[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Turkey and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the Turkey Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each week`s roundup to turkey@jadaliyya.com by Sunday night of every week.]
English
Kurdish Politics
Was the Reconciliation Process Betrayal? Hayrettin Karaman contends that the Turkish government has tried to maintain the peace and reconciliation process at all costs, for which reason they have used violence in Kurdish regions.
Are Kurds Worthy of Ditch Politics? According to Yasin Aktay, the PKK wants to rule over Kurdistan as a fiefdom, which has made Kurds realize that democratic autonomy is not actually democratic.
In Turkey, the state doesn’t talk—it only shoots Ercan Ayboğa describes the violence and terror he encounters in Amed/Diyarbakır and translates the words of a woman whose mother was shot dead in the street by snipers.
Urgent Call from Turkey’s Human Rights Organizations to the International Community The Coalition Against Impunity, composed of both domestic and international lawyers associations and human rights groups, calls for an end to the arbitrary, unconstitutional use of military force, curfews, and violations of human rights.
Kurds on Hunger Strike for Bodies of Dead Relatives Mahmut Bozarslan writes that Kurdish families have launched a hunger strike to get the unburied bodies of relatives who were killed by the security forces during the curfews.
Constitutional Reform and the Presidential System
Erdoğan to Press Hard for Presidency in 2016 Serkan Demirtaş examines the discourse used by President Erdoğan and Prime Minister Davutoğlu at the end of 2015 and the beginning of 2016, arguing that the AKP will push for drastic constitutional changes even though they lack a parliamentary majority.
Talks about a New Constitution and Party Closure in Turkey (1) - (2) Murat Yetkin discusses the reasons behind the AKP’s recent decision to snub the HDP in a recent meeting held to discuss writing a new constitution.
Turkey`s Presidential System Debate as Farce Nuray Mert writes about the discontents of populism and the AKP’s ongoing movement toward authoritarianism.
Turkish Hitler or Turkey`s Goebbels? Sabah columnist Hilal Kaplan assures her readers that, by using Hitler’s Germany as an example a country with the presidential system he would prefer, President Erdoğan was merely emphasizing “the importance of justice by showing a country with unjust practices as an example.”
The real problem with Erdogan`s Hitler comment Mustafa Akyol notes that the real problem is not President Erdoğan’s reference to "Hitler’s Germany" but the official "correction" that said “The important thing is to pursue fair management that serves the nation.”
Foreign Policy
Saudi Arabia-Iran Row Bad News for Turkey Describing Turkey’s participation in the Saudi Arabia-led Sunni alliance against terror as foolish and myopic, Yusuf Kanlı suggests that the current fallout between Saudi Arabia and Iran will negatively affect Turkey’s stability.
Turkey Should not Get Involved in Saudi-Iran Rift (1) - (2) Murat Yetkin calls on Prime Minister Davutoğlu to maintain neutrality as tensions escalate between Saudi Arabia and Iran in the wake of Saudi Arabia’s execution of a Shi’ite cleric.
Has Turkey’s Regional Power Grab Come to an End? “Turkey is forfeiting its claims for regional supremacy by joining the Saudi-led Sunni alliance and making friendly overtures toward Israel,” writes Cengiz Çandar.
Saudi-Iranian Crisis Complicates Ankara’s Regional Plans Semih İdiz points out that Islamists and secularists alike want Turkey to stay out of the Iranian-Saudi conflict.
First the Middle East, Now Central Asia Slipping Away from Turkey According to Zülfikar Doğan, Turkey has lost not only in the Middle East, but it is also increasingly isolated from Central Asia and the Caucasus after its dust-up with Russia in Syria.
Turkey`s EU Process Should Be Accompanied by New Charter According to Serkan Demirtaş, Turkey can make inroads in its ongoing EU accession efforts by ending violence and resuming negotiations with the PKK.
Turkey Taken Unawares by Saudi Arabia Semih İdiz writes that the “overambitious plans” that the AKP government draws up as its foreign policy “overlook basic truths about this turbulent part of the world.”
Minor Doomsday Describing the impact that the Saudi Arabia-Iran strife might have on the wider Middle East, Kemal Öztürk argues that it is Turkey’s responsibility to intervene in order to mediate between the two countries.
Confusion on Turkey and EU migrant deal Abdullah Bozkurt points to several disagreements between Turkey and the EU regarding refugee policy including oversight of how the EU money is spent and how the screening of Turkey will be conducted.
Other Pertinent Pieces
Healing on the Syria-Turkey Border In this series of photographs, Al-Jazeera documents victims of the Syrian War and the ad-hoc healthcare systems being used to treat them in the borderlands of Turkey.
Syrian Migrant Women Should Have a Choice Too Barçın Yinanç argues that the EU and Turkey need to provide family planning services for Syrian refugees.
Turkish
Kurdish Politics
Öz yönetimden barış çıkar mı? Güneş Duru suggests that the absence of Abdullah Öcalan has led to a crisis of leadership among the various factions of the Kurdish political movement, which is only causing more violence.
Demirtaş: Kürdistan Sri Lanka, PKK de Tamil Kaplanları değil (1) - (2) In this two-part interview conducted by İrfan Aktan with HDP Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş, Demirtaş tells Aktan, “When I look at the AKP government I see a snowman. When spring comes, the snow melts, and the snowman with it. Only those huge carrot noses and hats are left behind. Don’t pay attention to how enormous it seems with its armies and its police force; when the warm weather comes, they’ll be the first to melt.”
"Önce silahlar bırakıldı sonra süreç başladı" doğru bilgi mi? Ezgi Başaran pushes back at the government talking-point that the HDP can simply command the PKK to disarm as Sinn Fein did with the IRA. In the first place, she observes, negotiations preceded disarmament, and disarmament came long after the famous Good Friday Accords.
HDP`yi kazanmak... Despite beginning the year amid violence, Fuat Keymen argues that positive developments are happening in Turkey. Most importantly, renewed discussions between the AKP and CHP over a new constitution may allow the HDP a role as well and reopen the possibility of a political solution.
‘Meşruiyeti masumiyetten, masumiyeti mağduriyetten türeten’ vicdan ekonomisi Adnan Çelik discusses the roots of the Kurdish movement’s turn to self-governance, and the obstacles that this political approach faces given the current situation in Kurdistan.
Kültürel mirasa saldıran devlet, kendi iktidar tarihini oluşturuyor In an interview with Jinha, Diyarbakır Chamber of Architects President Roza Zümrüt criticizes the government for the ongoing destruction of cultural heritage sites in the southeast.
Faysal Sarıyıldız: umutsuzluk intihardır Pia Baçaru interviews Faysal Sarıyıldız, HDP member of parliament from Şırnak, about the current political situation in Kurdistan, ranging from the curfews and the trenches to forced migration and public health concerns.
Aslolan halkın vicdanındaki dokunulmazlıktır! İhsan Çaralan examines why the AKP won’t lift parliamentary immunity for members of the HDP, in spite of the fact that HDP Co-Chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ have requested to have their immunity rescinded.
Barışa bir umut ışığı Sevda Karaca profiles the Ray of Hope Women’s Cooperative in the Sur district of Diyarbakır, which is trying to meet the day-to-day needs of women and children living under curfew in the area.
Bizim Kürt meselemiz (1) - (2) According to Sezin Öney, “regardless of whether Turkey makes peace or makes war, in the next ten years its borders will face at least two Kurdistans.”
Anayasa mahkemesi: devletin beyanı esastır! Ramazan Demir condemns the Constitutional Court for its complacency regarding the curfews, and he praises the European Court of Human Rights for its proactive approach to the issue.
Çıplak gerçeğimiz budur, ama bundan ibaret değildir… Feride Aksu Tanık describes the many obstacles that those living under curfew in Kurdish districts face in trying to access healthcare, especially for those wounded by state violence.
Toplumsal belleğimiz devlet güçlerince işlenen cinayetlerin mezarlığı gibi Writing on the twentieth anniversary of the assassination of Kurdish journalist Metin Göktepe, Ercan Kanar describes the impunity enjoyed by those who tortured prisoners in the 1990s.
Constitutional Reform and the Presidential System
Türkiye’nin anayasa sorunu yok, Erdoğan sorunu var, nokta! Hasan Cemal questions the need for a new constitution, given that power is already concentrated in President Erdoğan’s hands.
Yeni bir anayasaya doğru Explaining that the a new constitution can help address the “Kurdish question,” Rize Türmen argues that the new constitution commission should include civil society groups in addition to the parliamentary political parties.
Başkanlık sorununa tek maddelik çözüm According to Adnan Gümüş, President Erdoğan governs with more authority than General Kenan Evren, leader of the 1980 coup d’etat.
Yeniden anayasa tartışmaları Ahmet Yaşaroğlu argues that it is impossible for a democratic constitution to be written unless the working classes are included more in the political process.
"Türkiye`nin başkanı" Murat Belge suggests that the presidential system that Erdoğan wants will not be a government where people receive positions based on their qualifications, but rather based on their devotion.
Other Pertinent Pieces
Suriye semaları parsellenirken Türkiye tümüyle oyun dışı Amberin Zaman describes how US leaders are largely ignoring the desires of the Turkish government as they seek accommodation with the Russians and YPG forces in northern Syria.
Diyanetten rest: Cemevlerine ibadethane statüsü verilemez! İhsan Çaralan criticizes the Directorate of Religious Affairs for a recent announcement that cemevis, the places of gathering for Alevis, are not to be given official status as religious houses of worship.
Alanya`da LGBTİ mahpuslar tekli hücrede tutuluyor Hilal Başak Demirbaş and Mustafa Eren report on the conditions facing LGBTI prisoners in Alanya L Type Prison, many of whom are being kept in solitary confinement for twenty-three hours a day.
"Üç kere alkışlattın ya Beyaz!" Bedri Adanır discusses the controversy over a phone call made by “Teacher Ayşe” to the popular talk show Beyaz Show, in which she called upon the show’s guests and its viewers to not remain silent on the killing of children in the southeast of Turkey.
Published on Jadaliyya
‘New Turkey’: Toward an Authoritarian and Sectarian Police State
Can Total War in the Middle East Be Prevented?
The Ankara Massacre and the State as a Serial Killer in Erdogan’s Turkey
Turkey Could Cut Off the Islamic State’s Supply Lines. So Why Doesn’t It?
New Wars and Autonomous Self-Defense
Turkey: Nationalism and War Mongering Won the Election
Ankara`s Black Saturday: An Interview with Osman Sahin
Selahattin Demirtas of HDP Responds to Ankara Bombings (Video)
Investigate Killing of Kurdish Human Rights Activist and Lawyer
Call by Academics for International Solidarity after the Ankara Bombing
Urgent Call for Solidarity and Action from the Union of Southeastern Anatolia Region Municipalities
Petition Protesting Comments Made by Celal Sengor Concerning Torture and the 1980 Coup in Turkey