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Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
April 24 2014
Why is Erdoğan unrivaled?
by Mehmet Yilmaz
"What U.S. presidents would say" was an important agenda item every
year as April 24 approached. Would they say "genocide" or would they
say "Meds Yeghern"?
Let's remember that when they didn't pronounce "genocide" it was to be
rejoiced; but then again, the Meds Yeghern attribution was still met
with the feelings of a heart-broken young girl.
But there was one thing we knew: In this land, there were once owners
of all those churches that we could not get rid of, even though we
knocked down one after the other. Now they were not here anymore!
Indeed, with which words this "disappearance" will be defined is
important. Nobody can argue that this is not an important detail.
However, even more important than that is the reality of this
"disappearance."
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has shown an example of political
courage that I do not hesitate to applaud. He emphasized that, first
of all, we should as a human beings acknowledge the reality of this
disappearance.
As well as being an example of political courage, it was also an
example of why the politicians of today are not as influential as
Erdoğan.
His words were met by the two major opposition parties as I expected.
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli defined it as
"recognizing the Armenian genocide." He is in a non-contradicting
stance with himself there, precise and direct.
The Republican People's Party (CHP) statement, meanwhile, showed that
they are between a rock and a hard place. It said they accept the
condolence message but suggested that the prime minister was
"politicizing" the issue and using a humanitarian topic as a "tool for
politics."
As always, it is a statement that is "half-pregnant."
This debate shows us why Erdoğan is unrivaled. It's because his rivals
aren't able to set the agenda, to utter a new word or to offer a new
perspective to society.
Is the prime minister sincere in this?
While I was reading the prime minister's statement about sharing the
pain of the Armenians, I thought, "Let's see what he'll say in three
years." This is because we know that he does not regard these topics
as part of a comprehensive political program.
This is what doing politics means to him; he says something if it's
needed today, and he says something else tomorrow. Consistency is not
a priority.
For example, three years ago he presented the fact May Day was
celebrated peacefully in Taksim Square as his political achievement.
But today the words, "forget Taksim" also belong to him.
He said one thing when the initiative with Armenia was on the agenda;
but when Azerbaijani President İlham Aliyev showed the end of the
stick, he started saying something else.
I have a call for the prime minister: Be a man of your word. You said,
"Having experienced events that had inhumane consequences - such as
relocation - during the World War I, should not prevent Turks and
Armenians from establishing compassion and humane attitudes toward one
another." Well, keep your word.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/why-is-erdogan-unrivaled-.aspx?PageID=238&NID=65536&NewsCatID=503
From: Baghdasarian
April 24 2014
Why is Erdoğan unrivaled?
by Mehmet Yilmaz
"What U.S. presidents would say" was an important agenda item every
year as April 24 approached. Would they say "genocide" or would they
say "Meds Yeghern"?
Let's remember that when they didn't pronounce "genocide" it was to be
rejoiced; but then again, the Meds Yeghern attribution was still met
with the feelings of a heart-broken young girl.
But there was one thing we knew: In this land, there were once owners
of all those churches that we could not get rid of, even though we
knocked down one after the other. Now they were not here anymore!
Indeed, with which words this "disappearance" will be defined is
important. Nobody can argue that this is not an important detail.
However, even more important than that is the reality of this
"disappearance."
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has shown an example of political
courage that I do not hesitate to applaud. He emphasized that, first
of all, we should as a human beings acknowledge the reality of this
disappearance.
As well as being an example of political courage, it was also an
example of why the politicians of today are not as influential as
Erdoğan.
His words were met by the two major opposition parties as I expected.
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli defined it as
"recognizing the Armenian genocide." He is in a non-contradicting
stance with himself there, precise and direct.
The Republican People's Party (CHP) statement, meanwhile, showed that
they are between a rock and a hard place. It said they accept the
condolence message but suggested that the prime minister was
"politicizing" the issue and using a humanitarian topic as a "tool for
politics."
As always, it is a statement that is "half-pregnant."
This debate shows us why Erdoğan is unrivaled. It's because his rivals
aren't able to set the agenda, to utter a new word or to offer a new
perspective to society.
Is the prime minister sincere in this?
While I was reading the prime minister's statement about sharing the
pain of the Armenians, I thought, "Let's see what he'll say in three
years." This is because we know that he does not regard these topics
as part of a comprehensive political program.
This is what doing politics means to him; he says something if it's
needed today, and he says something else tomorrow. Consistency is not
a priority.
For example, three years ago he presented the fact May Day was
celebrated peacefully in Taksim Square as his political achievement.
But today the words, "forget Taksim" also belong to him.
He said one thing when the initiative with Armenia was on the agenda;
but when Azerbaijani President İlham Aliyev showed the end of the
stick, he started saying something else.
I have a call for the prime minister: Be a man of your word. You said,
"Having experienced events that had inhumane consequences - such as
relocation - during the World War I, should not prevent Turks and
Armenians from establishing compassion and humane attitudes toward one
another." Well, keep your word.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/why-is-erdogan-unrivaled-.aspx?PageID=238&NID=65536&NewsCatID=503
From: Baghdasarian