Please don’t shove each other around: Work together
Everyone has high expectations. It is almost tangible. Hopes have increased, whatever the consequences. There is no other explanation for why the Erdoğan-Kılıçdaroğlu meeting has drawn this much attention.
People do not want their hopes to be wasted, that’s all. How much can we hope?
I’m writing these lines before receiving the results of the first meeting. My aim is to echo the feelings of the public to the leaders. Let’s see if we can make our voices heard.
If we leave aside the conflict between the government and the opposition, there is no reason why Erdoğan and Kılçdaroğlu will not be able to agree on a “road map.” Essentially, the views of both are in almost the same direction.
Both Erdoğan and Kılıçdaroğlu want to solve the Kurdish issue. They are against the formation of a region that would be left under its own control, as the PKK (the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party) desires, or, in other words, to form an “autonomous Kurdistan.”
Even this much agreement increases hopes that the two parties can act together.
It would bring prestige to the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), and it would also open doors for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) to make history.
This approach would help both sides win, with the win-win formula the prime minister loves so much. It could take both parties so far in so many ways that there are too many to list here. As long as they agree on a few aspects and leave political games aside.
This is what the public wants, that they should not push us toward hopelessness. They should at least find an aspect they can agree on, a joint working platform.
No choice but to admire
Queen Elizabeth II of England is 86 years old. She is celebrating the 60th year of her reign.
If I’m not mistaken, the United Kingdom is the only country in the world that is still loyal to its tradition of monarchy and preserves it with top-level precision.
It is impossible not to admire the British. Imagine: They ruled the world for centuries with a handful of people, then they lost their land as circumstances changed, then they suffered in World Wars I and II, but they did not collapse.
Even though they ended up in poverty after World War II, they got up on their feet again. Today, you can often find a British person heading an international committee or organization. The British still rule the world today, from behind the scenes. They possess a secret ability to convince that can even guide the brute force of America.
Queen Elizabeth has reigned over this extraordinary society for 60 years, as a queen who is the symbol of all the traditions that make Britain, Britain. Even in its worst days, and in scandalous times, it is this queen who knows how to face the public and give the message, “Do not worry, I am here.”
When you meet her in person, you see a petite, tiny human being, who speaks with a soft voice and lightly shakes your hand. I met her on her 2008 visit to Ankara and shook her hand. Even that was enough. I saw a historic monument before me.
At that dinner, a journalist who was an expert on Buckingham Palace sat beside me. He explained the Queen to me thus: “If it weren’t for Queen Elizabeth II, Buckingham Palace would have lost its prestige long ago, and would have been wiped away in the eyes of British society. The queen, with her attitude, has kept the tradition running. She has adapted to the times while also maintaining the impression that she is doing so without making any concessions. Don’t be mislead by her attitude now, she has a great sense of humor. She laughs and makes incredible jokes. Her biggest advantage is that she always chooses the best advisors.”
I looked at the petite woman eating her dinner a little bit ahead of me and really envied her quality.
