Tag: Bulent Arinc

NO LAUGHS FOR TURKEY’S CRYBABY

Bülent Arınç weeping at a microphone

While violence consumes its neighbors, it’s holiday time in once secular Turkey, now under occupation by a religious fascist government, all praise to Allah and America. Celebratory candy and sweet pastry abound. And naturally Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç is worried about decay. No, not tooth decay, moral decay. And so he spoke out about moral decay, ignoring the fact that he and his American-puppet partners have destroyed any aspect of secular democracy in Turkey and in its neighbor countries. And that they sponsor one of the most brutal, barbaric gangs ever assembled to slaughter, rape, behead and crucify innocent people…well, it must have slipped the deputy prime minister’s mind. What also slipped his mind was the fact that his party members in general, and the prime minister and his cronies in particular, have surely set unofficial Guinness world records in immorality. But our intrepid deputy prime minister dropped neither tear nor syllable about these inconveniently immoral truths.

Instead he spoke of the moral decay caused by women laughing in front of anyone, that is, in public. What is indeed decadent is how this sanctimonious religion-mongering ruling party uses any excuse to give stupid advice. Not only shouldn’t women laugh in public, they should not display their attractiveness. “Their” women have certainly achieved the latter. As far as their laughter, who noticed? But laughing in public as being an offense? This is hilariously pathetic. Who writes the speeches for these people?

This deputy prime minister is famous for spewing crocodile tears at the hint that moisture might be required. He is also famous for his melodramatics in the hoax that was Ergenekon. His histrionics regarding imagined assassination attempts were epic. Adding further moral disgrace to his ill-repute, he had also given his moral judgment that in Ergenekon “Turkey is cleaning its intestines.” That the whole Ergenekon-Balyoz affair that destroyed the Turkish military and the nation’s security system was a phony also escaped his moral decay concerns. That his own party has admitted it, also eluded him. His no-laughing-in-public agenda item is the sickest joke of all. Except for the following.

That he lied…that he cooperated with the Gulen movement…that he was complicit in treason…that he collaborated with the CIA…all this has escaped his moral compass. And all this has escaped the moral compass of his “pious” followers who pride themselves on their religious piety. Such weirdness! To have a piety with so little to do with morality and so much to do with decay.

But take heart. The deputy prime minister also feels that teenage sex addiction is caused by certain TV programs. And that this causes violence to women. And therefore, women should never laugh in public and should look as ugly as possible in public. A brilliant policy indeed. In short, the deputy prime minister wants all of us to look like them…

Gentlemen! Ladies! Children of all ages! On the count of three, let us together give the deputy prime minister a great big public laugh. One…Two… THREE!

HA!

James (Cem) Ryan

Istanbul

29 July 2014

July 31, 2014
APA – Turkey not lose will in EU despite snub: Arinc

Baku-APA. Turkey has not lost its determination to gain European Union membership, despite EU leaders turning cold towards it, Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc has said, APA reports quoting Anadolu Agency.

In a speech in the Polish capital of Warsaw, he said on Wednesday that an EU with Turkey inside was the only way permanent solutions to crises around the world could be produced.

He said that the success of the far-right in Europe’s recent parliamentary elections had weakened the EU as an institution in the eyes of European society.

Arinc declared: “A culturally essentialist Europe cannot be a global actor when the winds of Cold War blow. Quite the contrary, a cosmopolitan Europe with diversification is the guarantee for development.

“Turkey is the sine qua non in such a picture.”

Arinc also said that Turkey was ready to break down the prejudices of the European extreme right in order to achieve its EU bid.

– ‘Strong country’

Far-right parties made strong gains in the European Parliamentary elections at the end of May, including the victory of Marine Le Pen’s far-right party, the anti-immigration Front National (FN) in France, with more than 25 per cent of the vote.

The deputy prime minister said: “What did the EU do in response to Turkey, which had abided by the Maastricht and Copenhagen criteria – a strong country in its region with a strong economic record?

“Why did the leaders of the EU disincline Turkey from its integration bid? Without asking these questions, reports which only examine Turkey’s steps cannot lead us to a solution.”

Arinc later met Turkish businessmen at a dinner organized by the Poland-Turkey Businessmen Association (POTIAD) in Warsaw.

He inaugurated the Yunus Emre Institute in Warsaw, together with Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Henrika Moscicka Dendys, and expressed his wish that the institute would help Turkey and Poland’s historic ties flourish.

The Yunus Emre Institute aims to contribute to the training of competent academicians and researchers in the fields of Turkish language, history, culture, art and music through certification programs in several cities across the world.

via APA – Turkey not lose will in EU despite snub: Arinc.

June 7, 2014
The Economist: Turkey – A row over co-ed flats

AFTER eleven years of uninterrupted power is Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development (AK) finally beginning to unravel? Questions about AK’s future have been growing louder ever since Bulent Arinc, a deputy prime minister and government spokesman, aired his grievances against the prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan (pictured), on the state-run TRT Turk news channel last week. He even hinted that if he wasn’t offered an apology he might resign.

The row was prompted by Mr Erdogan’s plans to restrict co-ed cohabitation among students who rent privately owned flats. The story was leaked by Zaman, a newspaper that is closely affiliated with a powerful Islamic cleric, Fethullah Gulen, a former Erdogan ally, who many say has now turned into his most formidable foe. Mr Arinc swiftly denounced the news as “a fabrication” only to be contradicted by Mr Erdogan the next day. Mr Erdogan declared that it was AK’s duty as a “conservative and democratic party” to take such measures prompting howls of protest from students and parents alike. Mr Arinc was glaringly absent from AK’s parliamentary group meeting on November 12th where Mr Erdogan said their differences “would be sorted out within the party”.

Mr Erdogan’s moral policing may help to quell rumbles within his pious base over AK’s perceived tilt towards profit and greed. In Topcu, a remote village on the Syrian border, Mahmut Isik Akdogan, a feudal landowner, said: “For decades our family did not send its girls to high school, let alone university, because we worried about them mingling with boys.”

Yet, it also goes to the heart of the mass anti-government protests that erupted in June. Mr Erdogan’s rants against abortion and calls for women to have at least three children if not five, have mobilised Turkey’s apolitical youth. Defiant teenagers began uploading videos of themselves on Twitter, while police began raiding apartments inhabited by unmarried boys and girls. And what of unmarried boys living with other boys?” some asked. The interior minister’s attempts to diffuse the crisis with claims that co-ed housing was used as “a recruitment ground for terrorists” didn’t help. The number of citizens visiting Ataturk’s tomb on the 75th anniversary of his death on November 10th hit a record of more than a million amid renewed panic over the future of the secular republic he founded 90 years ago.

Mr Arinc’s outburst reflects his party’s growing discomfort with Mr Erdogan’s incendiary rhetoric. None dare to say so but they are weary of his imperious ways. Might Mr Arinc resign? And how will this affect Mr Erdogan’s plans to become the country’s first elected president when Abdullah Gul steps down in 2014? Turkey’s hapless opposition leaders, who have yet to dent AK’s popularity, are bursting to know. Their glee may yet prove premature. Mr Arinc was said to have accepted Mr Erdogan’s invitation to accompany him to the mainly Kurdish city of Diyarbakir on November 16th for a mass wedding for low income citizens sponsored by AK.

Under AK’s internal rules any member who has served three consecutive terms in the parliament is no longer eligible to run. Mr Arinc, and around 70 other AK deputies, including Mr Erdogan, fall under this category. This may explain Mr Arinc’s bravado. It is certainly why Mr Erdogan wants to move upstairs. But he also wants to continue to control AK. The current constitution stands in the way. Mr Erdogan’s attempts to boost the powers of the presidency have failed. As president, his sole hope of dictating candidates’ lists for the 2015 parliamentary elections is to anoint a pliant successor. This so called “remote control” formula embraced by past presidents, Turgut Ozal and Suleyman Demirel, proved disastrous. Their parties were wiped away. The lesson has not been lost on AK. Many want Mr Gul, a globally popular former foreign minister, who is lauded for his easy style, yet is no pushover, to swap seats with Mr Erdogan.

Opinion polls suggest that Mr Gul would beat Mr Erdogan if he decides to run for a second presidential term. This, in turn, means that Mr Erdogan may be forced to hand him the premiership to prevent him from doing so. AK’s showing in the March 2014 municipal elections could prove decisive. Mr Gulen is expected to instruct his flock to vote for whoever is AK’s strongest opponent in a given district. Either way, there is no denying that Mr Erdogan is the most influential and successful leader in Turkey’s recent history. Yet he may well be remembered as one of the most intolerant and polarising as well.

Amberin Zaman

14 November 2013

Source: economist.com

November 15, 2013
Turkey says forces will take ‘care’ during Kurdish rebel pullback

AFP, Ankara –

Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) rebels walk as they gather to listen to the speech of the PKK leader on April 25, 2013 in the Qandil mountain. (AFP)

Turkey said Friday its forces would show “great care” during a pullback starting next month by Kurdish rebels heading back to their bases in Iraq, in a major step to end three decades of hostilities.

“Our armed forces and collective security forces will do their tasks with great care and attention,” Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said on Turkish television, without elaborating further.

Arinc did not provide any details on the government strategy during the withdrawal of outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) fighters from the Turkish territory but instead called on everyone to “act with sensitivity” and avoid any action which could “sabotage” the peace process.

The PKK’s retreat from Turkey will be closely watched because previous withdrawal attempts by the group have seen clashes between Turkey’s security forces and the PKK.

Arinc’s comments came a day after Kurdish rebels announced they would on May 8 begin withdrawing from Turkey into their safe haven in northern Iraq amid a peace push between Ankara and the PKK, which is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey and its Western allies.

The pledged withdrawal, which is expected to take several months, is aimed to be finalized “as soon as possible,” according to PKK leader Murat Karayilan.

There are an estimated 2,000 armed PKK militants inside Turkey and up to 5,000 in northern Iraq, which has been used by Kurdish rebels as a springboard for attacks targeting Turkish security forces in the southeast.

Karayilan said independent observers could monitor their retreat but warned that his fighters would resort to self-defense if it came under attack by the Turkish army.

Arinc welcomed the PKK announcement.

The Kurdish rebel movement started an armed rebellion for self-rule in the Kurdish-majority southeast in 1984, which has cost around 45,000 lives.

Turkey has entered a process of a ceasefire with the PKK after months of clandestine negotiations with the group’s jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been serving a life sentence for treason on Imrali Island off Istanbul since 1999.

April 27, 2013
Arinc: We will overcome legal barriers to reopening the Heybeliada Greek seminary

The government is working to overcome legal obstacles to reopening the Halki (Heybeliada) seminary, closed since 1971, said Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc yesterday.

“There are some legal obstacles,” said Arinc, paying a New Year’s visit to the Istanbul-based Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and Patriarch Bartholomew. “We will overcome them. This is not something we can grant. We need to do what the law requires us to do.”

Patriarch Bartholomew said Arinc’s visit had bolstered his hopes, explaining, “We expect our school to reopen. This year is the 40th anniversary of our school’s closure. We hope the government will put its good will into practice.”

The patriarch added that under the initiative of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, clergymen who live in other countries but who serve the patriarchate have been given Turkish citizenship. “This is a very important step for the functioning of our patriarchate,” he said. “We expect Turkey to continue to be successful in the new year and to become a member of the EU soon.” Arinc is the highest-ranking government official to visit the patriarchate since the 1952 visit of Prime Minister Adnan Menderes.

Reopening the seminary has been linked by the EU to improving democracy and human rights in Turkey.

via Arinc: We will overcome legal barriers to reopening the Heybeliada Greek seminary.

January 5, 2011
Turkey asks Uganda help for free trade deal with East African Community

Arinc asked Uganda’s support for immediate launch of a free trade agreement between Turkey and East African Community which includes Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

Monday, 29 November 2010 14:34

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, who attended on Monday the meeting of Turkey-Uganda Joint Economic Committee in Kampala, said that Turkey aims to help eradicate poverty in Africa and carry out a joint sustainable development policy with African countries.

Speaking at the opening of the meeting, Arinc said that Turkey considers Uganda as a close friend despite the geographical distance.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul paid a visit to Uganda last May, Arinc recalled, and he said that Gul’s visit was an important sign of friendship between the two countries.

“I would like to underscore our eagerness and determination to improve commercial and economic relations,” Arinc told the meeting.

Arinc also said that Turkey’s new strategy towards Africa, launched in 2003 to enhance economic relations with African countries, aims at helping eliminate poverty in the continent and carry out a joint sustainable development policy together with African countries.

“Our strategy aims at full integration of Africa into global economy,” he said.

Turkey’s trade with Africa skyrocketed and grew by 200 percent after the new strategy, he reminded. Arinc added that Turkey’s investments in the continent was over $3 billion in 2009.

Arinc asked Uganda’s support for immediate launch of a free trade agreement between Turkey and East African Community which includes Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi. He said such an agreement was key to improve economic relations.

On relations with Uganda, Arinc said that trade between the two countries grew by 10 times over the past seven years.

“However, this level is far away from the potential of the two countries,” he said.

“We can work together to increase mutual investments, and help Turkish construction firms carry out infrastructure and development projects in Uganda,” he added.

Uganda’s Interior Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ali Kironda Kiwajinja, on his part, told the meeting that his country was a commercial hub for several countries in Africa. Pointing out the potential between the two countries, Kiwajinja said that better relations was very important for Uganda.

Kiwajinja also said that flights of Turkish Airlines to his country and Turkish schools in Uganda would help build better relations.

AA

November 30, 2010