Speaking at the inauguration of the Ibn Haldun University Complex on October 19, 2020, President Erdoğan said: “The western world has been inspired by our roots in many fields, from medicine to sociology. We, on the contrary, have completely forgotten or excluded our own roots and having considered its derivatives as a basis, tried to find a path and a direction for ourselves for two centuries. In other words, we are struggling in an intellectual crisis. However, it is intellectual independence that lies at the essence of both the political and economic independence.”
Comment:
When President Erdoğan made the speech in the news, the French had already started their arrogant attacks on the Prophet ﷺ and the values of Islam. It was decided to project the despicable cartoons of Charlie Hebdo onto the government buildings in France. On October 26, 2020, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan responded to these insolences in the Opening Ceremony of Mawlid Al-Nabi Week at the Bestepe National Congress and Culture Center and said: “Here I call out to my people; just as some in France say, “Don’t buy Turkish brand goods”, don’t ever compliment French brands, don’t buy them.” President Erdoğan also spoke in Anıtkabir, Ankara on the occasion of the October 29 ceremonies and said: “August Atatürk, we stand once again in your presence on this special day during which we are having the joy of observing the 97th anniversary of our Republic… We make every effort to move our Republic, entrusted to us by you, forward and to achieve its goals and dreams.”
Now, let us explain the inconsistencies between these three statements one by one, so that everyone sees the hypocrisy of the rulers of the Islamic regions and the insincerity of President Erdogan will be known and seen.
France, the cradle of the infidel West and secularism, grounds all these insults, disgustingness and insolences towards Islam, the Prophet ﷺ and the values of Islam on the freedom that secularism and democracy offer them. That is, they say that democracy gives them the right to attack Islam, the Quran and the Prophet ﷺ, the democratic freedom requires it and they defend it. Here it is, President Erdoğan, as a leader of the AK Party, which is in the power for 18 years in the Republic of Turkey, the state that has adopted secularism and democracy for 100 years, praises the democratic and secular values whenever he finds an opportunity, and also says “we are struggling in an intellectual crisis.” After Charlie Hebdo publishes the despicable cartoons of Erdoğan, too, he says, “Who I am, I do not need to say anything about these dishonorable people who insult my beloved Prophet, the beloved of the beloved, and also, he prevents and takes the Muslims into custody who marches towards the French embassy to put them in their place. He calls for boycott of French goods and also, he allows french companies to operate in Turkey. France recalls ambassador from Turkey, but Turkey says “it is out of the question for our ambassador to come back.”
Erdoğan, who says “we are struggling in an intellectual crisis” is not sincere, if he was, he would have looked for a light to get out of that crisis. On the contrary, after all these, on October 29, he shows respect in front of the idols which the Prophet Muhammad Mustafa ﷺ destroyed one by one in Mecca and he again praises democracy, secularism and the republic. You will both bless secularism and democracy and want to get out of intellectual crisis. What a contrast… If you were really sincere, then you would see the protests of the Muslims against France in many parts of the world, in Islamic regions and even in the Western countries and lead them. What did you do? You immediately get softened and thanked the France’s wishes of getting well after the Izmir earthquake in the face of Macron’s two words. All these show that your love for the Prophet ﷺ and complain about intellectual crisis in not truthful. You exploit all of these to keep your seat and win the elections. However, sooner or later, the Muslims and the Ummah will see your real face. Just as the masks of Cemal Abdunnasır and Enver Sedat, your masks will also fall off.
Mahmut KAR
Head of the Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir in Wilayah Turkey