MELBOURNE, Australia
The 'old Turkey' versus 'new Turkey' dichotomy demonstrates a transformation of the country’s institutions from a “despotic state” into a “generous” state network, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said Thursday.
Speaking to reporters in Melbourne where he was attending a G20 Labour and Employment Ministerial meeting, Kurtulmus said: "The old Turkey was a country having problems with its own people; the state and the people were on different wavelengths, and the state used to be [viewed] as an introspective entity."
This ‘old vs. new’ reference is frequently used by Turkish officials to describe the more liberal relationship which has emerged between the state and the public during the reign of the current ruling Justice and Development Party which came to power in 2002.
"If you asked me what the most significant mark of the new Turkey is, I would say it was the change in the mentality of the state ... The mentality in Turkey has been transforming from a despotic state mentality that was looking down on its own people and fearing all kinds of differences into the mentality of a generous state that sees diversity as a richness," Kurtulmus said.
On August 29, Kurtulmus was appointed deputy prime minister responsible for the affairs of Turks abroad.
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