Former prime minister and Islamist leader Necmettin Erbekan is fighting for his political future following a constitutional court ruling outlawing his Refah party and banning him from party leadership for five years.

Following the 16 January ruling, Erbekan began lobbying Turkey's main political parties in an effort to water down the ban. Erbekan proposed the swift adoption of new laws allowing him to continue in day-to-day politics and preventing a new Islamist party suffering the same fate as Refah. In return, he is reported to have pledged that Islamist MPs will drop their opposition to the Yilmaz-led government.

In its ruling, the court found Refah guilty of undermining the secular character of the country. 'The court decided to close the Welfare [Refah] party because of evidence confirming its actions against the principles of the secular country,' court chairman Ahmet Necdet Sezer said after the decision. The ruling was based on unconstitutional remarks allegedly made by Erbekan and other senior Refah officials.

The court's decision has done little to enhance Turkey's image abroad, especially since Refah is the biggest single party in parliament and Erbekan was prime minister only seven months ago. The ruling was swiftly criticised by the EU and the US, who already harbour deep concerns about the country's human rights record.

However, the weakening of the Islamist opposition has been welcomed by the business community, which hopes it will usher in a period of political stability and allow the government to focus on implementing economic reforms.