Turkeys long standing pass through the Symplegades of secularisation and Islamisation (original) (raw)
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Since 1923 and the establishment of the First Turkish Republic by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk several efforts have been made under the prospect of Turkey’s modernisation. During the First Turkish Republic (1923-1950), this process was identified with the adoption of western-style rule of law and the exclusion of religion from the public sphere. After 1950, the coexistence of secular and Islamic tradition depicted a new challenge in Turkey’s search for a modus vivendi and empowerment of internal sociopolitical cohesion, since aspects of Islamization entered again into the public sphere after the Ottoman Empire’s dissolution. Later on, in the aftermath of the 1980 coup d'état and the rise of the Turkish-Islamic synthesis, Turkey seemed to enter into a new era, in which the peaceful coexistence of Islam and secularism – and subsequently internal stability after the 1970s’ turmoil – would be guaranteed. Nevertheless, the Turkish-Islamic synthesis has not been the ‘dove’ in Turkey’s long-standing efforts to pass through the Symplegades of secularisation and Islamisation. Starting from May 2013, the Gezi park protests came to remind to everyone that the balance between secularism and Islam in Turkey is fragile. The questions, the proposed paper comes to answer, concern the historical roots of the interrelation between secularism and Islam in Turkey. Can Islam be compatible with western-style liberal democracy and the rule of law? Under this scope, is a construction of a modernist Turkish nation-state possible? Do the Gezi Park protests represent a symptom of a long-standing conflict or just a coincidence? The above-mentioned questions are about to be examined via bibliographical research as well as interviews with Middle East, Turkey and Islam specialists. The coexistence of secularist and Islamic principles is considered the greatest challenge for Turkey’s internal stability especially in this period, when she is promoted as a ‘model’ for the diluted post-Arab Spring Greater Middle East.
Since 1923 and the establishment of the First Turkish Republic by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk several efforts have been made under the prospect of Turkey’s modernisation. During the First Turkish Republic (1923-1950), this process was identified with the adoption of western-style rule of law and the exclusion of religion from the public sphere. After 1950, the coexistence of secular and Islamic tradition depicted a new challenge in Turkey’s search for a modus vivendi and empowerment of internal sociopolitical cohesion, since aspects of Islamization entered again into the public sphere after the Ottoman Empire’s dissolution. Later on, in the aftermath of the 1980 coup d'état and the rise of the Turkish-Islamic synthesis, Turkey seemed to enter into a new era, in which the peaceful coexistence of Islam and secularism – and subsequently internal stability after the 1970s’ turmoil – would be guaranteed. Nevertheless, the Turkish-Islamic synthesis has not been the ‘dove’ in Turkey’s long-standing efforts to pass through the Symplegades of secularisation and Islamisation. Starting from May 2013, the Gezi park protests came to remind to everyone that the balance between secularism and Islam in Turkey is fragile. The questions, the proposed paper comes to answer, concern the historical roots of the interrelation between secularism and Islam in Turkey. Can Islam be compatible with western-style liberal democracy and the rule of law? Under this scope, is a construction of a modernist Turkish nation-state possible? Do the Gezi Park protests represent a symptom of a long-standing conflict or just a coincidence? The above-mentioned questions are about to be examined via bibliographical research as well as interviews with Middle East, Turkey and Islam specialists. The coexistence of secularist and Islamic principles is considered the greatest challenge for Turkey’s internal stability especially in this period, when she is promoted as a ‘model’ for the diluted post-Arab Spring Greater Middle East.
Secular and Islamic Politics in Turkey
Turkey is 99% Muslim, its ruling party, Justice and Development Party (JDP), comes from but denies its Islamist pedigree and has a very secular feel. However, the deeply secular regime distrusts the JDP with regard to its 'true' colours. This book tries to make sense of these paradoxical perceptions which have characterized Turkey's politics since the JDP came to power in 2002.
Secularism and Islam in Turkey: A Century of Contention
A Companion to Modern Turkey’s Centennial: Political, Sociological, Economic and Institutional Transformations since 1923 (Edinburgh University Press), edited by Alpaslan Özerdem and Ahmet Erdi Öztürk, 2023
Turkish politics has had two major fault-lines since 1923. One is the Kurdish Question, while the other is the Islam vs. secularism debate. The clash between Islamists and secularists has its roots in the late Ottoman politics. The Turkish Republic abolished the caliphate and closed madrasas in 1924; it made secularism a constitutional principle in 1937. Since then, there have been various transformations in Turkish state’s secular characteristic. The only stable aspect of secularism in Turkey during the last century is that the Turkish legal system, including the Constitution and all other laws, has been secular. Nonetheless, there has been a confusion about the secular characteristic of the Turkish state, for a long list of other reasons, including the status of the Diyanet, public Islamic education, and, recently, the emergence of populist Islamist Erdoğan regime. This chapter examines the centennial of Turkish secularism by focusing on various periods of the contention between secularists and Islamists, as well as exploring certain complexities of secularism in Turkey, which seem confusing to not only foreign observers but also citizens of Turkey.
Oxford Bibliographies Online Datasets
Since 1937, Turkey has been officially defined as a secular state, albeit with a Muslim-majority population. However, secularism in the Turkish context is distinctive, a product of its particular historical experience and development. Both the Ottoman heritage and contemporary Turkey’s Kemalist founding fathers’ apprehension were decisive factors in the evolution of Turkish secularism (laiklik) and set Turkey’s experience apart from that of other modern secular states. Turkish understanding of secularism itself has never had one single, unambiguous interpretation in Turkey, but in general it is widely understood that it reflects a sense that the state should not be totally blind to religious issues, but also should never favor one particular religion over another. Thus, Islamic practice was carried over in the society from the Ottoman state to the new Turkish Republic and allowed republican elites to declare a new structural order, without losing hegemonic power over religion. At th...
The Identity of Turkey: Muslim and secular
This article analyses the rise of political Islam in Turkey in the context of the akp's tenure in power with reference to complex social, economic, historical and ideational factors. It aims to answer one of the key questions, which has wider implications for the West and Islamic world: 'having experienced the bad and good of the West in secularism and democracy', as claimed by Samuel Huntington's 'clash of civilisations' thesis, is Turkey in transition from a secular to an Islamic state? The article first questions Turkey's 'bridge' or 'torn-country' status and then explains the akp's ambivalent policies towards religious and identity issues in relation to the increased public visibility of Islam and a 'performative reflexivity' of 'Muslim-selves'. It concludes that the real issue at stake is not the assumed clash of secular and Muslim identities but the complex of interdependence between Islam, secularism and democratisation in Turkey.