Anti-governmental protests that started on May 28 are still raging in Turkey. Moreover, mass media inform that two people have died. According to CNN, only during the last two days the number of injured people exceeded 3,000. Twenty-five of them are in critical condition. Demonstrators demand that the government step down.
Let us remind that the Istanbul City Council’s decision to chop down trees in one of the city parks to build a shopping mall and a mosque there was the spark that caused this explosion of anti-governmental protests. But experts say that the protests were caused not so much by the concern over the fate of the park, as by growing Islamization of the country which is not too religious, and by Erdogan’s long service. Mass protests triggered a record drop in the Turkish stock exchange. On Monday, the stock market dove by more than 10 percent.
Despite the protests in the country, Erdogan went on a four-day tour round North African countries. From Morocco Turkey’s prime minister urged the protesters to go home and said the situation was improving. He rejected any suggestions of a “Turkish Spring.” During the press conference, which was broadcasted on TV, Erdogan said: “The main oppositionist, the Republican People’s Party, has provoked my innocent citizens. And those who make news and call these events a ‘Turkish Spring,’ do not know Turkey.”
However, some Turkish media do not agree with Erdogan’s statements on protesters being provoked and disoriented by “extremists,” especially foreign ones, as the prime minister previously suggested. “Those who joined the protests in Gezi Park are ‘the other Turkey.’ Yes, there were Kurds and the opposition Nationalist Movement Party in Taksim Square, but the majority of people who waved Turkish flags belonged to the urban middle class. They feel underprivileged and oppressed by the government.”
It was reported that one of the major Turkish union groups decided to go on a two-day strike in support of the anti-governmental protests in many cities. The statement of the Confederation of Public Workers’ Unions Kesk, which includes almost 240,000 workers, said: “The government’s terror against peaceful protests is happening in a way that jeopardizes the lives of civilians.” The strike, which was to take place on June 4 and 5, was supposed to affect schools, universities, and government bodies. It is expected that protest actions will continue in Ankara, most of the Turkish provinces, and some European cities.
Some observers believe that the last wave of the anti-governmental protests underlined the split between Prime Minister Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul, who made common cause before. If Erdogan is accused of “polarization rhetoric,” Gul is considered to be a more conciliatory politician. Turkey’s parliamentary system gives the president a rather ceremonial role, leaving the prime minister in charge of the executive branch.
“In any democratic country, there are groups and political parties, trade unions in particular, who disagree with governmental policy and use their right to strike. I see no problem in the confederation of trade unions announcing a strike. The ideological standpoint of this confederation is different from the ideological standpoint of the government. And the reaction of this trade union group is quite natural.”
As the presidential elections draw near, these two former allies demonstrate different ideas about the presidential system. Erdogan wants to implement a presidential system similar to the one in the United States. Although he did not state this directly, all signs indicate that he wants to become president. However, Gul wants to stay in office as well.
Erdogan could not participate in 2002 parliamentary elections because of the political ban. And then the government was formed under Gul’s leadership.
But in less than a year, Gul handed over the prime minister’s post to Erdogan. In March 2003, he returned to the post of foreign minister.
According to observers, this was a sign of a strong unit between them, which seems to be falling apart now. The recent unrest in Turkey seems to only aggravate their rivalry. And the reaction to anti-governmental protests is rather revealing here.
When leaving for a four-day visit to North Africa, Erdogan told reporters: “Stay calm, do not worry. The problems will be settled before my return.” Meanwhile, president Gul chose a more conciliatory attitude, defending the right to protest and calling for peace. “If there are different opinions, different situations and points of views, there is nothing more natural than being able to express these differences,” said the president as quoted by Anatolu Agency.
The Day addressed Galip DALAY from the SETA Foundation (Ankara) with a request to comment on the events in Turkey and explain who organized the anti-governmental protest and whether they could cause a split between the president and the prime minister.
“NEO-NATIONALISTIC GROUPS ARE TRYING TO USE THE SITUATION TO GET EVEN WITH THE GOVERNMENT”
“It is necessary to distinguish between two different groups. The first one was a small group, which protested in Gezi Park on the first day and was primarily motivated by environmental factors. Regarding the organization of protests in Ankara and Izmir, mostly neo-nationalistic groups and other elements that oppose the government for political reasons were involved in them. Since they could not win the elections during the last three years, they are trying to use the situation to get even with the government.
“So this small rally in the Qasim Square turned into large protests thanks to groups who could not settle the score with the government during the voting. And they are trying to do it by any other means.”
When do you think the protests might be over?
“I think that they are already abating.”
Observers note the differences in the reactions to the anti-governmental protests between the president and the prime minister. Does this imply the existence or even the increase of the split between them?
“The so-called split should not be paid much attention. The thing is that in Turkey the president has to be independent from any political party. Even though he left the ruling party which is now headed by Erdogan, he does not have to demonstrate any relation to this party on his post. As a result, the president and the prime minister show differences in the assessment of the situation and in the way these differences are expressed. The prime minister still remains head of the political party. That is why the president’s approach to evaluating the situation should be viewed as that of an independent person, while the prime minister’s approach should be viewed as that of the government leader and leader of the political party, against which the protests are organized.”
Erdogan is known to have called all the protesters “extremists.” But the centrist newspaper Milliyet writes that the urban middle class participates in the protests, since they feel underprivileged and oppressed by the government. What can you say about this?
“As I have said, it is about two groups. And there must be a clear distinction between them. This is a small group concerned about environment. And the group of neo-nationalists came out in the streets, started setting shops on fire, attacking banks, and committed so many egregious acts of vandalism against ambulance cars, buses, taxis, and the public transport! These were mainly right-wing and left-wing extremists who used the peaceful nature of the protests for their own purposes.
“At the same time, we cannot call everyone who came out in the streets extremists. But those who do a lot of harm, set vehicles on fire, are extremists.”
What about the statement by the Confederation of Public Workers’ Unions, which announced the two-day strike and called Erdogan’s actions against protesters “government terror”?
“In any democratic country, there are groups and political parties, trade unions in particular, who disagree with governmental policy and use their right to strike. I see no problem in the confederation of trade unions announcing a strike. The ideological standpoint of this confederation is different from the ideological standpoint of the government. And the reaction of this trade union group is quite natural.”
Is it considered normal in Turkey that with such anti-governmental protests, Erdogan went on a four-day tour round North African countries and said that everything would be fine by the time he returned?
“I do not know how this is taken abroad. But we have no state of emergency in Turkey. I do not think there were serious reasons for the prime minister to cancel this visit. The minister of internal affairs and the rest of the political leadership are still in the country.”
The president of the European Parliament said: “Anyone who intends to negotiate with the EU and belong to this community, cannot thrash protesters in their country.” How did Turkey react to this statement?
“This means two things. First of all, those were very serious words about belonging to the EU. As we know, the negotiations between Turkey and the EU on membership have reached an impasse. Neither the EU nor Turkey sees any prospects of the latter becoming an EU member. The reaction of the political groups in the European Parliament is not my problem. Secondly, I am more worried over the policy that should be created and implemented in order to raise democratic standards in Turkey, regardless of the prospect of the EU membership. Yes, the European Parliament does give an assessment of the situation in Turkey, but this means that our country has to work more on raising economic and democratic standards of our own people.”
Presidential elections in Turkey will take place next year. What style do you think will Turkish people choose: Erdogan’s authoritarian style or Gul’s more conciliatory one? And does Erdogan want to introduce a presidential system similar to that in the US?
“It is too early to talk about this. There is still more than a year before the elections. Nobody in the country is capable of predicting the outcome of these elections at the moment.
“Regarding the change of the presidential system, there are indeed discussions about this going on among politicians, intellectuals, journalists, and scholars. But the situation with the next presidential elections is more likely to remain uncertain.”
