Turkey draws on drama to control Lebanon

Turkey is using drama to culturally penetrate
Lebanon in order to restore the so-called Ottoman caliphate. That plot was
launched in 2002 when the ruling Justice and Development Party assumed power in
Turkey.
Turkey started cultural penetration
of the Lebanese society in 2006 when Lebanese satellite channels broadcast Turkish
soap operas.
The Turkish TV series have been
popular in Lebanon and some other 22 countries. These soap operas posted
revenues worth $3 million annually. While sales of TV series exceeded $350
million annually.
In 2016, the head of Turkey’s Export
Council said the target was to reach $2 billion of cultural products,
especially drama.
Turkey is merely drawing on history
to serve its expansionist political goals. To this end, it produced historical dramatic
works to be screened in all Arab countries.
These soap operas featured Ottoman
sultans as great rulers. These TV series
did not feature the real situation in Lebanon after the Ottoman invasion in
1516. Lebanese historian Ahmed Aref al-Zein said Sidon was miserable under the
Ottoman occupation, which ruined Lebanon.
Moreover, Ankara is trying to use
its drama to promote tourism by featuring its natural landscapes, tourist destinations
and monuments.
These endeavors have increased the
number of tourists to Turkey and revenues from tourism.
Researcher Ahmed El-Enany, an expert
on international relations, said that Turkey is using the soft power of art and
others to promote its dreams of the Ottoman caliphate.
“Turkey wants to promote the so-called
new Ottoman Empire, especially in Lebanon, Libya and Syria. Ankara is seeking
to make the peoples of these countries study the Turkish language and learn in
Turkish schools,” El-Enany told THE REFERENCE.
The researcher added that all
Turkish films and soap operas are politicized to serve Erdogan’s Justice and
Development Party.