The Editor, Wall
Street Journal
Re: The article by Guy Chazan in the WSJ 4/24/2003 edition.
G. Chazanís article ìTurkish Turnabout: Is the Army the Westís Enemy?î
portrays the Ataturkist military and bureaucracy as a nationalist
obstacle, and the religionist party in power as a chance for greater
democracy and development in Turkey. This view seems to be consistent
with the recent views of the EU and of the ìcompassionate conservatismî
of the US administration. The line adopted after 9/11 that the militant
Islam, which is an aberration of the religion, is an obstacle to freedom
and that moderate Islam in politics would defeat this militancy is
no more than political correctness.
Ataturk principles meticulously protected by the military are not
nationalistic, nor are they against religious freedom and
development.
What the EU and
the writers in the US like G. Chazan do not apprehend are that in
the last 200 years of experience of Turkey the
involvement of religion in politics and in the governance of the country
did not bring anything but instability and delays in development.
Ataturkís reforms were introduced to separate religion from politics
in absolute terms in order to bring rationalism, democracy, freedom
and progress.
This absolute
separation was not practiced diligently by Ataturkís successors. As
the writer notes the Islamist party came to power with the votes of
those who are ìsick of corruption and incompetence of Turkeyís established
politiciansî, not because the public expects the Islamists to bring
greater democracy, freedom and development.
The ignorance of realities of Ataturkís political philosophy is excusable,
as unfortunately it is not taught in schools. Some
political decisions taken in Europe and the US prove that it is time
to abandon the practice of the old ìVictorian compromiseî between
religion and politics, and move on to an absolute separation of the
two as advocated by Ataturk, like the desired separation between military
and politics.
The new ideological
war demonstrates that this change would be more conducive to peace in
the 21st century.
M. Camcigil, President, Ataturk Society of America
