Ethnic rift and my retirement
Although I was not surprised to hear that there was an ethnic clash in Altınova between Turks and Kurds, this news hurt me like a knife to the heart.
The verdict on the DTP is in the wind, but…
The Constitutional Court is about to submit its verdict on the closure case against the Democratic Society Party, or DTP.
Fulya Atacan: “In Turkey the military say the State should not use religion, but they did it first
Black, long, curly hair and an open smile that often turns ironic. I meet Fulya Atacan on a hot summer day, at the beginning of August, in the Cihangir branch of the famous Kaktüs Café. The music is quite loud, and her voice is not, but my dictaphone luckily succeeds in recording it without too much back noise."
New constitution by MÜMTAZ’ER TÜRKÖNE
President Abdullah Gül gave a long speech at the opening ceremony of Parliament’s new legislative year this week.
Politics of corruption and populism
The inverse correlation between the index of corruption in a country and the freedom index therein is an interesting phenomenon. The freer a country is in terms of expression, association and participation, the less corrupt its administration is.
Does gov’t lack political and democratic vision?
It was only one month ago that the possible forced closure of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government was on the agenda, and that even they, along with the rest of Turkish society, were unable to say much more on this question than, “If the party is closed, it’s closed.”
Turkey’s trial with globalization (1)
In my last column I started analyzing Turkey’s experience in global integration by giving special reference to the convergence hypothesis and to the arguments around the “decoupling” of emerging market economies from the recent crisis of developed economies.
Time for defensive stance for AKP, first in six years
It may be the first time since 2002 that the ruling party has found itself on the defensive, as senior executives put up a spirited defense to corruption allegations that have been plaguing them over the
Why does Parliament not control the TSK?
Despite necessary constitutional amendments to provide for this, it seems that, unfortunately, there is no civilian control over the expenditures and assets of the military in Turkey.
Can the AK Party do it?
Even though Justice and Development Party (AK Party) politicians do not like to hear it, it is a fact that the government’s progress with regards to the EU accession process slowed down considerably after the party’s first few years in power.
Gül’s warnings to the gov’t and opposition
President Abdullah Gül’s speech, delivered in Parliament during the opening of the new legislative year, revealed his anxiety. Maybe he believes that this state of tension we are experiencing is diverting Turkey from its primary goals.
Media and politics
Of course we are discussing the problems of the media and trying to find solutions to them; however, unfortunately the problems of Western democracies and ours are not the same.
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Ehy! That’s my interview! Wow! I didn’t know Turkish Digest had published it. And thanks for re-publishing it 😉