Watson points to new authoritarianism in Turkish gov’t’s relations


Date posted: February 7, 2014

İSTANBUL

In a letter sent to The Economist last week, Sir Graham Watson — a veteran member of the European Parliament — has criticized the Turkish government led by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for being authoritarian in its relations with media, business world and towards anti-corruption protests.

“A new authoritarianism can be seen in the government’s relations with business and the media, and towards protests,” the British member of the European Parliament (MEP) and leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe party said in his letter.

Below is Watson’s letter, which includes his views over developments in Turkey:

Charlemagne showed how Turkey’s corruption scandal is fast undermining confidence in Turkish democracy at home and abroad. A referendum in 2010 found 58 percent of Turkish voters in favour of a new civilian constitution: It has not yet been drafted. The impressive energy behind a 10-year reform process has evaporated. A new authoritarianism can be seen in the government’s relations with business and the media, and towards protests.

Graft charges brought against people close to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the prime minister, are dismissed by him as an attempted coup d’état. In clear disregard for the separation of powers he has put pressure on the prosecutors leading the case and sacked or reassigned scores of high-ranking police officers. Allegations of a “foreign plot” blamed on his former reformist allies in the Gülen movement allow Mr. Erdoğan to paint himself as victim rather than villain.

The government’s proposal to restructure the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors, the body responsible for judicial appointments, as a response to the ongoing investigation sparks concerns that the executive is seeking a tighter grip on the judiciary. Mr. Erdogan’s instruction to his diplomats to tell the world that Turkey is the target of “treachery” is unlikely to allay those concerns.

He should know that the only legitimate way to expose conspiracy is to carry government onto the liberal ground of transparency and accountability. The path he is treading merely reinforces suspicion of high-level corruption. Turkey needs to adhere to the rule of law and ensure that all allegations of wrongdoing are addressed. European leaders have to be clear on this.

Source: Todays Zaman , February 7, 2014


Related News

The Pigeon, The Finger, and Hizmet’s ‘Inevitable Ambiguity’

Hizmet combines characteristics that we are not used to seeing combined in such a way: faith-inspired (in motivation) yet faith-neutral (in so many activities), informed by Qur’anic principles yet inclusive and non-missionary, predominantly Muslim but proactively engaging with wider society and responding constructively to modern and post-modern ideas and lifestyles.

Erdogan’s religious counsel issues fatwa for civil war, ordinary crimes

Prof. Hayrettin Karaman, Erdogan’s close friend and religious counsel, and AKP’s main Islamist theologian, has issued a fatwa that legitimizes certain crimes during a civil war. He said, “soldiers who commit ordinary crimes during a wartime shall not be punished.”

German Lawmakers Call for Probe on Imams Suspected of Spying for Turkey

German lawmakers have called for an investigation of Turkish intelligence operations in their country, specifically charging that Turkey is spying on suspected followers of exiled cleric and accused coup mastermind Fethullah Gulen.

Hizmet Movement: Partners We Want

A Turkish political, non-governmental, civil society organisation, Hizmet Movement, has made commendable contributions in Nigeria’s socio-economic life. The movement, which began in the late 1960s, particularly focuses on education, charity and dialogue, which it believes are the remedies to ignorance, poverty and disunity.

Radio Sweden exposes Turkish Gov’t tracks down regime critics in Sweden, threatens to take wives as hostages

Sweden’s official radio station, Radio Sweden, has documented that Turkey’s government is trying to identify and track down supporters of the opposition Gülen Movement in Sweden. In a conversation, a Swedish Gülen supporter is threatened that there would be reprisals if he did not give some concrete information on Gülenist activity in Sweden.

First-Ever Comprehensive Biography on Fethullah Gülen

In the first-ever comprehensive biography, Fethullah Gülen: A Life of Hizmet – Why A Muslim Scholar in Pennsylvania Matters to the World, author Jon Pahl gains unprecedented access to Fethullah Gulen’s inner circle as well as to Gülen himself.

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

In Case You Missed It

‘Mr. Gülen is to me simultaneously both incredibly modest and a visionary’

Alleged Hizmet link in Hablemitoğlu murder a lie, says widow

Teacher tortured to death by Turkish police found innocent, reinstated to job

Kimse Yok Mu cheers up Panamanian Orphans

Hizmet movement charity reaches out to 75 countries during Feast of Sacrifice

Recalling Turkey’s ‘post-modern coup’

Erdogan is transforming Turkey into a totalitarian prison

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News