Ataturk’s legacy gets second look

By: Tom Ford

ISTANBUL, Turkey — They’re hanging strings of tiny, pastel flags across some of the main streets of this ancient city of 16 million. Turkey’s 25 political parties are getting ready for a June election that may make history.

Istanbul is already storied: the only city on two continents (Europe and Asia), a major force in three empires (Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman) and one of the world’s few — some Turks say the only — Islamic democracies.

The coming election will answer two critical questions:

Can Turkey strengthen its democracy even more?

And will it play a helpful role in advising the nations in the Middle East and Northern Africa that are embroiled in fights for democracy?

The first lesson the reformers can learn from Turkey: From the outset, they need strong, unflinching leadership. That is a problem for some of them. They don’t have powerful leaders and try to get by with collectives.

Contemporary Turkey was born and the nation’s founder, Mustafa Kemal, an army colonel, became a legend in the First World War Gallipoli campaign, the allies’ unsuccessful attempt to chase the Turks from the Dardanelles and open up an all-weather route to Germany.

Kemal realized that if he could hold two important hills, the Turks would win the war. They did so in bloody, hand-to-hand combat that cost 50,000 lives. Kemal was everywhere during the fight — in no man’s land on his belly urging his men on; riding his horse from hot spot to hot spot for four days and nights. “I don’t order you to attack. I order you to die,” he told his men. His entire senior staff was wiped out.

Kemal, later known as Atatürk, the father of Turkey, learned about modern democracy in an army library. When he came to power in 1923, he issued a blizzard of orders to westernize his nation, including changes to language, dress, social mores, government and law.

But the Turkish model, the nation’s liberals argue, can be improved in a constitutional review that is part of the elections in June. The existing constitution is clear about the roles of the military, judges and politicians. It is less clear about what citizens can do to promote their own interests. The constitution needs to be “civilianized,” says a young female writer. That’s not a great slogan. But “power to the people” is.

The Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association is more explicit. Among other things, it wants unrestricted use of headscarves for university students and teachers and public employees other than those, such as judges, prosecutors, police officers and soldiers, who perform duties where impartiality carries importance.

The association’s other demands include the right to conscientious objection, no compulsory religion courses in schools, the army’s general staff to be placed under the authority of the Ministry of Defence and a full parliamentary governmental system with no powers for the president that conflict with that system.

It’s a long list. And that raises the second lesson Turkey can teach the reformers in the Middle East and Northern Africa: Change comes about slowly in this region. Turkey has been working hard at improving its government system since the 1920s, but there is still much to be done.

A report last month by the respected Washington-based PEW Research Centre says 52 per cent of the Turks questioned saw a struggle in their country between “modernizers” and religious fundamentalists. But 74 per cent of them sided with the modernizers.

Some 75 per cent of Muslims in Turkey said they favoured democratic government more than any other kind, according to the research centre.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is expected to win the June election, is said to be “mildly” Islamic. But several businessmen told me he is “two-faced”, a fundamentalist who pretends to be interested in reform.

He can be ruthless. More than 400 journalists, politicians, academics and retired military officers are on trial, accused of being part of a network designed to overthrow the Erdogan government. “Erdogan is just getting his own back,” said a teacher.

Erdogan has refused to deal with Israel in the aftermath of Tel Aviv’s deadly attack on the Mavi Marmara flotilla bringing aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in May. Turkey wants Israel to apologize for killing nine Turks and pay compensation. Israel says its troops were defending themselves.

Erdogan refuses to endorse a constitutional change giving Kurds special powers to protect their language and culture — and some of them have taken to the streets.

The election issue that surprised me the most was the argument over headscarves. A group of young women is angry that none of the female candidates in the election wears a headscarf. Westerners often see headscarves as an example of male domination. These women don’t see it that way. They simply want the right to choose what they wear.

“We’re feminists,” said one. “Freedom of choice is important to us.”

Tom Ford is managing editor of The Issues Network.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition April 4, 2011 A10