By ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΑ (GREEK) TÜRKÇE (TURKISH)
Ersin Tatar, who was the guest of Çiğdem Aydın on Gündem Kıbrıs Web TV this morning, in response to a question as to what his position would be should there be a change in the Cyprus Policy along with a change of leadership following the May elections in Türkiye, replied, “I was born like this, I will die like this, I won’t zig-zag. (If policy changes) Ersin Tatar will step down as president and will return to living his life. I will go sit at Kanal T [Translator’s note: TV channel owned by the Tatar family] and live out the rest of my days in honour. It would not be fitting of me to walk a different path, I would never do that.”
“However, I don’t think that Turkey’s policy will change from now,” he continued.
Firstly, these statements are significant in themselves, important news, in the sense that a ‘President’ in active duty voices the option of resignation on any issue. On the other hand, we need to evaluate the content of these statements from several different aspects.
It’s no special occasion, why has Ersin Tatar brought up the issue of “resignation” when he could have so easily dismissed the question he was asked?
Of course, this is not the only question that could be asked.
For example, what will Ersin Tatar do if there is no change of guard after the May 14 elections but the same leadership changes its policy on Cyprus? Will he still resign?
Is Ersin Tatar trying to give out a message with these comments. Does he mean “I won’t be playing [this game]”?
The answers to these questions may currently not be clear. But let’s stop asking [hypothetical] questions and focus directly on what Tatar’s comments really mean.
First of all, as Ersin Tatar put it, the Cyprus problem is a ‘national cause’ for Turkish politics. Those in power change, seasons change but this policy does not. However, we have to place 2002 as a milestone here because the AKP which came to power that year had clearly become the first party [in Turkish political history] to act outside the national line. We lived and saw this both during the Annan Plan process and in Crans Montana.
We all remember how the multi-party alliance headed by the CHP [Republican People’s Party] and the Good Party, which Ersin Tatar refers to when speaking of a “change in leadership”, criticized the policy of AKP [Justice and Development Party] that focused on a solution, with propaganda that they were “selling off Cyprus.”
It is necessary under these circumstances to remember once again what the CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and the leader of the Good Party Meral Akşener’s position is on the ‘national cause’. Because Kılıçdaroğlu brags about how, “We carved our nationalism on the Five Finger [Pentadaktlyos] Mountains in 1974, the [Cyprus] problem was solved in 74”, not expressing any form of support to a federal settlement. The expression “babyland” he used in his latest visit which drew strong reactions, indicates that this philosophy will not change with the elections. Akşener who is even more of a hardliner also supports the view, “the Cyprus problem ended in 1974.” If I were to go on, the strong expressions used by Meral hanım [lady], against pro-federal solution candidate Mustafa Akıncı during the 2020 presidential elections after having a “grey wolf” fit similar to the one Kılıçdaroğlu referred to recently, are still fresh in everyone’s memory. [Translator’s note: Reference is made to Kılıçdaroğlu’s remarks who accused Akşener of walking out of the 6-party alliance after giving in to her political emotions]. Naturally, those expressions are still very valid for 49 per cent of the people who supported Akıncı in that election.
Therefore, should there be a change in leadership in Turkey on May 14, this change would be far from anything that would frighten Tatar because Cyprus is a ‘national cause’ to the very end for the potential new leadership and I believe that this position will continue on the same axis. So Ersin bey should not be too worried, all he would need to do would be to stop going to Friday prayers, put on his Atatürkist suit and continue on his way.
Well then, we need to circle back to the beginning and ask another question; Is Ersin Tatar afraid that the current leadership might change its policy on the Cyprus problem?
Because as he himself knows quite well, Turkey which made a hard turn on the Cyprus issue in 2017 following Crans Montana, parting ways with Mustafa Akıncı, fearlessly interfered in the 2020 elections to remove him [from office].
So let’s assume that the AKP government wins the elections on May 14 but then changes its policy on Cyprus by taking a number of steps, moving closer to the EU, is Tatar afraid he might be forced to resign or ‘be removed’ after falling foul of Turkey?
Because, Turkey cannot tolerate any position other than its own or that of the Turkish Cypriot leadership on the Cyprus problem which stands at the centre of the Eastern Mediterranean issue and of course Turkish-Greek, Turkish-EU relations. First and foremost, whether we like it or not, this has to do with real politics, as it is a situation that will create complications and go against Turkey’s high interests.
At this point, should Tatar’s motherland – opt for a change in its policy on the Cyprus problem leaving him hanging, only history will decide whether he will be judged as honourable or dishonourable, if he accepts the realities, and like his [predecessor] Akıncı, says “I’m stepping down” without putting up a fight.
Last but not least, I don’t have any personal hostility towards him, but I’m radically opposed to his endless rhetoric which brands people like me who desire a federal solution as “pro-Greek Cypriot traitors”, to his solution proposals which are far from the realities and to his politics based on a mentality that will entrap the Turkish Cypriot community.
Under these circumstances, looking at these statements, what I would like to say, with an expression used daily by Cypriot folk, is “If he were to resign today, tomorrow would be day two”.
I hope the regime in Turkey moves away from its policy of Taksim [Partition] now called a “two-state solution” which throughout history has proven to afflict great harm on the Turkish Cypriot people, and goes back to the policy of a finding a solution.
And then, (if we are to take Ersin bey’s words into consideration) Kanal T will simply have a new director…
Source: IF HE WERE TO RESIGN TODAY, TOMORROW WOULD BE DAY TWO…
