Members of the Florida delegation weighed in before President Donald Trump met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday.
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, teamed up with U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ, to send a letter to Trump urging him to bring up human rights issues with Erdogan. More than a dozen other senators, including North Carolina Republican Tom Tillis and New Jersey Democrat Cory Booker, also signed the letter.
“We write to express our grave concerns about the continuing erosion of human rights and the dramatic decline of democratic values in Turkey. We urge you to make these issues a priority during your meeting with President Erdogan,” the senators wrote. “Turkey’s democratic identity has long been a part of the U.S.-Turkish relationship and its role in the region. Turkey joined the NATO alliance two years after it held its first competitive election in 1950. Turkey’s democracy has been a source of strength for the alliance and a source of stability across the Middle East and the Balkans.
“However, over the past several years, Erdogan and his allies have mounted an assault on the rule of law, particularly using sweeping state of emergency authorities to stifle fundamental rights including free speech, undermine the independence of the judiciary, and quash any opposition to their undemocratic actions,” the senators continued. “They have thrown thousands of Turks in jail, including dozens of journalists, and left many of their citizens and even Americans in Turkey, fearful for their own futures.
“We are particularly concerned with the recent constitutional referendum, which suffered from a lack of transparency and lays the groundwork for Erdogan to further undermine democratic institutions,” the senators added. “The campaign was held under a state of emergency in a tightly controlled media environment where critical voices from the press and civil society were jailed. Representatives from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, who were tasked with evaluating the legitimacy of the vote itself, assessed that it took place on an ‘unlevel playing field’ and ‘fundamental freedoms essential to a genuinely democratic process were curtailed.’Journalists continue to be targeted as the Turkish media is subjected to censorship and intimidation by the Erdogan government. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, in 2016, Turkey was the top jailers of journalist worldwide with at least 81 journalist imprisoned. Reporters Without Borders’ 2017 World Press Freedom Index, ranks Turkey 155 out of 180 countries of the worst countries for press freedom.
“The government has also increased direct threats against political opposition groups and minority communities including ethnic Kurds under the guise of combating terrorism. According to media reports, the government has continued its crackdown since the April 16 referendum,” they wrote in conclusion. “As it is a critical moment for Turkey and the U.S.-Turkish relationship, the United States must be candid and consistent in our support of democratic values and respect for human rights for the sake of Turkey’s future and our long-term interests in the region. We therefore urge you to make support for Turkish democracy and human rights a priority, both in your meetings with President Erdogan... and in U.S. policy toward Turkey thereafter.”
Rubio wasn’t the only member of the Florida delegation to weigh in on the issue. Last week, U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., the ranking Democrat on the U.S. House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, said Trump should cancel the meeting, pointing to the Turkish president’s recent verbal attacks on Israel.
"Erdogan has been consolidating his power through flawed elections, arresting those who disagree with him, shutting down social media sites, and attacking the free press. Hosting President Erdogan at the White House sends exactly the wrong message, and I urge the President to cancel their scheduled meeting,” Deutch said. "Instead of answering for his disastrous human rights record at home, Erdogan chose to hurl baseless and incendiary accusations at Israel. Labeling Israel as 'racist and discriminatory' ignores Israel’s enduring commitment to preserving the right of all three major religions to visit holy sites in Jerusalem. Israel is home to one of the most vibrant democracies in the world where vigorous political discourse takes place in the public sphere every single day."
