ERISA DAUTAJ ŞERNERDEM
ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News
WikiLeaks cables are a “U.S. scenario,” aimed at confusing the domestic and foreign politics of other countries for their own political and economic interests, according to people interviewed by the Daily News on Monday across Istanbul.
“[The WikiLeaks cables] may even be documents put out by the U.S. itself,” Ayşe Şendur, a 30-year-old sociologist, told the Daily News in Taksim on Monday, adding that the leaked documents were no surprise to her, but rather merely documented the positions of the U.S. toward other countries in the world. Şendur said, however, that the exposure of the documents might change different economic and social equilibriums in certain countries.
“This is all a game played by the U.S.,” Muafak Tauşlı, a 45-year-old artisan in Çukurcuma told the Daily News, adding that he believed if there was no global economic crisis, then none of this would have happened.
“[Confusion caused by the release of the WikiLeaks cables] might affect Turkey’s foreign direct investment, as companies might withdraw their investments from the stock exchange,” said Pelin Asur, a 21-year-old university student walking through Taksim. Asur told the Daily News she was wary of the aims of the WikiLeaks cables and they might be tools in the U.S.’s “psychological war” against other countries.
The cables are just a demonstration of “the U.S.’s arrogance,” said 29-year-old plasterer Emrah Tatlı near Taksim, adding that “[WikiLeaks cables] are a U.S. script” that aims to influence different countries to react to each other.
Although almost everyone interviewed by the Daily News was familiar with the “WikiLeaks phenomenon,” regardless of age, sex or economic status, a clear indicator of how complete the Turkish media’s coverage of the issue has been, people had doubts regarding the real purpose of the leaking of the documents.
“Should I believe this is a great success of the Internet [era], or have the documents been revealed on the U.S.’s instructions? Would the U.S. otherwise tolerate being disgraced in such a manner? I frankly do not know what to believe,” 55-year-old Hasan Aksoy, an auditor, told the Daily News in Taksim on Monday.
Will leaked documents affect Turkey?
Opinions among people on the streets diverged on the possible effects the leaked documents will have.
“The leaked documents have revealed shocking claims that might even give way to the resignation of the present Turkish government, although the prime minister ignores them,” Tezcan Saz, a 32-year-old lawyer, told the Daily News while riding the metro between Levent and Taksim. Saz said the documents were proof that the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government had shifted Turkey’s axis toward the East and that it was a pro-Islamic party, adding that the documents were a “pure reflection of Turkey’s reality,” which he found confusing. “I am curious to see how the opposition parties will use these documents,” he said.
On the other hand, people said it was too early to comment on the leaked documents, agreeing with Prime Minister Erdoğan’s stance. “I believe we must wait for all the documents to be revealed before making any judgment,” said Kamil Kapucuoğlu, a 67-year-old chemical engineer, in Çukurcuma. He added that only positive documents had been published on the current Turkish government so far.
“I find U.S. officials’ interest in Turkish top officials’ private lives shocking and absurd,” said 48-year-old antiquarian Kerim Karakılıç in Çukurcuma, adding that the U.S. was in this way “degrading its own [foreign policy] trends.” Karakılıç also said he believed the leaked documents would not have any effect on Turkey or on the Turkish government. “They will most probably pretend to ignore the documents,” he said.
Too sensitive to reveal one’s opinion
Some people regarded the “WikiLeaks cables” as a sensitive topic, refusing to give their opinion or identity. “I believe this topic is very sensitive, thus I would not like to share my opinion on it,” a banker working in Istanbul’s Maslak district, who requested not to give his identity, told the Daily News.
“I am retired from the military, thus I would like to keep my opinion to myself,” a man who opted not to reveal his identity told the Daily News on Monday in Çukurcuma.
On the other hand, some said they were not aware of the topic. “I have not heard about this issue, nor am I interested to know,” said Salih Aydın, a 61-year-old pensioner living in Istanbul’s Çukurcuma district.
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