The poverty of the ‘white Turks’
They are educated at the best high schools and universities in Turkey and the world; they are rich, belonging to a high social and economic class; they are professionals travelling the world. Yet they are intolerant, aggressive, narrow-minded, anti-democratic and militarist.
This is the portrait of the “white Turks” as reflected in a piece of research conducted by academics Füsun Üstel and Birol Caymaz from İstanbul Bilgi University titled ”Elites and Social Distance.”
The researchers did in-depth interviews with 40 individuals who are professionals with top high school and university diplomas. They are Kemalist, nationalist (uluslacı) and Republican People's Party (CHP) voters, according to the research. They read daily newspapers Hürriyet, Cumhuriyet and Vatan.
The profiles of those interviewed by the researchers are high, but the responses received are very “low.” One is shocked by how an elite education and high social and economic standing can result in such poor political judgment and values. I can comfortably bet that you would get more inclusive, tolerant, democratic answers from the ordinary poor people of Turkey, even in a remote village coffeehouse. What we have at hand is an elite (the white Turks) who are well behind the ordinary people of the country. The white Turks are more conservative than the conservative-religious people, more reactionary and more opposed to change.
In short the white Turks represent, I think, the lowest degree of political values in Turkey. Their political and social ideas are anachronistic, outdated, reactionary and authoritarian. Theirs is poverty in full.
These best-educated people think that Turkey is under occupation. Occupation by whom? The foreign capital, for instance, they work for; Western countries to which they often travel. “Ordinary people” do not deserve citizenship: the Kurds, the Islamists and the non-Muslims are the groups that represent the ultimate “others” of the white Turks.
Against all this they think a “new war of liberation” needs to be waged. They do not, of course, have the guts to take up the struggle themselves but call on the military to do the “business” using the manpower -- soldiers -- who are the children of the people against which the war is to be conducted. Clever but not realistic, isn't it?
One says “the military is entitled to use force against the AKP [Justice and Development Party] either as a legal organization or as a paramilitary entity or a guerilla force.” This is reflective of the white Turks' understanding of legality, law and patriotism. It is obvious that they do not care if the country is in ashes. What matters is keeping their power intact.
The similarity to a statement last week from the chief public prosecutor is striking. Remember what Yalçınkaya said: "As conservative political parties became more concentrated on economic development and modernization, we forgot about secularism.” By "conservative" he is implying all center-right parties since the Democrat Party of the 1950s.
Secularism is the way in which the state is organized independent of religion. It does not block economic development or vice versa. But for him and others it is better to keep the level of economic development low so that society can be controlled by the Kemalist state.
In any case, the research also discloses a high degree of anti-Western and anti-EU attitude on the part of the white Turks. The reason for their objection to the EU differs, but the underlying factor is obvious: the democratic transformation that is required for the EU process. This is not surprising since this group is fearful of democracy and democratization; thus, the EU's demands on this line are viewed as threatening.
I really pity those “white Turks.” All their elite education and accumulated wealth do not help them overcome their neurotic state of mind.
Do they represent the elite of Turkey? Certainly not. They are the remnant of the old elite who are passé now. The new Turkish elite are more sophisticated and capable of understanding social, economic and political trends in Turkey and the world.
Reading about the white Turks' thoughts and beliefs and the way they understand the world one easily understands why they are hateful, angry and losers. Such primitive thinking cannot survive in this complicated world. It is time to say “adios” to them and their allies in bureaucracy, civil society and media.
We know today that there are new and competing elites in Turkey, in which the Kemalist white Turks are a very small minority. Among them are the conservative elite. It would be striking to compare the views of the white Turks and the conservative elite on democracy, EU membership, the role of the military in politics, and rights and freedoms. Then one will see which elite group is more in tune with global trends. For this I recommend an article by Kamil Yılmaz that appeared in Insight Turkey (Vol.11, No.2, 2009), “The Emergence and Rise of Conservative Elite in Turkey.”
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist-177416-the-poverty-of-the-white-turks.html
are tcs "white turks"?...
