Ravza Kavakçı Kan, Turkish MP: “Turkey will be a regional power”

Member of Parliament of Turkey, Ravza Kavakçı Kan was among the guests of the Women Forum 2016 held in Mauritius from 20 to 21 June 2016. In an interview with News On Sunday, the MP gives us a glimpse of the inner workings of the Turkish power structure and its President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Lessons which come in handy as Mauritius gears up to become a high-income economy and a regional hub of all sorts. The MP argues that Mauritius and Turkey can further develop linkages in various fields. In what fields can ties between Mauritius and Turkey be strengthened? One of the main fields is obviously tourism. Mauritius has a lot to offer and so does Turkey. With Turkish Airlines, more people can enjoy both countries. We need to market our mutual friendship. Besides, we have cultural similarities too. Turkey seems to be fighting an endless battle to join the EU. Why this resistance from some European countries? We have a love-hate relationship with the EU. It will prevail. However, as President Erdogan said, we will still promote harmonisation. Joining the EU is not solely a political decision, but implies security, environment and air quality aspects as well. Our relations won’t stop there. One of the main issues on the agenda is visa-free access. The EU is quite reluctant and that is a hot issue. President Erdogan is expanding Turkey’s sphere of influence to Eastern European, African and other countries. What is his policy? Under the leadership of President Erdogan, Turkey has changed. First, he took up the democratisation process through harmonisation with EU exigencies. Since 1953, Turkey has been working towards EU membership. It was only in 2005, after reforms were implemented that Turkey became an official candidate. So, the economy got better. Wherever there is political stability, the economy gets even better. The political elite, who wanted to keep an upper hand on the country, had to adapt. Turkey gradually became a country where no one could anymore envisage a military coup. He [Erdogan] was different and did not give in to the army. Is President Erdogan a dictator as he is often portrayed? He is not a dictator! For him, it is not about power but it is about serving people better. I have travelled with him and I am yet to meet someone who works like him. He listens to everybody. He loves his country and wants to serve the Turkish people. How do you see Turkey evolving in the future? We are no more the country we used to be 15 years back. Turkey used to be weak. Now, we have stronger NGOs, stronger government and economy. Even people who do not know Turkey support us. Our fate cannot rest solely upon the whims of countries forming part of the G-7 group. We were the first to stand by the Syrian population. I see Turkey as an upcoming regional power and a big humanitarian player. We will witness a country that will sway current geopolitics. Is the Syrian refugee problem a “human timebomb” for Turkey? It is not! We host over three millions refugees. Around 2,000 refugees are living in camps while others are in cities. For example, in the cities, there are more refugees than the initial population. The solution to the refugee crisis is fairly simple: stability in Syria. Turkey was the first to call for severing diplomatic relations with the Syrian regime. If the whole world would not have looked away, then we would not have had Daesh [Islamic State]. Do you fear that foreigners perceive Turkey as an insecure destination? Unfortunately, we have had some major terrorist attacks during which foreigners and Turks lost their lives. For decades, Turkey has been dealing with terrorism. We are doing our best to enforce security. After the September 11 attacks, we decided that we would not allow terrorism to interfere in our lives. There have been horrible attacks in Paris, in Brazil and other parts of the world but that does not mean people are not going there anymore. Our government is doing its best to ramp-up security measures, such as more check points. Would you relate most of those terrorist activities to the Kurdish people? It is a difficult question! I believe the Kurdish problem has been resolved. There are other terrorism issues. Within our political party, we have around 80 Kurds. Nowadays, Kurds are free to converse in their own mother tongue and there is even a Kurdish TV channel. It buggers me what the PKK group is fighting for. They might be seeking a separate State. Terror groups argue that Turkey has not changed. We have different lifestyles but we are struggling to make our country better. Do all these attacks impact the tourism sector? There are certain impacts but it is going to change the state of affairs. Terrorism is not an economic issue. For instance, Turkish Airlines forms part of our policies and we serve 49 African destinations. We are opening up to other countries in order to increase linkages. Some air routes are not fully profitable at the moment but we are working on them. Mauritius is one such place where we want to strengthen bilateral relations in trade and exports as well. What about the future of the Turkish economy? It is improving. In 1999, there was a bit of tension in the political sphere. In those days, the Turkish lira depreciated, the stock market went crazy and the economy grounded to a halt. Currently, despite all the challenges posed by terrorist attacks and refugees, our economy is still growing. If you take the pulse in shops, you will see some people complaining. However, in shopping malls, people are always buying things. For now, Turkey is a sound place to invest. Right now, we are building one of the biggest airports in Europe. This will change everything. Our construction sector is also performing well. We are also building a third bridge. Our economy is driven by various sectors.

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Ravza Kavakçı Kan is Turkish politician who was elected as a Justice and Development Party deputy for Istanbul on June 7, 2015. She is a member of Central Decision Execution Committee of Justice and Development Party and also member of executive board at Üsküdar University Postcolonial Studies Research Centre. She has a doctorate from Howard University, USA.