We have sent Hiddink but the disgrace is still there

Regardless of how much our economy has developed, regardless of how many times we repeat that we have become a regional power, a moment comes and our oriental features just pop up.

The latest example is what we have experienced with our national football team coach, Guus Hiddink.

Every unsuccessful coach loses his job, I accept that. But it does not happen as gauchely as it happens here. Especially, they are not lynched by the media. We have billed all our misadventure as a society to the expert.

As if the players had no fault. The atmosphere is as if they all shone like stars and Hiddink gave them wrong tactics, and because of that they were not able to play. Nobody says a thing about the players. One fights with the spectators, the other curses because he is taken out of the game. Another openly indicates he does not want to play. They are not dealt with; the only target is Hiddink.

These are the only players who flourish on this territory. As if there were many others and Hiddink was unable to see them?

They say he was not able to motivate the team. He stood at a distance against developments as if he were a United Nations observer.

Pardon me? This guy is a football professional not a psychologist. Also, as anybody else, he has his own style. I think he has done right. He did not play to the crowd; he tried to fulfill what his real job demanded from him.

Especially, those debates about the money paid to Hiddink carried out in the papers and on TV were beyond contempt. When the desired results were not obtained, the topic of money jumped to the top of the agenda. In civilized societies who are at ease with the issue of money, you cannot run such a campaign.

We are acting as if Hiddink was brought to Turkey by force, as if he took this money for himself and for his crew against our will. As a matter of fact, it is us who had fetched him with great hopes. It is us who have made him cancel his contract prematurely with the Russians.

Hiddink must have seen what was coming, he said goodbye before the last game.

He acted politely. He saw he could not work in an environment where he is not wanted, he took his hat and left.

Have we solved our problem?

Did we recover from the shame of the football we cannot play and the player we cannot train? Since Hiddink has gone, are we going to win the next World Cup and European competitions?

Real problem in Van is incapable bureaucracy

It should not surprise us, the scenes experienced during the Van earthquake. Almost in every earthquake same developments were experienced, the same chaos was encountered and same criticisms were made.

There were two misfortunes in Van: First, fear was widespread because of consecutive tremors and the other is that it happened during winter months.

Actually, at the essence of all those complaints lies the helplessness of the bureaucracy. We have a bureaucracy made up of immobile, incompetent people. A bureaucracy that excels in making a very-simple-to-solve problem extremely complicated; one that is incapable of planning and coordination.

Political personnel tried to do their best. They were only able to move the wheels of bureaucracy. State mentality allowed only this much.

Conscientious objection becomes the AKP’s surprise

To tell the truth, I never expected it. The Justice and Democracy Party (AKP) action was a complete surprise. Such a big surprise that many people did not believe in Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin’s statement. It is the majority who say that they are taking such a step to delude the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and that the draft to be issued will not be of any use.

No matter what they say, even taking this step is extremely important. The “conscientious objection” which is considered to be one of the essential human rights in civilized countries does suit the militarist minds, but it seems as if there is no other way out. Unless a step is taken in that direction, Turkey will be penalized by Council of Europe ministers.

The governing party did not attempt to buy time against the ECHR. The government acted courageously even though they knew that a significant portion of their party members would dislike it. Indeed, the content of the law needs to be seen. If the Defense Ministry does not opt for some form of oriental cunning, then the government deserves a huge applause.