Whither Turkey?

Turkey has long been held up by the west as an example of a moderate, secularized Muslim nation. Kemal Ataturk founded a secular republic in the aftermath of the fall of the Ottoman empire after World War I, and aggressively sought to limit the role of Islam in governmental affairs to spur the development of the nation.

A few years ago, an Islamic party, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) under the leadership of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, came to power. The hope in Washington has been that the AKP could be an example to the Muslim world that freedom could co-exist during the rule of a Muslim-oriented political party. Moreover, the United States has sought to bring Turkey into the European Union to cement its ties to the West.

Unfortunately, a recent column in the Wall Street Journal raises concerns that such hopes could be trampled. Erdogan has used the power of government to reduce the freeedom of the press. A free press is critical to exposing and limiting abuses by any government, and most authoritarian regimes limit the press to prevent critical coverage of the government.

Let's hope the Obama administration is taking notice. Obama's attempts to reach out to the Islamic world have been long on criticism of America's actions and short on substantive measures to work for positive change in Islamic nations. Turkey is too important to ignore or fail to hold to high standards.