Turkey is more secular than the EU, says AK Parti Vice Chairman

In 2002, there were 20 countries bigger than Turkey in terms of dollar output. Now you are the 19th largest economy in the world and you are hosting the G20. What has been the key to this economic transformation over the past 12 years?

Turkey is a very dynamic society. In Anatolia, there's a very strong motivation for production, and a rapid urbanization has taken place since the early 1950s. Now, more than 80% of the population lives in the cities, compared to 25% in the 1950s. Since then, Turkey has been through many stages and periods including coup d’états, democratic openings, and also the application to the join European Union.

This urbanization in Turkey has led to growth in the middle-class, which is very dynamic and is seeking capital for its own ventures. But there was also resistance from the center to this rural-to-urban migration, in a cultural, ideological and economic sense. These movements from the periphery to the center led to clashes between the center and the periphery. The coup d’états that took place can be traced back to this. But when you ask me about the secret of the economic development of Turkey, I’d say the dynamism of Turkish society was always there. Society was seeking more freedom, more investment.

There seems to be a very entrepreneurial culture here…

Yes. And this entrepreneurial segment was seeking leadership. They sought leadership first within the center-right party, but the center-right party betrayed them for the existing central state and pledged allegiance to the coup d’état rather than the people.

It was the AK Partyi that assumed this role of representing these entrepreneurial people. Within Istanbul there was a conflict between the emerging middle class and the central economic class. The central economic class was not composed of truly entrepreneurial people; they reached their positions because they were favored and privileged by the State. We had a State-dependent bourgeoisie, which was not dynamic at all. It was not brave enough; it wasn't taking the necessary risks.

On the other hand, the emerging entrepreneurial classes from Anatolia were very brave, and didn't refrain from investing anywhere. That brought a very strong dynamism to the economy. They provided the socio-economic base of the AK Parti. These people suffered under the coup d’état, and they searched for new leadership when Turkey was lurching from one economic crisis after another. They were ignored by existing politicians and the military, but they found a home in the AK Parti.

And the AK Party had to create the conditions that could help these people to flourish?

Yes, exactly. There was a very deep economic crisis in Turkey, which was ruled by a coalition government that was causing much trouble. The AK Parti has attempted to make a very radical shift in the meaning of politics in Turkey: to make politics serve the people. When the manifesto of the party was initially inscribed prior to the 2002 election, it was very rational without being ideological or utopian. We drew up a roadmap for action which the people could relate to. We also had a very charismatic leader in Tayyip Erdogan. He had very strong charisma, which was based on his success as Mayor of Istanbul. Many chronic problems of Istanbul were solved during his tenure. The people trusted him, and the AK Parti received 34.3% of the votes in its first election.

And since then they have made gains in almost every election…

Yes, because we followed our program step by step, and that created trust and credibility. Erdogan is a very different political figure in Turkey, because he is actually doing what he promised; even more than what he promised.

This leads us into the identity of the AK Parti. There are many presumptions and pre-conceived ideas about the AK Parti in the West. Many refer to it as an Islamist party or a religious party. How would you describe the identity of the AK Parti?

The AK Parti is a very unique party. Nobody can restrict its identity to one noun like "liberal", "neo-liberal", "Islamist" or "conservative". We are conservative in religious matters. But that conservatism doesn't prevent us from being very revolutionary in politics. We don’t force Islam on anybody. We believe in freedom of expression and freedom of religion. In terms of the state's relations with its people, we are social democrats. And in terms of the market economy, we are liberal. The markets are free; we do not intervene. This is coupled with very strong social policies that normally contradict with the liberal economy. If there are poor people in society, we are all responsible for them.

Do you see the AK Parti as a model for political parties in other predominantly Islamic countries to follow?

Yes, to some degree. We receive daily visits from delegations from Islamic countries; they are visiting Turkey in search for the secret of our success. The sociological conditions in these countries are very, very different, so it’s impossible to repeat our model completely. We are, of course, very proud of what we have achieved so far and we still very focused to achieve more.

One of the strategic objectives of this government is European Union membership by 2023. To what extent are the AK Parti’s values compatible with the EU's values?

Actually, there are many common values between Turkey, the AK Parti and the EU. We completely agree with the declared values of the European Union. But we don't agree with the undeclared values. Undeclared values are unfortunately more dangerous and they are creating conflicts and problems.

We insist that the European Union should be secular. It should be multi-religious and multicultural, and we can find room there if it is. Otherwise, we cannot join. For some European countries, the meaning of the European Union is a Christian union. That's why I think there is resistance against Turkey. We don't care whether they are Christians or Muslims, but we think they care. We call on the EU to be secularist.

How would the EU benefit from absorbing a predominantly Muslim country?

Muslims are inclusive. Muslim civilization has always maintained mosaic societies, rather than homogeneous societies. You may hear nowadays about Islamic terrorists seeking to kill non-Muslims – that is not Islam. That has nothing to do with Islam. It has to do with psychology. This type of psychology exists in the Middle East now. It is fed by the brutality of wars which have killed millions of peaceful people.  Those who apply violence may use religious references. If they are Muslims, they will use the Muslim references, and if they are Christians they will use Christian references. There are many other religious groups committing atrocities. Israel, for example, has killed many civilians, but nobody talks about Jewish terrorism. That's very unfair.

Finally, what attracted you personally to the AK Parti and can you share with us your hopes and expectations for the June 2015 election?

Actually, I had never planned to be in the party but I'm very honored now to be part of it. As well as being Vice Chairman, I’m now a candidate for Parliament in the forthcoming election. We are working very hard because we want to repeat our success, but our opponents compete in a very hostile way.  We are trying to overcome these problems within the limits of democracy.