Is Turkey’s future in Europe or the Middle East? Turkey’s controversial leader, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, pursues policies that are undermining any possibility that Turkey’s formal application to join the European Union will be accepted.
But one person who saw Turkey’s future best served by being part of Europe, rather than the Middle East, was Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey. Ataturk believed Turkey could become a sophisticated modern nation only if it transformed Turkish society by adopting the same kind of secular and democratic political systems that brought about positive advances and economic development in Europe.
Ataturk also played a major role in trying to reduce the significant role of religion in Turkish society and promoted greater rights for women.
In Ataturk’s view, if Turkey wanted to be a modern and democratically based society, the Turkish people would have to emulate what had already made western European nations so successful and powerful. And many Turks who followed him into power continued to believe that Turkey’s destiny was to become a member of a European-based society that optimized progress.
To achieve Ataturk’s vision, Turkey’s leaders have attempted to broaden relations with what eventually evolved into the European Union. Britain’s planned departure has paradoxically strengthened EU unity.
Turkish governments saw the EU “club” as a priority in ensuring Turkey’s socio-economic progress, as well as its international standing.
However, one requirement for membership is that European Union member states are expected to respect democratic principles, the rule of law, equal human rights for all citizens and freedom of the press.
Although negotiations between the European Union and Turkey on a variety of trade and economic issues were predictably slow, one area that continued to undermine attitudes in the EU toward Turkish membership remains the issue of Turkey’s commitment to the rule of law, restrictions on the rights of minority groups and threats to freedom of the press. (Turkey has the highest number of journalists imprisoned for allegedly violating various security laws.)
Many members of the European Union’s parliament have criticized Turkey for policies and actions violating the rights of Turkish citizens, especially the large Kurdish minority.
Since assuming power 13 years ago, Erdogan, leader of the Muslim-based Justice and Development Party, has adopted policies undermining Ataturk’s secular-based constitution by expanding religious instruction in schools.
Erdogan has also been accused of providing aid and arms to extremist Islamic groups such as ISIS, and Russia accused him of helping ISIS to ship stolen petroleum from Syrian oil fields to outside markets controlled by Erdogan’s son.
In recent months, Erdogan has also attacked Kurdish forces assisting the U.S. military fighting ISIS. (Canadian special forces have been training and fighting alongside Kurdish Peshmerga units.)
While members of NATO, including Canada, have largely remained silent regarding Erdogan’s systematic undermining of democracy in Turkey, it has reached the point where several EU states believe he’s endangering the democracy and human rights Ataturk introduced.
The danger to democracy in Turkey pushed units of the Turkish military to attempt unsuccessfully to overthrow Erdogan, resulting in many deaths, and giving Erdogan the opportunity to purge or imprison several hundred thousand perceived opponents, including judges, lawyers, teachers, civil servants, police and military personnel.
Ataturk’s goal of creating a modern and successful Turkish society is being threatened by Erdogan.
If things weren’t worrisome enough, during a political debate before Germany’s Sept. 24 national election, Chancellor Angela Merkel, in answering a question regarding Turkish EU membership bid, was quoted as saying: “I’ll speak to my [EU] colleagues to see if we can reach a joint position on this so that we can end these accession talks.”
Although Merkel’s remark might seem to close the door on formal Turkish membership, relations between Turkey and the EU have become important enough that some mutually acceptable relationship could still be found.
The model could be the EU’s effective relationship with non-EU member Switzerland.
Harry Sterling, a former diplomat, is an Ottawa-based commentator. He served in Turkey.
