Erdoğan΄s Turkey
Erdoğan΄s Turkey
One after the other obstacles cave in the way of the Turkish prime minister. The Generals were defeated and the old economic elite acknowledged his success, while the modernized and westernized "green capital" that brought him in power enjoys a favoured place in the country΄s political and economic life.
The doors of Europe may remain closed for Ankara but nobody cares. After all, for the time being the biggest problems are faced by those locked within the EU, not the ones left out.
In less than a decade the government of the Justice and Development Party took control of a shattered economy with all the characteristics of a "bubble" and achieved some of the highest development rates in Europe. At the same time, thanks to the bold stand of the Turkish Prime Minister against the state of Israel, Ankara emerged as a privileged player in the Arabic and Islamic world.
Actually Erdoğan is not only portrayed as a role model in Islamic countries, but also in western republics. When Washington and Brussels were mumbling about their favorite "socialist" dictators in Tunisia and Egypt, Erdoğan was stealing their thunder condemning the authoritarian regimes.
Of course the image of the democratic leader portrayed in the Arabic world does not correspond to the reality of Turkey. Civil Liberties remain dishearteningly few, and some analysts predict that the situation will get worse compared with how it was at the first terms of Erdoğan΄s government. The recent elections with a non-existent opposition and the new election law that excludes parties that get less than 10% of the votes, portray a bleak future for democracy in Turkey.
The western press has justifiably commented on the late alarming developments, but the question is, why now? Are the western columnists worried about the state of democracy and freedom, or do they fear the new geopolitical might of Turkey?
Richard Folk recently remarked that there are much more important reasons to critique Erdoğan΄s Turkey than those commonly mentioned in western press. Fastening the economy in the chariot of Neoliberalism threatens to enlarge the chasm between the rich and the poor despite the present impressive rates of development. But aren΄t those the same Neoliberal development rates that we applauded for years in Ireland or Iceland, before these countries reached the tip of the abyss?
In the bottom line, the problem of the westerners is that Erdoğan is becoming one of them.
The doors of Europe may remain closed for Ankara but nobody cares. After all, for the time being the biggest problems are faced by those locked within the EU, not the ones left out.
In less than a decade the government of the Justice and Development Party took control of a shattered economy with all the characteristics of a "bubble" and achieved some of the highest development rates in Europe. At the same time, thanks to the bold stand of the Turkish Prime Minister against the state of Israel, Ankara emerged as a privileged player in the Arabic and Islamic world.
Actually Erdoğan is not only portrayed as a role model in Islamic countries, but also in western republics. When Washington and Brussels were mumbling about their favorite "socialist" dictators in Tunisia and Egypt, Erdoğan was stealing their thunder condemning the authoritarian regimes.
Of course the image of the democratic leader portrayed in the Arabic world does not correspond to the reality of Turkey. Civil Liberties remain dishearteningly few, and some analysts predict that the situation will get worse compared with how it was at the first terms of Erdoğan΄s government. The recent elections with a non-existent opposition and the new election law that excludes parties that get less than 10% of the votes, portray a bleak future for democracy in Turkey.
The western press has justifiably commented on the late alarming developments, but the question is, why now? Are the western columnists worried about the state of democracy and freedom, or do they fear the new geopolitical might of Turkey?
Richard Folk recently remarked that there are much more important reasons to critique Erdoğan΄s Turkey than those commonly mentioned in western press. Fastening the economy in the chariot of Neoliberalism threatens to enlarge the chasm between the rich and the poor despite the present impressive rates of development. But aren΄t those the same Neoliberal development rates that we applauded for years in Ireland or Iceland, before these countries reached the tip of the abyss?
In the bottom line, the problem of the westerners is that Erdoğan is becoming one of them.