What else is Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan capable to do in order to publicly propagandize his government's warmongering plans? As we saw in international media and soL international reports, during an AK Party event in Kahramanmaraş province on February 24th, Erdogan promised to honour a little girl with the Turkish flag if she were to be martyred.
Erdogan invited a little girl wearing special forces, nicknamed as 'maroon berets', uniform to the podium. As the six-year old girl was crying agitatedly, the President said:
"You see we have maroon berets, too. But a maroon beret does not cry. A special command, a colonel, a maroon beret… Wonderful! Her Turkish flag is in her pocket. If she becomes a martyr, [her coffin] will be covered with a flag, God willing. She is ready for everything, is not she?"
Having been widely criticised for abusing martyrdom for his political manoeuvres at funeral ceremonies of security forces, Erdogan’s recent showcase with a little girl has confronted a public uproar.
In a delirium of nationalism, Erdogan's supporters chanted slogans like "Reis ["Chief"], take us to Afrin", with the President responding: "When we decide to go, we will not leave you here. If god lets, we will go together. Those who are notified for mobilization [for any military operation], be ready."
Erdoğan repeated his words on February 25 at another provincial congress of his party in the southeastern city of Şanlıurfa. "We will declare a notification of mobilization when required. First me and then you, we can move towards Afrin," Erdoğan said.
* Utanç Verici: shameful, disgraceful.
