The Ak Party which integrated a discourse of civilization with Erdoğan's leadership, has the courage to confront all fears of the history of Turkish modernization
It has been clear that authoritarianism will be the main topic on the agenda ahead of the forthcoming August 2014 presidential election and 2015 general elections. This discussion is not only a matter of the elites' power struggle in domestic politics but also in relation to Turkey's foreign policy agenda. Many Western capitals along with a number of foreign media outlets broadcast programs that accuse the ruling AK Party of authoritarianism.
Wikipedia lists Turkey as an example of authoritarian states. This shows the ultimate level of distortion of such media. Within the framework of democracy and authoritarianism debates, it is no more than an abdication of reason to count Turkey among authoritarian regimes such as Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cuba, China, Laos as well as Syria. Or it may be the outcome of an anti-AK Party and anti-Erdoğan campaign. During his official visit to Turkey, Germany's President Joachim Gauck explained his anxieties about Turkey's lack of separation of powers and its tendency to restrict the rule of law.
Gauck, who was a politician under the totalitarian rule of a communist party until he was 50, justified his harsh criticism against Erdoğan's rule by saying he is an "advocator of democracy." It is highly ironic that Gauck's criticism coincides with Erdoğan's initiative on the Armenian issue, which was until now an unbroken taboo of Turkey. As one may remember, on April 23 Erdoğan stressed that the deportation of Armenians during World War I was inhumane, and he offered condolences to the descendants of those Armenian casualties.Erdoğan's call for "just memory" on the Armenian issue stands for Turkey's effort to confront its history on this 100-year-old issue. It is another irony that Erdoğan said during a speech at the AK Party's group meeting on Tuesday, "You will have no fear" when rejecting all types of ethnic and religious discrimination.
"Are you a Turk? You will have no fear. Are you a Kurd, Arab, Circassian, Laz, Georgian, Romani, Bosnian? You will have no fear. Are you Alevi or Sunni? You will have no fear. You will have no fear or shame because you perform prayers, observe fasts, recite Quran and wear hijab. You will have no fear and embarrassment because you speak in your mother tongue. You will have no fear or restraint in expressing your opinion, living as you wish and protecting your lifestyle," he said. Aside from these sentences, it is reported in the media that the AK Party's leader, who is condemned for authoritarianism, will launch initiatives on four other matters:Legalizing of Cemevis, re-opening the Halki Seminary, normalization in relations with Israel, and negotiating with pro-Gezi and liberal authors.
It is possible or maybe true to say that these initiatives are being launched to minimize internal polarization and recover Turkey's international image before the elections. It is natural for a politician to view democratization in light of elections. Contrary to popular belief, democratization does not come as an ideal and desire in most cases. Rather, it comes as satisfaction of necessities, demands and obligations. The outcomes of democratic initiatives and the physiological atmosphere they create are significant. Questioning the sincerity of politicians is not useful at all.
Here is a more critical question: How does the AK Party still continue to determine Turkey's reform and democratization agenda after 12 years of rule, despite being constantly charged with authoritarianism?
We can elaborate on the paradox in this way:
Erdoğan said he did not find the Constitutional Court's decision to unblock Twitter "national."
Now he presents a bold front to face the 1915 incidents and is subjected to severe criticism by Turkish nationalists. Erdoğan, who underlined the idea of "one nation, one state" several times is blamed for being a sympathizer of the PKK because of his Kurdish reconciliation initiative by Devlet Bahçeli, chairman of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
How do discussions of authoritarianism and democratization move on an equal basis on Turkey's agenda?
The answer to this question will force those who criticize Turkey as a post-authoritarianism, illiberal democracy to explore a reality that they cannot see: the AK Party's political codes. In other words, debates over authoritarianism result in failing to figure out the AK Party's political codes. This silences Turkey's political paradoxes and mechanisms of opportunity.
It may be reasonable for Gauck, who broke away from East Germany's communist regime, to have a false sense of Turkey's political situation. His impetuous criticism of authoritarianism is also comprehensible because Gauck mistakes Turkey for Eastern European countries that transformed to become democracies in the 1990s. He may have overlooked the paradoxes through which Turkey actualizes its democratization process. His criticism may also result from political reasons.
However, it is more challenging that academics and intellectuals who think about Turkish politics make the same mistake. This mistake makes them consider election results as "deceiving the public" and "consenting to corruption." Those who fail to properly understand the AK Party's essence of political success and codes cannot produce an effective politics of opposition. This only makes the AK Party more advantageous.
We need to carefully analyze the parameters that came after the Dec.17 operation in order to figure out the paradoxes of Turkey on its way to consolidate its democracy. The realization that Turkey's critical institutions were seized by an organized structure revealed an important requirement for Turkey.
Turkey has two goals to achieve simultaneously:
One is strong institutions and the other is further democratization. Turkey has to experience a strong institutionalization by discharging pro-tutelage structures in the critical institutions of the state. This means Turkey will be a strong state, which is a necessity as Turkey is on a quest for autonomous foreign policy. Undoubtedly, a strong state does not stand for an oppressive regime. It is also not the revival of Kemalist anxieties. Strong institutions are necessary to bear more democratization.
Erdoğan is making the best of his leadership to achieve these two goals at the same time. Obviously, this is not a simple task.
It is possible to say that the requirement of eliminating tutelage and becoming institutionalized sometimes causes fluctuations in democratic initiatives.
Despite the claims of authoritarianism, the AK Party continues to surprise the opposition with new initiatives. These are all about this paradox.
The AK Party's objective for 2013 was to create a new Turkey. This goal causes polarization and discomfort among various sections of society. Here is another critical question: How does the AK Party deal with this paradox and polarization? The AK Party, which integrated a discourse of civilization with Erdoğan's leadership, has the courage to confront all fears of the history of Turkish modernization.
With its discourse of equivocal civilization, the AK Party is redefining the concepts of national interest and national identity.The polarized atmosphere of Turkey's internal politics shows the dialogical extent of current transformation. This dialogical process will consolidate democracy as long as the AK Party does not lose its reformist nature. And it will not lose this nature so long as it does not follow insular right-wing nationalism and diverge from its own discourse of civilization.
About the author
Burhanettin Duran is General Coordinator of SETA Foundation and a professor at Social Sciences University of Ankara. He is also a member of Turkish Presidency Security and Foreign Policies Council.
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