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Time for concrete steps (2)
by
HATEM ETE*
by
HATEM ETE*
Lastly, we need to analyze the positions of the political parties in the plenary session by considering their views with respect to the process. Despite having drafted a number of reports on the Kurdish question and having extensive knowledge on the ways to resolve this issue, the CHP still relies on a position that will undermine the initiative. In other words, it could be argued that the CHP suffers from a contradiction between theory and action. By its actions and behavior, the CHP is blocking the process rather than revising it. This contradictory attitude is best reflected in Deniz Baykal’s speech. Despite there being only a few disagreements between this party and the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) with regard to the diagnosis of the issue and its resolution, the CHP has adopted a position of opposition to the process.
Ironically, the MHP is a political party that shows little theoretical interest in the Kurdish problem. In spite of its attitude to the Kurdish issue having changed over time, the MHP’s overall stance still remains the same. The impact of the rapid transformation in Turkey and in the world and the impact of this change over its political position have led to the MHP to maintain that the Kurds encounter no problems at all and that the terror organization has been supported by external actors. With this stance, the MHP makes a distinction between the Kurdish people and the terrorist organization. This stance, based on time and space, inherently stages a war against every new development and thought. The MHP, which includes the paranoia of partition in the same design, accuses every political plan on the issue of attempting to divide the country. Bahçeli, who delivered a relatively calmer speech in the plenary session, did not change the overall content of this stance.
Even though it has been supporting the initiative, the DTP also relied on actions that would jeopardize the process. The DTP wants the initiative to succeed but has weakened it because it lacks the political drive needed to resolve the problem and has failed to play a facilitating role and to observe public sentiments and sensitivities through its irritating discourse and acts at critical times. Whether the constructive style of Ahmet Türk in his speech will be transformed into a party policy will depend on non-DTP conditions.
It is necessary to analyze the AK Party’s discourse as well as its policies given that it is the party that holds the power to govern. Interior Minister Beşir Atalay, the coordinator of the process during a four-month period of preliminary studies, has shown through the announcement of the concrete steps that the current phase now includes the implementation of the project. It was important that the AK Party has so far prioritized discourse over action; however, it is now time for concrete action. As it became evident that the AK Party would fail to attract the support of the opposition parties for the process, the best way to dampen the expectations that it will retreat from its position is to take definite steps. Priority given to concrete action will make sure that the mistakes in communication that happened during the process do not grow enough to sabotage the process in its entirety.
*Hatem Ete is the coordinator for political research at SETA.
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