Late last week, the parliament of Turkey passed a draft new constitution, which will be put to a referendum in April.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party presents the change as if it were a bit of house-cleaning, and just a matter of moving from a Westminster-style parliamentary system, as in Britain and Canada, to an American-style government with a separation of powers among a president, a congress and a judiciary.
On paper, Turkey is moving from one liberal-democratic political system to another quite similar one. In fact, the proposed change is far less benign. It looks to be about consolidating Mr. Erdogan's power.
Under the current constitution, the president is supposed to fill a largely ceremonial role, rather like Canada's governor-general. In fact, Mr. Erdogan, who is evolving into a kind of Turkish Vladimir Putin, has become by far the country's most powerful man.
If – or when – Mr. Erdogan becomes the proposed constitution's first "executive president," he will be able to serve two consecutive five-year terms in office, and no more. On paper, it looks like the term limit in the 22nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
But Turkey does not have a constitution as stable as the U.S. And if this referendum passes, Mr. Erdogan will have reset the clock.
Mr. Erdogan first became prime minister of Turkey in 2003, and he has become the country's effective ruler ever since, under different titles. If his current role evolves into an "executive presidency," he might not have to retire until 2029.
This presidential prestidigitation might almost be entertaining if Turkish politics were not so volatile. In July, there was an unsuccessful coup by some elements in the armed forces. Mr. Erdogan took advantage of the failed putsch to settle old scores and further consolidate power. He has far too great a taste for declaring states of emergency; the proposed constitution provides for those, too.
This is no time for the people of Turkey to be asked to think about constitutional change. Instead of rewriting the constitution, the Erdogan government should be respecting democracy and restoring calm – its own, not least.