Istanbul ( CNN ) -- Turkey 's prime minister , Recep Tayyip Erdogan , was re-elected chairman of his Justice and Development Party , or AKP , at a boisterous party rally Sunday attended by throngs of supporters as well as foreign leaders . At the AKP party congress , Erdogan once again sought to cement the role of the AKP not only as a party that has reshaped Turkish politics but also as a role model for regional democratic Islamist movements in the wake of the Arab Spring . In a two-and-a-half-hour speech , delivered in front of an adoring crowd of party delegates , Erdogan detailed his party 's achievements after nearly a decade in power , while also laying out a road map for what his role could be in the future . `` We have shown , both at home and abroad , that a country with a Muslim population can have a thriving and advanced democracy , '' said Erdogan , who called the AKP a `` conservative democratic party . '' `` This understating that we have put forth has gone beyond our borders and has practically become an example to all Muslim countries , '' he announced to an audience that included Egyptian President Mohammed Morsy as well as Massoud Barzani , head of the Kurdistan regional government in Iraq . Few answers in Syria . Erdogan , who won his party 's chairmanship for the third time on Sunday with 1,421 votes , has reached the AKP 's term limit . What his role will be after that has been the source of much debate in Turkey . Erdogan told delegates that he will continue to serve and that , `` This is not a goodbye but a pause in the notes of a song . '' `` One of the most important aspects of the convention was the message that the prime minister is not going anywhere , '' Suat Kiniklioglu , a former AKP parliamentarian and director of the Strategic Communication Center based in Ankara , wrote in an e-mail to CNN . `` Instead he will try to become a president who can maintain his party affiliation , or will try to change the system into a presidential or semi-presidential system , '' he wrote . Kurdish conflict escalating , report says . Turkish critics regularly accuse Erdogan of authoritarian tendencies , citing the arrests of scores of journalists and hundreds of political rivals in recent years . Some commentators have warned that a presidential system could weaken democracy in Turkey . `` This was mainly about consolidating his own power and thickening the cement on which his party stands on , '' Yavuz Baydar , a columnist for the newspaper Today 's Zaman , said in an interview with CNN . `` He does not take for granted that he needs a broader base to become a fully empowered president . Either he will seek a more reformist base or he will go more conservative , omitting 'democrat ' from 'conservative democrat , ' `` said Baydar . Refugees languish in squalor at Turkish border . The AKP 's internal constitution was amended during the party congress to allow parliamentarians who have already served three terms -- such as Erdogan -- to be re-elected after sitting out an election cycle . The party congress also led to the appointment of a slew of new names to the central coordination committee of the AKP . Some political analysts said the choice of appointees signaled Erdogan appeared to be making overtures to the conservative side of the political spectrum , ahead of municipal elections next October . However , one notable change included the removal of Erdogan 's interior minister from one of the AKP 's top leadership councils . Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin 's hawkish stance towards Turkey 's long-simmering Kurdish conflict has sparked controversy both within the AKP and throughout Turkey . `` As of today , we want to turn to a blank page and write in it with our Kurdish brothers . We want to protect that page from terror and make it a new page of peace and brotherhood , '' said Erdogan . His remarks echoed themes of previous speeches , when Erdogan 's government launched a series of reforms aimed at relaxing cultural restrictions on Kurds in Turkey . As part of what was described as the `` democratic opening , '' the Turkish state established a Kurdish-language TV channel for the first time and eased bans on Kurdish language education in schools . But the peace overtures have failed to bring an end to an insurgency that has claimed the lives of more than 30,000 people over the last three decades . Over the last year , violence has spiked in predominantly Kurdish southeastern Turkey to deadly levels unseen in more than a decade . After winning numerous elections since his party first swept to power in 2002 , Erdogan appears to have a popular mandate under Turkey 's constitution , which was written by a military junta in the 1980s . A new constitution could conceivably expand rights for Turkey 's restive Kurdish minority . But that process has stalled amid disagreements with opposition political parties , who accuse the AKP of trying to rewrite the constitution unilaterally . CNN 's Ivan Watson contributed to this report .
Erdogan re-elected the Strategic Communication Center chairman . `` We have shown that ... a Muslim population can have ... democracy , '' he says . Leaders of Iraq , Muslim Kurdistan are in attendance at rally . Critics accuse Recep Tayyip Erdogan of authoritarian tendencies , citing arrests of journalists and rivals .