Recep Tayyip Erdogan is no longer content to be head of state, head of government, and head of his ruling AKP political party. Erdogan is running for Caliph of the Islamic world. His latest campaign platform is based on a single plank: he will outdo every other Muslim leader in condemning President Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
“… my religion is not Sunni, it is not Shi’a, my religion is Islam.”
Erdogan believes he has a natural base of support, since he is currently president of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the OIC. He has tried to become the leader of the Islamic world since assuming his OIC position last year. In speeches to domestic and international audiences, Erdogan rails against Western influence, and decries Muslim dependence on the Western world.
Call for Unity
At the 2016 OIC summit which he hosted in Istanbul, the Turkish president called for unity among Sunnis and Shia. “I hope [this] meeting will bring a good future for all Muslims in the world and for the safety, security and prosperity of mankind. We are passing through days now when we need this more than ever.”
“I always say that my religion is not Sunni, it is not Shi’a, my religion is Islam, just like my 1 billion 700 million brothers. They all are only Muslims. All other differences come after this adjective.”
Showcasing his concern for the downtrodden, Erdogan made an urgent appeal at the summit to assist the Rohingya. He may have been sincere in his concern for the Muslims of Myanmar who have suffered so much. But he also may remember how Osama bin Laden used the suffering of the Bosnian Muslims in the 1990’s to reach fame – and leadership – among Muslims of the world.
A year later he repeated these themes, at the OIC summit in Kazakhstan. He pledged that Turkey will build a new tent city in Bangladesh for Rohingya refugees. He called on the GCC countries to end the crisis in relations among them. He called on Muslims worldwide to stop leaning on Western skills for development and Western military might for protection.
Trying to Outdo the Saudis
Now, Erdogan is running for caliph, the traditional ruler of the entire Islamic world, the Khalifa or successor to the Prophet Mohammed. He believes that Saudi Arabia will pay lip service to condemning American policy on Jerusalem, but that it won’t do anything. Erdogan is counting on the Saudis being more concerned with defeating Iran right now than with the status of Jerusalem.
Because Jerusalem is a highly emotional issue for Muslims, and especially for Arabs, Erdogan believes that Saudi inaction will harm their standing, and he will benefit by comparison. Citizens of OIC nations will be angry when they see Saudi Arabia and Egypt forming a tacit alliance with Israel to prevent Iranian hegemony. That leaves the door open for Erdogan to take the lead against the new American policy.
The Imitation of Nasser
But no matter how loudly he shouts, or how crude his language, it is unlikely that Erdogan will achieve his dream. Not for lack of effort, however. Yesterday Erdogan affected to shout at President Trump, using the dialect of the streets where he sold simits as a boy, “Hey Trump! What do you want to do? What kind of approach is this? Political leaders do not stir things up, they seek to make peace!”
This was a clear imitation of Gamal Abdel Nasser, the legendary populist leader of Egypt in the 1950s. Nasser was famous for breaking into street dialect in the middle of a passionate speech calling for Arab nationalism and unity. Like Erdogan, Nasser was all for unity – under his leadership.
Yes, Erdogan is running for caliph. But he’d better not give up his day job.
But Erdogan’s campaign is not likely to succeed. His ruthless consolidation of power in Turkey has left Turks bitterly divided. He may mistake their temporary quiescence for political support, but none of his OIC counterparts do. They are not likely to unite behind a leader whose scorched earth approach has produced such political insecurity at home.
The OIC members also don’t care to have any leader, especially not one who uses religious claims for political legitimacy. Nuray Mert, a political columnist who is critical of Erdogan, wrote of his OIC ambitions, “any claim to political legitimacy with reference to a religion is problematic, as religious political authority is no more than political power masked by ‘sacredness.’ That is why it is not a matter of theology, but of politics; it is the political power elite that defines and manipulates ‘Islam’ in terms of their interests.”
Yes, Erdogan is running for caliph. But he’d better not give up his day job.
