TURKEY: New Leader & more – 30th Apr 2024

Merhaba from BA! This is the Rorshok Turkey Update from the 30th of April twenty twenty-four A quick summary of what's going down in Turkey.

On Saturday the 27th, the Good Party, a nationalistic opposition party, held its 5th Extraordinary Congress following the resignation of the now-former leader, Meral Akşener. In a third-round vote, the party elected Müsavat Dervişoğlu, the former parliamentary group deputy chair, as the new leader, with 611 votes against Koray Aydın's 548.

Despite securing forty-three parliamentary seats in the twenty twenty-three general elections, the party's local election performance dropped to below 4%. Akşener, in her farewell speech, defended her leadership and vowed to keep supporting the party. The emotional moment saw tears from some party members. Dervişoğlu, after his election, pledged unity and a new direction for the party. Özgür Özel, the head of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, and President Erdoğan congratulated Dervişoğlu.

In other news, the agricultural directorate in the province of Hatay identified rabies-infected stray animals in multiple neighborhoods, prompting a quarantine to curb the disease. The directorate is currently investigating other neighborhoods, focusing on areas with high stray populations. The head of the Medical Chamber confirmed one case in the Döver district, but hasn’t revealed how many there were across the province. She stressed the urgency of the situation, emphasizing the need to halt animal movement to contain the outbreak. Neighborhood administrations await details of the quarantine, expected within this week.

The disease is mostly eradicated across the country but the recent surge in rabies cases alarms the Medical Association, which is debating whether the government has the means to battle a potential epidemic if the increase continues. Moreover, rabies adds to the challenges in Hatay, which is still recovering from devastating earthquakes in twenty twenty-three, with many residents still in temporary shelters lacking basic amenities.

Moving on, Oktay Saral, an adviser to President Erdoğan, caused controversy by sharing on social media a photoshopped image of Oya Tekin, the CHP mayor of Adana’s Seyhan district, taken during her meeting with the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy, or DEM Party at the party’s building. The edited photo depicted Tekin in front of a wall that had a picture of Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned PKK leader.

Tekin responded by sharing the original photo, clarifying that Öcalan’s picture wasn’t on the wall, and condemned Saral's actions.

Even though Saral deleted the post, he accused Tekin of associating with terrorists. The government often links the DEM Party with the PKK, despite no legal connection between them.

To check out the pictures, follow the link in the show notes!

In a dramatic scene, İbrahim Efe, a Justice and Development Party or AKP member of the İzmit Municipal Council, was captured on video throwing himself to the ground, rolling, and shouting for police assistance near Fatma Kaplan Hürriyet, İzmit’s Mayor. Hürriyet criticized Efe's actions, accusing him of staging an attack.

The incident occurred during tensions between the CHP-controlled İzmit Municipality and the AKP-led Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality. It stemmed from disagreements over road construction to the Kocaeli City Hospital. Allegedly, AKP members obstructed the construction and used violence against İzmit Municipality workers.

The confrontation reflects broader tensions following the İzmit Municipality’s cancellation of agreements with AKP-affiliated organizations, including the Turkish Youth Foundation and the Ensar Foundation. The municipality, formerly run by the AKP, was funding these organizations with taxpayers' money.

Speaking of Kocaeli… The CHP mayor of the Derince district said that when the AKP led the municipality, it appointed Onur Polat, a former advisor to an AKP member of parliament, as a director. He added that even though he was still employed at the municipality and receiving a salary, he hadn't visited the municipality for three years. Reportedly, none of the 530 municipal employees know him. The municipality will seek legal action against him, and if the investigation confirms the allegations, the municipality will request Polat to pay back three years' worth of salary.

On Sunday the 28th, the Culture and Tourism Ministry launched an inquiry into Antalya's Limak Lara Hotel after reports of a Romanian guest being charged an additional “nationality fee" of 120 Euros. The ministry demanded an official explanation from the hotel and appointed an auditor for further investigation. Following public outrage on social media, the hotel apologized and issued a statement saying that their terminology was misleading. It said that the guests, Romanian nationals, misrepresented their nationality as Turkish during booking. However, upon revealing their passports at check-in, the hotel had to update their reservation, prompting the additional charge.

On Monday the 22nd, Elif Aslı Yıldız Tunaoğlu, the CEO of the chocolate brand Patiswiss, resigned after her controversial response to a customer complaint went viral. The customer complained on LinkedIn about a moldy product, prompting Yıldız to blame the issue on the customer's home humidity and threatened the poster saying she was up against her and the Migros, one of the largest supermarket chains in the country. Her remarks caused backlash, leading to the removal of Patiswiss products from major supermarkets, including Migros. Yıldız later apologized for her response, acknowledging it was inappropriate and resigning from her position as CEO. She expressed regret for upsetting the customer.

forty thousand liras, around: 1200

Still on customer service… In Ankara, two hotel owners lashed out at customers who posted negative online reviews. The hotel owners' offensive remarks sparked outrage on social media, leading to severe criticism. The Black House hotel in Bahçelievler reportedly verbally abused customers who left unfavorable comments, using inappropriate language. Similarly, the Elegance Hotel insulted its customers. The Black House Hotel later said their social media accounts were hacked, denying responsibility for the comments.

In some political news…Word’s going around that Murat Kurum, who competed against Ekrem İmamoğlu for Istanbul Municipality Mayor in the local elections this year, might replace Mehmet Özhaseki, the Environment and Urbanization Minister. According to Gazete Pencere, a news outlet, there's speculation within AKP circles regarding Kurum's future. Some suggest that Kurum could step in for Özhaseki due to the minister’s health issues. However, many argued against such a move, viewing it as a rewarding failure, given Kurum's unsuccessful bid for mayorship.

Moving on to the economy… On Thursday the 25th, the Central Bank announced that it was keeping its policy rate at 50% following the AKP's first-ever electoral defeat. The bank reported high inflation and stated that it would monitor it closely and maintain a tight monetary policy until inflation decreases significantly. Since June last year, they have been steadily increasing interest rates from eight percent to 50%. Despite political changes, officials remain committed to this approach.

On Monday the 29th, Getir, a Turkey-based delivery firm, announced its decision to pull out from the European and U.S. markets to redirect its focus to its primary domestic market. This was called into question as it’s a significant shift following years of expansion and success. Initially thriving during the COVID-19 pandemic, Getir reached a net worth of twelve billion US Dollars. It rapidly expanded its operations across Western Europe, as well as in New York and Chicago. However, with the pandemic ending, and people resuming in-person shopping, profit margins dropped, posing challenges in sustaining investments in these markets.

And to close this edition, universities like Boğaziçi, Middle East Technical, and Istanbul Technical have expressed sadness and concern about reports of police brutality on U.S. campuses during pro-Palestinian demonstrations. These institutions have faced similar scrutiny for their handling of protests in the past.

And that’s it for this week! Thanks for joining us!

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