People of Turkey are
in the streets. For a week they have been staging demonstrations all over the
country to protest their government. The police have reacted violently, killing
several demonstrators, injuring and arresting thousands, and helped escalated
the anti-government sentiment in the due course. What started as a small
protest against the intended demolition of an urban park in Istanbul has turned
into a national political showdown.
The events are
indicative of the deep tension underlying Turkey’s politics. Progressive,
pro-democracy people in Turkey are extremely worried about the direction the
country has taken under the increasingly autocratic rule by the Prime Minister
Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (JDP, or AKP after its Turkish
initials). The Muslim conservative JDP has been in power over a decade,
increasing its share of votes over three elections; and it probably still
enjoys the endorsement of the majority of its electoral base despite the
protest wave over the last week. Yet, many in Turkey believe that further
strengthening of the JDP's and Erdogan’s leadership is a serious risk, not only
for the sustainability of a lively and competitive political environment, but
for the democratic regime itself.
Yes, Turkey boasts
largely free and fair elections, and everybody in the country takes the
elections seriously. We do respect the electoral record of the JDP. The problem
is that the government acts as if an electoral victory were a mandate to
implement their plans with no ongoing input from the public, with no regard
whatsoever to the opinions of those who do not agree with them, and if need be,
by overriding personal freedoms. This tendency has been observed over a number
of issues during the last couple of years. What we are increasingly facing is a
“tyranny of the majority,” where the basic rights that each citizen should
enjoy in a democracy—like the freedom of assembly—can be eliminated by elected
authorities. This is unacceptable.
In the past, there
have been attempts to move the governing party from power through undemocratic
means, in order to reestablish a regime of military-bureaucratic tutelage. They
were also unacceptable. The JDP government has already eliminated such foul
challenges to its power. Unfortunately, it is trying to insulate itself from
democratic challenges by associating any criticism and opposition with such
bygone threats. In fact, the hundreds of thousands who took part in the recent
protests want no intervention against the government from the military and other
actors with no place in democratic politics.
What we demand is an
end to unnecessary police violence, a genuine investigation of the crimes
committed against the protesters, and upholding of the freedom of assembly and
the free press for everybody committed to non-violence from now on.
We demand that the
government actually make use of participatory democratic channels to hear the
opinions of the citizens while devising development projects that would
fundamentally affect their dwellings, livelihoods and public spaces.
We demand greater
respect for the secular character of the Republic and for the right of every
citizen to decide on private matters for themselves, even if they do not
exactly concur with the JDP’s values.
Furthermore, as
Erdogan’s government takes steps that may lead to a peaceful resolution of
Turkey’s Kurdish problem, we insist that this welcome initiative should not be
used as a bargaining chip to “buy” consent for the super-presidential regime he
aims to establish instead of the current parliamentary one. We demand a
reinvigorated debate for a democratic constitution in which there will be clear
recognition of the separation of powers; and sufficient checks and balances
against the abuse of power by the executive leadership.
The fact that I can
sit down and send this out is indicative of a considerable degree of freedom
people enjoy in Turkey, and the political progress we have made over many
years—some of which JDP will get credit for. But I fear that in a few years I
may not be able to enjoy this freedom any more. I am writing this note so that
the world will know.
