COLUMNISTS
November 17, 2015, Tuesday
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Free press under Turkey’s autocratic regime
With a fractured opposition, a media under immense pressure, a frightened business community and a civil society in retreat because of the witch hunt by the Islamists against anybody who dares to utter “rule of law,” “fundamental rights” and “democratic principles,” Turkey has transformed into an autocratic regime of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. This autocratic regime has been using the same demonizing campaign against the free -
O Muslims, you are late
The legitimacy of terrorist acts was raised by the Muslim world first with respect to the Palestinian issue. Some endorsed suicide attacks by young Palestinians who failed to come up with a solution against Israel and who were moved by despair and defeatism. According to this religious endorsement (fatwa), a "mujahid" could conduct a suicide attack and would be rewarded in Paradise. How could suicide attacks be justified in religious terms? Why -
Will Robert Redford pay attention to the Baransu case?
On Nov. 17, a few colleagues and human rights observers will be present to witness when Mehmet Baransu, one of the very few bold investigative reporters in Turkey, faces a court in İstanbul on charges of “revealing secret state documents.” In plain English, he is accused of being a spy. Is journalism a crime? The prosecutor, as in many other cases so “routine” these days in Turkey, is trying to prove that it is. Let's put the argument lik -
Turkey’s Kurdish obsession overshadows war against ISIL
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reaffirmed on Nov. 15 the Turkish determination not to allow Syrian Kurds to cross over to the western side of the Euphrates River along the Turkish border. “Our sensitivity on this issue continues,” he stressed. Erdoğan referred to this position in a briefing to journalists after his meeting with US President Barack Obama in Antalya, where the summit of the world's 20 most powerful countries took place this past weeken -
ISIL’s potential in Turkey
The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is an organization that is still alien to Turkey. The amount of support for the organization is probably higher among immigrant Muslim populations in Western countries than among people in Turkey. In Central Asian communities, where religiosity has been introduced in only the last 25 years, support is also greater than in Turkey. The situation in the Arab states is obvious. Therefore, those who angrily ponder ISIL' -
In the shadows of Paris: the Antalya G-20
The Nov. 15-16 G-20 summit in Antalya includes three important principles embraced by Turkey: comprehensiveness, implementation and investment. The three concrete topics included in the idea of comprehensiveness are women, youth and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). But of course, the main topics on the agenda for the 33 countries in Antalya are the Paris attacks, the Syrian war and the refugee crisis. In the meantime, the main topics of meetings between P -
On ISIL: We need some self-criticism
The Paris massacre by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) was, like everything it has carried out until today -- including the recent Ankara massacre -- a crime against humanity. We've seen once again that ISIL is no ordinary terrorist organization. What distinguishes it, of course, is that it uses religious references -- like al-Qaeda -- as “reasons” for its actions. And it is these religious references that mean that ISIL has -
Manipulating the opposition
Yesterday, Servet Avcı, a respected nationalist columnist at the Yeniçağ daily, penned an interesting column. He detailed how the Justice and Development Party (AKP) interfered with the 2012 Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) convention and provided extensive support to its leader Devlet Bahçeli. It is interesting to see that the pro-government media are again putting fourth such opinions, now that Mr. Bahçeli is being challenged from within his p -
What can we do?
The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), probably the most bloodthirsty terrorist group ever, hit Paris on Friday night. According to news agencies, 129 died and hundreds were wounded. The ISIL militants attacked seven different venues at the same time. I send my condolences to the families of the victims and share my feelings of solidarity with the French people. As the G-20 meets in Antalya, world leaders will discuss the necessary answer to this terrorist -
Monetary policy in EU progress report
Without doubt, politics surrounding the economy are on the cusp of a second round of interest rate fighting. Indeed, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has again started complaining about the monetary policy pursued by the Central Bank of Turkey. A few days ago he had already openly criticized the “high interest rate” policy in a conference given by the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK). Then he repeated his views on monetary policy during his speech a -
Expat communities must act as multicultural role models
Let me start this Capital View by expressing my heartfelt condolences to the families of last week's Paris terror attack victims and may the injured recover speedily. In this context, I decided to embark on a commentator's balancing act: Keep the regular topical layout of this column, yet incorporate a more political aspect as well. While citizens all over the world, including our multicultural expatriate communities living in Turkey and everywhere
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