TÜSAİD is Turkey’s most influential voluntary association with 566 members. Their pronouncements on the economy and politics are invariably lapped up by the daily newspapers but then that’s no surprise as some of the members own the press. TÜSAİD is the oficial bosses club and it’s membership is composed of those individuals successful enough to own and manage their own firms.The association spans all sectors of the economy and includes manufacturers, retail giants, service providers and press magnates. Between them they employ over 400,000 people and generate over a third of Turkish exports and account for more than 20% of imports. They are the super rich and super powerful in a country where money talks. Profoundly pro-European and purportedly pro-democratic these men and women see themselves as the vanguard of developed and prosperous Turkey.

TÜSAİD (Turkish İndustrialists and Businessmen’s Association) is also inherently political, their Association articles clearly state that they are ‘committed to the universal principles of democracy and human rights’, that they seek development within a framework that ‘conforms to Atatürk’s principles’ and that they strive to fortify ‘democratic civil society and a secular state of law in Turkey’. With so many ambitions it’s a wonder they have time to run their lucrative businesses. They are also keen free marketeers and believe that increased competitiveness in Turkish business will help cement the country’s place in the global economic arena.

They both initiate public debate by speaking out on what they consider vital internal issues and lobby government and media on both economic and political platforms while maintaining an equal distance from all political parties so as not to compromise their independence. TÜSAİD considers itself well above the more local and down-at-heel Chambers of Commerce that small businessmen affiliate themselves with and former TÜSAİD leader Cem Boyner explains this superior attitude by saying; ‘Chambers change their stance when governments change. But TÜSİAD's politics do not depend on governments; it depends on principles. It does not make daily politics and its stance has not changed since it was formed. Leaders and executive boards have changed but TÜSİAD has remained the same.” Cynics might say that TÜSAİD can afford to be principled but the industrialists take pride in their status as aloof but involved.

With such modern thinking and liberal ideas it seems odd that only this year, for the first time since their inception in 1970, did they elect a female chairperson. Nicknamed ‘Lady Boss’, Arzuhan Doğan Yalçındağ (aged 42) is no stranger to the upper echelons of power, she has been on the governing board of TÜSAİD for the last four years and she is also Chief Executive Officer of her father’s Doğan companies which include a television station, a newspaper and extensive interests in the fuel and energy sector. Her father Aydın Doğan seems to regard her elevation to the presidency as an almost natural rite of passage and described it as  ‘her military service’. Yalçındağ is a great believer in dveloping Turkey and has stated in the past that her candidacy for the Presidency of TÜSAİD was a key indicator of the progress that Turkey was making toward equality. She will be at the helm of this elite and influential organisation during interesting times, Turkey faces a double election in 2007 – one for government and one for the Presidency and the political forment around these is expected to negatively affect the growing economy and she must also oversee increased economic efforts at harmonisation with the European economy.

Within days of her election the Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was murdered and like a true company spokesman for Turkey İnc. she managed to bring something positive out of the tragedy saying that society’s grief stricken reaction showed that; ‘Turkey is on the way to becoming a more tolerant society.’ TÜSAİD appealed for deeper democratic efforts in order to stop renegade actions like the assassination and specifically for measures like allowing Mother tongue education amongst minority groups and an end to restrictions imposed on freedom of expression. They were immediately attacked by Devlet Bahçeli the leader of Turkey’s most right wing mainstream political party, the MHP. He sneered at their comments and suggested they join the PKK rebels under one political party. TÜSAİD’s response was dry and to the point; ‘We expect speeches that praise democracy from politicians.’

The reaction to a female head of TÜSAİD has been largely positive, as things stand 10% of members are female. Ex-president of TÜSAİD Feyyaz Berker said in the future TÜSAİD may have to alter it’s name, Turkish İndustrialists and Businessmen’s Association, to reflect the advances that women have made in it’s hallowed halls but Güler Sabancı (another woman courted for post of President) says that this is unecessary ; ‘Tobe called businessmen makes us proud. İt’s not the name that’s important it’s what we do. Don’t be put out by the name, we’re not.’ Yalçındağ has wasted no time in getting to work and has called for an extraordinary meeting of the General Assembly for March 1st. She says there is an enormous amount of work to be getting on with and the agenda for 2007 needs to be set.

Despite it’s laudable ambitions TÜSAİD has attracted crticism in the past, some accuse it of not doing enough to ensure religious freedoms are protected. For them TÜSAİD’s indifference and some alleged support of the ‘post-modern’ military coup that unseated religious Prime Minister Erbakan in February 1997 was a clear sign that the İndustrialists understanding of freedom stretched only so far. Although TÜSAİD stepped in to protect and protest the academic restrictions on Van university rector Yücel Aşkın who was subject to government persecution for his liberal views they are accused of ignoring pressure put on other faculty members and they have recently remained silent during the defamotory campaign against Professor Attila Yayla. Now that the group is headed by a woman more attention than usual is focused upon them, the expectation is that they should step up and play an even greater role in the rapid democratisation and reform of Turkey’s political processes but whether Arzuhan Doğan Yalçındağ has the balls for the job remains to be seen.