In the one and half year that follows its publication our book “Turkiye’de Iktidari Yeniden Dusunmek” (”Rethinking Power in Turkey”) was attracted the attention of the prominent libraries from all around the world and Turkey and included to their archives.

The university libraries that have our book includes Harvard University, Columbia University, Princeton University, University of Chicago, Utah University and the University of Arizona.

Moreover, in Turkey our book can be found in the Library of the Turkish Parliament as well as in the Libraries of Bogazici University, Sabanci University, Koc University, Middle East Technical University, Harran University and Suleyman Demirel University.

Table of Contents:
- “Preface” / by K. Murat Guney
- “Power and Reality in Turkey” / by Meltem Ahiska
- “The Fear of Archive and the Black Notebook of Nizami Bey: History, Memory and Power in Turkey” / by Meltem Ahiska
- “The Gender of Europe: The Docile Virgin, The Absorbing Female, and The Conquering Son” / by Nurdan Gurbilek
- “Patterns of Behavior, Forms of Interpretation, and Inequality in a Istanbul Courthouse” / by Dicle Kogacioglu
- “The Youth, Population and Power in Turkey” / by Ferhunde Ozbay
- “Non-Governmental Organizations in Turkey: ‘Voluntarism’ in the Age of Modernity, Nationalism and Neo-Liberalism” / by Yasemin Ipek Can
- “Different Faces of Power and the Transformation of Alevi Identity” / by Ozlem Goner
- “Managing’ the Kurdish Question” / by Firat Bozcali
- “A New Hegemonic Battlefield: The Formation of the Official Kurdish TV, TRT6″ / by T. Balca Arda
- “Being Mothers of the Army: Mothers of Martyrs in Turkey” / by Esra Gedik
- “AKP (Justice and Development Party) and the ‘new’ Power in Turkey” / by K. Murat Guney

Opposition leader Baykal criticizes TRT6, saying “the state shall remain blind to ethnic identities”. Professor Cankaya reacts: “Public TV should benefit all citizens.” Reactions from Kurdish activists divided, suggesting lack of legal base shows government’s insincerety.
(Source) Bia news center - İstanbul

Scholars and activists welcome the new Kurdish channel in state television and ask for improved rights to private channels amid reactions from main opposition party and some circles of the Kurdish movement.

Republican People’s Party (CHP) president Deniz Baykal criticized the incentive, saying, “the state shall remain blind to ethnic identities of citizens” and spending public money to that end.

“Public broadcasting should benefit all citizens. Politicians must review their approach to notions like state of law and rights of citizens, plurality and equality,” professors Özden Cankaya of Galatasaray University, told bianet. “This channel could provide an opportunity to bring education services to Kurdish speaking population in Turkey, who are deprived of such for a long time. I would also contribute to efforts of peace.”

Turkish Radio and Television (TRT) begin broadcasting in Kurdish on January 1st, through the newly established TRT 6. Consisting of programs aimed at children and women as well as cultural and news bulletins, the new channel is on air 12 hours a day. Renowned Kurdish artists such as musician Rojin take part in the broadcast.

While the government promotes TRT 6 as a part of its plans to recognize cultural plurality in the country, some criticize the move as insincere and as a political trick to win Kurdish votes before the upcoming local elections in March.

Lack of a sound lawful base for the broadcast provides grounds for this argument. A procedure for TV and radio broadcasts in “languages other than Turkish that are traditionally used by Turkish citizens were established in 2006.

On the other hand, the foreseen broadcasts were limited to 45 minutes a day, subtitles in Turkish were mandatory and programs aimed at children were banned. Local TV stations like Gün TV faced pressures and prosecutions upon claims of violating this code. “Without a new law, introduction of TRT 6 won’t benefit us” said Ahmet Birsen of Gün TV. “Our channel was closed for a year for airing Şivan Perwer’s song Xalo. Now, it was on TRT 6 on its opening day. Implementation of the law remains arbitrary.”

Reiterating the argument, pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) MP Gültan Kışanak insisted that without recognizing the same rights for private channels, TRT 6 would remain a hoax to undermine their struggle for cultural rights.

On the other hand, president of the Women’s Center (KA-MER) in Diyarbakır, Nebahat Akkoç, welcomed the incentive as an important step. “We’ll intervene to influence the content of the broadcast. Women in could benefit from TRT 6 if they could learn their rights in their own language.”(EÜ)

The Memorandum

On February 28, 1997 General Staff ordered a notice to the government on the rising reactionary and separatist activities in the monthly meeting of the National Security Council. After the notice, the coalition government led by Islamists was dissolved and a new coalition government was formed by secularist parties (the post-modern coup d’état). Then, state held activities against Kurdist and especially Islamist groups started to take place. In 2000, a deputy from the Islamist party (Virtue Party) made public the existence of a memorandum that suggests a set of activities against certain newspapers, journalists, and political parties. General Staff accepted the existence of the memorandum. On March 9, 2007, the weekly magazine Nokta brought out another memorandum which was produced within the General Staff again. The title of the document is as follows: The Reevaluation of Accredited Press Organs. Memorandum evaluates certain press organs and journalists in terms of their credibility and it classifies them as anti-TAF (Turkish Armed Forces) or pro-TAF.
According to the memorandum, journalists who do not have credibility must not be invited to any TAF press activities because of the fact that they can make disinformation campaigns, they can collect secret information on TAF and convey it to separatist groups, and finally they can attack military staff or facilities. In other words, “some” journalists can be a spy of the terrorists or even a suicide bomber. It would seem that the main criterion of the credibility is just making criticism of TAF. Because journalists criticized TAF for adopting a soft stance and journalists criticized TAF for not fully supporting Turkey’s EU membership and democratization reforms, are both labeled as anti-TAF journalists.
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Turkish Commander Requested Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister to prove his Turkishness

The leading government party in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), the Republican Turkish Party (RTP) held its party conference on March 18, 2007. The commander of the Cyprus Turkish Peace Forces Lieutenant General Hayri Kivrikoglu protested the Prime Minister and head of RTP Ferdi Sabit Soyer and refused to shake his hand in a meeting held that evening. Kivrioglu asked him why they held a party conference on the memorial day of martyrs, why they did not play the Independence Anthem (the Turkish National Anthem), or did not hang th poster of Ataturk and Turkish flags in the party conference. Finally, Kivrikoglu requested Soyer, the Prime Minister to prove his Turkishness.
The Prime Minister was shocked to hear a commander from Turkey question his Turkishness in his country. He replied that there were posters of Ataturk and Turkish flags in the conference and he underlined the fact that playing the Independence Anthem in party conferences is not compulsory. Soyer protested Kivrikoglu and stated that nobody could question their Turkishness, they do not need authorization from any circles because they are the representatives of the people of TRNC. According to TRNC Constitution, the state is to follow Ataturk’s principles and all deputies have to swear that they will follow Ataturk’s principles as well.
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Weekly Nokta discloses an internal army report which classifies media outlets as “trustworthy” or “precarious” and bases the General Staff’s accreditation process accordingly. 53-page report evaluates individual journalists as “pro-army” or not.
Source: BIA News Center
08/03/2007
(Istanbul) - Weekly news magazine Nokta’s recent issue discloses a series of Turkish army (TSK) reports which examine and classify media outlets and journalists as “pro-Turkish Army” or “con-Turkish army”. (’Olumlu’ and ‘Olumsuz’ as seen in the chart beside)
Ahmet Şık’s article shows how army officials use the accreditation process based on “journalists’ approach to armed forces”. Reports include statistics regarding number of published articles dubbed as “positive” or “negative” and journalists as “trustworthy” or “precarious”.
Following the publication of the report on March 8 in Nokta and cited in several newspapers, General Staff made a declaration saying that an investigation has begun into the incident.
Upto now, there’re no specific details regarding the investigation.

Classification
Prepared by General Staff Public Relations Department and approved by General Staff General Secretary Salih Zeki Çolak, the report titled “Accredited Press and Media Outlets” dates back to November 2006.
Accreditation is defined as follows:
“In light of the examination which classify media outlets as trustworthy or precarious made with regard to the Turkish Armed Forces’ (TSK) indispensable principles, a list of accreditation including those trustworthy is compiled”.
(…) “Participation of media outlets with low levels of trust in events organized by the TSK has been limited and those deemed as trustworthy have been encouraged”. (…) “By not accrediting precarious media outlets, their reputation in public’s eye has been attenuated”. (…) “Despite counter interpretations, the accreditation process serves as an examination of media outlets’ trustworthiness by the TSK”.
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Pro-Kurdish DTP leader Ahmet Türk has been condemned to six months in prison for referring ex-guerilla leader Öcalan in a respectable manner. Three other local party administrators have been arrested for “making propaganda of the terrorist organization.

Source: BIA Nerws Center
08/03/2007 Erol ONDEROGLU
(Ankara) - Legal cases and convictions curb administrators and members of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP).
Lastly, DTP chair Ahmet Türk has been condemned to six months imprisonment on allegations of “praising a crime or a criminal” in a speech.
“In the current situation where we try hard to silence the weapons, increasing isolation of Mr. Öcalan further deepens social concerns” said Türk, addressing a local crowd in Diyarbakır. Referring the late Kurdish guerilla group PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan as “Mister” constituted the above-defined crime, according to the court.
The decision disclosed was given “considering the repeating referrals of Türk to Öcalan with a respectable appellation and his potential as a party leader to influence public”.
The speech in question was made on January 18, 2006 as a press conference at the end of a meeting of all local mayors adhering to DTP.
On another account, three district administrators of the party have been arrested by court order following Batman Public Prosecutor’s complaint. They face allegations of “making the propaganda of the terrorist organization”.
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The Kemalist and nationalist circles are complaining about the fact that a headscarfed First Lady will lead to a regime crisis in the country

The Present Ahmet Necdet Sezer’s term of office will end in May and the presidential election process will start in April. Who will be the ruling party, AK Party (Justice and Development Party)’s candidate and who will be the new president is one of the heatedly discussed topics in Turkey nowadays.
Today’s state structure was mainly invented by the military rule that came after the coup d’état of 1980. The current distribution of powers on the one hand gives important powers to the President like vetoing the laws, vetoing the appointments of high bureaucrats and diplomats, assigning the Chief of General Staff. On the other hand, s/he is totally irresponsible and unaccountable. As a responsible and accountable person, the Prime Minister has to share the executive powers with the President.

The Regime Crisis
AK Party is coming from the political Islamist tradition yet they identify themselves as “Conservative (not Muslim or Christian) Democrat” and the party itself resembles a wider coalition that includes politicians from right to central left. They are in favor of economic and political liberalization which boils down to Turkey’s European Union membership in practice.
However, the party is being heavily criticized by Kemalists and nationalist circles for encouraging reactionary attitudes and not preserving national interests. The secularist President Ahmet Necdet Sezer vetoed some reform laws of AK Party like laws on reforming the education system. Kemalist and nationalist circles are concerned about the possibility of the Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan becoming the new President. The disaster scenario for them is the following: If Erdogan or one of his men becomes the President and AK Party will be the only ruling party after the parliamentary elections in November, there will be a serious regime crisis. Also the idea of having a headscarfed first lady is a symbolic part of the disaster. In the previous Parliament, the presence of a headscarfed deputy led to huge protests from Kemalist and nationalist politicians.
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“You left your loved ones, your children, your grand children. You left these people who salute you here; you left my arms. You didn’t leave your country” -Rakel Dink

Tens of thousands of people gathered in Şişli this morning for Hrant Dink, ethnic Armenian writer who was assassinated on January 19, 2007.
The first ceremony took place in front of the offices of Agos,the newspaper Dink founded and where he was murdered by a young extremist. Mourners, dressed in black and carrying signs reading “We are all Armenians”, crammed the square outside the offices.
Many roads have been shut to allow the mourners to proceed.
The funeral then left for the Armenian Orthodox Church Santa Maria, where Patriarch of the Anatolian Armenians, Mesrob II conducts the religious ceremony. On the other hand, the funeral march reached to the Balıklı Armenian Cemetery where Dink will be laid to rest. Thousands walked the 8 km. road chanting “We’re all Hrant”.

“You’re torn apart from your loved ones, from your children, from me but not from your country” said his wife Rakel Dink addressing to the crowd. Here is Rakel Dink’s complete speech:

Hrant’s companion was given to me. Today I’m here with great sorrow and dignity. Me, my kids, my family and you; we’re all in deep sorrow. This silent love holds us, gives us a aggrieved joy. John 15:13, the Bible says nobody has a greater love than the one who gives one’s life for one’s friends.
Dear friends, today we mourn and salute my other half, my love, father of my children, your brother. We’ll be marching silently without disturbing those near us, without chanting slogans, without banners. With this silence, we’ll cry aloud today. Today is the day when deep darkness would reach out to light.
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Turkish-Armenian Writer Hrant Dink Assasinated
Prominent Turkish-Armenian writer and journalist Hrant Dink has been shot dead today while he was leaving the offices of the newspaper Agos which he founded and worked. He was subjected to criticism and harrasement by nationalists.
Source: BIA News Center
19/01/2007 BİA (Istanbul) - Turkish-Armenian writer and journalist Hrant Dink has been shot dead today while leaving the newspaper where he worked.
Dink, 53, was subjected to prosecutions and harrasement by nationalists concerning his views on the Armenian genocide claims and Turkey’s approach to the issue.
He was a public figure in Turkey - one of its most prominent Armenian voices. Despite all harrasement, he always insisted that he’s a Turkish citizen will fight for his right to free speech.
The police is looking for a young man as described by eye witnesses in relation to the murder. Friends tell Dink was receiving threats.

His life

Dink was born in 1954 in Malatya. When his parents divorced after moving to İstanbul in 1961, Hrant and his two brothers were placed in an Armenian orphanage in Gedikpasa.
He was influenced by the socialist movement in his youth. Following his graduation from İstanbul University he married to Rakel who he had met in the orphanage.
While working in the publishing house he established with his brothers, Dink also managed with his wife the Tuzla Armenian Children’s Campus where poor children were placed. The campus was confiscated by the state after 21 years of its establishment.
Dink began his writing career with book reviews for magazines published by ethnic Armenians in Turkey. Criticizing the closeness of the Armenian community, he moved on to establish Agos, a newspaper in Turkish and Armenian in 1996.
Hrant Dink promoted a culture of solidarity and peace between erthnic Armenians and Turks. He also called on the Armenian diaspora to evaluate the events of 1915 without a fixation on genocide but couldn’t avoid being punished for insulting Turkishness at home.(EU)

The Destruction and Reconstruction of Hope

In order to watch a video about this event on youtube please click the link below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y0TWmPj_UI

On November 9, 2005, a stranger approached the ‘Umut’ (which means ‘Hope’) Bookstore in Semdinli, a small town in southeastern Turkey populated mostly by Kurds. He took out two grenades from his pockets, threw them on the floor and fled. Seconds later, the little shop exploded. Seferi Yilmaz, the shop’s owner, -a former Kurdish rebel and political prisoner-, and the apparent target of the attack, saw the stranger and the bombs before the explosion and run after the suspect as the explosion took the life of his neighbor Mehmet Zahir Korkmaz. Following the bombing of the bookstore, townspeople, alerted by Seferi Yilmaz, witnessed that the suspect got into a car which was escaping from the place of incident. People ran after it and caught the car with the perpetrators in it. The suspect got frightened, opened the back of the car, took out a gun, and shouted: “I am a security personal, don’t touch me!” (Report of the Turkish Parliament’s Human Rights Commission on Semdinli Incident - Statements of the witnesses 2005 : 5)
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