Today’s Zaman, Turkey
March 21 2010

Deep state did great injustice to non-Muslim minorities, says Ã?elik

`The deep state and the pro-single-party spirit of the Republican
People’s Party [CHP] lies behind the injustices that were done to
non-Muslims in Turkey, which runs entirely contrary to the foundations
of our culture,’ said Hüseyin Ã?elik, the Justice and Development
Party’s (AK Party) deputy chairman.

Speaking to Sunday’s Zaman in an exclusive interview, Ã?elik, who was
formerly Turkey’s education minister, said the CHP and Turkey’s deep
state have `otherized’ most of the population, which he identified as
being villagers, Alevis, Kurds, non-Muslims and the pious.

The single-party period of Turkey begins with the CHP being the only
party after the founding of the republic on Oct. 29, 1923 and ends in
1946 with the establishment of the National Development Party (MKP).

`Serious injustices were done to all these groups during the
single-party era in Turkey; however, the injustices done to the
non-Muslims were more severe. The wealth tax was a disgrace. The
closure of the Greek seminary was a great shame. The Sept. 6-7
incidents were an inhumane conspiracy that humiliated Turkey in the
eyes of the world. The alienated villagers were unable to enter
Ankara’s city center until 1946. The violation of the rights of the
humiliated Alevis, Kurds and the pious have continued until today,’
Ã?elik explained.

The wealth tax was a tax levied on the wealthy citizens of Turkey in
1942, with the stated aim of raising funds for the country’s defense
in the event of eventual entry into World War II. Those who suffered
most severely from this tax were non-Muslims: Jews, Greeks, Armenians
and Levantines, who controlled a large portion of the economy.

Established on Oct. 1, 1844, on Heybeli Island — or Halki in Greek —
in the Marmara Sea, the Halki Seminary was the main school of theology
for the Eastern Orthodox Church’s patriarchate in Ä°stanbul until its
closure by Turkish authorities in 1971.

The unfortunate events of Sept. 6-7, 1955 started after a newspaper
headline said the home of the nation’s founder, Atatürk, in Greece had
been bombed by Greek militants. Fired up by the media, mobs killed and
harassed non-Muslims and non-Turkish minorities in a massive campaign.

Ã?elik explained that the first group that saved itself from the
`otherization’ policy were the villagers. The votes of these people
made it possible for Turkey to adopt a multi-party system in 1946 and
played an important role in ensuring this.

Indicating that 80 percent of the public was living in villages back
then, Ã?elik said: `Since the politicians had to ask for the votes of
the villagers, they were saved from being an `otherized’ group. It was
forbidden for the villagers to enter Ulus and Kızılay [neighborhoods
located in central Ankara] until 1946.’

He stressed that it was also crucial to end the `otherization’ of
other groups, showing democracy as the only way to achieve this.
Complaining about the ongoing debates in Turkey about non-Muslims,
Ã?elik said these debates led to an unnecessary public sensitivity
about non-Muslims in the country.

`We have been having `ecumenical’ debates for a long time. Is
Bartholomew ecumenical or not? It’s none of our business. Why do
Muslims debate the world leader of the Orthodox community, why do they
want to be decision-makers regarding this issue? Let the Orthodox
community decide on this. If they see Ä°stanbul Fener Patriarch
Bartholomew as ecumenical, do we have any right to debate this as
non-Orthodox people? Let the Orthodox people decide of their own free
will,’ he said.

Ã?elik described the closure of the Greek seminary as another great
injustice done to non-Muslims and said it was very embarrassing that
Turkey had failed to overcome the resistance of the pro-status quo
circles to reopen the school.

When asked what kind of obstacles the government has faced regarding
its efforts to reopen the seminary, Ã?elik said: `We cannot overcome
the status quo. We cannot act alone. Why was a reform package which
was approved by 411 deputies cancelled by the Constitutional Court?
Can Parliament and government decide on a reform, can they put it into
force in this country?’ asked Ã?elik.

He was referring to a reform initiated by the government in 2008 that
would remove the headscarf ban at universities but which was cancelled
by the Constitutional Court, despite getting overwhelming support from
Parliament. The reform was challenged by the CHP at the Constitutional
Court.

Recalling another incident that took place in 2004, Ã?elik said former
secretary-general of the National Security Council (MGK) Tuncer Kılıç
visited him, as education minister, and asked him to issue a
regulation for the closure of all private schools. He said since the
closure of private schools opened by followers of Turkish religious
scholar Fethullah Gülen could not be closed down alone, closing down
all private schools would ensure their closure as well.

`I told him such a thing was impossible to do and that doing something
like this would be no different to bringing in communism. I tell you
this because other schools were also closed down along with the Greek
seminary. It was totally a wrong decision to close down the seminary,
and it should be reopened,’ Ã?elik said in further remarks.

Minority status may be changed

The AK Party deputy chairman, who said all citizens of the Turkish
Republic were first-class citizens no matter what their religion or
language, explained that the minority status granted to the non-Muslim
communities in Turkey by the Lausanne Treaty may be altered.

`In my view, none of our 72 million citizens should be treated as a
minority,’ Ã?elik said. Indicating that believers of the three
monotheistic religions along with many other religious communities
lived in peace during the Ottoman Empire, Ã?elik said the state
approached all religions and beliefs with tolerance back then. `The
slogan that reflected this in the Ottoman Empire was `Diversity in
unity,’ a slogan which is now promoted by the Council of Europe. The
two cultures met at the same point centuries later.’

Ã?elik, who launched the restoration of the Armenian Akdamar Church in
Van, said there was no problem in holding religious services in the
church and hanging a crucifix on its wall.’

The Akdamar Church on Akdamar Island on Lake Van was opened in 2007 as
a museum after it was restored by the Turkish government between May
2005 and October 2006. The restoration cost $1.7 million (TL 2.6
million).

Ã?elik said it was hypocritical of some to demand the survival of
Ottoman-era works of art in other countries while opposing the
restoration of Akdamar Church.

`Genocide’ allegations used as a political trump card

Remarking on the approval of resolutions that recognize killings of
Armenians in 1915 as `genocide,’ by the US House Foreign Affairs
Committee and the Swedish parliament, Hüseyin �elik, the Justice and
Development Party’s (AK Party) deputy chairman, said the `genocide’
issue was being used as a political trump card against Turkey. `No
parliament of one country can make a ruling about the history of
another country. It is the historians and scientists that will decide
on history. Politicians cannot make decisions regarding this. Even if
they do, their decisions will be meaningless,’ he said.

21 March 2010, Sunday

ALÄ° ASLAN KILIÃ? ANKARA