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"I am Turkey."

Reader comment on item: Islamist Turkey Overreaches
in response to reader comment: Freedom of Speech

Submitted by Ianus (Poland), Jun 16, 2010 at 17:38

Hi, Edward !

Another of your questions is :

> When did it become a crime to denounce Turkey and Ataturk? <

Actually, from the very beginning . All parrot the well known facts of abolishing the sultanate and the caliphate by Kemal but few ponder on what the means were he used to achieve his goal . And the means varied from bribery to intimidation, terror and assassination. It is how he manufacured consent for his praised reforms.

There was a short time around 1925 when he believed he could establish a Western-style democracy in Turkey . But what democracy can exist without opposition ? But how can democratic opposition be born in Turkey where no democracy has been ever heard of ? He had a clever idea how to circumvent the difficulty . He simply appointed his close associates to serve as opposition leaders and he told them to feel free to speak their minds ...just like in a Western democracy . And they believed in what they had been told and started criticizing Kemal , pointing out his blunders , ignorance and incomeptence . The Greeks and the Armenians were artisans and merchants . By exterminating and expelling all of them Kemal was responsible for Turkey's dire economic plight . Suddenly the most necessary daily goods and commodities became unvailable . No shoes could be bought , no clothes were for sale . As a general Kemal may have been brilliant , but as a politician and economist he was a disaster for Turkey . etc. etc .

When Kemal learned what his opposition was saying , he grew furious and had them hanged after staging a Stalin-like show trial with disclosed conspiracies and assassinations etc. . When they were executed he held a famous speech which started so : "I am Turkey . Whoever is against me , is against Turkey ." (There is a fascinating passage on that in J. Benoist-Méchin's biography of Kemal "Mustapha Kémal ou la mort d'un empire", Paris 1954) .

And so ended Kemalist farce of democracy and the one-party republic replaced it . During that time it was e.g. mortally dangerous to pronounce the word "ghazi" (Kemal's old title meaning "Allah's victorious general" ) in public . What is more , he even outdid the Orwellian prototype by forcing his subject to speak and write a new artificial language which is modern Turkish . It was intended as purified Osmanli language which had up to 80 % Persian and Arab vocabulary and a large part of non-Turkic grammar . Thus not just single words and phrases were introduced into an otherwise historical language as in Orwell's novel ! The Turks had to speak and write a new Turkified language themselves as he did using his own language Tukifier ! He invented a story that this artificial language is "in fact" the oldest language in the world , the prototype of all languages on earth ( the sun language theory;) ; that Turks are native to Anatolia and come directly from Sumerians and Hittites and more of the anti-historical nonsense which is now taught in Turkish schools on par with the Quran .

> I'm a little suspicious about the recent dates of the request. I think there has been a sharp deterioration in freedom in Turkey during Erdoğan tenure. <

Paradoxically enough , Erdogan's era has brought some libralization of the Turkish Penal Code . E.g. Kemal's Article 159 , modified in1961, says

"Those who publicly insult or ridicule the moral personality of Turkishness, the Republic, the Parliament, the Government, State Ministers, the military or security forces of the state, or the Judiciary will be punished with a penalty of no less than one year and no more than six years of maximum security imprisonment....

If insulting Turkishness is carried out in a foreign country by a Turk the punishment given will be increased from one-third to one-half."

In other words , I'd be jailed for 9 years for what I am writing here . Now Erdogan's Article 301 in its latest amendment in 2008 reduces my imprisonment to 3 years and makes prosecuting me more difficult by requring permission from the justice minister and even if this permission is achieved still allows the prosecutor to drop the case . True , this liberalization was both a showy gesture to get the favour of the EU bosses for Turkey's access plans. And no doubt it was selfish too, as with their known agenda Erdogan's followers sooner or later may be accused of "publicly denigrating ... the Republic or the Grand National Assembly of Turkey" . In this case they provided for milder punishments for their own followers .

>It is interesting that Ataturk, the founder of the secular state is still officially revered. <

No Orwellian regime without Big Brother .

>My question is whether the situation you describe is long-standing or recent. <

From what I have said you may well infer that this a long-standing situation . Not only do Turks like to amaze the Westerners with their story of "secularism" . They know also how much the West loves change , transformation, reform . So they have their story of change a hand too .

However , on closer consideration and comparing it to Turkish history this Turkish change story turns out not to be as novel as it is presented to us by the Turks . I have always been surprised by the analogies of modern Turkey with the Ottoman past from which officially modern turkey has broken for good . Particularly, this fundemnatal recurrent theme is striking . Every reform in Turkey, be it Tanzimat, Abdul Hamid's constitutionalism or Young Turkish movement from which our Kemal and his views emerged have led exactly in the direction opposite from the declared destination . Young Turks started with generous promises of equality and so enjoyed at first full support of the minorities and ended by exterminating the minorities . Abdul Hamid II started with his constitution which he suspended preferring to rule according to his own arbitrary wishes . Tanzimat was imposed by the West to reform Turkey . It ended with hiding deeper all the evils of Turkey and making all subsequent reforms necessary and futile . Kemalism is cheered as the opposite to Islamism . In fact it made Turkey purely Islamic arming it to the teeth with the latest American weapons.

In short , what chnages in Turkey are its fleeting appearances , facades . The essence of Turkey remains unchanged . Kemal could announce , probably in a drunk state (he was a notorious drunkard) : "I am Turkey" before his servile and terrorized deputies who acclaimed everything he said as revelation from above . But the fact is that he is not Turkey . By terror, fraud and lies he imposed his personality cult on Turkey. But Kemalism is transient . It was - what Dr. Pipes apparently doesn't see - a curious accident in Turkish history and nothing more . Turkish history has always been and will always be as long as it continues dominated by Islam . And by exterminating and expelling all non-Moslems from Turkey Kemal has done the best imaginable service exactly to the force which he allegedly combatted . This alleged enemy of Islam made Islam's triumph in Turkey inevitable. If Turkey is a Moslem monoculture today whose incredible 99,8% Islamization rate is second only to that of Saudi Arabia , it owes this sad record to one person only and this person is Mustafa Kemal Pasha aka Ataturk who once said : "Islam - this decaying corpse of an Arab Beduin is poisoning all in our life".

Submitting....

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Reader comments (99) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
1Prejudice against non-Muslims in Turkey [64 words]StasDec 22, 2012 03:06201699
scenarios of islamdom [67 words]CanMay 4, 2012 21:05195440
3Turkey will collapse [8 words]Oguz TolgaSep 17, 2010 16:43178362
1Gulen [37 words]Joseph IIJun 20, 2010 20:20174604
same old story, do it and justify it; the Jihad [180 words]Ravi Ranjan Singh BharatPanthiSep 1, 2010 02:56174604
oddly reminiscent? [68 words]Yuval Brandstetter MDJun 20, 2010 04:14174579
1What really islamized Turkey [195 words]metacristiJun 18, 2010 08:12174525
1The lost of Turkey as partner is not that Important Anymore [502 words]Hamma MirwaisiJun 14, 2010 14:16174403
1Please find yourself another platform to do advertisement for your book! [273 words]Nihat C.Jul 30, 2010 05:29174403
1The lost of Turkey as partner is not that Important Anymore [473 words]Hamma MirwaisiJul 30, 2010 19:18174403
NOT TRUE [249 words]EKDec 20, 2012 16:16174403
1Islamic nationalism [16 words]Joe Six-PackJun 12, 2010 16:36174309
News Agencies have been Infilterated by Israel's enemies [88 words]UMKJun 11, 2010 14:36174243
6Boycott Islamist owned GODIVA Chocolates! [37 words]A FriendJun 10, 2010 11:22174166
4Boycott Turkey, the Black Sheep of NATO [540 words]Amy HowardSep 21, 2014 11:36174166
1Question for Dr. Pipes [32 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Aymenn JawadJun 10, 2010 10:13174165
at last the new emerge of turkey in islamic world [57 words]syed mohammad aliJun 14, 2010 12:19174165
2in your arabian dreams [89 words]the Grand Infidel of KaffiristanJun 15, 2010 04:33174165
islamizm [203 words]havasJun 15, 2010 06:22174165
As long as ... [39 words]RobertoJun 16, 2010 14:50174165
1Just like your government wants. [409 words]the Grand Infidel of KaffiristanJun 17, 2010 05:04174165
imperialists [264 words]havasJun 18, 2010 13:35174165
1watch and learn [959 words]the Grand Infidel of KaffiristanJun 20, 2010 02:30174165
1water desalination [44 words]Yuval Brandstetter MDJun 20, 2010 04:25174165
i never meant to invade any country [232 words]syed mohammad aliJun 20, 2010 04:26174165
3Another victim of the Turks that invaded the Byzantine Empire [101 words]dhimmi no moreJun 20, 2010 07:57174165
hate [41 words]havasJun 21, 2010 14:55174165
1typisch [152 words]the Grand Infidel of KaffiristanJun 22, 2010 05:04174165
3Moslem Imperialism [352 words]giborJun 27, 2010 20:37174165
know your enemy [124 words]Ravi Ranjan Singh BharatPanthiSep 3, 2010 02:58174165
1Where is the 'Outcry" for an "Investigation" of Turkey's aid and support of IHH, a Terrorist organization? [46 words]Sofa SogoodJun 9, 2010 00:30174080
assault on another NATO member [24 words]mythJun 10, 2010 05:10174080
1Not just Cyprus [156 words]IanusJun 10, 2010 18:38174080
1Why is Israel silent about Turkey? Why not support Kurds? [110 words]UMKJun 11, 2010 14:29174080
2Nothing new under the Crescent [190 words]IanusJun 11, 2010 17:07174080
why does Israel not ... [98 words]mythJun 11, 2010 21:30174080
Israel not helping Assyrians, Kurds, Berbers...? [84 words]SachaJun 18, 2010 06:45174080
1Time for a Radical change in Israeli strategy [172 words]Wise ManJun 21, 2010 17:10174080
Birds of a Feather Flock Together [40 words]Barry BlackJun 24, 2010 14:57174080
Kurdistan and Turkish money in America [682 words]IanusJun 27, 2010 07:40174080
Why Thank You [77 words]Barry BlackJun 28, 2010 17:04174080
Israeli-made drones against the Kurds [883 words]IanusJun 29, 2010 18:29174080
Who can answer the question ? [50 words]IanusJun 29, 2010 18:46174080
Point Well Taken [90 words]Barry BlackJul 1, 2010 15:10174080
correction? [198 words]the Grand Infidel of KaffiristanJul 2, 2010 18:16174080
Correction Indeed [78 words]Barry BlackJul 5, 2010 14:05174080
Optimism? [98 words]Edward HalperJun 8, 2010 22:30174076
5Militarist tyranny vs. Islamic tyranny [65 words]IanusJun 9, 2010 17:07174076
1Turkish Democracy [101 words]Edward HalperJun 9, 2010 18:35174076
Turkey's Orwellian "democracy" [373 words]IanusJun 13, 2010 02:04174076
1Freedom of Speech [88 words]Edward HalperJun 14, 2010 09:37174076
"Our common struggle against terror and law-breakers" [304 words]IanusJun 15, 2010 18:04174076
2"I am Turkey." [1291 words]IanusJun 16, 2010 17:38174076
Turkey in uncharted waters [126 words]VijayJun 8, 2010 18:19174070
2Terrorist Turkey [206 words]IanusJun 9, 2010 16:16174070
Gaddafi makes it plain: Turkey to be Trojan horse in European Union [66 words]Jack RJun 8, 2010 18:07174069
Thank you for the info [209 words]AlexJun 9, 2010 02:57174069
Hegemonic Yearnings [68 words]Susan SomervilleJun 8, 2010 16:36174066
2How much Islamic do you need to be to become 'secular' ? 100% ! [1293 words]IanusJun 8, 2010 16:25174065
Ianus, don't let the endless venting get in the way of truth [594 words]LazmanJun 9, 2010 14:34174065
Lazman Turkey is Secular!!! [35 words]spaJun 10, 2010 02:48174065
1The Turkish gate-keepers of "truth" [2747 words]IanusJun 10, 2010 17:21174065
Ianus, you remind me of an Abraham Heschel quote [125 words]LazmanJun 10, 2010 23:43174065
Turkey......don't be quick to judge everyone! [111 words]FroikeJun 11, 2010 10:20174065
1Shortly on brevity [296 words]IanusJun 12, 2010 03:08174065
turkey is not going islamist [63 words]havasJun 12, 2010 15:39174065
1The honeymoon with a barbarian [1170 words]IanusJun 12, 2010 16:21174065
Ianus.....He knows his Turkeys! [50 words]FroikeJun 13, 2010 17:12174065
Ianus, it is quite obvious there is nothing I can say to ease your anger and resentment towards Turks (Secularists or Islamists). [46 words]LazmanJun 13, 2010 17:38174065
1Facts and minds [290 words]IanusJun 14, 2010 04:15174065
Thanks [234 words]IanusJun 24, 2010 16:33174065
1Turkey is just one in a long line of countries to have islam take TOTAL control. [86 words]Phil GreendJun 8, 2010 15:53174064
Don't confuse Turks with Islamists living in Turkey [236 words]LazmanJun 8, 2010 14:00174059
Interchangeability of "Islam" and "secularism" [172 words]IanusJun 9, 2010 16:53174059
Turkey and Islamism [172 words]Kiel HesselmannJun 8, 2010 13:48174058
2What should Israel Do? [113 words]Michael C. Geokas,M.D.,Ph.D.Jun 8, 2010 12:38174053
Alliance with the Greeks is More Provocation to Turkey [71 words]M. ToveyJun 9, 2010 19:31174053
2An alliance between Greece and Israel [71 words]Stergios BakasJun 21, 2010 05:50174053
turkey [159 words]havasJun 8, 2010 12:36174052
good for Turkey ? [56 words]mythJun 9, 2010 12:41174052
not the end of life [164 words]cemJun 10, 2010 15:14174052
Russian tourists as a source of financing anti-Russian activities of the Turks [412 words]IanusJun 11, 2010 17:58174052
NOT ENTIRELY TRUE [116 words]ekDec 20, 2012 15:51174052
1Turks are never interested in what is true. [938 words]IanusDec 21, 2012 16:03174052
Greek Propaganda [165 words]MozereDec 22, 2012 06:51174052
1Mozere, I know I am casting pearls before swine. [346 words]IanusDec 23, 2012 14:57174052
Ataturk's Secular Islam Was a Ploy [233 words]HistoryscoperJun 8, 2010 12:27174051
5Ataturk? Islam? [313 words]WhooApr 30, 2011 09:54174051
Implications for the Kurds? [132 words]Carmen Waggoner, Ph.D.Jun 8, 2010 11:10174047
Fantastiic Assessment. [155 words]SvetJun 8, 2010 10:54174046
How to draw the distinction? [109 words]CatJun 8, 2010 10:13174045
I Respectfully Disagree [199 words]Mark D.Jun 13, 2010 22:04174045
3IRAN IS THE ONLY SUPER POWER IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD, BECAUSE USA HAS NOT ATTACKED [171 words]F60Jun 8, 2010 09:00174041
1Wahhabi Sunnis [46 words]Solomon TaraganoJun 16, 2010 10:58174041
1Out, Turkey!! [40 words]Godfrey de BouillonJun 8, 2010 08:52174040
Wishful thinking , I am afraid . [321 words]IanusJun 9, 2010 06:07174040
Turk need it as much. [117 words]Ravi Ranjan Singh BharatPanthiSep 3, 2010 02:31174040
NATO and EU membership [20 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
mythJun 8, 2010 08:34174038
2turkey [336 words]giborJun 27, 2010 19:48174038

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