Postmodernity and the Arc of Turkish Identity
Ferhat Kentel, Professor at Istanbul Sehir University / PHOTO from the Balkans Project
The Balkans Project recently featured a fascinating interview with Ferhat Kentel, a sociologist at Istanbul Sehir University. Working on the construction of Turkish national identity, Kentel is examining one of the most controversial and heuristic themes in Turkish politics — in many ways, a theme that defines, and most certainly pervades, every aspect of political discourse, be it Turkey’s efforts to come to terms with its minorities (Muslim and non-Muslim), its attempts to reconcile Islam and the Turkish naton-state, its ongoing EU accession process, its confrontration with ultra-nationalist elements like Ergenekon, its international relations, etc. I have provided excerpts in this post, though I most definitely recommend reading though the whole interview.
Civilian court accepts indictment of military officers despite annulment
Today’s Zaman
Civilian prosecutors conducting the investigation into Ergenekon will continue as before, according to former prosecutor Gültekin Avcı. ?The decision will
Don?t make us laugh or insult our intelligence
Dear commander, It would be helpful if you were to understand this particular point. Perhaps the most fundamental of this nation?s problems is its military problem.
Coup plots trigger gov?t scrutiny of military budget
The dignity of a coup
What a coup really amounts to is the theft of a nation?s colors. The condemning of a nation to khaki, or a sort of colorless darkness. An attempt on others? lives made by a small group aiming for power who think they have found life somewhere in all that uniformity.
You scare me, pasha!
Coups in Turkey: none so blind…
Gen. Başbuğ?s credibility problem
Distrust of Başbuğ
Gen. Başbuğ, an army exclaiming ?Allah Allah? and consistency
Banging the table with an invisible sledgehammer by Ali Murat Yel
Journalist and writer
Eskişehir Gendarmerie Commander detained in Ergenekon probe
Today’s Zaman
Recep Gençoğlu was detained yesterday as part of the probe into Ergenekon, a shadowy criminal network that has alleged links within the state and is
Squaring Off on Constitutional Amendments
The AKP is working on a new package of 22 constitutional amendments it might well put before Parliament in the next month. The package was drafted by the Parliamentary Constitutional Commission, headed by MP (AKP) Burhan Kuzu. The amendments have not been made public, and so it is unclear exactly what the AKP is planning on putting forward. On January 10, Kuzu had said that the AKP would not been seeking amendments to the constitution or to the election law, which stipulates that parties must receive at least ten percent of the total vote to enter parliament. I am not sure what changed, but so be it.
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