Turkey Elects Gul President After All

The Turkish parliament has elected Abdullah Gul, the foreign minister, as Turkey’s president. The candidate of the Justice and Development Party [AKP, by its Turkish acronym] is a bit more of a Muslim fundamentalist than, say Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. As a result, his almost-election in April had the army threatening a coup. This was averted by a snap election, but now, Mr. Gul has been constitutionally chosen by a parliament that was itself recently voted in by the people. The military should let the man do the job for a while before deciding he’s working to destroy Turkey’s secular democracy.

In his career, Mr. Gul has been a radical Islamist, and he did time in prison for his beliefs in after the last military coup in 1980. However, he helped break up a more radical party than the AKP, which he subsequently founded with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the current prime minister. As foreign minister, he has been a voice for Turkish membership in the EU and has competently executed his portfolio. His PhD in economics speaks well of his ability to read more than just the Holy Koran.

The main problem seems to be his background spotlighted by his wife’s insistence on wearing a headscarf in accordance with practice in various Islamic cultures. Secularists worry that the new president is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, that an Islamic state is on its way. Mr. Gul has pledged to retain Turkey’s secular character. As for his wife’s sartorial habits, he sounds like an American -- “these are individual preferences and everybody should respect them.” Turkey is not quite so liberal in its dress sense.

As Oral Calislar, a columnist for the Cumhuriyet daily, said of Madam Gul's scarf, “It’s a sensitive issue in Turkey, but it’s still a pity that we are left discussing this. He will be president, we should be looking at him.” Perhaps, Turkey is more like America than many think after all. Trivialization of politics appears well advanced in both.

As for the army, it would be a shame if Turkey’s last quarter century of civilian rule were ended by a well-meaning but over-zealous bunch. The beauty of democracy is its relative openness. If an Islamic state is on the horizon, there will be parliamentary debates and votes. There’s plenty of time for a coup. And maybe, just maybe, Mr. Gul isn’t the bogeyman at all. Turkey deserves a chance to find out what sort of man has been duly elected.

© Copyright 2007 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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