Ibrahim A. Anli

Middle East dictators came to power after monarchs or colonial administrations. The social-political landscape was devoid of any mechanism to stop them. To the contrary, it provided a welcoming atmosphere for one man rule. Whereas in Turkey, Erdogan took charge of a functioning democracy -despite all its flaws- when he was elected in 2002. Turkey was already an EU candidate; with a diverse media, dynamic society and thriving business sector. How in the earth was that possible? The Ottoman legacy Turkish people have lost an empire and the trauma runs very deep.  The humiliating feeling of defeat dominates the average Turkish mindset. Erdogan’s neo-Ottoman, revivalist discourse aims exactly at this sense of loss and the longing for regaining the glory of the imperial Golden Age. In the cases of Germany and Japan, the shock of the defeat in a World war and losing imperial domain was rehabilitated through a shared effort by the winners abroad and a moderate leadership at home.