This Sunday, Georgetown University is scheduled to host a speech by Turkish Primier Recep Tayyip Erdogan. There are several reasons to reconsider giving Erdogan a platform. I highly doubt that these reasons will give anyone at The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding pause. One should not expect moral excellence from a center named for a man who reportedly donated $27 million to the families of suicide bombers. Other people, however, might want to ask Georgetown to reconsider.
One reason is simply that Erdogan is no democrat and certainly should not be giving a lecture on "Turkey's Vision for Global Peace and Justice." A recent policy brief by the Center for Security Policy notes a number of disturbing developments occuring under Erdogan's watch, described as "a classic creeping totalitarian take-over." As the brief states regarding Turkey's bid to join the E.U.:
Prime Minister Erdogan is systematically turning his country from a Muslim secular democracy into an Islamofascist state governed by an ideology anathema to European values and freedomsErdogan's Justice and Development Party is an Islamist party, and was reportedly founded by members of the now-defunct Welfare party, which was banned by Turkey's high court, after a case where "Turkey 's chief prosecutor argued that Welfare was trying to promote Islamic fundamentalism." Erdogan is no moderate Islamist either: he served four months in prison in 1998 "for inciting religious hatred." His crime? Publicly reciting a poem including the following lines:
The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers...A man like that, who to the best of my knowledge has not disavowed such words, is not the man to speak on "peace and justice."
The organizer of the speech should give pause as well. The invitation lists an RSVP address at aicassociates.com - or Anwar Ibrahim Associates. Former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister (and IIIT founder) Anwar Ibrahim likely feels an affinity for Erdogan, as both are Islamists in moderate clothing. I have written elsewhere on Ibrahim's apparent links to terrorism, extremism and fraud.
There is another reason to be deny Erdogan a platform. He apparently has a disturbingly close relationship with Yasin al-Qadi, designated an SDGT by the U.S. government. U.S. officials believe that Qadi funnelled millions of dollars to al Qaeda through the Muwafaq foundation. While closeness to SDGTs did not prevent individuals such as Mustafa Khalfi from winning a Fulbright scholarship and working for Congressman Jim McDermott, the case of Erdogan's closeness to Qadi should arouse greater suspicions. As Jean-Charles Brisard reported previously on this site, Qadi apparently received funds from a close advisor to Erdogan. Turkey's prime minister also apparently recently voiced support for an adminstrative order unfreezing Qadi's assets in Turkey. How does Erdogan justify this support of Yasin al-Qadi? He states: "I know Mr. Yasin, and I believe in him as I believe in myself." Indeed.
Erdogan's own words lend support for not inviting him to speak.
election is coming then everybody will say "bye bye don't try to come again" to Mr Erdogan. Turkey will remain in a secular democracy forever. (a very very late comment :) )
Posted by: bora | February 22, 2007 at 22:29