The AKP's manifest destiny
The AKP sees itself as the embodiment of a holy mission, which is willed and perhaps even predestined by God.
In a much anticipated event Aug. 21, Turkish President-elect Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced his successor as prime minister: Ahmet Davutoglu. Known as the mastermind of Turkish foreign policy since 2003, Davutoglu then gave a short address. Thanking his colleagues, the academic-turned-politician also made remarks about the meaning of the mission of his party, the Justice and Development Party (AKP). He said:
"The AKP began as the movement of a generation, but it is not limited to a generation. It is not even limited with generations and centuries. It is the name of a struggle for justice and right that originates from the depths of centuries and which will continue until the end of times."
In the same speech, Davutoglu also referred to the AKP saga as a "sacred march." Despite those who want to halt it, he said, such as “the parallel structure or whoever else,” this “sacred march will reach its destination.”
In fact, not just Davutoglu but most other AKP spokesmen, including Erdogan himself, have been using the term "sacred march" in the last two years. In August 2013, for example, Erdogan defiantly declared to the Gezi Park protesters, “Whatever you do, you will not be able to stop our sacred march.”
