As Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's first directly elected president, takes office, many say he won't be able to fulfill his claim of representing all Turkish citizens. Critics also fear his autocratic reign, reports GHN based on dw.de
When Recep Tayyip Erdogan was elected Turkey's new president (10.08.2014) with 52 percent of the vote, it wasn't long until the obligatory, politically correct congratulations from all over Europe trickled in. German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed Turkey's great importance in a difficult region. But European Commission leader Jose Manuel Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy shouldn't hold their breaths while waiting for President Erdogan to fulfill their hopes for reconciliation in the country.
After his victory speech, Erdogan had said he wanted to start "a new era," adding the "debates of the past" would be left behind. But so far, he has failed to follow up his words with actions. Before his official inauguration, he threatened to stay away from the ceremony marking the new legal year on September 1 if Metin Feyzioglu, the chairman of a Turkish lawyers' group, spoke at the event. Three months ago, Erdogan interrupted a speech by Feyzioglu, saying the lawyer's remarks were political and full of untruths, and ultimately Erdogan stormed out.
But the board of the Court of Cassation didn't rule in Erdogan's favor: "If we didn't allow Feyzioglu to speak, we would have been acting against the European Convention on Human Rights and against freedom of expression as stipulated in the Turkish Constitution," a member of the court of cassation told DW on the condition of anonymity.