Turkish Tyranny Raises Existential Question
The protesters tried everything to stop the takeover. They deployed hoses, projectiles and makeshift barricades, but it was no use.
Turkish police raided the headquarters of the Republican People’s Party on May 26 to subdue supporters of opposition figure Özgür Özel. Özel was the main rival to longtime President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who came to power in 2003. Five days before the raid, a Turkish court deemed Özel’s election illegitimate and stripped him of his duties. This move was clearly done to solidify Erdoğan’s authoritarian rule over the nation, but Özel’s movement refused to comply. After he was forcefully ousted, Özel announced to his supporters that their movement would be confined to “the streets or in the squares, marching towards power.”
Erdoğan rose to power over 23 years ago, and he doesn’t seem willing to leave any time soon. Yet the world is shrugging at his authoritarianism.
Erdoğan’s Legacy
Turkey—a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is strongly aligned with the European Union, hosts American nuclear weapons, and is arguably a major Western power—has an authoritarian ruler. This is not the first time Erdoğan has used excessive force to crush his opposition.
In 2013, the Gezi Park protests showing disapproval for Erdoğan’s rule were squelched with water cannons, tear gas and mass imprisonment. In 2016, Erdoğan crushed a major military coup d’état. Our reporting following that event read:
In the past week, Erdoğan has arrested 6,319 military personnel and 1,481 judges and prosecutors as well as suspended 21,738 workers for the Ministry of Education and 8,777 at the Interior Ministry. He has also revoked the licenses of 21,000 private educational institutions and forced 1,577 university department heads to resign.
In addition to prosecuting foes, Erdoğan has increased governmental control over the courts and muffled independent media sources. All attempts to end his power have failed.
Yesterday’s News
Erdoğan’s authoritarian actions are a big deal. Since its founding, nato has been a global champion of democracy. Its founding treaty commits each member to defending democratic values.
However, when one of nato’s main and arguably most important participants, due to its military might and proximity to Russia, openly displays authoritarian rule, very few outside Turkey seem to care. Most either don’t know what’s happening in Turkey or have moved on to other things.
Former German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, a man the Trumpet watches closely, noted how insane this is in a May 28 post. He said (emphasis added):
It is striking how quickly the coverage is once again being overshadowed by other flashpoints. Given the significance of these events, however, which extends far beyond Turkey, a sober assessment seems warranted. And we ask whether there is still cause for optimism.
In other words, is there really any hope in a society that’s grown so bad that an authoritarian nato leader crushing political opposition with force isn’t one of the biggest stories out there?
Hope
In his post, Guttenberg gave great insight into the world we live in: There is no hope in today’s society! Authoritarianism, violence, disease, natural disasters, incapable leadership, threat of nuclear war and a plethora of other evils are on the rise. Every nation on Earth faces intensifying evil, and it seems there’s no end in sight.
However, as longtime readers of the Trumpet will recognize, there is great hope in each of these events because they were all prophesied in your Bible as precursors to the return of Jesus Christ! When we see the world’s evils, we can know that God has everything under control and that He will put an end to these tragedies!
How do we know this? The Apostle Peter answered that question in 2 Peter 1:19:
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.
Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry has proved that this verse refers to the return of Jesus Christ! He will return to “destroy them which destroy the earth” (Revelation 11:15, 18). Because of this vision, each one of us can have real hope even when surrounded by the worst of evils (Lamentations 3:19-24).
There is no hope in today’s world. But because of the world Jesus Christ will soon establish, we can all keep our heads high!
To better learn how to maintain real, living hope in the midst of perilous darkness, read Mr. Flurry’s free booklet The Epistles of Peter—A Living Hope.