Women’s rights group: “440 women were killed in 2018 in Turkey :(

440 women were killed in 2018 in Turkey: Women’s rights group Hurriyet Daily News / A staggering 440 women were killed in Turkey in 2018, according to an organization that keeps a tally of femicides Colorized video from Turkish War of Independence by in Turkey Sunset squished against the front window of Metrobüs @ Okmeydanı. … Read more

#istanbul under fog.

I hear that Istanbul under heavy fog for a few days now… Check social media for beautiful images. Fog you İstanbul!İstanbul // 2018 pic.twitter.com/AYKnqtok39 — Taylan (@taylancidam) February 20, 2019 For my Mecidiyeköy Ni🅱️🅱️as: Büyükdere Cd. after yesterday’s heavy fog by u/sakkarozglikoz in Turkey M2 Vezneciler by u/omeral in istanbul Mecidiyeköy Kedi, A.Ş. by u/alexfrancisburchard in … Read more

Hey Douglas – istiklal Re-Edit [and some #istanbul news]

I know, I know I am late to discover Hey Douglas. I have been listening to his remixes continuously nowadays. Such as this one *************** Article | Orhan Pamuk on Cihangir Mostly. Mavi Boncuk (Click map to enlarge) Mavi Boncuk | Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk: A love letter to Istanbul Orhan Pamuk is a novelist and the … Read more

It is now a global curiosity: “Fate of castles in the air in Turkey’s £151m ghost town

I wish they did not squeeze them that close. I believe there is a chance this can become a park or something… Fate of castles in the air in Turkey’s £151m ghost town  World news: Turkey | guardian.co.uk by Bethan McKernan in Istanbul Drone footage of 300 chateaux in abandoned development lays bare challenges facing Turkish economy … Read more

Strange days. Citizens in queues for cheap food

One of the consistent ruling party reminder of “ancien regime” was the existence of queues. In 2019, queues are partially back. Fast-rising inflation hit food prices and the Turkish government’s solution is to open up temporary sales sites to provide cheap food (and other basic materials later) to low-income citizens before the local elections in March. But of … Read more

Facebook’s #10yearschallenge encounters with veiling politics in Turkey

The Wired piece is heavily shared and I am quite sure nothing Facebook does recently should be taken at its face value. Leaving this fact aside, when users began to play with the hashtag, an unexpected situation emerged: Many women who used to wear headscarves took this opportunity to show that they gave up headscarves, … Read more

Turkish Presidential Office was busy with refuting American claims

This is more political, not much can be done. Turkey rebuffs Pompeo’s remarks over ‘slaughtering Kurds’ Hurriyet Daily News “Turkey has decried recent remarks by the U.S. secretary of state on Turkey’s role in ensuring Syria’s security and territorial integrity… This is more interesting: A Twitter user explains presidential statistics usage. But we have cats. You … Read more

#TrollWatch Theological pressure, Hagia Sophia and Syrian Refugees

Dear readers, let me tell you about a few incidents I have followed from my troll list at Twitter. This is about Aktrolls but I have some other lists that include accounts from other ideological leanings with troll characteristics   But this is limited to Aktrolls. I hesitate to give account names because some of them … Read more

Not only brain drain, capital drain, elites drain etc. “Spurning Erdogan’s Vision, Turks Leave in Droves, Draining Money and Talent…

Spurning Erdogan’s Vision, Turks Leave in Droves, Draining Money and Talent NYT > Turkey by By CARLOTTA GALL Driven by fear of persecution and economic mismanagement, the exodus threatens to reorder the society permanently and set Turkey back decades. Can Netflix Take Turkey’s TV Dramas to the World? NYT > Turkey by By ALEX MARSHALL Glossy Turkish-language shows are … Read more

Two veteran actors comment about fascism, then targeted and released on probation…

I guess this proves their points. Nearly anyone at my age and older grew up watching comedy films in which Metin Akpınar was one of the main actors. New Turkish elites’ crusade against “old Turkey” continues at all fronts… **** Turkish prosecutor launches probe into actors after Erdoğan’s rebuke over ‘fascism’ comments Hurriyet Daily News A … Read more

Courthouse lightning is the new thing in Turkey

As the state of justice declines fast, Turkey seems to be investing in weird courthouse lightning… Journalist Ümit Alan tweeted about one of them and some in the subtweet posted Bakırköy Courthouse (İstanbul) via  In other news:  Check our President Erdoğan’s entourage in a busy Friday traffic: Cuma akşamı, Levent’te Erdoğan’ın konvoyu. Polislerin trafiği açmak … Read more

Terrible: “Turkey ranks 130th in gender gap index…

Turkey ranks 130th in gender gap index Hurriyet Daily News Turkey has been ranked 130th in the World Economic Forum (WEF) gender gap index out of 149 countries, while recording progress on closing its gender gap in labor force participation as well as professional and technical roles… In other news: Eskişehir in central Turkey qualifies for … Read more

Why Gezi again?

The easy answer is it is the election time and He and his followers like to have an enemy at this time. There is no need to look for a rationale behind this renewed interest in criminalizing the Gezi resistance. It is a straw man. It is an easy target after more than five years. … Read more

Incarcerated nation: “Number of people in Turkish prisons up by 15.7 percent in 2017

I think I will end up in jail when I return to Turkey. I am getting used to it. Number of people in Turkish prisons up by 15.7 percent in 2017  Hurriyet Daily News The number of people in Turkish prisons increased by 15.7 percent in 2017 up to over 232,000 compared to 2016, according to … Read more

From Kızılcaköy, İzmir to French Riots

This image is from Kızılcaköy, İzmir. Locals are resisting against a geothermal power station project that may give harm to the local environment. The photo is actually taken by Ferdi Uzun from the state-owned agency, Anadolu Ajansı. In the meantime, Turkish public TV (TRT) correspondents are busy with reporting from French Riots and a Turkish speaking protester catches’em … Read more