I bet Ataturk is smiling

Since Oct. 8, the world’s media has taken a different view.

Almost all are saying that Europe is welcoming Turkey and citing Turkey’s founder Ataturk. They say that with these latest developments, Ataturk’s reforms aimed at linking Turkey with the West will be cemented.

I can summarize all the things said in a single paragraph: The European Commission gives a "green light" to Turkey. However, the report was dominated by its aim to alleviate fears in EU countries.

And then I looked at our media: Some are just ignorant, while some want to be seen as rebels while blasting the commission’s report. Thank God most see the bigger picture.

Still, we seem to be forgetting an important matter. And that is the fact that the points emphasized by the commission, which seem like new conditions or inspections to us, will be ignored in a few years time. If Turkey truly intends on becoming an European Union member, none of these additional inspections, the possibility of the suspension of the negotiations or the proposal to place limitations on the free movement of people will matter. However, if we try to enter the club by our own rules, these mechanisms will be enacted.

That’s why there is no use in concentrating on them yet.

Just like Hurriyet’s Oktay Eksi said on Thursday, Turkey is preparing to take important steps on the road that was chosen by Ataturk.

If we want to deceive ourselves, let’s be pessimistic. No one will argue. But the facts refute the pessimists.

Turkey is paying the price for its immensity
I asked all those in the EU Commission who read the report the same question: Why did you insert all these additional inspection mechanisms? Why did you include statements about the possibility of the suspension of the negotiations, and the limitations that could be imposed on freedom of movement?

I received almost the same answer every time: "You’re a huge country. You are scaring the current members of the union. If we had not included these safety mechanisms, the report would not have been approved and you would not have received a date to start the negotiations at the Dec. 17 EU summit. This report actually aimed to dispel the fears held by the European public. If Turkey wasn’t so huge and if it wouldn’t affect the balance within the EU, the report would not have included these statements."

We and they see the same thing from different perspectives. We don’t know each other. The only way to resolve our future differences can be through trying to learn about each other.

Our ‘commission official’ was honorable after all
We criticized the man for years. We accused him of being a Nazi and anti-Turkish. What he said was right but it didn’t suit our purposes, so we just ignored them. However, we should now give credit where it’s due.

If it wasn’t for EU Commissioner Guenter Verheugen, Turkey wouldn’t be where it is today. The conditions and rules we were called to follow would have been more numerous. No one doubts that the reforms Turkey implemented were the main reason why we are where we are.

However, this isn’t all. These reforms needed to be promoted the right way and sold to 25 countries. That’s where Verheugen played a leading role. He was always open with Turkey and tricked no one.

Verheugen, who was described as "that commission official" at one time, proved that he was an honorable man of his word after all.

Commission inspections will be useful
Some of us describe the inspections and the strict guidelines for the negotiations as double standards against Turkey. But it depends from where you look. Yes, the commission imposed rules that were not applicable to Malta or Bulgaria.

However, we should ask ourselves whether these additional rules are going to be bad for us. The answer is "No." Maybe they will disturb us, but in the long-term they will be very useful.

I ask you, without the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stand-by agreements and IMF delegations constantly conducting inspections in Turkey, would Turkey have implemented the strict monetary policies needed to free the country from its economic crisis? Again, the answer is "No."

We have lived through this before. We are not disciplined enough. Our politicians tend to succumb to the least pressure emanating from the public. Let’s now look at it from a different perspective.

The rules on inspecting the implementation of the reforms passed will work in Turkey’s favor in the long-term. When foreign investors see that Turkey is implementing the rules, even before its membership, they will feel more secure and start moving towards the Turkish market.

Another advantage is that when Turkey fulfills the membership criteria at the end of this negotiation process, no one will have a reason to object to our membership.

Just think about it.

Zana in a league of her own
We all heard what former Democracy Party (DEP) deputy Leyla Zana said in the rallies held around the country after her release. We saw how much interest she generated in the southeast. Finally, we heard what she said in Brussels at the European Parliament and we saw a very different Zana.

Her speech at the European Parliament was well-prepared, very logical and impressive. European parliamentarians applauded her and showed how important she is. The way she was treated there also showed what type of role they want her to play.

Zana, aware of this, was very careful in what she said in her speech in which she mixed Turkish and Kurdish. Zana’s attitude was full of implications for the future of the Kurdish problem.

I have classified them under three headings.

(i) Politics, not weapons, will dominate and the Turkish government should not prevent this from happening.

(ii) A general amnesty instead of a repentance law should be implemented in order to forget the past.

(iii) Kurds are not a minority but part of our founding group. They should obtain their rights.

It is obvious Zana will become one of our most important leaders in the future.