Updated at bottomThe protests in Turkey have been fairly big news the past few days.Interesting how the western main stream media is covering them?Linking to one article and highlighting odd word use and curiousities contained in the articleImages from here
Turkey's most violent riots in decades may have been started by the destruction of a small Istanbul park, but they have exploded in a show of defiance at what many see as the creeping authoritarianism of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.
"Most violent riots in decades"? Who is perpetuating the violence? Of course the way that is written you are supposed to believe the violent riots are being perpetuated by the people. However it appeared the violence was emanating as usual with the STATE.The heavy, heavy hand of the state propagated the violence There is Antalya unrest Turkey
In power for more than a decade, Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party has increased its share of the vote in each of the past three elections, ushered in unprecedented political stability and overseen some of the fastest economic growth in Europe.
"Ushered in unprecedented political stability" Would protests of this size erupt if there was really an abundance of unprecedented political stability? I don't think so.There is Afyon city unrest Turkey
Now in his last term as prime minister, Erdogan is trying to leave his stamp on Turkey by recasting foreign policy, overhauling the constitution and even transforming the ancient Istanbul skyline.
In his last term, he is trying to "leave his stamp on Turkey" It sounds/reads/appears more like Erdogan is trying to impose his will! Instead we get a nice stamp being left ?This next couple paragraphs makes his authoritarian stance even more obvious
Erdogan, whose party has won the biggest share of Turkish votes in decades and is now said to have his sights on the presidency before his self-imposed three-term limit expires in 2015.The 59-year-old former Istanbul mayor is campaigning for constitutional change that would give executive powers to the largely ceremonial presidency.
Erdogan, wants to run for President, a role that is presently largely ceremonial. But if Erdogan gets the changes made that he is presently campaigning for, Erdogan is setting himself up to continue being the man in charge. It almost seems as if he knows he would be the next President? How is that possible? There is Bandırma Town unrest Turkey
The centre of the protests is Istanbul's Taksim Square and the adjacent Gezi Park, a green patch in Europe's fastest-growing city which dedicates just 1.5 percent of its land to public parks, according to the World Cities Culture Report.
I had no idea Istanbul was in Europe? Anyone? Was Turkey allowed into the EU? No. Even if it was a part of the EU is Turkey in Europe? So why present this as "European"? Is the msm using this language to remove Turkey from it's location in the Middle East and separate Turkey from the negative baggage associated with that area of the world. Thanks, of course to the main stream media.
He is an important U.S. partner in efforts to end the civil war in Syria, though opinion polls show government policy towards Turkey's neighbor is unpopular.
Erdogan has many strikes against him
As the protests gathered steam, Erdogan appeared to dig in, ignoring an interim Istanbul court ruling on Friday that blocked work on the barracks project as judges sought more testimony.
Yet, another strike.
Since 2008, thousands of government opponents from across the political spectrum have been jailed, including university students, academics, lawyers, Kurdish activists, military officers and the alleged leaders of ultra-nationalist gangs.
There is Eskisehir City Unrest Turkey
At the protest on Saturday, Metin, a 30-year-old doctor who described himself as a devout Muslim, said he had lost his faith in Erdogan over the years."I say my prayers, and I fast, and I considered voting for Erdogan in the past because I believed he would help the oppressed, since he had been," Metin said, declining to give his last name because he feared reprisals at work."But now that he has the power, Erdogan has become the oppressor. He exploits our religious feelings for profit. He has become arrogant, and that is a sin."
There is Sakarya City Unrest TurkeyWhat coverage of the Turkish protests I have read, it is clear, there is not any where near the level of condemnation heaped on Turkey's leader that has been and is still heaped on the Assad government. Though, there was not ever one protest 'against' the Syrian government that was remotely close to even one of the marches that took place in Turkey. Pick any city. I have given you a number of them to choose from.In fact all the largest rallies that took place in Syria, were done in support of the Syrian nation and it's government. I have previously featured those pictures in many previous posts on Syria.Remember this post and pic? Round'em up: Iran Plot/ AIPAC "wet dream". Mass Pro Syrian Rallies & more Millions rally for Syria and their governmentYet Assad is demonized and Erdogan is an important ally? Black is White and Up is Down??The downplaying of the Turkish protests, in the western media, is suggestive to me anyway that these protests are not supported by western imperialist regimes.Anyone have any thoughts on what is going on in Turkey and why.... feel free to share them! IMPORTANT UPDATE BEGINS :
Revolt in Turkey: Erdogan's Grip on Power Is Rapidly Weakening
There is a tiny piece in this article that piqued my interest
I mentioned this scenario above : Erdogan is currently seeking to increase the powers of the Turkish presidency, preparatory to taking over the position himself in 2014. Not everyone in the AKP is behind the plan and speculation of an internal power struggle is rife.
An internal power struggle is not too much of a stretch for Turkey. Going on recall here, didn't Turkey have a power struggle between the military and the political office for some time with numerous coups taking place?I headed back to an old post of mine. Yes, it is three years old, but, the speculation of an internal power struggle brought this old post back to mind. And a question. Has Turkey been non- compliant with a larger agenda? The piece I used in that post was from late 09- Link here
The democratic requirements linked to EU accession have gradually compelled the Turkish military to go back to their barracks and stay there. For decades, they were used to run the country in the shadow of political puppets, dismissing them if necessary when some electoral outcome annoyed them. Thinking of themselves as protectors of Ataturk’s legacy, in fact they were mostly concerned about controlling the country and making the most of the NATO, EU and US manna rewarding their loyalty to the Western camp (7)
Now, read this from the Speigel article:
Another threat may also be lurking. In Istanbul, people have begun whispering that the military is distributing gasmasks -- but to the demonstrators rather than to the police. The message is clear: The military supports the protests. The story is certainly consistent with the Turkish military's traditional role in society. The generals have long seen themselves as protectors of Atatürk's legacy and as protectors of a secular Turkey. Indeed, the military has staged three putsches in its history to guarantee Kemalist values: in 1960, in 1971 and again in 1980.
Protestor in Istanbul with an impressive gas maskIf the military is supportive of these protests we may be looking at an entirely different scenario here.What it will entail.... we can speculate. But, it will be ugly if it is a coup. Now I will quote Erdogan, again from the speigel article:
Erdogan spoke yet again, saying he suspects that "foreign powers" are behind the demonstrations and that Turkish intelligence is investigating. "It is not possible to reveal their names, but we will have meetings with their heads,"
Connecting dots here folks. If the military is supporting the protestors, including handing out gas masksAnd Turkey has a history of military coups, because the real military leadership in Turkey lies in NATO....(shades of Egypt)Then the heads of state that Erdogan is referencing would be????