Ertugrul Ozkok: Time to reunite Turkey, before focusing on the EU

I had a conversation with a high level official from Turkey's ruling party AKP regarding the drop in support for the party due to the tensions raised over the headscarf issue.

 

What I told him was:  Â

 

"In my point of view, the most important conclusion that can be reached from that research is not the percentage of votes in support of the party. This percentage can change from time to time. For me, the most important conclusion is the percentage that reveals concerns about secularism."

 

* * *

 

The research was conducted by the well respected research firm, AG; the only research company to correctly estimate the percentage of AKP votes ahead of the previous general election in Turkey in 2007.

 

AG’s research questionnaire included the following questions:

 

"Do you have any concerns regarding the Turkish Republic and secularism?"

 

A total of 38.3 percent of respondents agreed; "Yes"; while 11.2 percent said they had "some concerns."

 

These two responses added together amounts to a total of 49.5 percent of respondents saying that they have concerns about the future of Turkey's secular regime.

 

The research revealed that 41.4 percent of respondents answered "No" to this question.

 

These figures show that concern about Turkey’s future has risen by 10 points over the last year.

 

The level of concern increases parallel to the level of education of the respondents who took part in the survey, rising to 72 percent.

 

Another indicator;

 

A total of 60 percent of respondents living in major cities agreed that they are concerned about the future of the country’s secular regime.

 

Another important question asked:Â

 

"What will your opinion be if the ruling party attempts to amend the constitution making party closure more difficult in the ongoing closure case?"

 

More than half of the respondents, 52.3 percent agreed that "It is wrong, they should not do it" in response to this question, while 40.7 percent said "It is their right, they should do it."

 

While I was explaining these figures to the AKP official, he interjected and said in opposition: "You write and the public believes."

 

I responded to this:

 

"Just one minute, approximately two thirds of the Turkish media openly support your party. If the general public chose to believe the remaining third instead of the media supporting the AKP, this is not our problem, it's theirs."

 

*** 

 

What does this research reveal?

 

It reveals that Turkey is clearly divided.

 

Who is responsible for this political picture?

 

The answer to this question is also revealed in this research study.

 

- The AKP 42.6 percent;

 

- The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) 34.7 percent;

 

- And those citing a lifting of the restrictions of the headscarf law, 23.6 percent.

 

If we think in terms of the AKP being responsible for creating the headscarf issue, the number of respondents who see the AKP as being responsible for the current division increases to 66.2 percent.

 

What can I conclude from this result?

 

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling, AKP are responsible for the current division in Turkey; and therefore, it should also be their responsibility to end it.

 

I later told the AKP official the following:

 

"Your party is always expressing its efforts to speed up the EU membership process. I applaud and support these efforts. But before entering the EU, perhaps you should extend your efforts to creating a ‘Turkish Union’."

 

* * *

 

The last, but most important question of all;

 

Can Turkey get out of this situation?

 

The answer: Yes, of course.

 

But in order to achieve this goal the ruling party should make a realistic and profound self-assessment; it should evaluate the situation as a crisis and act accordingly to solve it.