Well, Turkish political agenda is full of new openings and summer was not a vacation time. Alas, I was in a sort of vacation and thus missed blogging about these openings (and crises, of course).
Brief ideas on the Kurdish opening:
1) High officials in the Turkish army backs the gov’t move. Without that backing, I do not believe AKP would be courageos enough to declare the move.
2) In the last elections, AKP realized that there is no way it can win hearts of CHP voting masses in Western, and Southern parts of Anatolia. Plus, despite the dose of rising nationalism, AKP lost votes to nationalist MHP in Central Anatolian towns. On the other hand, in Kurdish lands, AKP has a real chance. This opening may win some extra votes. This opening might be a "revenge" against nationalist Turks.
3) Nationalist reactions stayed at a ridiculous level. MHP leader’s too angry rhetoric reaches to absurdity instead of substantive opposition. CHP is already in an absurd situation since it now rejects what it had proposed as solution to Kurdish crisis decades ago…
Turkish army officers salute flag-covered coffin of Orhan Kilic, one of nine Turkish soldiers killed by Kurdish rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party or PKK at the Turkey-Iraq border two days ago, during a funeral service at the Kocatepe Mosque in Ankara, Turkey, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009.
(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)
But of course, those opposing the opening, were quick to manipulate the funeral of killed Turkish soldiers… No surprise; hawks of both sides do not like an opening.
In the mean time, another opening comes with the Armenian side. And yet another comes with the EU as the wise men talk. Unfortunately, the gov’t scores miserably against the media. Even I am getting angry with gov’t moves against the Doğan Media Group. All about these can be found below…
Between social integration and political dissociation: Turkey’s Kurdish issue perception (1) by TAHA ÖZHAN
by ORHAN KEMAL CENGİZ
Turkey hopes to open its border with Armenia by the end of the year after the two countries announced they would sign accords to help end a century of hostility
Half of Turks Want To Join EU
by YONCA POYRAZ DOĞAN
Nobel Peace Laureate and former President of Finland Martti Ahtisaari (C) addresses a seminar with members of the Independent Commission on Turkey in Stockholm September 8, 2009. The seminar addressed issues and problems surrounding Turkey’s EU accession negotiations and was moderated by Dr Jan Joel Andersson (R) of the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. REUTERS/Bob Strong (SWEDEN POLITICS)
By MARTTI AHTISAARI
Europe’s wavering on Turkey’s E.U. accession is jeopardizing its credibility.
An appeal was launched today in Brussels by the ‘wise men’ of the Independent Commission on Turkey to restart negotiations on EU membership with Ankara, which have been caught in a vicious circle for four years.
by BERİL DEDEOĞLU
The EU and Turkey should refocus attention on the Cyprus talks and the wider accession negotiations. To allow them to fail by default would be a tragedy
|
"Turkey-EU Relations
The Need for a Discursive Shift Ayhan Kaya, Turkish political scientist and head of the Centres for Migration Research and European Studies at Istanbul’s Bilgi University, explains why we should stop talking about civilizations and religion when discussing Turkey’s role in Europe and the world" VIA by Yigal Schleifer Is the Turkish government trying to break the back of the media group that has served as its most vocal opposition by slapping it with a whopping $2.5 billion tax penalty? I’m not an accountant, but there certainly seems to be something suspicious about the record-breaking fine levied on the Dogan Media Group, which publishes several powerful newspapers (Hurriyet, Milliyet and Radikal among them) and owns CNN-Turk, the Turkish-language version of CNN, among other channels. The penalty (which equals the entire value of the company) comes on the heels of a $500 million tax fine issued against Dogan a few months ago. According to Turkish tax officials, Dogan has engaged in deceptive practices and has failed to pay tax on income earned through the sale of a company and through the transfer of shares b |
by YAVUZ BAYDAR
One of the most prestigious awards in journalism went to a Turkish colleague this year, Ahmet Altan, the editor of Taraf daily. Ahmet, a courageous, dear friend, will share this well-deserved award, the Prize for the Freedom and Future of the Media, given by the Sparkasse Leipzig Media Foundation, with Roberto Saviano and Dusan Miljus, two colleagues living under constant threat of death.by ABDULLAH BOZKURT
After being slapped with a hefty fine of $2.53 billion for tax evasion and accounting irregularities in Doğan Yayın Holding, the publishing arm of media tycoon Aydın Doğan’s multibillion-dollar conglomerate with business interests ranging from energy to construction, the group’s print and broadcast outlets have launched a campaign against the government, accusing officials of suppressing freedom of speech.
By SEBNEM ARSU and SABRINA TAVERNISE
The fine raised fears that Turkey’s prime minister is trying to put the company, which has been critical of the government, out of business.
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