TRABZON’S ‘ANGER’ FOCUS OF RESEARCH
Hurriyet
June 16 2009
Turkey
ISTANBUL – In recent years, Trabzon has made national and international
headlines for all the wrong reasons. Two academics, one from the Black
Sea port, conduct sociological research in the city and publish their
findings in a book called ‘Trabzon’u Anlamak’ (Understanding Trabzon).
The Black Sea port city of Trabzon has made national and international
headlines in recent years for its apparent lack of communal harmony,
as stories of murders and assassinations abound, leading two academics
to publish a book on the topic.
On Feb. 5, 2006, Father Andrea Santoro of the Catholic Church of
Santa Maria in Trabzon was murdered. Not a year had passed when
another murder put Trabzon back in the spotlight Jan. 19, 2007,
when Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, the editor in chief at
the bilingual daily Agos, was gunned down in Istanbul. The suspected
perpetrators of both murders were born in Trabzon.
Following these two crimes, which shook the world as well as Turkey,
two academics decided to collaborate on a sociological research
project about Trabzon, with the ultimate aim of preparing a general
sociological profile of the entire country.
Trabzon youth and the concept of nationalism
"Today’s youth does not live in its own modest world; therefore,
its expectations are high," coauthor Dr. Guven Bakırezer told the
Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review. "The young people of Trabzon
have no hopes for the future. There are no channels for their
intellectual or physical energy. Therefore, the youth easily turn
to the nationalistic right when the European Union, the Kurds or the
Armenians are the subject."
Yucel Demirer, Bakırezer’s coauthor, agreed. "It was important for
us to investigate why Trabzon was the place; [why] the offenders were
from here and whether the incidents were organized," Demirer said. "The
change in Trabzon should be considered within the scope of the process
of change that has occurred and is occurring throughout Turkey."
Although Trabzon is a city with thousands of years of history,
lately it is only mentioned for acts of violence. Bakırezer said
the cosmopolitan structure of the city was disrupted between 1915 and
1924 when its non-Muslim community was sent away. "The cultures and
ethnic minorities that lived in Trabzon for thousands of years are
never mentioned in any way," he said. "Trabzon does not stake any
claim to its multicultural history; it cannot even stomach historic
artifacts left from different cultures after nationalism put down
deep roots rapidly."
Bakırezer pointed to economic difficulties as the reason behind
Trabzon’s current problems, arguing that the economy of the city has
been worsening throughout the history of the Republic. According
to Bakırezer, the city’s industry has yet to develop and the
governments of the Republican era have been unable to find a solution
to overpopulation in the rural areas.
"The lack of industry and the high unemployment rates caused inflation
for the city," he said. "Trabzon is one of the provinces that suffered
the most during the economic crisis in 2001. It also happened to be
one of the provinces that experienced the fastest shift to the right
in politics. Yasin Hayal, the alleged instigator of the Dink murder,
bombing a McDonalds in Trabzon was a very important sign."
Demirer said the sociological changes that took place in the city
right after the fall of the Eastern Bloc were significant. "The
organized prostitution market affects the social structure deeply
and will continue to do so for years to come," he added. "We should
be prepared for the consequences."
Researchers’ backgrounds
One of the researchers, Bakırezer, was born in Trabzon. An
assistant professor at the faculty of political sciences and public
administration at Kocaeli University, he worked as a guest researcher
for the Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies at the
University of Michigan from 1998 to 1999.
His coauthor, Demirer, earned a master’s degree in sociology
at Fisk University in Nashville and his doctorate at Ohio State
University. Their book, "Trabzon’u Anlamak" (Understanding Trabzon),
was published by Ä°letiÅ~_im Publishing and focuses on Trabzon’s
history and current state of affairs, particularly the Santoro and
Dink assassinations.