Voters fear ‘choice’ being limited in Turkey’s referendum vote

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The intense campaigning around Turkey’s historic constitutional referendum is entering its final hours. Soon voters will weigh in on how the country’s government should be structured. 

Despite the upcoming vote, some Turks are fearful their voices are being drowned out by those seeking to transform Turkey from a democracy into a dictatorship.

CGTN’s Natalie Carney reports.

Voters fear ‘choice’ being limited in Turkey's referendum vote

The intense campaigning around Turkey's historic constitutional referendum is entering its final hours. Soon voters will weigh in on how the country's government should be structured. CGTN's Natalie Carney reports.

The sea of referendum campaign posters that drape city skylines all across the country is impossible to miss. Also noticeable, the many posters supporting the Turkish President and the “Yes” campaign granting broad new powers. Those who oppose have focused their effort on areas governed by two of Turkey’s main political parties which are against the constitutional changes proposed by the ruling AKP.

In the Istanbul opposition run neighborhood of Beaiktas, “No” campaign advertising is clearly dominant, yet many argue the playing field ahead of the vote is far from level. In March, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) identified attempts to intimidate “No” campaigners ahead of Turkey’s referendum – noting the campaign has been unfair.

Some campaign posters, as well as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan himself, have accused naysayers of being on the same side as ISIL, the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (the PKK) and supporting Fethullah Gulen, the alleged mastermind of last year’s coup attempt in Turkey.