The 1960s and 1970s were years of the most intense class struggle in modern Turkish history.1 It was a period bookended by two military coups. The first, in 1960, opened up a liberal period in which socialist ideas flourished and… Continue Reading
In its positive aims, however, this form of [petty-bourgeois] socialism aspires either to restoring the old means of production and of exchange, and with them the old property relations, and the old society, or to cramping the modern means of… Continue Reading
Recent months have been full of ominous signs of deepening conflict between the major players in what Alex Callinicos calls the “multi-level chess game” of Middle Eastern geopolitics.1 In March 2018, Turkish forces entered Syria, forcing tens of thousands to… Continue Reading
The peace process between the Turkish state and the Kurdish movement reached what everyone thought was its peak in January 2015. It was to die a painful death within two months. At the time the peace negotiations had been going… Continue Reading
The Turkish left has always been very fond of “the people”. Reference is frequently also made to the working class, of course, but it is the people, the oppressed, the poor who are seen as the agents of social change.… Continue Reading
The question of the relationship between socialists on the one hand and Muslims and Islamic organisations on the other is of burning relevance both in the West and, even more so, in the countries of the Middle East. In Western… Continue Reading
Republic Day is celebrated with great pomp and outpourings of state-sponsored nationalism in Turkey every 29 October. Moscow-style military parades, boy scouts and girl guides and school delegations carrying huge Turkish flags used to roam through all the country’s cities… Continue Reading
As Taksim Square, the centre of Istanbul, came under occupation by thousands upon thousands of mostly young Turks, the rest of the country, the government, the world and, indeed, the protesters themselves watched in amazement. As I write, it is… Continue Reading
Are Islamist movements ‘radical’ or ‘ultra-conservative’? A so-called “Islamic” party has just been elected with nearly 50% of the vote in Turkey. It is in no way “ultra-conservative”. It is, of course, conservative on such issues as the economy, the… Continue Reading