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JUNTA ELIMINATION PROCESS: UNPRECEDENTED DAYS IN THE HISTORY OF TURKEY ARE BEING EXPERIENCED IN ANKARA.
Today's Zaman
Nov 9 2009
Turkey
The most critical question is what will happen to the junta. Another
important subject is the democratic initiative. Let's start with the
second issue. Parliament will convene to discuss a very important
agenda item tomorrow. In one sense, it will mark the beginning of
the most important stage in solving the quarter-century-old curse of
terror within the frame of the Kurdish problem. In another sense, it
will expand the scope of the frame into a democratic initiative that
will search for a solution to all human rights problems concerning
social groups. An additional step will be taken to determine the
details of the National Unity Project, which will make religious,
ethnic and social groups a positive part of the country.
The opposition is trying to influence the public by focusing on the
terror aspect of the initiative, but the process is not limited to
just these issues. The third and fourth steps of the initiative will
search for a solution to Turkey's diplomatic and economic problems.
Asked what their thoughts are on the expansion of the framework,
Republican People's Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
officials were reluctant to estimate the scope of the plan. A CHP
official said, "If the framework is going to be expanded so much, won't
people say, 'These are responsibilities you need to take care of as a
government anyway,' and ask, 'If you can't address these issues without
starting an initiative process then why did you become a government'?"
An official from the MHP predicts that expanding the scope of the
framework will reduce its chances of being successful. "You can't
solve a problem by pleasing everyone and managing everyone. If you're
planning to open the border with Armenia, then you have to think
about how you will offend the Azeris," the MHP official said.
Erdogan continues to say, "The initiative is a process, not a
package." He also says this process includes Turkey's chronic
problems. To emphasize the broad spectrum of the process, he talks
about the "unemployment problem" as well.
An important member of the Cabinet indirectly answered CHP and MHP
officials' questions by explaining that their search for solutions to
problems did not begin with the launch of debates on the initiative
in recent months. He also said that the Justice and Development Party
(AK Party) has been searching for solutions to the country's chronic
problems ever since it became the ruling power and has pursued those
that could be implemented immediately. "But some problems were so
complicated that, without discriminating against any party, politics
needed to deal with the social aspects of these problems with civil
society organizations. These issues accumulated in a basket, and our
people knew the main reasons for the accumulation. When we begin to
solve the problems, they will know the details as well. The opposition
made a very big strategic mistake with the issue of terror, which is
the most important of these issues. They intentionally did not partake
in this radical solution process. The public will assess this as well."
The CHP and MHP are trying to politicize the decision to address the
initiative in Parliament on Nov. 10 (the anniversary of Ataturk's
death). AK Party executives are responding with Ataturk's popular
phrase, "peace at home, peace in the world," conveying messages about
the initiative's diplomatic dimension as well.
I spoke with a member of the Cabinet who is very close to Erdogan
about the important question of what will happen to the junta.
Emphasizing the prime minister's determination, the Cabinet member
said: "It will be eliminated. There is no other alternative." He also
stated that after Erdogan returned from his trip to Pakistan and Iran,
where he communicated important messages, he met with Chief of General
Staff Gen. Ä°lker BaÅ~_bug and said: "What is this mess? Clean it up."
BaÅ~_bug, who asked for some time, apparently said the junta put him
in a tough spot, recalling that he had referred to an action plan
proving the existence of the junta as simply a "piece of paper."
An important member of the Cabinet to whom I mentioned the news about
attempts to distort the process said, "The prime minister emphasized
during our group meeting that these attempts were useless."
Indeed, Ankara is truly experiencing historic days.
------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------
GMO trade and CHP's swordsmanship
Both the ruling power and the main opposition are criticizing each
other over the issue of genetically modified organisms (GMO). I spoke
with people who have the most knowledge about the issue on both sides.
The ruling power and the opposition are actually defending the same
idea. Both sides are expressing the downsides of GMOs and do not want
these products, which pose a threat to human health, the environment
and Turkey's biodiversity, to be allowed to enter Turkey.
The CHP wants a bio safety law to be implemented to prevent GMOs
from entering Turkey. As for AK Party officials, who say the law is
still in the making, they argue that it was necessary to introduce a
regulation in the meantime and say it was appropriate for the Ministry
of Agriculture to introduce it.
Harsh accusations are being put forward over the regulation. During
his group meeting, CHP leader Deniz Baykal accused the government of
setting up a trap against the public on this issue and vowed to do
everything in his power to ensure that the regulation is abolished.
Noting that goods with GMOs that previously freely entered the country
have been stopped at customs after the statute was made effective, an
AK Party executive said that by attempting to abolish the regulation
the CHP was acting like a swordsman for GMO vendors.
Even CHP deputies concede that companies that can't get their GMO
products into the country are knocking on the CHP's door instead
of criticizing the statute themselves. The Ministry of Agriculture
has launched a new plan to prevent speculation in the public about
the regulation. Even if the CHP stops trying to get the regulation
abolished, it seems unlikely that it will be able to escape the
accusation of acting like a hired gun.
-------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------
Why are the MHP's founders disgruntled?
The MHP, which held its ninth party congress over the weekend, wants
to overcome a critical threshold. The excitement of party officials who
said they would organize a democratic congress shows the importance of
this threshold to be passed. The MHP had two important goals it wanted
to achieve in the last congress before the general elections. One
was to change the party program; the other was to update the party's
bylaws. Party commissions worked for several weeks to prepare a new
party program and completely change the bylaws.
Noting that this is a kind of tradition, party executives said they
change the party's program and bylaws every 10 years according to
the party's current needs. This time they prepared a completely new
set of bylaws and program "in line with both the party's needs and
society's demands."
The founders of the 40-year-old MHP are extremely disturbed with the
bylaw changes. Their biggest concern has to do with the removal of
Article 43, which leader Alparslan TurkeÅ~_ had ordered be included
in the bylaws. Noting that Article 43 prevents tyranny by leaders
by allowing a person to be elected as party chairman a maximum of
five times, the MHP founders highlighted the problems with opening
the way for MHP leader Devlet Bahceli to be elected leader again and
again until his death.
Of the 30 people that founded the MHP, 21 are still living. Speaking
on behalf of the living 21 founders prior to the congress, lawyer
Faruk Evirgen emphasized that his party was becoming undemocratic.
"People with different views are being silenced by unfair expulsion
and threats. I am not sure if we as the founders will be able to
enter the hall of the congress. They are also going to prevent a rival
candidate from being chosen. They are going to prevent delegates who
they think might vote for someone other than Bahceli from entering
the hall. Unfortunately, our party has not been able to escape this
kind of thinking," he said.
The one point that the founders are especially upset over is that
they haven't been given an office in the party's headquarters, which
they set up with very limited resources. Founder Kemal İnandı said,
"I just can't accept the disloyalty that we are facing after all the
sacrifices we made."
In response to the claim that they are being influenced by some circles
that want to weaken the MHP, Evirgen said: "We are not speaking on
behalf of anyone. We are speaking with our own free will.
All it takes to understand the error in clearing the way for one
single person to be the chairman until he dies is to internalize the
democratic culture."
Today's Zaman
Nov 9 2009
Turkey
The most critical question is what will happen to the junta. Another
important subject is the democratic initiative. Let's start with the
second issue. Parliament will convene to discuss a very important
agenda item tomorrow. In one sense, it will mark the beginning of
the most important stage in solving the quarter-century-old curse of
terror within the frame of the Kurdish problem. In another sense, it
will expand the scope of the frame into a democratic initiative that
will search for a solution to all human rights problems concerning
social groups. An additional step will be taken to determine the
details of the National Unity Project, which will make religious,
ethnic and social groups a positive part of the country.
The opposition is trying to influence the public by focusing on the
terror aspect of the initiative, but the process is not limited to
just these issues. The third and fourth steps of the initiative will
search for a solution to Turkey's diplomatic and economic problems.
Asked what their thoughts are on the expansion of the framework,
Republican People's Party (CHP) and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP)
officials were reluctant to estimate the scope of the plan. A CHP
official said, "If the framework is going to be expanded so much, won't
people say, 'These are responsibilities you need to take care of as a
government anyway,' and ask, 'If you can't address these issues without
starting an initiative process then why did you become a government'?"
An official from the MHP predicts that expanding the scope of the
framework will reduce its chances of being successful. "You can't
solve a problem by pleasing everyone and managing everyone. If you're
planning to open the border with Armenia, then you have to think
about how you will offend the Azeris," the MHP official said.
Erdogan continues to say, "The initiative is a process, not a
package." He also says this process includes Turkey's chronic
problems. To emphasize the broad spectrum of the process, he talks
about the "unemployment problem" as well.
An important member of the Cabinet indirectly answered CHP and MHP
officials' questions by explaining that their search for solutions to
problems did not begin with the launch of debates on the initiative
in recent months. He also said that the Justice and Development Party
(AK Party) has been searching for solutions to the country's chronic
problems ever since it became the ruling power and has pursued those
that could be implemented immediately. "But some problems were so
complicated that, without discriminating against any party, politics
needed to deal with the social aspects of these problems with civil
society organizations. These issues accumulated in a basket, and our
people knew the main reasons for the accumulation. When we begin to
solve the problems, they will know the details as well. The opposition
made a very big strategic mistake with the issue of terror, which is
the most important of these issues. They intentionally did not partake
in this radical solution process. The public will assess this as well."
The CHP and MHP are trying to politicize the decision to address the
initiative in Parliament on Nov. 10 (the anniversary of Ataturk's
death). AK Party executives are responding with Ataturk's popular
phrase, "peace at home, peace in the world," conveying messages about
the initiative's diplomatic dimension as well.
I spoke with a member of the Cabinet who is very close to Erdogan
about the important question of what will happen to the junta.
Emphasizing the prime minister's determination, the Cabinet member
said: "It will be eliminated. There is no other alternative." He also
stated that after Erdogan returned from his trip to Pakistan and Iran,
where he communicated important messages, he met with Chief of General
Staff Gen. Ä°lker BaÅ~_bug and said: "What is this mess? Clean it up."
BaÅ~_bug, who asked for some time, apparently said the junta put him
in a tough spot, recalling that he had referred to an action plan
proving the existence of the junta as simply a "piece of paper."
An important member of the Cabinet to whom I mentioned the news about
attempts to distort the process said, "The prime minister emphasized
during our group meeting that these attempts were useless."
Indeed, Ankara is truly experiencing historic days.
------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------
GMO trade and CHP's swordsmanship
Both the ruling power and the main opposition are criticizing each
other over the issue of genetically modified organisms (GMO). I spoke
with people who have the most knowledge about the issue on both sides.
The ruling power and the opposition are actually defending the same
idea. Both sides are expressing the downsides of GMOs and do not want
these products, which pose a threat to human health, the environment
and Turkey's biodiversity, to be allowed to enter Turkey.
The CHP wants a bio safety law to be implemented to prevent GMOs
from entering Turkey. As for AK Party officials, who say the law is
still in the making, they argue that it was necessary to introduce a
regulation in the meantime and say it was appropriate for the Ministry
of Agriculture to introduce it.
Harsh accusations are being put forward over the regulation. During
his group meeting, CHP leader Deniz Baykal accused the government of
setting up a trap against the public on this issue and vowed to do
everything in his power to ensure that the regulation is abolished.
Noting that goods with GMOs that previously freely entered the country
have been stopped at customs after the statute was made effective, an
AK Party executive said that by attempting to abolish the regulation
the CHP was acting like a swordsman for GMO vendors.
Even CHP deputies concede that companies that can't get their GMO
products into the country are knocking on the CHP's door instead
of criticizing the statute themselves. The Ministry of Agriculture
has launched a new plan to prevent speculation in the public about
the regulation. Even if the CHP stops trying to get the regulation
abolished, it seems unlikely that it will be able to escape the
accusation of acting like a hired gun.
-------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------
Why are the MHP's founders disgruntled?
The MHP, which held its ninth party congress over the weekend, wants
to overcome a critical threshold. The excitement of party officials who
said they would organize a democratic congress shows the importance of
this threshold to be passed. The MHP had two important goals it wanted
to achieve in the last congress before the general elections. One
was to change the party program; the other was to update the party's
bylaws. Party commissions worked for several weeks to prepare a new
party program and completely change the bylaws.
Noting that this is a kind of tradition, party executives said they
change the party's program and bylaws every 10 years according to
the party's current needs. This time they prepared a completely new
set of bylaws and program "in line with both the party's needs and
society's demands."
The founders of the 40-year-old MHP are extremely disturbed with the
bylaw changes. Their biggest concern has to do with the removal of
Article 43, which leader Alparslan TurkeÅ~_ had ordered be included
in the bylaws. Noting that Article 43 prevents tyranny by leaders
by allowing a person to be elected as party chairman a maximum of
five times, the MHP founders highlighted the problems with opening
the way for MHP leader Devlet Bahceli to be elected leader again and
again until his death.
Of the 30 people that founded the MHP, 21 are still living. Speaking
on behalf of the living 21 founders prior to the congress, lawyer
Faruk Evirgen emphasized that his party was becoming undemocratic.
"People with different views are being silenced by unfair expulsion
and threats. I am not sure if we as the founders will be able to
enter the hall of the congress. They are also going to prevent a rival
candidate from being chosen. They are going to prevent delegates who
they think might vote for someone other than Bahceli from entering
the hall. Unfortunately, our party has not been able to escape this
kind of thinking," he said.
The one point that the founders are especially upset over is that
they haven't been given an office in the party's headquarters, which
they set up with very limited resources. Founder Kemal İnandı said,
"I just can't accept the disloyalty that we are facing after all the
sacrifices we made."
In response to the claim that they are being influenced by some circles
that want to weaken the MHP, Evirgen said: "We are not speaking on
behalf of anyone. We are speaking with our own free will.
All it takes to understand the error in clearing the way for one
single person to be the chairman until he dies is to internalize the
democratic culture."