Let Them Grumble

ANKARA, Turkey - Back on March 18, Eric Edelman announced his resignation as American Ambassador to Turkey. Since then, there has been speculation floating around the capital city about the next U.S. ambassador.

Among the expatriates here, a much-discussed possibility is the idea that the next ambassador will be a woman. And that speculation is usually followed by the conclusion that some voices in the Turkish government and press would be less than thrilled about that prospect.

Compared to many other Muslim countries, Turkish women have reached equality or near-equality to men's status. They vote, they're elected to parliament, they drive themselves, they dress how they like. The Education Ministry has launched initiatives to get girls to school. A women's film festival launched last week in Batman. Their starlets in the music videos are as uninhibited as Britney Spears ... yet the Turkish divas have talent.

But this is still in many ways a very traditional society. Emine Bozkurt, a Dutch member of the European Parliament, has just issued a draft report saying that the country's government is saying the right things about women's rights, but there has been lack of implementation on women's literacy, participation in business and politics, and stopping violence against women.

The Turkish reputation got a black eye on March 6 when Istanbul cops beat the hell out of demonstrators on International Women's Day. Images televised across Europe showed riot police charging protesters, beating them with batons and kicking them on the ground. Viewers recoiled in horror as one cop beat a woman to the ground with his baton, then another kicked her in the face.

European Union parliamentarians voted overwhelmingly in favor of a resolution on women's rights, strongly condemning the violence. Three policemen were suspended. But Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan accused the Turkish press of exaggerating the incident, and contended that the protesters had deliberately provoked the police.

"There may have been moments when our police behaved emotionally. But when we look at this, we see it [the violence] is not of really serious dimensions," Mr. Erdogan told reporters.

Finally Minister of Defense Vecdi Gonul, during a recent address to female party supporters in Kocaeli, opined that Western women are pining to be like their Turkish sisters and that Turkish women were "the decoration of their houses and the honor of their men."

Many Turkish women were not amused.

So how would the Turks react to a woman ambassador? Would she be as respected as Mr. Edelman, a longtime friend and associate of Vice President Cheney, who's now moving to the no. 3 civilian job in the Pentagon? Or would her very appearance create cultural friction?

Should an administration seeking to improve bruised U.S.-Turkish relations avoid the potential grumbling and murmurs and pick the best man for the job? Or should President Bush say, "To hell with what their society thinks, we are who we are and we don't care who's offended"?

I suspect that while diplomacy is inherently about reaching out to different viewpoints and compromise ... at some point, an American administration just has to throw caution to the wind and stand by its values. And that includes equality for women.

The Turks can't stand it whenever any American makes a comment that sounds remotely like meddling or telling them what to do - even comments as innocuous as, "we hope you will join the international coalition to pressure Syria to leave Lebanon." If they want us to let them make their own decisions and respect the choices they make, it's fair for us to demand the same.

Pick the best person to represent America in the coming years, Mr. President, whether that person wears pants or a skirt. For those who aren't used to dealing with a woman in a position of authority, let them grumble. Sooner or later, they'll realize they still need to work with her.

And next time Secretary of State Rice visits the Saudi capital of Riyadh, she ought to drive herself.

Mr. Geraghty, a contributing editor to National Review, now lives in Ankara.