Modern Turkey The Ottoman Empire in 1914

Modern Turkey

The Ottoman Empire in 1914

Abdul Hammid II The Last Sultan • 1842 -1918 • Ruled 1876 -1909 • Started out as a reformer, but grew more autocratic. - Approved a Constitution in 1877, suspended it in 1878. • Removed from power by the “Young Turks” in 1909.

The Young Turks Revolt: 1908 § The Committee of Union and Progress § Mehmet Talaat Ø Grand Vizier, 1917 -1918 § Enver Pasha Ø Minister of War Ø Ottoman Commanderin-Chief

The Young Turks Program Pushed for reforms, basic democratic rights: - freedom of speech. - freedom of assembly. - freedom of the press. § Problem of nationalism within heterogeneous empire.

World War I Alliances: 1914 -1918

Europeans Carve Up the Ottoman Empire After WWI

Mustafa Kamal Atatürk (1881 -1938) • 1881 -1938. Born in area now in Greece. Family was middle class; father was a timber merchant. • A military commander who distinguished himself during the WWI, waged a war revoke the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres which had left Greek and Russian forces in some areas of Anatolia and had provided for an independent Kurdish State. • By 1922, the occupying armies were repelled and the newly founded parliament formally abolished the Sultanate, ending 623 years of Ottoman rule. • The Treaty of Lausanne of 1923 led to the international recognition of the sovereignty of the newly formed "Republic of Turkey. “ • Turkish parliament presented Mustafa Kemal with the honorific name "Atatürk" (Father of the Turks) in 1934.

Mustafa Kemal’s Republican People’s Party Goals: - Republicanism (National Assembly) - Nationalism (“Turkification”) - Populism (for the benefit of the people) - Statism (state-controlled economy) - Secularism (free from religious control) - 1924: Abolished the caliphate.

Atatürk’s Reforms “Turkify” the Islamic faith - Translate the Qur’an into Turkish - Secular education - Ministry of Religious Affairs abolished - Sharia courts closed new secular courts - Abolishment of pious and royal titles Westernization - Adoption of surnames, the International calendar, time and measurements - Forbade the wearing of the fez, veiling of women - Western-style men’s suits - Western style universities

Atatürk’s Reforms 3. Language Reform: - Roman alphabet replaced the Arabic script. - Literacy in new alphabet required for government positions. 4. State Socialism: - State banks established to finance governmentcontrolled businesses. 5.

Atatürk’s Legacy Military and Politics • Military continues to support Ata Turk’s nationalist, statist, secular program. The military has traditionally been viewed by the public as guarantor of economic and political stability and national security. • Military coups in 1960, 1971, 1980, 1997. - That of 1960 led to the death of the Prime Minister (Menderes). - In 1980 there was political unrest due to economic problems, ineffective political parties. - In 1997 action was taken against Prime Minister Erbakan, deemed to be too Islamic. • July 2008, two retired generals and 84 other secular and nationalist activists were arrested for an alleged plot to topple Turkey's Islamicrooted government.

Turkey Today The People • Population: 71, 892, 808 (July 2008 est. ) – 70% Urban • Ethnic groups: Turkish 80%, Kurdish 20% • Religions: Muslim 99. 8% (mostly Sunni), other 0. 2% (mostly Christians and Jews)

Turkic Speaking Peoples

The Kurdish Problem • Turkey's treatment of its citizens of Kurdish origin has been a frequent subject of international criticism. • Kurds have largely resisted forcible assimilation policies of the government since 1930 s. • The main strategy for assimilating the Kurds has been suppression of their language. Most Kurds have retained their native tongue, despite the governmental efforts over several decades to promote Turkish among them.

Kurdish language in Turkey • 1938, Kurdish banned; any individual using Kurdish in public could be fined. • 1961, with a new Turkish constitution, Kurdish publications began to appear, often bilingual, but frequently banned as soon as they appeared. • From 1967 through the late 80 s a series of laws was promulgated which repressed the use of Kurdish. • 1991, the Turkish government removed prohibitions on use of Kurdish. Most Kurds in Turkey, even those who no longer speak Kurdish, regard it as symbolic of their ethnic identity.

Kurdish Armed Rebellions • Armed rebellions in 1925, 1927 -30, 1937, 1984 -present • Present led by Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), originally a Marxist-based group, now more Kurdish nationalistic. • Estimate that the number killed since 1984 exceed 40, 000. • Turkey makes frequent air and ground strikes into Northern Iraq against suspected PKK bases. • President Bush welcomed Prime Minister Erdogan to Washington for a White House visit on November 5, 2007, during which he committed to provide greater assistance to Turkey in its fight against terrorism from the PKK, which he characterized as a "common enemy" of Turkey, Iraq, and the United States. He reiterated this commitment during President Gul's January 8, 2008, White House visit.

Abdullah Ocalan Kurdish Leader Born around 1950, to a peasant family in a small village in southern Turkey. Studied political science at Ankara U. Founder of Kurdish Workers’ Party, PKK. Captured by Turkish Intelligence (in Kenya) in 1999. Death sentence commuted to life. The PKK is blamed for ~30, 000 deaths since early 1980 s.

Turkish Political Structure

Turkish Legislature • Unicameral Grand National Assembly of Turkey or Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi (550 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) • Elections: last held on 22 July 2007 (next to be held on November 2012). Members appointed from Party lists according to percentage of vote the Party receives. Only parties surpassing 10% of the vote are entitled to parliamentary seats • Election Results: Justice and Development Party (AKP) 340, Republican People's Party (CHP) 87, Nationalist Action Party (MHP) 70, Democratic Society Party (DTP) 20, Democratic Left Party (DSP) 13, independents 6, other 12, vacant 2.

Political Parties • 49 Official Parties • The Justice and Development Party portrays itself as a moderate, conservative, pro-Western party that advocates a liberal market economy and Turkish membership in the European Union. Shifted the focus of religiously-affiliated politics from concern over Turkey’s lack of Islamic characteristics to pushing for democratic and economic reforms in addition to stressing moral values. THE SLAMISTS. • Republican People's Party is a center-leftist political party with traditional ties to middle and upper-middle classes such as white-collar workers, retired generals, government bureaucrats, academicians, college students, left-leaning intellectuals, labor unions, and well-to-do entrepreneurs. THE SECULARISTS.

Political Parties • Nationalist Action Party is focused on defending a unitary state and a Turkish identity encompassing all of Turkey's citizens in the face of demands for a federal state reflecting regional ethnic differences. RIGHT WING. • Democratic Left Party is a social democratic oriented partya mix of social democracy, democratic socialism, secularism and patriotism. The symbol of the, white dove was selected to symbolize the pacifism and social accordance. TURKISH NATIONALISTS ON LEFT • Democratic Society Party was set up by the veteran Kurdish politicians upon their release from prison in 2004. The president of the DTP, Nurettin Demirtaş, remains imprisoned. Party is alleged to have relations with the PKK Kurdish militant secessionist group. Socialist political/economic program. KURDISH NATIONALIST.

Turk Parliament Composition

Execuctive Branch • Chief of State: President Abdullah GUL (since 28 August 2007). President elected by the National Assembly for one seven-year term; President-elect must have a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly on the first two ballots or a simple majority on the third ballot. Abdullah GUL received 339 votes in the third round of voting on 28 August 2007, after failing to garner the two thirds vote required by law in the first two rounds. Pursuant to a constitutional amendment package approved by voters in an October 2007 referendum, the next president will be directly elected by the voters for a term of 5 years and can serve for a maximum of two terms. • Head of Government: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (since 14 March 2003); Prime minister appointed by the president from among members of parliament. The parliament must approve the Prime Minister through a vote of confidence in his government. • Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister. Approved by legislature vote of confidence in the government.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan The Real Political Leader • Born: 1954 into a lower middle class family. • Previously mayor of Istanbul, where he had a reputation for honesty. • Knows no foreign language, and little economics. • 1998: convicted of inciting religious hatred; • Charismatic leader. • Pushing for entrance to EU, pledging reforms to make Turkey more democratic and pluralist and bring it in line with the Union's membership criteria. .

Attempt to Ban The AKP • During a trip to Spain, Prime Minister Erdogan remarked "What if head scarf is a symbol (of political Islam)? Even if it were a political symbol, does that give right to ban it? • The Chief Public Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals filed an indictment charging members of the AKP party of acted the area between the "Person" and "God", which is banned to politicians by the Turkish constitution. • In addition to the AK Party's disbanding, the prosecutor demanded a five -year ban from involvement in politics for 71 senior AK Party administrators, including Prime Minister Erdoğan and President Abdullah Gül. • After deliberating for three days, the Constitutional Court gave its verdict on July 30, 2008. The AKP was found guilty of becoming the focus of anti-secularist actions. A qualified majority of seven out of eleven votes is required to disband a political party. Six members of the Court voted in favour of disbanding the party. The court did decide to cut the party's state funding, worth about $58 million, in half. None of the AKP members were banned.

International Relations • Turkey's primary political, economic, and security ties are with the West, although some voices call for a more "Eurasian" orientation. • Turkey entered NATO in 1952 and serves as the organization's vital eastern anchor, controlling the straits leading from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean and sharing a border with Syria, Iraq, and Iran. A NATO headquarters is located in Izmir. • Turkey and the EU formed a customs union beginning January 1, 1996. The agreement covers industrial and processed agricultural goods. Turkey is harmonizing its laws and regulations with EU standards. Turkey adopted the EU's Common External Tariff regime, effectively lowering Turkey's tariffs for third countries, including the United States. • In December 1999, Turkey became a candidate for EU membership. On December 17, 2004, the EU decided to begin formal accession negotiations with Turkey in October 2005. • Turkey is also a member of the UN, the WTO, the OECD, the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the Islamic Conference Organization.

The Cypriot Issue • Turkey invaded Cyprus by sea and air on July 20, 1974, following the failure of diplomatic efforts to resolve conflicts between Turkish and Greek Cypriots. Turkey unilaterally announced a cease-fire on Aug. 16, after having gained control of 40% of the island. Turkish Cypriots established their own state in the north on Feb. 13, 1975.

U. S. Turkish Relations • Difficulties faced by Greece after World War II in quelling a communist rebellion and demands by the Soviet Union for military bases in the Turkish Straits prompted the United States to declare the Truman Doctrine in 1947. • The doctrine enunciated American intentions to guarantee the security of Turkey and Greece and resulted in large scale U. S. military and economic aid under the Marshall Plan. The United States loaned and granted Turkey more than $12. 5 billion in economic aid and $14 billion in military assistance. • Relations were strained when Turkey refused in March 2003 to allow U. S. troops to deploy through its territory to Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom, but regained momentum steadily thereafter and mutual interests remain strong across a wide spectrum of issues.

U. S. Turkish Relations • On July 5, 2006, Secretary Rice and then-Foreign Minister Gul signed a Shared Vision Statement to highlight the common values and goals between our two countries and to lay out a framework for increased strategic dialogue. • Turkey recalled its ambassador to the United States and threatened to withdraw its support of the war in Iraq in October 2007 after the U. S. House Foreign Relations Committee passed a resolution labeling as genocide Turkey's murder of some 1. 5 million Armenians during World War I. President George Bush strongly urged members of the committee to vote against the resolution. • According to the Pew Charitable Trust Global Attitudes Survey, 23 % of Turks hold a favorable view of the U. S. , 67% hold an unfavorable view.

The Economy • The economy is currently in transition from a high degree of reliance on agriculture and heavy industrial economy to a more diversified economy with an increasingly large and globalized services sector. • Coming out of a tradition of a state-directed economy that was relatively closed to the outside world, Prime Minister and then President Turgut Ozal began to open up the economy in the 1980 s, leading to the signing of a Customs Union with the European Union in 1995. • Large numbers of Turks have migrated to Germany and other western European countries as guest workers. • Custom’s Union with European Union in 1995 • Free Trade Agreement with Israel in 1996. • Limited FTA’s with Morocco and Syria in 2004 • GDP per capita: $12, 000

The Economy • Turkey's economy grew an average of 6. 0% per year from 2002 through 2007 --one of the highest sustained rates of growth in the world. It is expected to grow about 5. 5% in 2008. Inflation and interest rates have fallen significantly, the currency has stabilized, government debt has declined to more supportable levels, and business and consumer confidence have returned. • Turkey's principal ongoing economic challenge is providing for the needs of a fast-growing, young population. Making the educational sector more responsive to the needs of the economy is an important goal.