BDP represents Kurdish Turks
Güven Sak, PhD
19 January 2013
In Diyarbakır, thousands peacefully participated in the funeral of three Kurdish activists killed in Paris. It was a political show of strength for the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP). So much depends on the political capability of the BDP this time. Political problems need to be solved by political means. Kurdish Turks now have that opportunity in the BDP for the first time. Let me explain.
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70 percent of children cannot surpass their parents
Güven Sak, PhD
18 January 2013
In Turkey, the level of education has not changed from one generation to the next as 91 percent of families have educations of elementary school level or below. In Turkey there is a common belief that parents do all they can to ensure that their children are better educated than they are. Another common myth is that the major reason for the rural to urban migration in Turkey is to provide better education opportunities for children. I still hear this argument here and there. But the statistics do not validate this: 60 percent of the children in Turkey have the same educational attainment level as their parents. They are unable take a step further. Nazım Hikmet’s poem, that says “I am ahead of my father, before my unborn child,” does not apply. Turkey increasingly has been reproducing its s
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What does an engineer do in Turkey?
Güven Sak, PhD
15 January 2013
The problem is about the system. Engineers in Turkey do not practice engineering because of deindustrialization. I grew up watching the Star Trek series. The USS Enterprise was full of engineers. They rushed into the engine room as Klingon attacks deactivated power plants one after another. They stepped up if communication failed. They were at the center of the story. Engineering was a prestigious profession in the 1960s. It is not so in today’s Turkey, however.
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The ethnic conflict in Cyprus is turning into a greater game
Güven Sak, PhD
12 January 2013
Cyprus was already a rather complex problem. The discovery of natural gas reserves around the island has made it even harder to disentangle. There are two communities on the island: the Greek and Turkish Cypriots, both claiming to have their own sovereign states. The Greek Cypriot state is recognized broadly by the international community, while only Turkey recognizes the Turkish Cypriots. But whatever your politics on the issue, the reality on the ground is clear: the island is divided between two distinct communities. Mr. Demetris Christofias, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, issued a statement as the outgoing head of the European Union Presidency in Nicosia on the occasion of the New Year. Have you read his end-of-term speech? I highly recommend it. That was a true Cypri
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Turkey does not consume meat and milk
Güven Sak, PhD
11 January 2013
In Turkey, the kilogram price of milk in 2010 was €0.89. Compared to the EU average, milk prices are 30 percent higher and milk consumption is 40 percent lower. Statistics show that people in Turkey do not eat meat or drink milk. Why is meat and milk consumption low? The answer is out there: meat and milk are expensive. Let me stress it once again: meat and milk prices are higher in Turkey than in relatively wealthier countries. Not only that, people in Turkey do not have enough money to spare for meat and milk. We have a case of double jeopardy here. And the underlying reason is that the design of the agricultural and livestock policy is not consumer-oriented. Let me summarize the basics for you.
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Build your own satellite at home
Güven Sak, PhD
08 January 2013
It is good that Turkey has launched a satellite for military purposes, designed the satellite domestically and started envisioning. “Do-it-yourself” has always been a familiar concept in Turkey, owing to our cook-for-yourself restaurant tradition. Then, we met with IKEA’s build-it-yourself products recently. In the latter case the design was given. But today the world has been moving into the do-your-own-satellite period. That’s new. I am not talking about countries manufacturing satellites like Turkey’s Göktürk-2, by the way. I am talking about a brand new era in which individuals make their own satellites at home at the cost of buying a car. I believe that Turkey is not prepared for this new episode. Let me first explain what I understand about this new era.
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Why is land so important for Turks?
Güven Sak, PhD
05 January 2013
We have not had major structural reforms in the last 10 years. This is the basis of our fascination with land ownership I have been thinking about the Turkish fascination with land lately. Real estate makes our world go around, but I increasingly find it odd and outdated. Our hyperactive real estate drive is harmful for industrial development and registered activities. However, it is still with us. Show us a piece of land and immediately we start making calculations. The first thing we typically do is to build a fence around it.
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Is the construction frenzy necessarily bad for industry?
Güven Sak, PhD
04 January 2013
If Turkey abides by the same 1930s’ mentality in urban transformation policy, it cannot overcome the middle income trap. No, it is not. For a while now, I have been trying to explain how the ongoing “construction frenzy” could put Turkey in trouble. I have argued that the loose taxation of the rent earned on land has both escalated the informal economy and prevented a possible leap to advanced industrialization. Also, I have argued it is bad for savings rates. I have complained frequently about the second era of rentier economy. Yet, the construction rush per se is not necessarily bad. I believe that Turkish industry can make the best use of the urban transformation process. The industrial sector is in need of smart incentive mechanisms. The problem is we do not know how to design them. If
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Let 2013 be the year of a new constitution
Güven Sak, PhD
01 January 2013
I am of the view that we should count on the judgment of the people. 2013 must be the year of a new constitution. The politicians must keep their promise. Having entered the new year, it is a tradition to make a wish. It is the time to decide what aspects of our lives we want to change. I wish that 2013 will be the year of a new constitution for Turkey. I wish that Turkey proves to the world that it can resolve all of its issues via parliamentary negotiations. The achievements of 2012 imply that the new constitution is doable. Politics is the art of finding a middle way, of whining. The purpose of negotiating is to find the middle way. The year 2013 should be the year of a new constitution for Turkey.
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Egypt’s referendum that never was
Güven Sak, PhD
29 December 2012
Egypt is still divided and the voter participation rate revealed by the ballot box was only in the thirties. Both Turkey and Egypt have set up constitutional commissions these past couple of years. The one in Egypt was established in March 2012 while Turkey’s became operational around October 2011. Last week, Egypt’s concluded its operation with a referendum that never materialized. We in Turkey are still waiting for the results of the commission. Why do I called the one in Egypt a referendum that never was? And why I am still quite optimistic about the one in Turkey? Here are a few comparisons between the two constitutional processes.
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