BY DAVUT DURSUN
YENI SAFAK- Columnist Davut Dursun writes on the democratization of the countries of the Middle East and Turkey’s own situation. A summary of his column is as follows:
Since the 1980s, the biggest political hot potato of the Middle East has always been the democratization of the region’s established regimes. That’s why Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul at both this week’s World Economic Forum in Amman and the Islamic foreign ministers’ meeting in Tehran in early June stressed the importance of democracy and called on all Muslim countries to take effective steps towards further democratization.
In his speech to the World Economic Forum, Gul presented a road map for the region proposing radical changes to the status quo. He underlined certain goals that should be reached such as the rule of law, transparency of the state structure, the encouragement of participatory democracy and rational utilization of resources ... etc. He had previously highlighted the same points when addressing the Islamic world’s representatives in Tehran.
One might find it strange that Turkey’s foreign minister calls on other countries to take steps towards further democratization, as the world knows that our country has encountered many problems in its own democracy since the establishment of its multiparty democratic system. However, despite some bumps in the road, everybody should accept that we have also taken many significant steps forward. Our country is still exerting enormous effort to surmount its problems, which is why we are experienced enough to give advice to our neighbors.
The Middle East has unfortunately deprived itself of the opportunity to transform itself through its own inner dynamics. All significant transformations and new formations in the region have taken place due to foreign influence. It has always been the superpowers of the world which have shaped the political and social structure of the region.
Therefore, future changes to the Middle East’s status quo are dependent upon foreign dynamics. This formula applies both to Turkey and the other countries of the region. We are all aware that without the EU’s urging, such democratization packages would not have been dealt with in such short order. The more the EU encourages us, the more willing we become to improve our democracy. Therefore, it is clear that without the assistance of foreign powers, the democratization of the Middle East (including Turkey) will never be completed. In addition, since the foreign dynamics influencing the political structure of the region have recently changed, Middle Eastern countries can no longer sustain their status quo by ignoring these changes. The path laid out by Foreign Minister Gul served as a warning not only to our neighbors but also to certain domestic circles set against further democratization. Turkey needs a similar way forward as well.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION