The Republican March in Ankara: Crossing the Threshold

Onlookers watch military band in Taksim, commemorating
89th year of the founding of the Republic with police in background

For Turkey, this last week could have been remembered as a nice combination of religion and state. The Muslim Kurban Bayram (Eid al-Adha) fell right before the state holiday commemorating the founding of the Republic. With Turkey’s secular and religious politicians polarized, there was a chance that both groups could celebrate the two important days in unison.  However, once news came out last week that Ankara’s governor banned the Republican Day’s October 29th annual march things began to heat up. Today, defying the AK party’s banning of the march, Turkey’s secular elite marched, and what ensued was an show of force by the Turkish police, who were trying to uphold the government’s orders.

Here is a link to a video showing the violent protests in Ankara, featured in Radikal.

Since coming to power, almost a decade ago, the AKP party, led by Prime Minister Erdogan, who can easily be defined as one of Turkey’s most influential leaders ever, has worked to curb the state’s secular institutions, which were historically guarded by the Turkish army. For the conservative secular elite, early on they accused the AKP as leading an Islamic revolution; claims that were exorbitant and baseless, but nevertheless, an expected reaction from a group whose influence was being cropped at the stem.  

Headquarters of the Youth Wing of the Secular People Republican Party

The competition of these two groups has touched upon the lives of meaning average Turkish citizens. For example, before the AKP, women were not allowed to wear the Islamic headscarf in universities, which the secular elite defined as a definitive way to block the influence of Islam into the public sphere. Let it be known, that with the Turkish society over 99 percent Muslim, the average citizen really never supported the headscarf ban (one that continues in public offices until today) and were perhaps even relieved when the AKP started allowing all women to study in universities. 

Another form of competition has been how each group defines Turkey’s history, the Republic itself, and how its founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, is memorialized. The AKP, while not banning the official republican days, has downgraded them, treating them to some extent as products of a secular republic which for years oppressed them. Erdogan has clearly maneuvered through these days, participating in them and respecting them; but not commemorating them with past zeal of the former secularists.  The AKP’s stance on the official Republican days also does not seem to represent the average Turkish citizen, who sees the national holidays as an integral part of their daily lives. 

It is for this reason that banning of the Republic Day March in Ankara, the capital of the Republic, should be seen as crossing a dangerous threshold.  The governor’s claim that it was cancelled due to security reasons was seen as a provocation, and once Erdogan publicly supported this move, the Republic People’s Party (CHP) leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, called the masses to join him at the march. What ensued was a scene that is becoming more and more common in Turkey: a police force utilizing massive force against civilians protesting in a completely peaceful manner; civilians, young and old, having their faces covered with pepper spray, with water cannons throwing people to the ground, and massive clouds of teargas hovering over. And, it was just not civilians; Kilicdaroglu and other parliament members were also among the masses inhaling the teargas.    

Today’s events should be worrying to the government since it is another sign that the polarization between the two camps is widening, and as was the case today, can turn violent. Further, the AKP, as a result, seems to losing a grip on their massive constituency, who many do not identify with their political agenda but rather have been happy with their economic policies. Furthermore, the government would be wise to investigate how such an important day for so many of its citizens could end so badly. Perhaps, only then, can the two sides start to work together to reach common ground and understanding.

Journalists, Students, and a Pianist: Turkish Freedoms put to Test

During the last few years, more and more Turkish and international organizations have been criticizing Turkey over how many journalists have recently been jailed. Last week, a report was issued by the Committee for the Protection of Journalists, and it is another reminder that the Turkish government needs to take measures to fix this injustice. Turkey now has more journalists jailed than any country in the world and it is a stain on its democracy.

The report, entitled Turkey’s PressFreedom Crisis, lashes out harsh accusations, claiming that “Turkish authorities are engaging in widespread criminal prosecution and jailing of journalists, and are applying other forms of severe pressure to promote self-censorship in the press,” and adds that they, “have mounted one of the world’s most widespread crackdowns on press freedom in recent history.” According to the report, as of August 2012, 76 journalists are being held, mostly for anti-state crimes (or similar), with three quarters of them in jail for extended periods of times (months and even years) without being officially charged. In addition “scores” of others are awaiting trial for other reasons, such as “degrading Turkishness” with “between 3000-5000 criminal cases pending.”  

Commenting on the amount of arrests, the report states that “the imprisonments constitute one of the largest crackdowns CPJ has documented in the 27 years it has been compiling records on journalists in prison,” and highlights that Turkey far surpasses other countries’ violations, such as Eritrea (with 28 held) and China (with 27 held).

Unfortunately, this story is not a new one. For the last two years, Turkish government officials, including PM Erdogan himself, have been asked to answer claims that their government is excessively jailing journalists, but to no avail; usually, when questioned, the officials brush it off as if this does not constitute a problem.  However, the problem is very real and not only for journalists, but also for students.

In Turkish jails, according to Hurriyet Daily News, there is a staggering 2,824 students being held, with many charged with “being a member of a terrorist organization.” In the past, many students have been arrested just for demonstrating and holding banners; later to find themselves in jail for over a year awaiting trial. The Turkish government's claim that these students support terrorist activity is inflated and as a result damages Turkey's genuine need to protect its citizens. Simply put, the students' plight provides us with such a flagrant violation of civil rights that it is hard to remain indifferent at any level.

If this is not enough, this week we saw Fazil Say, Turkey's world renowned pianist, in court defending his right to free expression on twitter. This ongoing trial, which will reconvene in February 2013, is related to comments which he placed on his private Twitter account; according to the state prosecutor, Say should be found guilty for his tweets, claiming they insult Islam, and violate the law which states that it is illegal to "insult the religious values of a section of society." Similar to the Orhan Pamuk case, when in 2006 he was charged with "insulting Turkishness," only to have the charges dropped, Say is well known abroad and a guilty verdict will make waves not only domestically but also internationally.

What is most ironic is that while PM Erdogan, and his government, has been rightly chiseling away at the injustices of the 1980 coup and its legacy, Erdogan is now perceived by some as creating new injustices in their place. Moreover, in my opinion, Erdogan has grossly misunderstood that his electorate victories were driven by his non-compromising stance towards the conservative secular state, a policy which led to the ushering of new found freedoms. However, now, as he retreats from the path of reform, and with no progress being made on the Kurdish issue, it seems that his popularity is on the decline. In other words, it appears that the Turkish society is becoming weary of a polarizing Erdogan, who is perceived by many as clamping down on personal freedoms.

It is for this reason, that at the annual opening of the parliament earlier this month, so many Turkish citizens breathed a sigh of relief when the President of Turkey, Abdullah Gul, a former government member and a strong ally of Erdogan, stated the following: “If there are shortcomings, or wrong practices, or instances that harm our democracy, then these must all be removed without delay. There should be no doubt or concerns in anyone’s mind that Turkey is a democratic state respecting the rule of law.” Lets hope that the government heeds these words, and starts working to implement legislation that will hastily work to bring these injustices to an end.  

Hos Geldin Ramazan (Welcome the Holy Month of Ramadan): A Look into Recent Debates

People lining up before the iftar (break-fast) to buy the special
bread baked especially for Ramadan

 Living in Turkey off and on for over a decade, I have come to like the month of Ramadan, a change in routine is a nice break. Istanbul is a city way over populated and way over the top in many dimensions. Nothing really comes in small doses here.  However, during Ramadan, a month when observant Muslims fast from dawn to dusk (something quite difficult in the summer months) everything moves a bit slower, and nightlife considerably slows down. Just as many Jews fast on Yom Kippur but do nothing else throughout the year, many Turkish Muslims refrain from drinking during Ramadan (even though the consumption of alcohol is forbidden in Islam).

Last week, in the Eyup district of Istanbul, the annual Efes Pilsen One Love Rock festival took place.  For over 11 years, party goers and rock music lovers have met at Bilgi University to celebrate the event.  Sponsored by Efes Pilsen brewery many festival goers enjoy escaping the indoors to lie on the grass, listen to music, and drink beer to cool off from the Istanbul heat. However, this year the Eyup municipality pressured the university to ban alcohol from the event due to the fact that the Eyup Sultan Mosque is one of Turkey’s most religious historical sites (see the attached link which is a translation about the banning of alcohol at the event from Turkey’s Taraf newspaper) and the school gave in. While they managed to ban the drinking inside, local vendors brought shopping carts of beer to the event and people managed to drink quite a lot outside the concert grounds with some religious/political groups heckling in the background and signs in the area revealing the ills of alcohol. It is a pity that the university gave into pressures to ban the alcohol. By Turkish law, people 18 years and older can drink alcohol and it has never has been a source of problems in the past. Of course, this was not a violation of the religious site since the mosque is not in the immediate vicinity. Further, it should be noted that most people attending the concert would most likely fight to defend the sanctity of holy sites and the need to respect them.

Friday Prayer on the first day of Ramadan

With the debate at its height some in the Turkish media have been discussing the repercussions of such social pressure and how it might lead to a dangerous polarization during Ramadan. Mehmet Ali Birand (English link, Turkish link), wrote of his fear that those who don’t fast will be subjected to social pressures, or what he calls “neighborhood pressure (mahalle baskisi)," and asks “what if those who do not fast are oppressed? What if those who drink alcohol are beaten? What if entertainment venues are raided?.” He ends his commentary by stating that “Nobody should have a right to create such an atmosphere in this country. Let the citizen decide himself what he will do and what he will not do…” 

 A local simit seller making his daily bread during
Ramadan. He also stopped selling the bagel like snack
to join Friday prayer

The Turkish government should work to strengthen the middle ground between secular and religious people and to ensure the rights of all.  Baseless claims by conservative religious factions, as we saw at the One Love festival, only create unneeded tensions. Just as many secular people rightly supported the right of women to veil in universities, religious people should stand up and speak clearly about the right of secular people to live their life in respect.  This does not mean drinking alcohol on the steps of the mosque or provoking religious folk by marching in and eating publicly during the month of Ramadan. Finding the balance between secular and religious lifestyles has been and will continue to be a challenge, and usually one that Turkey has succeeded in achieving. It is what makes Turkey unique and I would argue why many Muslims find Turkey appealing.  Often I see Arab tourists walking through the streets full of bars on Istiklal and curiously admiring what they often do not have in their country: the choice to decide and the chance to be part of a multicultural society.

For now, I will continue to enjoy Ramadan, seeing the long lines for the iftar break-fast bread, hearing drummers pounding away to wake up people before the fast begins, and seeing tents feeding thousands of people celebrating the iftar (the break-fast) together.

On that note, I am happy to wish all my Muslim friends and happy and holy Ramadan.