13 April 2017•Update: 14 April 2017
ANKARA
Turkey’s justice minister Thursday criticized British newsweekly The Economist for claiming on its cover that Turkey is “sliding into dictatorship” over a picture of the president.
Bekir Bozdag, speaking to reporters outside a restaurant in Ankara, said: "What The Economist magazine has done shows great disrespect. It is a violation of journalistic ethics".
Bozdag added that British voters will not decide the fate of Sunday's referendum in Turkey.
"I cannot understand why the media in Britain, and some countries in Europe like Austria, the Netherlands, and Germany, are so disturbed by our referendum and system change in Turkey. Why are they concerned? Why are they disturbed?" Bozdag asked.
He added, “Turkish people will give the necessary answer to The Economist at the ballot box in Sunday's referendum".
He said that some circles in the West see President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as an enemy.
"Those who slander Mr. Erdogan as a dictator overlook the struggle for democracy and human rights he is waging in Turkey and the entire world," Bozdag added.
On Sunday, Turkish voters will be asked to vote Yes or No to an 18-article constitutional reform bill that would shift the country from a parliamentary system of governance to a presidential one.
*Reporting by Enes Duran; Writing by Fatih Hafiz Mehmet
