Two parties whose ideological base relies on a mixture of nationalism, liberalism and pragmatism -- the Motherland Party (ANAVATAN, previously ANAP) and the Democrat Party (DP), previously known as the True Path Party (DYP), have merged. The new party will be chaired by Hüsamettin Cindoruk, who acts as the successor of Süleyman Demirel, the legendary leader of center-right politics since 1960. This merger, which could have attracted a great deal of attention and had a visible impact on the political landscape had this happened a decade ago, did not lead to any remarkable excitement nor attract media attention.One of the reasons for this lack of interest may be the obvious fact that Demirel will serve as the guard and protector of this party. Some recent allegations and rumors indicate that he was involved in the preparation of a statement seeking to prevent the election of Abdullah Gül as president in the 2007 presidential elections. In other words, the name of this former president is mentioned with coup allegations, and this reinforces his image as a supporter of an “ancient regime.”
The shadow of the “ancient regime” over the merged parties is not due to Demirel alone. In his speech, Cindoruk greeted the defendants held in custody in connection with the Ergenekon case and praised them as the beloved sons of this homeland.
Even if it is possible for this new political actor to steal some votes from the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), it will not be able to undermine the Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) image. In this case, it could be argued that this merger will fail to achieve its targets, which include the erosion of the AK Party’s prestige among the people.
The common perception a decade ago was not like this. The country’s major papers were calling for the merger of the center-right and the center-left and showed enthusiasm when steps were taken toward this end. Such a merger was viewed as a sign of stabilization in politics, a consolidation of the political center and the marginalization of political movements outside of official ideology. The major goal was to create a political spectrum compatible with the fundamental principles of the republic and keep the country in the “center.”
Looking back, we understand that the term “center” is a regime criterion ensuring that the politics is shaped in accordance with the wishes of the military; just like Turkish-style secularism, it reflects an approach restricting the sphere of politics, defining the administration over the regime and seeking the legitimacy of politics in the state and the military. Politics has long been dominated by the center-right and center-left in Turkey; but this “center” had nothing to do with social preferences and demands. Political parties were clustered around a “center” defined by the military while the people were forced to express support for the regime by voting for these parties.
However, in the meantime, the society was going through a huge transformation; this culminated in the alienation of the “centrist” state-favored political parties from society. The center-right parties lost power in this process, and only the CHP survived in the center-left. The “center” slipped away from the hands of the state as the distance between the state and the society grew. The socialization of politics generated a new definition of center based on the preferences of the society, and the AK Party sat over the center emptied by former political actors.
Secular intellectuals who had asked the predecessor of the AK Party to come closer to center politics 10 years ago now barely recall this because they are aware that the center slipped away from their hands and that they were taken out of center politics. It is for this reason that we are most likely to witness the merger between the DP and ANAVATAN assume a role by which this new party will promote the regime; it should be noted that the speakers and leaders of this new movement stress that they are part of the center -- not part of the center-right. In other words, they are actually expressing that politics is over and that we are dealing with a regime issue.
From one perspective, this is not so untrue because there has always been a regime issue since the creation of the republican regime and order. I am talking about a system of distributing privileges that loves limiting the society, fails to internalize freedom and perceives the public sphere through a security paradigm. Those who work hard to block the EU process and reforms introduced by the AK Party government actually say that democracy is a threat to democracy. However, this is also a confession because they indeed admit that the regime is a threat to democracy as well as the society.
Everything is transparent in Turkey now; discourses and actions seeking to cover up things no longer work out. What party is serving what purpose is obvious. ANAVATAN and the DP are eager to serve as the civilian wing of the Ergenekon plot; the “ancient regime” is trying to survive, but it does not have the intellectual power nor is the international set of events suitable for its success. As such, the “center,” which was once attractive to all, has turned into a black hole.
Benzer Haberler 
