Like it or not, Turkey is now President Erdogan’s state

[Jefferson23]

*Positive change once again elusive for the people of Turkey..sigh.

The resounding victory of the President’s party reflects the way he has shaped opinion

Patrick Cockburn

Monday 2 November 2015

Cars filled with militant supporters of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) celebrated its unexpectedly decisive victory in the Turkish parliamentary election by driving through the streets of Istanbul cheering and waving their party’s yellow and blue flags. They even penetrated the middle-class Bohemian district of Cihangir, where they beat drums and defiantly chanted the name of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Mr Erdogan himself was jubilant. “The national will manifested itself on 1 November in favour of stability,” he said after emerging from a mosque in Istanbul. “Let’s be as one, be brothers and all be Turkey together.”

Secular Turks opposed to the Islamic populist AKP were depressed in equal measure. Some were distributing by Facebook the names of countries like Uruguay and Antigua where Turks, appalled by the AKP’s success, could easily take refuge. In most cases, the thought of flight was not entirely serious, but the fact that some people are thinking about it is a measure of the degree to which Turkish society is divided between secular and Islamic, Kurd and Turk, Sunni and Alevi.

Watching voters enter a polling station at the Firuzaga Elementary School in Istanbul, it was easy to identify their political allegiance by their dress alone, the most obvious indication being whether not women were wearing headscarves.

remainder: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/like-it-or-not-turkey-is-now-president-erdogan-s-state-a6718651.html

[DetlefK]

1. You can't tell me that this was coincidence.

Erdogan loses the election, sabotages the formation of a new government, calls for new elections, the turkish intelligence-services fail for the second time to stop an ISIS-terror-attack and Erdogan wins in a landslide campaigning on national-security.

[Jefferson23]

3. The media he controlled, among other influences:

snip*"That's a disgrace," Chomsky said in a written statement to protest the pre-election crackdown on media outlets critical of the government. Turkish riot police stormed the headquarters of two TV channels, Kanaltürk and Bugün TV, two newspapers, the Bugün and Millet dailies and Kanaltürk radio station on Tuesday, later halting the publication of the newspapers and cutting off the broadcast of the TV and radio channels.

The TV stations had been a major platform for opposition candidates to voice their criticisms against the government, especially since TRT, the state-run broadcaster, has barely given them screen time in favor of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party). The EU and the US denounced the media takeover while rights bodies, including the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Freedom House, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and Amnesty International condemned the move. Freedom House characterized the takeover as an act of censorship that undermines the fairness of the Nov. 1 elections.

http://www.todayszaman.com/national_chomsky-brands-turkish-media-takeover-a-disgrace_402905.html

[bemildred]

4. Kind of reminds me of Selection 2000 here.

All that patriotic "we won" bullshit right before the final descent into the crapper.

[Jefferson23]

5. Yes, lots of red flags. n/t

[geek tragedy]

6. Amazing to think Turkey was considered for EU membership.

No small amount of irony in that the country who most shares their values and behavior is . . . Israel.

[bemildred]

7. Erdogan doesn't get along with Israel either

He is too nice to Hamas, and Hamas/MB seems to be back in favor in Wahhabi-land too.

He doesn't get along with Egypt either. He has delusions of grandeur. I'm not sure what al Sisi thinks about that, Erdogan being friends with Hamas/MB, but I don't think it matters much.

Our friends in the Middle East are all as confused about who to get along with as we are. And it used to be so clear. King Salman and his kid have really upset the board with their thrashing around. And then Putin jumped in too. My.

Having vast hordes of people wandering through your country looking for food, shelter, and safety can be disruptive. And all those little independent gangs running around looking for women and ammunition is no help either. Erdogan thinks the solution is to stoke the fire some more. All he will get is more little gangs.

I'm not sure who he still gets along with at this point, Erdogan, except the GCC people, and ISIS, and the EU.

[Jefferson23]

9. He plays with fire..it is so stupid but he wants controls/power he won't be able to

ultimately control. Where have we seen this mindset before? Rinse repeat.

[bemildred]

10. Stupid indeed.

Not too stupid to be afraid, but much too stupid to know what to do about it.

[bemildred]

8. To our credit, we ("the West") seem to be objecting to Erdogan's election. nt

[bemildred]

11. Sisi says Muslim Brotherhood can play role in Egypt before UK visit

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi suggested the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood could again play a role in public life if Egyptians wanted a return of the grouping he currently classifies as terrorist.

Sisi, who launched the toughest crackdown on Islamists in Egypt's modern history after toppling President Mohamed Mursi of the Brotherhood, was due in London on Wednesday on a visit to Britain criticised by rights campaigners.

The visit has drawn criticism from rights campaigners and some politicians, with the leader of Britain's main opposition party saying it showed "contempt for human and democratic rights".

In an interview with the BBC, Sisi signalled a possible softening of position towards the Muslim Brotherhood.

http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/11/04/libya-security-sisi-idINKCN0ST1U220151104

See? MB is OK with al Sisi again.

[geek tragedy]

12. what a gent. nt