Member of the CC of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), soL columnist, Özgür Şen wrote an article on Oct. 12 on the recent Turkey-U.S. spat sparked with mutual visa and travel restrictions. Şen points out the hypocrisy of the U.S. and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan who resorts to a demagogic anti-Americanist discourse despite his long eagerness to be fostered by the U.S. and other imperialists until today.
Erdoğan cannot be reached at the moment
It has been long discussed about Islamists’ hypocrisy and the groundlessness of their anti-Americanism. Would the opposite be possible? Everybody already knew the limits of such a political movement that owes its very existence to the U.S., boasting about its friendship with Donald Trump no longer than a few weeks.
However, the visa spat with the U.S. did not reveal only the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) hypocrisy. The issue seems much graver…
It is true that Recep Tayyip Erdoğan himself is the crux of the problem, but he is not alone in stirring up the problem.
The leader of AKP may make rapid manoeuvres; however, he is not alone in making manoeuvres, either.
Doubtlessly, the U.S. and its allies had the lion’s share in fostering Islamism to these days, enabling it to rule the country alone. Nevertheless, the relationship is bilateral. Apart from the historical role of Islamism as an anti-labour and anti-people movement since World War II, the AKP, too, did not stop at anything in favour of the U.S. throughout its specific history.
The Western world was so pleased with Erdoğan while he was walking around as the co-chair of the U.S. projects. His manoeuvrability did not disturb anyone at that time. It is apparent that those manoeuvres worked out when the AKP framed up against Iran and Syria and showed great respect towards Barzani along with Israel. Neither Erdoğan’s supportive base nor his sui generis features had disturbed anyone until he ruined the affairs in the region and had difficulty in the administration of internal affairs. Until then, the West had not minded the AKP’s Islamism or despotism.
The favourite and convenient Erdoğan of those days failed severely at first, and then he resorted to inappropriate doings to save himself. In conclusion, he has become a ‘bad guy’ today. However, it was the U.S.-led West which encouraged Erdoğan in all these adventures, patted him on the back, and opened all the way for him for their interests.
Only the West? What about the capitalists who seem worried about the visa crisis today? Is not Erdoğan right in blaming the capitalists for disloyalty when he asks them: “Did not I do everything you requested?” He was praised when he usurped all the workers’ rights, turning the country into a rose garden in favour of capital. It was befitting when he paved the way for the capitalists in the region, and when he created new markets with his manoeuvres with the aim of enabling the capitalists to gain much more money. Has Erdoğan become a bad guy today?
Some say: he should not severely push the liberals to that crisis extent, but he should not hesitate to use violence against the toiling people… He should resort to despotism for the benefit of capital, but he should not push the limits in order not to intimidate the entire world… He should mildly flirt with Russia and others both for paving the way for new cash flows and for escalating the bargaining power vis-à-vis the West, but he should not carry the relations with the West to the point of break… He should be in search for finding a controlled way to provide the Turkish capital with a permanent position in the region, but he should not embark on such adventures that could ruin the international balances… All these could not be carried out at the same time.
Everyone wants to see Erdoğan in their mind on the top of Turkey. But, there is no such Erdoğan. Nor will be…
The needs of the West and capital have carried the leader of AKP to these days, who is now concerned about his salvation. That overall needs have created both the AKP and its leader. It was the requirements of domestic and foreign monopolies that paved the way for his current trajectory.
If one led an Erdoğan-like politician to such trajectory, s/he would have to bear the consequences. One cannot complain about his characteristics, which have been beneficial sometimes when the same features kick up a fuss. One would just nourish the problem if s/he said to him, ”O.K. you can do this, but not that,”
Without eliminating that needs, all the steps and attempts to remove or discipline the AKP and its leader are merely escalating Erdoğan’s panic while sharpening the authentic crisis.
The problem is authentic, and there is no resolution under such circumstances.
As the leader of AKP is escalating the crisis that is his raison d'être, there seems no way out of this havoc whether he remains or is removed since the problem is bigger than his existence.
Erdoğan will maintain his manoeuvres amidst this nonexistence of any way out. Because that is what exactly Erdoğan is… Also, the U.S. will maintain, so will Russia and the others… They are also acting by what exactly they are.
All the sides will end up with a tension one day, but they will walk along the next day. Moreover, all of them will continue to tell lies in their all steps. What they labelled as white yesterday will be black tomorrow or vice versa… While they are blaming each other today, they all will never hesitate to damage the peoples tomorrow. They will become the champion of what they undermined yesterday. Just like they will never abstain from the disqualification of some actors among them…
And, such a mechanism that consistently generates hypocrisies, disgraces and scandals are called as the order. That is the order they terrify the peoples into the potential failure or collapse of it. Down with the order!
