DEMOCRACY GETS TURKEY'S VOTE

The Observer, Sunday paper of the Guardian, published the letter of Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis, titled “Democracy gets Turkey's vote”.

In the letter, Bagis wrote the following:

Turkey has no aspirations to be a "model" for the Middle East ("There is no peace and there is no plan. Syria rebels are past talking to the enemy", News, last week). But we are ready to share any experience and provide any support if asked. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, clearly outlined this when he said Turkey was ready to do its fair share to promote democratisation in the Middle East.

If Turkey is seen as proof that Muslim nations can advance through democracy, let it be. Meanwhile, some try to muddle minds through another "Turkish model" - namely, a bizarre concoction of a military government that controls civilians; an anti-democratic system, where elected governments are curbed or sidelined. It is true that a sham called "custodian democracy" ruled Turkey in the past few decades but this tragedy ended with the election victory of the AK party in November 2002.

We cannot and will not condone any political system that falls short of addressing the full democratic aspirations of its people, whether it's in Egypt or Syria.