Bahçeli: 'Political Parties and Electoral System Must Be Reorganized'
RastinewsMHP leader Devlet Bahçeli said politics and democratic institutions would come to the fore after the "Terror-Free Turkey" process. Bahçeli said political parties and the electoral system need to be reorganized in the coming period to align with the Presidential Government System.
In an interview with his party's deputy chairman İsmail Özdemir, published in the newspaper Türkgün, Bahçeli commented on the "Terror-Free Turkey" process, the split within the CHP, the New Party, the economy and the political system.
Bahçeli assessed developments in the resolution process, the CHP split and the founding of the New Party for deputy chairman Özdemir. In the Türkgün interview, Bahçeli said of the CHP split that the party "did not approve of it, but nonetheless wished them success." Arguing that the New Party had failed to take a firm stance in the resolution process, Bahçeli said "Terror-Free Turkey" was the greatest legacy for young people.
The interview with Bahçeli, along with the questions put to him, follows:
-At a time when war, chaos and turmoil dominate our region, Turkey has boldly taken critical steps to strengthen national unity and shore up its home front. In this period, important developments also took place in domestic politics through the CHP. As a leader who has brought principle, standards and ethics to Turkish politics, how do you assess these developments?
Our fundamental wish and goal is for Turkey to resolve its terrorism problem through its own national will, having already strengthened its home front and secured national unity along with political and economic stability. That is why we regard it as vital to avoid, through politics, any moves that could stoke tension, polarization or social unrest. Given events in our region, Turkish politics needs prudence, not division; cooperation and dialogue, not conflict; and consensus on national issues, not sterile arguments and disputes. For the reasons I've stated, we have not welcomed the way the debate that began with the CHP's 'absolute nullity' ruling turned into internal conflict and then into a split.
EMPHASIS ON MORAL GROUNDING
We always counselled that the split and division attempts within CHP be approached with goodwill; we wanted unity to hold, and at times we shared our own experience and offered advice. But in the end, Özgür Bey and his colleagues founded the 'New Party.' According to Court of Cassation (Yargıtay) records, they became the 190th registered party, one more added to the count. Although we did not approve of the CHP's split, we wished them and their party success.
'ELECTORAL SYSTEM MUST BE REORGANIZED'
It is worth noting one more point here. The failure to articulate a clear principle, a firm stance, or a shared institutional will toward resolution on an issue as important to Turkey as 'Terror-Free Turkey' shows that the strong political institutionalization we would like to see has not yet been achieved within the 'New Party' either.
With the constitutional amendment of April 16, 2017, Turkey carried out one of its most important governance reforms, moving from the Parliamentary System to the Presidential Government System. In the period ahead, political parties and the electoral system also need to be reorganized in a manner true to the spirit of that system and grounded in political stability and democratic development.
-Development initiatives in Turkey have been stalled by terrorism. What kind of shift will Turkey's development vision undergo under 'Terror-Free Turkey'?
Today, economic development cannot be assessed separately from security. Indeed, 'Terror-Free Turkey' will deliver a new geopolitical advantage stretching from security to the economy. It is an indisputable fact that where there is no security, the investment climate weakens, capital mobility declines and development processes are disrupted. A Turkey where terrorism has been fully eliminated will boost predictability and investor confidence, strengthen production capacity and take a central place in regional trade networks. As our natural and human resource potential is mobilized in areas once associated with terrorism, economic and social life will revive, the welfare of our nation will rise, and our country's development will gain momentum.
For this reason, 'Terror-Free Turkey' is a major lever for our new development paradigm. Development rests on a process in which material and static capital elements are planned, directed and managed — at both the national and global level — together with intangible and dynamic elements, in line with a set of goals, principles, vision and ultimate objectives. Geography, land, climate, natural wealth, water resources and the ecological system make up the material and static capital elements of development, while factors such as political regimes, economic systems, diplomatic capacity, national character, national morale and culture, population and education make up its intangible and dynamic elements. In this context, the relationship between the material and static capital elements and the intangible and dynamic elements is built through strong institutions that ensure continuity, consistency, stability, efficiency and standardization, and it is planned, organized and implemented in line with development's goals, principles, vision and objectives. Development is therefore built on moral and cultural principles and a shared mission in which every element is interconnected and continuously affects the others, whether positively or negatively. In this sense, development is a drive for national and spiritual advancement, material and technical progress, and political and social unity — one that, across political, economic, social, human, legal and diplomatic fields, encompasses institutional, strategic, planning and operational dimensions along with short-, medium- and long-term goals.
POINTED TO 2053
Turkey has been unable to reach its development goals or mobilize its national resources and capacities toward that end, because of military memorandums, coups, terrorism and instability tied to its system of government. Our strategic goal is for Turkey, freed of its shackles by the Presidential Government System, to become a 'leading country' and a 'superpower' by 2053, through stability.
Through its distinguished and pivotal role in Turkish political life, MHP has a political approach that unties the knots in Turkish politics, opens the way for democracy, puts an end to sterile debates and heals long-festering problems. In this context, Turkish nationalism — which formed the founding manifesto of the Republic and offered the Turkish nation its strongest and most enduring political proposition for the 20th century — is, in the new century of our Republic, preparing for an auspicious future under the vision of the 'Century of Turks and Turkey,' led by MHP and the People's Alliance.
Our party has prepared a 'Development Vision Document Based on Morality, Stability and Prosperity' to place development on a solid framework built on morality, justice, stability and prosperity, grounded in the strong, clear basis of the Turkish mindset; to build development's political, economic, social, diplomatic and geopolitical pillars on that basis; and to turn it into a national ideal that mobilizes every member of the Turkish nation, under national unity and solidarity, democracy and the rule of law, and a strong state institutionalization built around individual-centered rights and freedoms. In a 'Terror-Free Turkey,' where terrorism has been eliminated, security has been permanently secured and cities and rural areas alike enjoy an atmosphere of peace, one of the biggest obstacles to the development drive will also have been removed.
'TERROR-FREE TURKEY IS ALSO TOMORROW'S ISSUE'
It should be understood that a "terror-free Turkey" means freeing ourselves from the scourge of terrorism that ambushes our will to develop, shrinks our livelihood and mines the path of investment; it means converting the energy our state spends on security into the will to develop, and re-cementing our brotherhood, more firmly than before, in every corner of Anatolia. A terror-free Turkey is not only today's issue but tomorrow's as well. We must now turn the vast resources that have had to be allocated to counter-terrorism for years into schools for our children; hospitals and care services for our elderly; irrigation canals, agricultural support and rural development for our farmers; technology centers, university investment and youth projects for our young people; employment and social welfare for our women; credit for our tradespeople and investment for our industrialists; infrastructure for our cities and roads for our villages; improvement for our pastures and abundance for our fields. Removing terrorism from our nation's agenda for good, and turning the means consumed by security necessity into a development mobilization, will be embodied in a "terror-free Turkey."
-How do you see the role of young people in the vision of a terror-free Turkey? How will young generations contribute to the ideal of national unity and a shared future?
A terror-free Turkey is the greatest legacy we will leave our young people. Our youth are, without doubt, the most important social force that will shape the second century of our Republic. There are serious differences, both psychological and sociological, between generations raised in the shadow of terrorism and those growing up in security, peace and stability. For this reason, a "terror-free Turkey" is not merely today's security issue; it is the most important investment in the future's human resources, social order and development goals.
I want to point out that citizens who are now in their 40s have never seen a terror-free period in their youth. Once we reach the goal of a terror-free Turkey, the generations that follow will not have to face the dark and dirty face of terrorism, will not carry the same anxieties, and will walk toward a bright future.
'OUR YOUTH WILL BE THE SUBJECT OF THE FUTURE, NOT OF DIVISION'
Our fundamental goal is to direct the energy of our young people not toward ideological polarization, a culture of violence, harmful movements or marginal structures, but toward science, technology, entrepreneurship, culture, art and the national development ideal. Turkey's 2053 and 2071 vision can only be achieved with well-educated young generations who have high self-confidence, are aware of their national identity and possess global competitiveness.
Throughout history, terrorist organizations have targeted young people most of all, exploiting their hopes, enthusiasm and futures. With a terror-free Turkey, our youth will now be the subject of hope rather than fear, of production rather than conflict, of a shared future rather than division. A strong Turkey can only be possible with a Turkish youth that embraces its national existence and brings its historical and cultural heritage together with contemporary developments; the "Century of Turkey and the Turks" can only be built with them.
-Finally sir, do you have a call to make to politics and society?
First of all, thank you. We have touched on many matters up to this point. I want to state this: the Nationalist Movement Party has never been and will never be part of anything that is not for the good of Turkey and the Turkish nation. A terror-free Turkey holds an importance and value that cannot be squandered or exploited within the competitive arena of politics.
Why should the opportunity to be freed forever from the terrorism that Turkey has fought for nearly fifty years, and that has cost many of our people their lives and property, be a source of discomfort for anyone? Why should the strengthening of our brotherhood, the development of democracy and the removal of obstacles before our country's rise disturb anyone? Is it not the most important investment and gain for our country's future that terror, violence and separatism be erased from minds, and that unity and solidarity take root?
Recalling the noble hadith of the Prophet, Master of Both Worlds, "There is mercy in unity, torment in division," I warn those who seek to poison the climate of brotherhood and those pursuing political gain through provocations! I invite everyone to be mindful of their hand, waist and tongue, as prescribed by our master Hacı Bektaş-ı Veli.
'WE WILL BUILD A POWERFUL TURKEY'
The greatest strength lies in the ability to turn differences into unity. No approach that weakens brotherhood or turns discord and division into a political tool will go unanswered, nor will it escape the discernment of our nation. It sees who serves the common mind and brotherhood, and who serves division. When the time comes, it looks not at the shows staged but at intent and outcome, and it settles accounts at the ballot box.
It would also be for the good of our country, our nation, and indeed for themselves, if circles whose sole concern is discomfort with the MHP would free themselves as soon as possible from the schizophrenic state they are in. Turkey is at the stage of permanently removing terrorism and terror in all its elements from our country's agenda. This is an important opportunity and gain, and it will not be squandered. In the coming period, in a Turkey free of arms and terror, politics and democratic institutions will come to the fore, and social consensus will meet and strengthen with national unity.
Turkey's new horizon will be the strength of its national unity. Let our nation rest assured: Turkey is safeguarding its independence and its future, and is walking in the direction of its national ideals. Our path is open, our future is bright. As the influence of the Turkic world grows on the global stage, Turkey is coming to the fore as a pole in its region. With the strength of peace and unity, and through the mobilization of our national means, resources and capabilities, we will overcome every challenge and build a powerful Turkey. We will break the chains at our feet and cast off our shackles. We will work, we will produce, we will share justly, we will govern with justice. Our ideal of being a leading nation will be attained, we will be a hope for oppressed peoples, and, God willing, we will bring order to the world.
The Nationalist Movement Party, the standard-bearer of the Turkish nation's ideal and its cause for the future, is advancing toward its sacred goals with the same ideal, unwavering will and unshaken faith. The effort is ours; protection belongs to God."