In These New Times

Today’s Zaman

3rd February, 2011

With everyone curious about how Turkey would react to public demonstrations taking place in Egypt seeking the resignation of long-entrenched President Hosni Mubarak, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan took sides with the Egyptian public, calling on Mubarak to heed the call of the Egyptian people.

Speaking at his party’s parliamentary group meeting earlier this week, Erdoğan told Mubarak to listen to the Egyptians and respond immediately to their demands because freedom should not be delayed. “You should take the necessary steps to satisfy the Egyptian people’s demands first without providing an opportunity for those who have dark scenarios for Egypt. Demands for freedom cannot be postponed and cannot be neglected,” Erdoğan said in widely hailed remarks.

Star’s Ergun Babahan says foreign policy cannot be solely based on power and interests but also on principles. He adds that Erdoğan took the side of rights and the law in his speech on Tuesday. “The government, which severely criticized Israeli policies in Gaza, for a while remained an onlooker in the wake of public unrest in Tunisia and Egypt. It is wrong when Israel kills people, but is it right when Mubarak does so? Are issues such as democracy, human rights and the supremacy of law forgotten when it comes to the cases of Egypt and Tunisia?” asks Babahan, adding that Erdoğan responded to these question in his parliamentary group meeting speech with a “no.”

In Babahan’s view, Erdoğan did the right thing. If Turkey aims to become the leader of the region, it will do so by encouraging the other countries in the area to achieve major goals, he says.

Radikal’s Cengiz Çandar, among those critical of the government’s silence concerning the protests in Egypt, says he was very happy to hear Erdoğan support the public’s demands in Egypt. “Congratulations to Erdoğan. His speech immediately resonated among the people who began to gather in Egypt’s Tahrir Square and came as great support to the Egyptian people. Erdoğan left his mark on the shaping of Egypt’s future as the most popular political leader of the Middle East and Egypt,” Çandar says. He adds that he and many others were critical of Turkey’s silence and lack of stance on the demonstrations in Egypt and that it would have come very late had Erdoğan made his statements only a few hours later. “His statement came at the last minute, but Erdoğan’s timing was impeccable because the impact of his statements resonated in Tahrir Square,” Çandar adds.