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TURKEY'S SEARCH FOR A NEW PARADIGM FOR THE RESOLUTION PROCESS
Daily Sabah, Turkey
May 16 2014
Markar Esayan
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan once said, "We are looking for
clear water to turn our faces," a comment which preceded his condolence
message for the 1915 tragedy. This expression seemingly caught the
attention of no one but Etyen Mahcupyan. At least, there weren't
many people who wrote about this critical and radical sentence. This
radical remark actually has showed the reformist leader and his party's
need and determination to break all ties from Turkey's oligarchic
state regime as a paradigm. Even though the reforms might have been
casually made in 2002, when the story of the party's rule began,
they now demand intellectual depth and ideological background.
In order to complete the "revolution of the people," and make the
transformation in Turkey permanent, it is necessary to ponder and
deepen the theoretical background of the discussion on oligarchic
alliances in Turkey.
Erdogan expressed this need through the metaphor of "clear water." So,
which system of values would replace the unhealthy ideas of the
Kemalist mindset while facing the 1915 incident and the resolution
of the Kurdish problem in Turkey? Kemalist oligarchy is built upon
radical positivism and racism, a product of Western corruption. It is
not even an original invention or an anomaly peculiar to this country.
It produced Kurdish, Armenian and Alevi issues and political and
economic exploitation. Each of Turkey's attempts to stop this system
of exploitation was interrupted by coup d'états supported by the West.
Even influential leaders such as Turgut Ozal, who was willing to
solve the Kurdish and Armenian problems, were hampered by lynchings
carried out by this oligarchy alliance. And the leaders attempting
to solve the Kurdish issue such as Erbakan and Ecevit ended up with
explicit or implicit coups.
So, in the face of these problems, how can one possibly reverse the
social indoctrination (or poisoning) process of state apparatuses? A
radical step such as ending the war with the PKK could not be taken
without persuading the public. How would it be possible to send
condolences for the 1915 incident in a country where the Armenians
were demonized by the secular and elite stratum of society for 100
years? How is it possible while the Republican People's Party and its
media apparatuses, which regard themselves as "secular, western and
modern," hate the idea of being equal to others and resist reforms
through their media and bureaucratic power?
The only problem is not the fact that the Kemalist oligarchy is a
racist dictatorship. This paradigm is also completely alien to this
geography. So, while burning all the bridges with this mindset,
it was essential to avoid imposing a project upon the public and
attempting any kind of political engineering, even though they were
performed with goodwill. Do not forget that the Kemalists also took
this road with goodwill.
Both Erdogan and Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the PKK, were aware
of the delicacy of the condition. So, they settled the resolution
process both on the global rules of democracy and the values of
Islam. It was not possible to initiate the process without erasing the
Kemalist nationalism from public awareness. Mutual values of peace
and equality, which have a context in public, replaced the decadent
values. Islam has many considerable references indicating that Turks,
Kurds, Armenians and all the other communities should be equal. On
the occasion of Newroz in 2013, Ocalan said it was essential to shift
to a democratic system instead of imperialist modernity, referring
to Islam to support his ideas. This also means that the PKK, which
has a strong secular tradition, would make peace with religion and
the religious masses. While taking this step, they did not abandon
democracy. They only built a hybrid and authentic model. In this way,
society could create a peaceful atmosphere with its own unique methods
and the real maestro would be the people. From this point of view,
it is evident that Erdogan and Ocalan are the leaders paving the way
for participatory democracy rather than imposing ideas.
On May 11 and 12, 2014, the Democratic Islam Congress was held in
Diyarbakır upon Ocalan's call. A critical declaration was announced
at the Congress. The declaration suggested that peace would be found
both in light of the universal rules adopted by Turkey's communities
and the community of equality and negotiation stated in the Medina
Pact according to Islam. So far, this bloody war has claimed the lives
of 40,000 people and broke the two communities apart. To rebuild the
atmosphere of security that fell to pieces due to the war, this hybrid
model was ideal.
The secularists are startled when they hear the word "Islam" as a
result of their arrogance, slyness, but mostly ignorance. For Turkish
and Kurdish communities, there is nothing more normal and healthier
than remembering their common past dating back 1,000 years. And when
this process ends in success, more equal relationships will be possible
not only within Turkey, but also between the West and the East, which
will surely contribute to the peace in the world more than impositions.
http://www.dailysabah.com/opinion/2014/05/16/turkeys-search-for-a-new-paradigm-for-the-resolution-process
Daily Sabah, Turkey
May 16 2014
Markar Esayan
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan once said, "We are looking for
clear water to turn our faces," a comment which preceded his condolence
message for the 1915 tragedy. This expression seemingly caught the
attention of no one but Etyen Mahcupyan. At least, there weren't
many people who wrote about this critical and radical sentence. This
radical remark actually has showed the reformist leader and his party's
need and determination to break all ties from Turkey's oligarchic
state regime as a paradigm. Even though the reforms might have been
casually made in 2002, when the story of the party's rule began,
they now demand intellectual depth and ideological background.
In order to complete the "revolution of the people," and make the
transformation in Turkey permanent, it is necessary to ponder and
deepen the theoretical background of the discussion on oligarchic
alliances in Turkey.
Erdogan expressed this need through the metaphor of "clear water." So,
which system of values would replace the unhealthy ideas of the
Kemalist mindset while facing the 1915 incident and the resolution
of the Kurdish problem in Turkey? Kemalist oligarchy is built upon
radical positivism and racism, a product of Western corruption. It is
not even an original invention or an anomaly peculiar to this country.
It produced Kurdish, Armenian and Alevi issues and political and
economic exploitation. Each of Turkey's attempts to stop this system
of exploitation was interrupted by coup d'états supported by the West.
Even influential leaders such as Turgut Ozal, who was willing to
solve the Kurdish and Armenian problems, were hampered by lynchings
carried out by this oligarchy alliance. And the leaders attempting
to solve the Kurdish issue such as Erbakan and Ecevit ended up with
explicit or implicit coups.
So, in the face of these problems, how can one possibly reverse the
social indoctrination (or poisoning) process of state apparatuses? A
radical step such as ending the war with the PKK could not be taken
without persuading the public. How would it be possible to send
condolences for the 1915 incident in a country where the Armenians
were demonized by the secular and elite stratum of society for 100
years? How is it possible while the Republican People's Party and its
media apparatuses, which regard themselves as "secular, western and
modern," hate the idea of being equal to others and resist reforms
through their media and bureaucratic power?
The only problem is not the fact that the Kemalist oligarchy is a
racist dictatorship. This paradigm is also completely alien to this
geography. So, while burning all the bridges with this mindset,
it was essential to avoid imposing a project upon the public and
attempting any kind of political engineering, even though they were
performed with goodwill. Do not forget that the Kemalists also took
this road with goodwill.
Both Erdogan and Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the PKK, were aware
of the delicacy of the condition. So, they settled the resolution
process both on the global rules of democracy and the values of
Islam. It was not possible to initiate the process without erasing the
Kemalist nationalism from public awareness. Mutual values of peace
and equality, which have a context in public, replaced the decadent
values. Islam has many considerable references indicating that Turks,
Kurds, Armenians and all the other communities should be equal. On
the occasion of Newroz in 2013, Ocalan said it was essential to shift
to a democratic system instead of imperialist modernity, referring
to Islam to support his ideas. This also means that the PKK, which
has a strong secular tradition, would make peace with religion and
the religious masses. While taking this step, they did not abandon
democracy. They only built a hybrid and authentic model. In this way,
society could create a peaceful atmosphere with its own unique methods
and the real maestro would be the people. From this point of view,
it is evident that Erdogan and Ocalan are the leaders paving the way
for participatory democracy rather than imposing ideas.
On May 11 and 12, 2014, the Democratic Islam Congress was held in
Diyarbakır upon Ocalan's call. A critical declaration was announced
at the Congress. The declaration suggested that peace would be found
both in light of the universal rules adopted by Turkey's communities
and the community of equality and negotiation stated in the Medina
Pact according to Islam. So far, this bloody war has claimed the lives
of 40,000 people and broke the two communities apart. To rebuild the
atmosphere of security that fell to pieces due to the war, this hybrid
model was ideal.
The secularists are startled when they hear the word "Islam" as a
result of their arrogance, slyness, but mostly ignorance. For Turkish
and Kurdish communities, there is nothing more normal and healthier
than remembering their common past dating back 1,000 years. And when
this process ends in success, more equal relationships will be possible
not only within Turkey, but also between the West and the East, which
will surely contribute to the peace in the world more than impositions.
http://www.dailysabah.com/opinion/2014/05/16/turkeys-search-for-a-new-paradigm-for-the-resolution-process