KurdistanObserver.com
The Most Distinguish Characteristic of Modern Turkish Nationalism:
Denial of Reality, Xenophobia, Racism, and Anti-Semitism
By: Amed Demirhan
Mar 7, 2005
The people in Turkey from elementary school and on are indoctrinated with
denial of historical realities and socio-ethnographical and cultural
diversity in their country. All form of mass media daily reinforces this
abnormality, and any one that questions this, will become subject of the
witch-hunt. When, one listens to mainstream Turkish politician and `educated
class’ one wonders if they are from the plant of Earth or somewhere else?
The recent debate in Turkey is a typical example of this abnormalities: the
government foreign policy; the mass medias which hunts against writer Orhan
Pamuk statement in regards to Armenian genocide and crime against Kurds, and
the Ministry of environment and forest changing name of wild animals just to
exclude words Kurdistan and Armenian, and the increase in Anti-Semitism are
typical characteristics of modern Turkish nationalism. This type of
nationalism as evidenced in many historical examples is harmful to every one
including the nation it advocate for, therefore, standing against current
Turkish nationalism is as important as standing against Nazism, Stalinism,
Saddams’ Regime and Bathism. It is in the best interest of Turkish people to
be liberated from this illness.
The government of Turkey still refuses to call Bath’sist (Sunni-Hanafi) and
Islamic Fascist in central Iraq terrorist. In the past many time Turkey had
strongly protested United States lead freedom forces victory in the city of
Falluga and Tell Afar, in Iraq, but until now it never protested terrorist
attacks against civilian in Iraq. At the same time it had characterized
Israel’s shelve defense acts against terrorist Islam-I Jihad organization as
state terrorism. Recently a Turkish news portal `Haber X (3/2/050) reported
that about 400 Turks are fighting against the USA lead freedom forces in
Iraq with terrorist leader Al-Zarkavi. It noted that these fighters are
veterans from Bosnian war against Serbia. This indicates that Turkish
government knows who are these `Turkish – Islamic’ fighters because almost
all of those fighters that went to Bosnia, Chechnya, and in the past to
Afghanistan went via Turkish intelligence services. In addition, in March
first of this year 200 Turkish `intellectuals’: journalists, professors,
writers, and some `civic’ organization representative visited Syria to show
their solidarity with Syrian dictatorship against Western pressure and the
United Nation request for Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon. Most of these 200
people are closely related to the state (its hard to call them civilian).
March 1, is significant, it is the day Turkish Parliament under Turkish
military pressure refused to let the USA lead forces go through Turkey and
open a second front against Saddams regime. This indicate that Turkish
regime is the most anti-Westernization and democratization of the Middle
East because it sees freedom as a treat to its regime.
One may expect a Turkey that had received a negotiation date from European
Union (EU) may act little better internally but looking in a recent debate
it is doubtful and domestic policy like its foreign policy is
anti-democratic. Last week one of the most famous Turkish writers Orhan
Pamuk in an interview stated, that One million Armenian and 30,000 Kurds had
been victim of the state (Turkish state). About 90% of media commentators
started a lynching company against the author and political organization
like infamous `Gray Wolfe’ movement send death treat to the author. In fact
Mr. Pamuk’s statement could have been subject of a serious debate and his
statement is very questionable because more than one million Armenian and
Assurian/Keldan have been killed and the number of Kurds have been killed
since foundation of the Turkish republic is very high and millions were
deported from their homes. This shows how much free debate is possible in
Turkey that prepares to join to EU?
The republic of Turkey prohibited every thing that wasn’t Turkish in
historic multinational and cultural diverse geography and named them in
Turkish from beginning. Apparently they have forgotten few wild animals name
like: “Vulpes Vulpes Kürdistanicum’ (A fox in Kurdistan area) and `Ovis
Armeniana’ (wild sheep in old Armenia) in their scientific classification.
The ministry of environment and forest acted right away on this discovery
and changed their name to Turkish. ( 3/5/05). I wonder
if any one knows or heard this kind of xenophobia, racism and hatred
anywhere? Even Sheep and Foxes cannot be Armenian or Kurdistani? The modern
Turkish nationalism is founded of the denial of reality and has been
indoctrinating its population in this denial and hatred on any thing that is
not Turkish. This is fundamental problem for every one who has to deal with
Turkish regime. Despite every thing the official doctrine is totally
bankrupted and regime is very weak. Change of regime is unavoidable in
Turkey and its necessary.
Amed Demirhan
e-mail: [email protected]
Florida, USA