“Some circles are arguing that a ‘yes' vote to emerge out of the Sept. 12 public referendum will sweep Turkey toward a civilian tutelage given the victories in recent elections as well as the past successful national referendum on the presidential election. Indeed, an interpretation of the public will at the ballot box as a ‘dictatorship' stems from animosity, if not from ignorance. I find the civilian dictatorship discussion intentional,” Yüksel told Sunday's Zaman.The argument over “civilian dictatorship” or “civilian tutelage” was brought forward by Nuray Mert, a columnist and academic, in early January. Mert's argument was quickly adopted by anti-government circles who expressed fears about Turkey becoming an authoritarian country. Several columnists have since then claimed that at the end of this process Turkey will be like Russia and that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will turn into a leader similar to Russia's Vladimir Putin, who is known to have an authoritarian character.
According to Yüksel, a political party that seeks civilian dictatorship is supposed to restrict the public will as well as human rights and freedoms, but the AK Party has worked on improving the country since it was swept to power with a crushing majority in the national vote in 2002.
“Turkey has witnessed developments that seek to improve the quality of democracy since then. We pledged stability and confidence for our people. Government policies to this end have been appreciated by our people. Stability and confidence are evident in all areas, including economy, prosperity and democracy. The AK Party victory in five elections during the past eight years is some sort of public call for the continuation of this stability and confidence,” he stated.
Yüksel also said the AK Party will be tested for the sixth time at the ballot box on Sept. 12 when Turkey will vote on a number of proposed changes to the current Constitution, which is a remnant of the bloody 1980 coup.
“No matter how many times a political party emerges victorious at the ballot box, it is bound to get buried inside the same box if it fails to respond to democratic demands by the nation. Turkish voters have significant experience in this sense. Turkish political life is filled with the poll defeats of parties that came to power several times before,” he noted.
Without mentioning any names, he added that the Republican People's Party (CHP) should think about where it has made mistakes given the fact that it has been active in the political field since the early years of the republic but has failed to rise to power even once in its own right. “If a political party cannot win elections as the single party throughout its 50 or 60 years, then it should look for its mistakes rather than the public's preferences. If a political party does not have a good track record in democracy, economic growth and the fair distribution of wealth then the public will refuse to give them the authority,” Yüksel said.
