation the parliament passed before it closed its session was approved by President Abdullah Gul on March 13 and entered into force. Two major items in the package are the right for private schools to offer education in their mother tongue and the right of candidates and political parties to campaign using languages other than Turkish. The reforms also introduced tougher penalties for hate crimes.
One of the most important reform in the package deals with allowing private schools to teach in languages other than Turkish. The new law says that Turkish citizens can open private education institutions to provide education in languages and dialects they traditionally use in their daily lives. The package also introduces tougher sentences for hate crimes. It stipulates that hate speech or acts related to language, race, nationality, colour, gender, disability, political opinion, philosophical belief, religion or sectarian differences will be punished by up to three years in prison.