I think in the west we only see Turkey as Istanbul which happens to be the extremely liberal part of Turkey.
The rest of the country is far more conservative so they don't see the clamping down on various freedoms as being a problem and on top of the Erdogan has actually really done a good job of developing the poorer regions of Turkey which were rife with high unemployments and low prospects. On top of that people believe he's raised Turkey's importance on the world stage.
Another reason why I'm about 90% he'll win now that the opposition political parties have just come out against the coup - which if you know anything about Turkey is HUGE. These parties have literally called for Erdogan to be jailed but right now they're supporting him.
I don't even know what to make of that. I'm shocked.
What I readwas that those parties have said to Not go on the streets, but that erdogan-fans misread that (maybe intentionally) and tweeted about it, and retweeted, etc. Erdogan said to go on the streets.
It is all a mess with propaganda, stress and confusion everywhere
This is not about being a liberal democracy at all.
If voters don't have the opportunity to get a truthful look at the society they live in and the people who would like to be elected, their votes are meaningless.
You need freedom of speech and a free press to get that perspective. A democracy without freedom of speech and a free press is no democracy at all but a facade hiding an authoritarian state.
Economic improvement. Under Erdogan, Turkey has gotten considerably richer, no particular thanks to him but the same tide that lifts a farmer out of poverty keeps his islamic government afloat while making a mockery of Ataturk.
Lots of people will support dictator whose dictates they favor over democracy where they might lose, especially if they fear democracy means compromise with our subjugation to people who wish them harm.
Democracy is an abstract ideal that people are less likely to support when it seems to threaten more basic and immediate physical need for themselves or those emotionally close to them.
Sky News is interviewing a Turkish journalist right now, live (http://news.sky.com/story/live-turkish-army-says-taken-power... ). She says she supports democracy, not Erdogan, and that she's appalled that a small number of soldiers can take that away from Turkey. She's also appalled that a NATO member has to deal with military coups...
edit: the interview has just ended. I hope the clip can be found, because what this woman was saying was very interesting.
Thanks for the clarification, I didn't understand she belonged to the same party. It certainly puts her opinions in perspective.
I'm not appalled Sky News let her speak, however. As someone outside Turkey myself, I'm not sure how censoring the opinions of any of the sides involved would help or be in any way unbiased reporting. I'd understand if you said it would be even better if Sky News also interviewed someone who supported the coup.
