| FROM CHIEF | Murat SARAYLI |
| Chairman of the Board of TUGIAD/Confedereration of Young European Businessmen (YES) |
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DEMOCRACY AND THE SUPREMACY OF LAW |
We should however think that this goal for Turkey is limited for medium term and be able to make necessary preparations by foreseeing as a country the goal “Turkey in 2050”. Because, it is anticipated that our population which is expected to reach 90 millions in 2025 would arrive to its peak point in 2040 with 98 millions and then the population growth would stop and a population fall would follow. This demographic anticipation itself shows us that Turkey should plan its future for much longer terms.
As a matter of fact, we see that almost all the countries having a potential to become a developed country at the beginning of 1970’s have realized their potentials. From that point of view, the fact that Turkey which had the same potential at that time hasn’t been able to join developed countries confirms once more that Turkey still has an available potential for the coming period.
It’s obvious that this potential is also attractive for foreigners. The increasing interest of foreign investors, who used to think and make plans for longer terms, during the last years to Turkey is closely related both to the established stability and the future potential mentioned above.
Within this framework, we as TUGIAD think that Turkey is at the beginning of a new and stronger period of development. But, we think that we have to develop at first our standards about the democracy and the supremacy of law.
Democracy is not a regime which varies for everyone and which is applied unevenly to individuals. We have to strive to experience the universal framework and content of the democracy, as established throughout history. Within this scope, our level of harmonization with the Copenhagen criteria gives us a hope. But what is important is to acquire the spirit of these criteria by interiorizing their spirit.
We shouldn’t forget that democracy is a culture of pluralism and compromise. And what protect stability in democracies are the ability and skills to compromise. That’s why, not only the majority but also the social compromise should be taken into account in all platforms, starting from the Parliament. It is of course obvious that we need more democracy and to develop our democratic culture in every institution of our country.
Perhaps the most important of the prerequisites to develop the democracy is to make the principle of supremacy of law work. That’s why, in TUGIAD, we want to have more democracy and the principle of supremacy of law strengthened to be able to realize our goal to join developed countries as soon as possible.
