By Kırmızı Newspaper Editorial Board
1. Since the coup attempt in 2016, Türkiye has been ruled by an irregular regime. With the 2018 referendum, this regime switched to a presidential system and concentrated all powers around the palace. This authoritarian regime, established by Islamist and fascist forces with the support of large sections of big capital, has a fragmented, albeit strong, base. As the economic and political crisis deepens, the chains that bind the blocs together are unraveling. This unraveling does not mean that the regime will automatically be defeated. As the regime decays, its rigidity increases. There is a combination of the regime’s tendency to dissolve and its tendency to increase its violence in order not to lose power. The decisive attitude of the masses will determine the outcome.
2. We know that unless there is a major positive change in class power relations and in the level of consciousness, and organization and political leadership of the working class, a non-revolutionary regime change in Türkiye in the coming period will not bring about major changes in favor of the working class and the oppressed. When we say that there cannot be fundamental changes without the mass mobilization of the labor movement, the poor, the oppressed and the youth, we are of course not concluding that “nothing will change” as a result of the elections. We know the difference between different bourgeois political regimes, even though they are socially based on the same foundation. So we can never say that “both are based on the rule of the bourgeoisie” and therefore “fascism and bourgeois democracy” are the same thing.
Just putting an end to the autocratic palace regime will lead to a number of democratic results. The possibility of prosecuting the criminals of the past period may also come on the agenda with the pressure of the masses. In short, there will be differences between the continuation of the current repressive regime and its end, not on a “historical-social” level, but on a “contemporary-political” level. Therefore, in order to take a step forward, it is imperative to go beyond the determination that “they are all the same,” which will not provide us with any “practical” benefit in the current context. In such concrete situations, we must determine our position not on the basis of generalizations and abstract principles, but from a revolutionary-political point of view based on the concrete situation.
An important point is that if Erdogan wins the elections, he will not take any chances for his position of power to be challenged again. We should not forget the policies of repression and violence after the 1957 elections, when Adnan Menderes said, “May God never let me experience such a night again!” This process continued until Menderes was overthrown by a coup d’état.
3. At present, just because we say that there will be differences between the regimes does not mean that we have hope in the bourgeois opposition. The bourgeois opposition aims to return to a strengthened parliament and to emerge from the crisis in favor of capital and with improved relations with the West. This bloc, like the others, has a capitalist program and pro-imperialist policies. After the election, a new period of struggle will begin between the working masses and the new bourgeois government.
4. In conclusion, we call on the workers and the oppressed sectors not to vote for the reactionary alliance of Erdoğan and Bahçeli[1] in the elections[2]. To overthrow the palace regime, Erdoğan must be defeated at the ballot box!
The masses mobilized to overthrow Erdoğan in the presidential election are rallying around Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu[3]. As Kırmızı Gazete, we will accompany the masses in this process. Without pinning any hope on the bourgeois opposition, we will act together with the masses who voted for Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to stop Erdoğan and his autocratic palace regime. We will be on the streets and at the ballot boxes with our people against any attacks before and after the elections.
In the parliamentary elections, we call on our people to support the candidates of the Labor and Freedom Alliance[4] and socialist worker candidates.
[1] Recep Tayyip Erdogan is leader of AKP, conservative and politcal Islamist party. Bahceli is leader of MHP (Nationalist Movement Party), extreme right. These two party found Republican Alliance.
[2] Presidential and parliamentary elections will be held on May 14.
[3] Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu is the leader of the CHP (Republican People’s Party, central left). He is also the presidential candidate of the bourgeois opposition known as the Nation Alliance.
[4] The alliance of Kurdish Party HDP and some socialist parties.
