Must be during his new year’s address, Prime Minister of the Turks fell from their sofas. In the new year, Turkey will also “play a peacekeeping role in the region and the world, the role for which it is renowned,” he promised Binali Yildirim to his countrymen. It will “protect its stable democracy and legal state,” and her star will Shine even brighter, so that “the whole world will talk about the achievements of our nation.”
While the government says the shining star, Turkey has been fighting against the PKK and outside the country is mired in wars in two neighboring countries — Syria and Iraq. Her city shaken by terrorist acts, so now, given the state of emergency, a state of law cannot be considered.
Under the guise of a state of emergency on Monday, the Parliament in Ankara has started a debate on the constitutional changes necessary to establish a presidential system, which seeks Recep Tayyip Erdogan. After the adoption of the new system, the government promises very skeptical citizens (as polls show) more stability and security. While Erdogan since the beginning of summer, can govern by decree without Parliament, although he is unable to stop the wave of violence in the country.
What Yildirim in such a situation, can talk about democracy and world fame, not only shows the loss of reality by the government. It also demonstrates how difficult it is for Turkish citizens to obtain reliable information. Due to the paranoia of politicians, corrupt media and draconian censorship many Turks wander through reality as in a mirrored room with curved mirrors.
Politicians like Erdogan come up with an alternate reality, without the need for them to confirm; they constantly pay attention to the national stock of knowledge. That preacher Fethullah Gulen accused of attempting a coup d’etat in July 2016, can be seen as a clear case of the investigation Committee of the Parliament was not going to question the key players — because the President has already found the culprit. And the fact that the US, Europe and / or Israel is behind the PKK, Gulen and the Islamic state, as readily approved by the government, is almost unquestioned.
Draconian control of the Internet
In other countries, politicians are also deceiving the voters. So, the US President-elect, Donald trump, a few months ago said that his predecessor, Barack Obama, founded the “Islamic state” — long before Erdogan last week expressed similar charge. The difference is that Americans can get information from reputable sources. In Turkey many Newspapers and television channels have long followed the presidential line if they are not prohibited.
“The identikit of the criminal,” was the headline of a newspaper after the terrorist attacks in Istanbul nightclub in New year’s eve — under the headline was a photograph of President Barack Obama. And when the Minister of energy and Erdogan’s son-in-law Berat Albayrak justifies erratic supply of electricity in Istanbul “cyber attacks from the United States,” this is quite serious misleading of the newspaper.
The few remaining opposition Newspapers honestly make an effort just before the left “Evrensel” and the civil “Cumhuriyet”. However, the opposition also fits rather loosely to the truth that does it honor. Imprisoned journalist Ahmet Sik for three days did not receive water, was indignant at the weekend the opposition media. But SIC was not in danger — he just had to drink water from the tap because it did not receive water in bottles.
The biggest obstacle to truth is a draconian Internet censorship, which slowly cuts off the Turks from the outside world. Blocked thousands of Internet sites and Twitter accounts of journalists-critics-in-exile. For a long time the lock was relatively easy to get around, but now the power block of loopholes in the country darkens.
