{"id":23522,"date":"2019-03-27T18:11:56","date_gmt":"2019-03-27T16:11:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onisilos.gr\/?p=23522"},"modified":"2019-03-28T15:47:33","modified_gmt":"2019-03-28T13:47:33","slug":"erdogans-dangerous-ambitions-threaten-india-and-beyond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onisilos.gr\/?p=23522","title":{"rendered":"Erdo\u011fan\u2019s Dangerous Ambitions Threaten India and Beyond"},"content":{"rendered":"

By <\/b>Jagdish N. Singh<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

March 27, 2019<\/span><\/p>\n

BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,124, March 27, 2019<\/span><\/p>\n

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The age of empire has come and gone, but in some quarters, the imperialist dream is alive and well. Leaders continue to appear on the world stage from time to time to style themselves in this fashion. The latest entry in this category is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan, who is promoting himself as leader of the Muslim world to his coreligionists around the globe \u2013 particularly in India.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan makes no secret of his imperialist ambitions. His heroic ideal is the Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II (1876-1909). During a commemoration ceremony on February 10, 2018 at Y\u0131ld\u0131z Palace in Istanbul, marking the sultan\u2019s death centenary, the Turkish president lauded <\/a>him as the \u201cmost important, most visionary and most strategic-minded.\u201d Erdo\u011fan described Turkey as \u201ca continuation of the Ottomans\u2026the borders have changed, forms of government have changed\u2026 But the essence is the same, the soul is the same, even many institutions are the same.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

And in the wake of the October 2, 2018, killing in Istanbul of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, allegedly by assassins sent by Riyadh, Erdo\u011fan unequivocally declared<\/a> Turkey to be \u201cthe only country that can lead the Muslim world.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Very much in the manner of an emperor (or rather a sultan) in the making, Erdo\u011fan has considerably consolidated his political authority at home. He exploited the aborted July 2016 coup to change the constitution and remain at the helm as head of the government as well as the state. The changes in the constitution permit him two terms of five years each after the 2019 elections and allow him to appoint vice presidents, cabinet members, and 12 out of 15 Supreme Court judges, as well as abolish the post of prime minister. \u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan has used his unprecedented power to sweep away judges, media outlets, journalists, academics, military officers, and NGOs. According to one estimate, in the wake of the coup attempt about 120,000 government employees were suspended, dismissed, or imprisoned, primarily from the judiciary and education branches. Over 7,500 soldiers and officers, including over 100 with the rank of brigadier or above, and over 10,000 policemen were sacked with countless others imprisoned. More than a dozen colleges and universities and 1,000 schools were closed. The licenses of 24 radio and TV channels were revoked, and numerous journalists were arrested.<\/span><\/p>\n

Erdo\u011fan has changed the secular system introduced by Turkey\u2019s secularist founding father Mustafa Kemal (Atat\u00fcrk), giving the clerics more say in affairs of state. Under the new laws made since he came to power, Muslim clerics can conduct civil marriages and issue religious opinions on matters of day-to-day life. Previously, only state officers could do this.<\/span><\/p>\n

In order to establish himself as leader of the Muslim world, Erdo\u011fan has sought to win over Muslims in other countries. On June 12, 2011, he made an emotional appeal to Muslims abroad when he told<\/a> a gathering celebrating his party\u2019s victory, \u201cSarajevo won today as much as Istanbul. Beirut won as much as Izmir. Damascus won as much as Ankara. Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin, the West Bank, [and] Jerusalem won as much as Diyarbakir.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Given the devastation wrought by imperial rulers in the past, the international community \u2013 leading democracies in particular \u2013 must not ignore the alarming signs coming from the Turkish strongman. They must take all appropriate steps before it is too late.<\/span><\/p>\n

India should be particularly concerned about the implications of Erdo\u011fan\u2019s ambition. New Delhi and Ankara have never been friendly since India became independent. Successive governments in Ankara have always sided with Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir. Now, as part of its strategy to attain Muslim leadership status, Ankara has been reaching out to Indian Muslims as well. Reliable reports indicate that in the recent past the Erdo\u011fan regime has invited several Indian Islamist leaders, including Zakir Naik, to spread Erdo\u011fan\u2019s influence across India. Turkish cleric Serdar Demirel visited Kolkata in 2016 to participate in a protest march organized by Muslims opposed to the Indian government\u2019s bid to apply a Uniform Civil Code throughout the country. Turkey has also funded Indian NGOs to reach out to Muslim students and influence madrassas and mosques.<\/span><\/p>\n

The strategy seems to be working. There are indeed Muslims in India who see Erdo\u011fan as a leader of the Muslim world, and they celebrated his victory in the presidential elections of June 2018 in a big way. Kashmiri separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farookh was among the first to offer congratulations. In a speech to an Islamist group run by Erdo\u011fan\u2019s son Bilal in 2017, Naik described the Turkish president as \u201cone of the few Muslim leaders who has the guts to support Islam openly.\u201d He said: \u201cO Muslim world, wake up\u2026May Erdo\u011fan be the next ruler of the Muslim world.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

After the coup attempt in Turkey, Indian Islamic cleric Maulana Salman Hussaini Nadvi endorsed Erdo\u011fan, and the Shahi Imam of Delhi Syed Ahmed Bukhari met the Turkish ambassador to India and expressed his support. Delegations from Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, the Chishty Foundation, and the India Islamic Cultural Centre (IICC) also met the envoy.<\/span><\/p>\n

New Delhi would do well to beware Ankara\u2019s activities in India. It must not allow a Turkish Islamist like Demirel to join a domestic protest in India. This amounts to interfering with India\u2019s internal matters. New Delhi must not tolerate Ankara\u2019s hobnobbing with an Indian Islamist preacher like Naik, who is alleged to have inspired a terrorist attack on a cafe in Dhaka in 2016 and who has been evading an arrest warrant in India. Doing so is tantamount to encouraging terror against India.<\/span><\/p>\n

*Jagdish N. Singh is an Indian journalist based in New Delhi.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

source:https:\/\/besacenter.org\/perspectives-papers\/erdogan-turkey-india\/<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jagdish N. Singh March 27, 2019 BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,124, March 27, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The age of empire has come and gone, but in some quarters, … <\/p>\n

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