Here comes my second most intense critic of AKP government. (here is the first one back in October 2008)
Things have changed. Now AKP has become a center-right wing party riding on wild capitalism. Although it sounds like a cliché, this is exactly what is happening. Recently, PM. Erdoğan attended a mall’s opening ceremony (why does a PM attend a mall opening is another question) and declared that “grocery stores are passé. Now it is the time of malls. Grocery store owners have to unite to survive”, something like that… I wonder if AKP leadership is doing any calculations on class politics. With all commercial-legal regulations AKP government is playing against small-scale businesses. They were never good at with workers and now they also abandon those businesses. Is this a rational calculation? I have heard more and more complaints from ordinary people who voted for AKP. Macro-economic developments might be doing all right but micro-economic woes grow. I do not believe AKP can still win with playing cultural and political politics. Yesterday, PM Erdoğan was lamenting: Youth memorize the top song lists in Western countries but do not know our cultural values, stuff. I do not belive this cultural populism will always work…
There has been a worker strike which had gained momentum and gradually media coverage: TEKEL has been privatized and the new owner will probably fire most of the workers. Workers will get compensation but most want to continue to work and they strike. It is not a new story and not always workers are right and TEKEL workers’ action is partially manipulated by anti-AKP circles. However, there is a pattern of AKP’s anti-labor politics. AKP is just too pro-corporate. I am not even anti-capitalist but this level of pro-corporate politics will turn masses against AKP and its possible democratisation moves…
