Can Turkey Inspire Egypt as a Religious Role Model?

http://www.onbeing.org/blog/can-turkey-inspire-egypt-religious-role-model/4591 ''When asked what leader outside their own country they most admired, a recent poll from the University of Maryland found that 63 percent of Egyptians answered Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, indicating that Egyptians may be interested in learning from Turkey. Turkey can serve as a relevant model because it has successfully dealt with three key challenges facing Egypt — the relationship of the army to a civilian government, economic growth and fostering positive international relations.'' ''The second key challenge is the economy. Turkey’s Justice and Development Party (AKP), an Islamic political party, has managed to maintain power primarily through its economic policies, rather than religious ideology. Although the Reuters news agency calls it “Islamic-leaning” and media often focus on this aspect of its identity, AKP leaders insist that the party should be judged by policies and not ideology.'' ''This approach has proved to be a recipe for economic development. Rather than focusing on creating an Islamic state — like the Al Nour party in Egypt, which calls for Islamic law to serve as the guiding principles for political, social and economic issues — AKP leaders’ main focus has been raising standards of living. This interest is not altruistic, but based on practical political goals. The AKP is aware that people will only re-elect the party if it can prove its value. This decision will not be made based on religious arguments, but economic achievement. Turkey’s GDP grew 9 percent in 2010, suggestive of this model’s success.'' ''Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, but is also a leading member of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, evidence of its “middle ground” policy between Europe and the Middle East.''