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Protests in Istanbul

AuroRaman

AuroRaman

Chris Armstrong
http://defnesumanblogs.com/2013/06/01/what-is-happenning-in-istanbul/

I lived and was schooled in Istanbul for two great years, so this is of personal interest to me. I have also witnessed first-hand the brutality of Turkish Police and fear for my many friends that are currently peacefully protesting in Taksim.

The mainstream media in Turkey are not covering this event and the Government is falsifying facts.

The blog post is a decent read, for anyone that is interested.
 
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Off to Turkey tomorrow (YAY! - great timing).

There are two sides to this story however. The police seem to have been a bitch, there I have an issue. Erdogan has actually been a great leader IMO. Stood up strong with his foreign policy, economy has been excellent and he's trying to make inroads with the Kurds and particularly PKK supporters.

Previous to him, Turkey was pretty much controlled by the military, it had a lot of power and say in the politics. They were nationalists and very secular. Within the army (conscription) I have been told that using the word "Allah" was frowned upon and they preferred "Tanri" ('Lord' I believe). Something had to give - Turks are generally quite religious but are also patriotic - I think Erdogan relates to this quite well.

The whole new laws being passed in regards alcohol and its sale is not too different from what we have in the West. It's called regulation and something we are used to in the West. The problem is a lot of people fear this is the start of the Islamification of Turkey, it's a fear and I think a little paranoid. Turkey will never end up like Iran did - it's impossible IMO.

A lot of Turks also do not want to join the EU anymore - why should they? The economy is booming and they're not wanted anyway. They'd be better off creating a Turkic union with the likes of Azerbaycan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, etc - Would be wholly powerful and wealthy.

It's a country where East meets West - it's no surprise there are issues.

Will try to enjoy my holiday anyway ;) :D
 
Papercut said:
Off to Turkey tomorrow (YAY! - great timing).

There are two sides to this story however. The police seem to have been a bitch, there I have an issue. Erdogan has actually been a great leader IMO. Stood up strong with his foreign policy, economy has been excellent and he's trying to make inroads with the Kurds and particularly PKK supporters.

Previous to him, Turkey was pretty much controlled by the military, it had a lot of power and say in the politics. They were nationalists and very secular. Within the army (conscription) I have been told that using the word "Allah" was frowned upon and they preferred "Tanri" ('Lord' I believe). Something had to give - Turks are generally quite religious but are also patriotic - I think Erdogan relates to this quite well.

The whole new laws being passed in regards alcohol and its sale is not too different from what we have in the West. It's called regulation and something we are used to in the West. The problem is a lot of people fear this is the start of the Islamification of Turkey, it's a fear and I think a little paranoid. Turkey will never end up like Iran did - it's impossible IMO.

A lot of Turks also do not want to join the EU anymore - why should they? The economy is booming and they're not wanted anyway. They'd be better off creating a Turkic union with the likes of Azerbaycan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, etc - Would be wholly powerful and wealthy.

It's a country where East meets West - it's no surprise there are issues.

Will try to enjoy my holiday anyway ;) :D
Click to expand...

Very good and informed post mate. You're right, there will always be certain issues arising in a country where East and West are so entwined with each other in everyday life. And you are spot in with your comments about the military power previously.

The younger generation of Turks have grown up with a level of freedom associated with Western culture, which is practically unheard of in what is still a devout Muslim country. Perhaps an over-egged fear of losing these liberties due to 'Islamification' is a driving force. Although initially the protest started just because they wanted to save a green area in the city!

My main issue is the media blackout and the heavy-handedness of the Police. But to be honest, we can associate this behaviour with even the most powerful Western nations.

Hope you have a fantastic time mate, I'm sure you will, even with these ongoing events. It is a fantastic country and Istanbul is amazing! Whereabouts are you going?
 
Very very sad but yes, somehow not surprising...interesting personal background there Auto mate...
 
For those of you with some knowledge of this part of the world, do you think there is any possibility of these protests becoming embroiled with the escalating situation in Syria?
 
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