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Turkey/EU - Turkey's Turmoil: A Blessing in Disguise? - by Diba Nigar Goksel
It is nearly impossible for anyone to win hearts and minds in Turkey nowadays. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso treaded carefully on Turkey's political minefield during his visit last week, because any of his moves could have caused the country’s delicate and divided political scene to rupture. In his speech to the Turkish Parliament, he did not mention the ongoing legal case against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has been accused of anti-secular activity, and he tiptoed around the headscarf debate. Further attempting to show his even-handedness, he spent time with all of the opposition leaders, visiting them personally in their offices. Despite these efforts, accusations still abound that Barroso and EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn timed their visit as a show of support to AKP, coinciding with the Constitutional Court’s consideration of whether the AKP should be banned. Some claimed Barroso and Rehn were disrespecting the Turkish state and the threats it faces: namely, challenges to secularism and territorial integrity.
It was a wise move for the AKP to put EU integration back on the top of Turkey's agenda after the case for its closure was taken up by the Constitutional Court. Preparations are ongoing to pass a package of reforms that will benefit a wider segment of society than the party’s traditional base. That indicates a realization that differing social interests need to be met simultaneously in order to strike a consensus. Opportunism or not, democracy is ultimately at work here. If it takes crises for competing camps to acknowledge the limits of their power, then perhaps Turkey's recent turmoil is a blessing in disguise.
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