AKP proposes 'German model' for Turkish police
Turkey's latest judicial reform package is an open-ended extension of law enforcement powers, indicating further erosion of the rule of law.
On Oct. 14, right after the Kobani riots, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu evaluated the events at a Justice and Development Party (AKP) gathering. Davutoglu gave a passionate speech, declaring, “For each TOMA [Turkish acronym for the armored riot police vehicle with water cannon] destroyed, the government will replace with five or 10 new TOMAs.”
He introduced the new security legislation, stating, “In this country, the AKP is the guarantor of democracy, public safety, personal freedoms and security.” Davutoglu said that to pre-empt potential domestic and foreign critics of the government from complaining about further authoritarianism and creation of a police state in Turkey, that they would take the European countries, particularly Germany’s laws, as a model for public order. Davutoglu said those who criticize Turkish police for brutality but view the same behavior as a norm in the West were “unacceptable.”
