Speaking to Today’s Zaman on Sunday following a conference in Şanlıurfa, Turhan stated that the government’s attitude toward the region and its problems, particularly the implementation of social support programs, has been helpful in bringing the people of the Southeast closer to the state. “For so long, we reduced the fight against terrorism merely to the fight against terrorists.
During that fight, a reflex of protecting public buildings, not the society, was developed. That misguided approach caused a huge abyss in the trust between the state and the people. What I’m talking about is distrust so great that even propaganda telling people that we planted bugs in the energy-saving light bulbs we distributed for free was effective. They broke all of the bulbs and looked inside them at the time. I can tell that this is changing now based on the feedback we received on the projects that have been carried out,” said Turhan in reference to initiatives undertaken as part of the Social Support Project (SODES).
Launched in 2008 by the State Planning Organization (DPT), SODES is an umbrella program that comprises several social inclusion projects, mainly for the disadvantaged, the disabled, women, the elderly, the unemployed and children.
Turhan stated that before SODES, it was extremely difficult to overcome the problem of distrust in the region. “The democratic initiative will achieve its goals thanks to SODES, too” he added. The government launched its democratic initiative last year to increase democratic standards and respect for human rights and differences in the country in an attempt to overcome what has come to be known as the Kurdish issue.
SODES was first put in place in nine provinces in the Southeast -- Adıyaman, Batman, Diyarbakır, Gaziantep, Kilis, Mardin, Siirt, Şanlıurfa, and Şırnak -- but is planned to cover to all of Turkey’s 81 provinces in the future.
