“Mrs. Emine should burn the bag in the garden of the presidential palace and shout: I am protesting against France,” said Kiliçdaroglu. The CHP leader has not opposed Erdogan’s boycott of French products over the cartoon riot, but is using the issue to criticize his economic policies. Due to the weak lira, Turkish citizens cannot afford French products at all, he says. “Do you think our workers come home with French perfume every day?”
Erdogan responded with resentment. ‘If you have guts, start with me, not my wife. What kind of politician are you? ‘ He also said that those looking for expensive bags should go to the ‘White Turks’ (the nickname of the old Kemalist elite). A spokesman for his AK party called Kiliçdaroglu’s comment and criticism on Twitter a case of “violence against women.”
The expensive bag – price 43,000 euros – attracted attention when Emine Erdogan appeared with it at a G20 summit last year. The journalist Ender Imrek was charged with insult for writing a critical piece about it. How is it possible, he wondered, that the first lady buys a bag for six times her husband’s monthly salary? Imrek came before the end of June and is back in court on December 2.
Imitation
Columnist Hande Firat of the newspaper Liberty writes, however, that the issue is a lot of hassle for nothing. According to her, Emine Erdogan always buys imitation brands. She says she has heard this from sources around the family.
Social media also points to other incongruities in Erodogan’s boycott call. That’s how the fact-checkers discovered Piece of truth that the only flu vaccine in Turkey is manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur in Lyon. The Turkish army and Turkish Airlines have also been doing good business with the French Airbus for years.
Turkey is the fourth largest buyer of the aircraft manufacturer in Europe. Turkey has 270 civilian French aircraft in the air. The Turkish army is the largest consumer of Cougar helicopters with 46 aircraft. Airbus has invested 2.2 billion euros in Turkey. By 2030, this should have increased to double, as Minister of Transport Cahit Turhan proudly announced a year ago.
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