TURKEY is at a crossroads. The Islamist-rooted AKP of Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan won an emphatic victory in last month’s general election, advanced from November by the constitutional crisis sparked by the presidential candidature of AKP foreign minister, Abdullah Gul.
A retired Turkish general was almost weeping when interviewed after the final count, saying that the secularist Turkish republic of Kemal Ataturk was at an end. Many current military leaders as well as left-wing intellectuals and artists share this nonsensical view. The third largest party, the nationalist MHP with 70 seats has however said that it will not take part in any such boycott. It does not however want Gul to be the candidate. The MHP is to be congratulated for its statesmanlike view that the political process cannot continue to be blocked by procedural tactics. It could of course be argued that the electorate, in giving a substantial mandate to the AKP, has effectively backed the choice of Gul. But politics is about compromise. Erdogan has indicated that whatever Gul thinks, he might be prepared to consider an alternative candidate.
The question must be however the real price that the MHP is demanding for its support. The political scene has been transformed by the return of 20 Kurdish MPs. The last time Kurdish legislators made it into Parliament, in 1991, they were ejected for demanding to swear their oath of loyalty in Kurdish, not Turkish. At that time the use of Kurdish in the press and official business was proscribed. The MHP insisted during its campaign that any Kurdish MPs elected should condemn the PKK insurgents who have renewed their campaign of violence. Since the Kurdish legislators won their seats on a platform of peace and reconciliation, it may be that it will be possible for them to satisfy the MHP’s demand.
If compromises over the AKP presidential candidate and the Kurdish MPs view of PKK violence can be achieved then promising doors will open. The Kurdish parliamentarians can demonstrate that there is a majority in their constituency who desire only a just settlement that recognizes the existence of Kurdish culture and language within the Turkish state and ensures that Kurds will no longer be treated as second-class citizens.
It is right for all politicians to expect their colleagues to disavow violence. Nevertheless, the establishment should seek to address the PKK through the Kurdish MPs. They are uniquely placed to broker an end to insurrection and the respect and fairness with which they are treated in Ankara will reinforce the message of peace to their community.
The AKP will get its president, who may yet be Abdullah Gul, economic stability and prosperity is likely to continue and the MHP which has a few alarming ultranationalists in its ranks, can seek to establish itself as a credible alternative government come the next election.
