BY ISMAIL KUCUKKAYA
AKSAM- While some say that our European Union membership process is a project towards economic goals, others say that we’re seeking European standards, democratization and modernization and we don’t have economic expectations for EU membership. Both are wrong.
‘After the summit in Brussels, interest in the privatization of Turk Telekom has risen, and its price will exceed estimates,’ said Turk Telekom General Director Mehmet Ekinalan. Turk Telekom Board Chairman Erkan Akdemir echoed this, saying that many foreign telecoms were now interested. This reminded me of a meeting in Brussels. In the wake of the EU’s decision, businessman Adnan Cebi got a phone call. It was Movenpick Hotels head Jean Gabriel Peres, Cebi’s partner in Istanbul. He congratulated Cebi for the accession talks and said that they should get ready for new investments in Turkey. Cebi interpreted the EU membership process as offering great opportunities for Turkey. Ankara’s EU perspective is attractive in the eyes of foreign investors. However, the EU project offers not only an economic opportunity but also one for political and social transformation.
Since the Ottoman political reforms of 1839, our westernization efforts have created a sharp dual structure in society. On the one extreme, there are the modernist-liberalists and on the other, traditionalist-conservatives. Europe underwent a similar process a long time ago, but with one difference: The transformation wasn’t realized through purification. Hilmi Yavuz emphasized this in a recent conference at Hacettepe University. ‘A synthesis between the two approaches was neglected in Turkey,’ said Yavuz. ‘However, one can be both traditionalist and modern. We need an understanding which encompasses both approaches.’
It seems as if the negotiations process will make us find a synthesis. After this process, we will become a modern democratic country which encompasses traditional values.