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ANTI-SEMITISM IN TURKEY
Igor Muradyan
Lragir.am News
http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/politics23333.html
12:18:17 - 14/09/2011
The tradition of the "Jewish Post" is to repeat from generation to
generation that anti-Semitism is not typical of some European and
Asian nations. They normally mention such countries as Turkey and
South Caucasus. In reality, Turkey and the countries of the South
Caucasus have always had anti-Semitism. For instance, it should be
noted that immediately after the onset of the Arab-Israeli war in
June 1967, with whipped government anti-Semitism in the USSR, only in
Azerbaijan, a Jewish newborn was killed as an act of revenge. It was
the son of the Baku-based Jew, Vitaly Shkolnik, who was hit against
the wall by the son of the head of the chair of the history of the
USSR, Professor Ismailov. This crime was covered up, but the city
learned that other racial crimes were being prepared against Jews.
A great number of serious pieces of research on anti-Semitism have
been published in Turkey, including by Armenian historians in Soviet
times. At the same time, Turkey and even Bulgaria were the countries
which where thousands of Jews of Central Europe found refuge in the
1930s to 1940s. Anti-Semitism in Turkey is highly controversial,
and one can still refer to events which are totally incompatible.
Presently, the government of the ruling party, Justice and Development,
has adopted insolent anti-Semitism as a government policy, though at
the same time it is trying to demonstrate correctness regarding the
Jewish community in Istanbul.
In this, there is some strangeness because the comments on the
statement of the Turkish prime minister look contrived and rather
artificial. The impression is that of an under-rehearsed spectacle. To
be able to understand the meaning of this statement, one needs to
scrutinize the reaction and vigilance of the political elites of Arab
and other Muslim states. Not to take account of the excited reaction
of the street, it should be noted that the Arab elites and Iran are
not excited about these pronouncement of the Turkish prime minister,
realizing that thereby Turkish influence in the Islamic world is
enhanced, which contradicts to their interests.
On the whole, the anti-Israeli policy of Turkey looks quite
artificial. At the same time, if we take account of the reserved
and checked evaluations of the European Leftist-Liberal and Russian
chauvinistic press, one may think that this striking policy of Ankara
is intended for Europe and Russia. So far, none of the political
leaders of Europe and Russia has echoed these events. However,
considering that Ahmed Davutoglu, the Turkish foreign minister,
considers himself a politician of many moves, and a historical person
like Richelieu or Churchill, it is possible that besides orientation
toward Europe and Russia, there is "internal order". What could this
mean? This could mean that it is not a secret that 600,000 to 1 million
Jews live hiding their identity who have held high-ranking positions
throughout 90 years of the history of the republic, and certainly,
under the sultan, if not top positions in the Turkish political
elite. Once I proposed regarding the emergence of the Refat Party,
and afterwards the Justice and Development Party that it is related
to the struggle on Sunni Tarikats in Turkey, Naqshbandia and Qadiria,
as well as other, less influential ones. It is possible that it is
only one sacramental doctrine and it does not rule out another one,
an attempt of the representatives of other ethnic groups in Turkey
to oust the traditional crypto-Jews from the political arena.
It is not something new in the new and modern history of Turkey,
and similar goals regarding the crypto-Jews had been set earlier.
The best way to organize the rotation of elites in Turkey has been the
racist slogans. The Turkish elite are much better organized than it
appears to be, and this organization is not limited to formal political
parties. Currently, groups representing ethnic groups, coming from the
Balkans, the Caucasus, the countries of the countries of the Blessed
Crescent are rising in Turkey. In other words, the countries which are
interested in neo-Ottomanism, not pan-Turkism. In other words, it is a
matter of granting a new, more preferential status to these ethnicities
in their historical homeland. It may look like overly fantastic but
considering only one of the goals, it is totally realistic.
Igor Muradyan
Lragir.am News
http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/politics23333.html
12:18:17 - 14/09/2011
The tradition of the "Jewish Post" is to repeat from generation to
generation that anti-Semitism is not typical of some European and
Asian nations. They normally mention such countries as Turkey and
South Caucasus. In reality, Turkey and the countries of the South
Caucasus have always had anti-Semitism. For instance, it should be
noted that immediately after the onset of the Arab-Israeli war in
June 1967, with whipped government anti-Semitism in the USSR, only in
Azerbaijan, a Jewish newborn was killed as an act of revenge. It was
the son of the Baku-based Jew, Vitaly Shkolnik, who was hit against
the wall by the son of the head of the chair of the history of the
USSR, Professor Ismailov. This crime was covered up, but the city
learned that other racial crimes were being prepared against Jews.
A great number of serious pieces of research on anti-Semitism have
been published in Turkey, including by Armenian historians in Soviet
times. At the same time, Turkey and even Bulgaria were the countries
which where thousands of Jews of Central Europe found refuge in the
1930s to 1940s. Anti-Semitism in Turkey is highly controversial,
and one can still refer to events which are totally incompatible.
Presently, the government of the ruling party, Justice and Development,
has adopted insolent anti-Semitism as a government policy, though at
the same time it is trying to demonstrate correctness regarding the
Jewish community in Istanbul.
In this, there is some strangeness because the comments on the
statement of the Turkish prime minister look contrived and rather
artificial. The impression is that of an under-rehearsed spectacle. To
be able to understand the meaning of this statement, one needs to
scrutinize the reaction and vigilance of the political elites of Arab
and other Muslim states. Not to take account of the excited reaction
of the street, it should be noted that the Arab elites and Iran are
not excited about these pronouncement of the Turkish prime minister,
realizing that thereby Turkish influence in the Islamic world is
enhanced, which contradicts to their interests.
On the whole, the anti-Israeli policy of Turkey looks quite
artificial. At the same time, if we take account of the reserved
and checked evaluations of the European Leftist-Liberal and Russian
chauvinistic press, one may think that this striking policy of Ankara
is intended for Europe and Russia. So far, none of the political
leaders of Europe and Russia has echoed these events. However,
considering that Ahmed Davutoglu, the Turkish foreign minister,
considers himself a politician of many moves, and a historical person
like Richelieu or Churchill, it is possible that besides orientation
toward Europe and Russia, there is "internal order". What could this
mean? This could mean that it is not a secret that 600,000 to 1 million
Jews live hiding their identity who have held high-ranking positions
throughout 90 years of the history of the republic, and certainly,
under the sultan, if not top positions in the Turkish political
elite. Once I proposed regarding the emergence of the Refat Party,
and afterwards the Justice and Development Party that it is related
to the struggle on Sunni Tarikats in Turkey, Naqshbandia and Qadiria,
as well as other, less influential ones. It is possible that it is
only one sacramental doctrine and it does not rule out another one,
an attempt of the representatives of other ethnic groups in Turkey
to oust the traditional crypto-Jews from the political arena.
It is not something new in the new and modern history of Turkey,
and similar goals regarding the crypto-Jews had been set earlier.
The best way to organize the rotation of elites in Turkey has been the
racist slogans. The Turkish elite are much better organized than it
appears to be, and this organization is not limited to formal political
parties. Currently, groups representing ethnic groups, coming from the
Balkans, the Caucasus, the countries of the countries of the Blessed
Crescent are rising in Turkey. In other words, the countries which are
interested in neo-Ottomanism, not pan-Turkism. In other words, it is a
matter of granting a new, more preferential status to these ethnicities
in their historical homeland. It may look like overly fantastic but
considering only one of the goals, it is totally realistic.