New Welfare Party
New Welfare Party | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | Yeniden Refah (official) YRP (unofficial) |
| Leader | Fatih Erbakan |
| Founder | Fatih Erbakan |
| Founded | 23 November 2018 |
| Split from | Felicity Party |
| Preceded by | Welfare Party |
| Headquarters | Ankara, Turkey |
| Membership (2024) |  365,767 |
| Ideology | Islamism Millî Görüş Religious conservatism Neo-Ottomanism Anti-Zionism Hard Euroscepticism Antifeminism |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
| National affiliation | People's Alliance (2023) |
| Colors |
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| Slogan | Milletimiz için biz varız ("We are here for our nation") |
| Grand National Assembly | 5 / 600 |
| Website | |
| https://yenidenrefahpartisi.org.tr/ | |
The New Welfare Party (Turkish: Yeniden Refah Partisi, YRP) is an Islamist political party in Turkey. It is the successor of the Welfare Party, which was banned in 1998. They adopt the National Outlook (Turkish: "Millî Görüş") ideology.
History
It was founded by former Prime Minister of Turkey Necmettin Erbakan's son Fatih Erbakan on 23 November 2018.
On 21 January 2023, leader of the far-right Danish political party Stram Kurs, Rasmus Paludan was permitted to burn a Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm. Following the incident, the party protested Sweden in front of the Swedish Consulate-General in Istanbul.
Initially a critic of the AKP regime, in 2023 the party announced Fatih Erbakan's candidacy for the presidential election. However, the party later backtracked and instead joined the People's Alliance on March 24, 2023.
Controversies
The party's Istanbul Youth-Wing’s Vice President, Sadık Tunç, made controversial comments on the 97th anniversary of the abolishment of the caliphate in Turkey: "The days when we will declare Sharia-e-Ghara-e-Muhammadiyyah are coming closer." The Turkish Constitution forbids proposing or calling the abandonment of Secularism (Laicism), or the abandonment of the law preventing it itself, alongside making the first four articles of the constitution untouchable and unchangeable. Their predecessor was dissolved and banned by the Constitutional Court of Turkey in 1998 due to their Islamist agenda under the secularist post-modern coup regime. After the event, Sadık Tunç deleted his tweet on Twitter about the topic.
The chairperson and founder of the newly party, Fatih Erbakan, is also an open supporter of the anti-vax movement during the COVID Pandemic in Turkey. He claimed COVID-19 vaccines could lead to people giving birth to "half-human, half-monkey" children. He also openly but briefly brought up and discussed this topic during several occasions on live-TV interviews.
Policies
The party was founded with the slogan "We are here for our nation". They specified that their main goals are "First morality and spirituality, then to design the new world order under the leadership of Turkey."
Fatih Erbakan has stated that the new party would replace the current system by a new presidential system, and that returning to a parliamentary system would be harmful. They would also take a strong anti-Zionist position like their predecessor.
The party is against LGBT rights, and has declared that LGBT people are "a perversion banned in every religion". The party's main aim is lifting a law that protects women and children against domestic violence.
Election results
Parliamentary elections
| Election date | Leader | Votes | % of Votes | Seats | Elections Position | Current Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Fatih Erbakan | 1,515,034 | 2.84% | 5 / 600 |
Providing confidence and supply | Opposition |