From Ihsan Dagi’s column:
Nationalists… increasingly view democracy as a burden.
The West challenges the Turkish status quo by promoting democracy. Thus if the authoritarian elements win the current power struggle, Turkey will be lost. This will not be similar to the breakdowns of democracy in 1960, 1971 and 1980, which maintained Turkey’s security connection with […]
For the radically secular nationalist forces trying to close down the popularly elected AKP, there is no middle ground. AKP has used its liberal orientation to push for religious rights, for instance, allowing female students to wear headscarves while attending university. This prompted a case now before the Constitutional Court to close down the […]
Under the proposed changes to Article 301 (see my April 19 post), the approval of the justice minister will be necessary for a prosecutor to proceed with a 301-related investigation. If the justice minister does not allow a 301-related probe, the accused might not have legal difficulties, but could still face social pressure for having […]
Here are some photos of the tile murals inside Taksim and Levent stations on the Istanbul Metro. These are just a selection; there are many more murals, all spectacular. The bottom scene shows the fall of Constantinople (Christian Byzantium) to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. The top scene is of the Ottoman city after the […]
Turkey is changing a law notorious for limiting free speech, but writers and publishers fear that the changes are so minor that they will continue to be arrested and tried under the new version of Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. Other laws that limit freedom of expression also remain in force.
Nobel laureate Orhan […]
A prosecutor is investigating links between an organized crime group known as Atabeyler, whose plans to assassinate Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan were uncovered two years ago, and Ergenekon, a shadowy group suspected of trying to overthrow the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), thereby bringing down the government.
The Atabeyler gang was […]
The government has submitted a proposal to Parliament to amend the infamous Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code, which has been used to to prosecute intellectuals, journalists and activists for “insulting Turkishness.” (See my March 21 blog entry on Ms. Erin Keskin’s recent conviction under Article 301.)
Nobel Prize-winning novelist Orhan Pamuk was tried under […]
For many years, the symbol of Ankara, Turkey’s capital, was the Hittite sun and that of Istanbul was the tulip. Both have historic references. The Hittites built an empire in Anatolia four thousand years ago, with their capital not far from Ankara. They spoke an Indo-European language. Some Ottoman sultans were famous for their obsession […]
The murder of Italian artist Pippa Bacca has raised a discussion in the Turkish media of violence in general in Turkey and violence against women in particular. Bacca was hitchhiking across Europe and the Middle East dressed as a bride in a demonstration for world peace and was picked up in Turkey by a truck […]