Rami Makhlouf’s daily blasts Turkey; Draws MB link
Thursday, May 12th, 2011
Rami Makhlouf’s daily blasts Turkey; Draws MB link
Mideastwired
From the Makhlouf owned daily… translated in today’s Daily briefing from Mideastwire.com. For a trial please email [email protected]
On May 12, the state-controlled Al-Watan daily carried the following opinion piece by Nizar Salloum: “The “Turkish model” presents itself – as it is presented by those promoting it – as being a “secret recipe” for the Islamic world and especially the Arab world which seems to be rejecting the principles of the modern state governed by “secularism” on the legal and cultural levels. But at a time when this recipe-model was one of the reasons behind the cultural and political divide between Turkey and the Arab world states throughout the last eight decades, it is now presented as an element of rapprochement between the two sides, although it appears that the Turkish government is not completely interested in presenting its “secularism” as it truly is, and might reproduce new approaches that are far away from its philosophy in the context of its current dealings with the problems of the (Arab) Islamic world and its countries.
“Ever since the eruption of the events in Syria – over a month ago – the Turkish official performance seemed to be rash and improvised. Indeed, apart from the arrogant “reformatory preaching” of Recep Tayyip Erdogan on more than one platform and European stage, the engineer of “neo-Ottomanism” Ahmet Davutoglu seemed to be unable to come up with solutions for alleged problems in dealing with these incidents! With the exposure of the nature of some parties in the Syrian opposition, and especially the Muslim Brotherhood group whose leader Riad al-Shakfa appeared from Istanbul, but also the call to hold a conference for the Syrian opposition in Istanbul as well, the “Turkish model” appeared to be going through a test, whose outcome might determine its fate… Historically speaking, the founding of the Muslim Brotherhood in 1928 was in one way a compensation for the absence and fall of the Ottoman Empire.
“Consequently, it came in response to Ataturk’s “secularism” since it offered a full religious detail in the face of the secular one… But this is the first time – in public at least – that the Turkish model appears to enjoy a relationship with it, maybe through its adoption of a political state that is completely opposed to it and its history. However, it is not certain whether this is due to Ottoman and pre-Ataturk awakenings, or to cooperation with the American strategy that is currently trying to reproduce Islamic “non-Jihadist” authorities that are “well-behaved” in the face of Israel and in the management of the Arab states system… Still, while Turkey’s current political and economic prosperity is due to its secular history and Davutoglu’s strategic corrections, its handling of the Syrian situation will push its model toward new positions that point toward the beginning of the recanting of its principles…
“If this were to happen, it will need secret recipes that are no longer present in an Islamic world that is far away from the climates of secularism and governed by the exhausting and obstructing MB details. Today, the Syrian events constitute the most important test to the Turkish model, as well as to its ability to remain truthful to itself and its history.”
Comments (5)
demoracynow said:
The following video– which shows extremely peaceful guys and gals in downtown Damascus brutally beaten and manhandled by security forces- this video got me thinking:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7DH4oUpd-U
Would it be possible to instill a degree of sophistication in the security forces agents? Like several mode of violence depending on the offense… For example:
1- Offense: chanting national anthem, pleading to end the siege on Daraa, and/or any other chants of similar sheepishness >> Mode of violence: MILD (smack them around the face and then let them free.
2- Offense: chanting for freedom and to end the siege on Daraa (but more aggressively) >> mode of violence: AVERAGE(arrest them, beat them around in the van, beat them around in the detention center, break a bone or two, make them beg for mercy, make them sign on an undertakings, release them).
3- Offense: chanting “The People Want To Topple The Regime” >> mode of violence: SEVERE (snipers, internationally banned tear gas, indiscriminate shootings, possibility of Ali Abbas kicking you in the face, the possibility of Tanks deploying in and besieging your neighborhood, intimidation and humiliation for life, possibility of you being anally violated..etc..)
I think the above ROE would, at least, make people aware of the damage they’re going to have to deal with if they choose to protest.
Right now it’s only one mode for the security forces: severe arbitrary atavistic degree of violence:
“TLA3!” *leads suspect to van* *smacks* *punches* *kicks*
“ELLI BA3DO!” *leads suspect to van* *smacks* *punches* *kicks*
“YL23AN RA*AK!” *leads suspect to van* *smacks* *punches* *kicks*
“Ke** immak!” *leads suspect to van* *smacks* *punches* *kicks*
Hope the above suggestion will be considered in the next package of reforms…
May 13th, 2011, 2:32 am
Usama said:
Where is the brutal beating? Notice how the picture is not a continuous one? Why do the police approach the woman standing on the side and not the people walking down the street, supposedly protesting against the regime? Why did they look in her bag? Why did they take those 2 women into the shoe store? Maybe shoplifting? They certainly didn’t look like they were protesting. Who were those people thrown into the microbus? Do you know if they were “peaceful protesters”? What if they were something else? Why did they pick those certain guys out of the bigger crowd? You want us to believe it was all arbitrary? I have done my best to see both sides of the story, and I have seen countless fake videos with obvious audio editing, acting, fake blood, and even flying coffins on the side of the so-called opposition, that even state TV has become more believable. Just because state TV supposedly lies, it does not mean it’s ok for the other side to lie. If the other side had a real case, with real popular support, they would not need to create fakes.
May 15th, 2011, 3:07 pm
George Krikorian said:
In politics, every country and/or nation has its own agenda, including the Syrians. Nothing is free. Everything has a price. The Turks have their own interests. 600+ years of Ottoman Empire make them think that they do have a say in the region up till now, especially in one of their closest little vassal states like Syria. Their pride of the Ottoman past make them forget that they were dubbed as “the sick man of Europe” by the decline of their empire. They forget that much before them, the Byzantine Empire was as huge. In order for them to have some more credibility in their foreign policy, they should stop denying what their predecessors committed to a very large fraction of their own society, i.e. the Armenians. That would give them a boost in the future, in all their dealings on the international arena, once they acknowledge officially that the Armenian Genocide did really happen.
May 20th, 2011, 7:09 am
qunfuz said:
George – you remind me a great deal of a zionist who responds to criticism of his apartheid state by talking about sudan, or tibet, or burma, or the planet mars.
Erdogan is taking a good line which is goiing down very well in syria. he’s a statesman, unlike the incompetent thug in damascus.
May 20th, 2011, 8:32 am
Giles R DeMourot said:
We hear a lot about Maher Al-Assad and cousins Munzer and Fawwaz Assad,and of course cousin Rami Makhlouf, but what of Bushra Al-Assad and her husband Asef Shawqat? They lost out to Maher quite some time ago, but does anyone know what they are up to at his moment?
July 23rd, 2011, 3:56 am