TURKISH ELECTIONS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1411, 11 April 1912, Page 5

TURKISH ELECTIONS.

« COMMITTEE SWEEPS THE POLLS. by Tele?raph-Prc£B A6soriatlon-Copyrignt Constantinople, April 0. Tho Committee of Union and Progress had a sweeping victory at the elections. The Opposition has practically disappeared, what is left being merely irreconcilable sections. The Committee's success was due to the stubborn resistance of the Turkish troops in Tripoli neutralising earlier indignation against the Government, combined with carefully engineered reports of Turkish successes in tho war. RIVAL PARTIES IN TURKEY. THE COMMITTEE AND ITS WORK. Turkey, wrote a correspondent of the "Economist" on' February 24, is at present far more occupied with its forthcoming elections than with the war in Tripoli. A keen struggle—such as tho country has never known before—has commenced between the Committeo of Union and Progress on the one side, and the adhereifts of the Entente Liberate, commonly called the Eutentists, on tho other. The Committee is well organised. It claims to have branches in every town iu the empire, and Central Committees in the chief town of every Vilayet. It has the prestige arising from having deposed Abdul Hamid, and established the Constitution. It has run the Government of the country for three and a-half years, and the maibrity of those employed under Abdul Hamid are now in its employ, and can bring a large amount of influence to bear upon the voters at the poll. The Eutentists are only recently formed tis a party. Their organisation is far from being as complete as that of. the Committee. So far as principles are concerned, tho only ostensible difference is that the Eutentists are advocates of decentralisation. The Eutentists will make much capital out of the crimes and blunders of tho Committee. The wasteful expedition to Yemen, the attack on the Albanians, tho inexcusable treatment' of the Christian population of Macedonia, the unfulfilled promises of tho construction of railways, tho alleged "but generally credited assassination of political opponents, of the Bishop of Gravena, and a dozen other matters, all will be considered valid reasons for supporting a party which is opposed to the Committee. The charges against the latter have aroused widespread discontent, and will give many vo'cs to tho Eutentists, but to speak of the party as reactionists is nonsense. But in spite of all the blunders which the Committee has made, the Committee has much to be put to its credit side. It has carried on the Government of the country. It has extended the gendarmcry. It has" permitted very valuable civic reforms. It allows freedom of travel. The Ministers who havo been, and are, in office, though none of them brilliant, yet know their work, -and have rim the Government machine. People ask what is the alternative to their Government? It is true that, with the exception of Djavid Bey, now again in office, they have' produced no man whose career has suggested conspicuous ability. They drove out Kiamil, who ought to- have stood them in good stead. But they have also got rid of Ministers who proved failures. The present Grand Vizier commands re'spect, and has proved a stronger man than the Committeo anticipated. He, at least, is a tried man. It should be recognised also that many members of the Committee regret their errors, and are desirous of mending their ways. _ Repentance on the eve of an election is always open to suspicion, but in the present case I believe it to be sincere. .