April 30, 2012

A serious question for a respected newspaper

Abdülhamit Bilici

It is not easy to understand a fast-changing and multi-layered country like Turkey. This is a nation where some who self-identify as progressive, modern, social democrats oppose freedoms in a number of arenas and hope for assistance from military coups, while some labeled as Islamic, devout and even reactionary wind up playing leading roles in democratization.

A global Feb. 28 process?

İhsan Yılmaz

As far as I remember, the global Feb. 28 process was a headline of a Turkish daily just after the 9/11 attacks.

I am not sure if it was a result of an analysis or wishful thinking, but to a certain extent, Islamophobia increased after the attacks. Yet, thanks to dialogue initiations that started well before 9/11, well-integrated Muslim minorities in the West, objective liberal and leftist intellectuals, writers, journalists and politicians all over the world, the proactive global activities of Muslims and the diversity of media prevented a global witch-hunt similar to the Feb. 28 process in Turkey. What could not be achieved after 9/11 has been attempted by some in Turkey.