Military sharpens debate in Turkey
A rally Sunday backed a secular Turkey. The military weighed in, warning against Islamization.
from the April 30, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
Vowing to fulfill its "lawful duty" to protect the state, the military said the "Islamic reactionary mentality that is against the Republic [is] expanding in scope."
"It's about time, but they waited too long," said one young man about the military's statement. "The [Islamists] have really crossed a line."
In a vote boycotted by the opposition on Friday, parliament narrowly failed to elect Gul, the sole candidate. President Sezer, who has vetoed Islamic legislation in the past and refused to confirm a string of AKP appointments, warned that since its founding, Turkey's "political regime has never been under this much threat."
A second vote is set for Wednesday. If it fails to produce a two-thirds majority, a third vote will probably succeed on May 9, when only an absolute majority is required. But if the constitutional court annuls the first vote, Turkey could be forced into early parliamentary elections, now slated for November.
One woman at the protest predicted chaos if Gul were elected. "People are fed up – this is the end of the road for [the Islamists]. People just don't trust them," says the woman, a professional who brought her mother and danced to the music while waving a Turkish flag.
But political language about threats to the motherland have been exaggerated at times by politicians seeking to breed fear of Islamic rule that has grown from grassroots efforts to help the poor. Secular elites have not provided alternatives.
Professor Narli says that "there is an Islamization of society, but when I look at people with Islamic backgrounds and Islamists, they are changing." "In the past, they were more uniform in the way they dressed, in the way they behaved.... But today I see diversity.
"They try to adopt modern and Western trends [and] try to make a new synthesis," adds Narli. "What they want is a ... contemporary life. They don't want to cover themselves ... [or] face pressure."
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