Washington, June 6 : Senior US lawmakers and policy experts have issued a stark warning that Turkey is moving steadily away from democratic governance, with concerns mounting over political repression, judicial independence and the imprisonment of opposition leaders ahead of a key NATO summit in Ankara next month.

At a hearing of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, lawmakers from both parties questioned whether President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government would allow meaningful political competition as critics described an accelerating crackdown on opponents, journalists and civil society.

"The title of today's hearing poses a question of immense importance. Can Turkey find its way to freedom?" Commission Co-Chair Rep. Christopher Smith said.

Smith argued that democratic institutions in Turkey have been weakened to the point where "it will be very difficult to restore civil and political freedom in its most basic aspects, the rule of law, free and fair elections, judicial independence, religious freedom, and respect for internationally recognised human rights."

He pointed to the March 2025 arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, widely regarded as Erdogan's strongest political challenger, calling it a critical turning point.

"His arrest in March of 2025 came on the very day that his party was expected to nominate him as its candidate for the next presidential election," Smith said.

Commission Co-Chair Rep. James McGovern said the situation had deteriorated since previous congressional reviews of Turkey.

"My impression is that things are getting worse," McGovern said, citing reports from human rights organisations that documented pressure on opposition groups and journalists.

Several expert witnesses described Turkey as moving beyond what political scientists call "competitive authoritarianism" toward a system where elections may no longer produce political change.

Andrew O'Donohue, a scholar at Harvard University and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told lawmakers that Turkey was approaching a decisive moment.

"Turkey today stands at a dangerous inflection point," he said. "Turkey is transitioning from competitive authoritarianism, a system in which elections are unfair but still winnable for the opposition, toward full authoritarianism, a system in which the opposition cannot win power at the ballot box."

O'Donohue said the imprisonment of Imamoglu and legal actions targeting the main opposition Republican People's Party had raised doubts about whether voters would be able to choose new leaders through elections.

Henri Barkey, an adjunct senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, argued that power had become increasingly concentrated around Erdogan.

"What has emerged over the past decade is not merely democratic backsliding in the abstract but a system of personal rule, a regime increasingly organised around the political survival, institutional prerogatives, and personal preferences of a single individual," he said.

Former political prisoner and US citizen Serkan Golge gave emotional testimony about spending nearly three years in Turkish prisons after being accused under anti-terror laws.

"I survived prison, but survival is not justice," Golge told lawmakers.

Describing the impact on his family, he recalled his son pleading during a border inspection after his release: "No, dad, not again, not again."

Golge argued that Turkey's anti-terrorism laws were being used to criminalise lawful conduct and urged Washington to press Ankara to comply with rulings of the European Court of Human Rights.

The hearing also focused on the upcoming NATO summit in Ankara scheduled for July. Witnesses urged the Trump administration to raise human rights concerns directly with Erdogan.

"The Turkish government wants cooperation with the United States," O'Donohue said. "It is within our capacity as a democracy to condition that bilateral cooperation on increased movement by the Turkish government towards protecting human rights and democracy."

/IANS