ANOTHER VIEW
FRIGHTENED BACK INTO THE FOLD
Eighty years ago Kemal Ataturk, the father of the modern Turkish republic, ended the Islamic caliphate. Not since the days of the prophet Muhammad had the Muslim community, the Umma, gone without a supreme religious-political leader. This didn’t exactly endear Ataturk to the faithful. A Syrian Muslim once told me, “Turkey has strayed off the path but we have hope that someday they will come back into the fold of Islam.” The four horrific bombings last week in Istanbul seem to be some Turks attempt to nudge their country back to that fold.
I hear lots of things on the streets of Istanbul. Many people say bin Laden was behind the attacks, but conspiracy theories run rampant. Countless Turks believe the Israeli Mossad or the CIA instigated the attacks. In a twisted sort of way one Turk said, “The synagogue bombings had to be the work of Jews because Muslims would never kill their own.” The Turkish Prime Minister Tayip Erdogan, who once called himself the Mufti of Istanbul, said he utterly rejected using the phrase “Islamic terrorism.” The idea that these bombers really, sincerely acted on religious motives is bad PR, to say the least.
Korkut Ozal, younger brother of former Turkish Prime Minister Turgut Ozal and mentor of current PM Erdogan, told me in an interview last year, “I believe Islam will dominate the world one day.” He also said that the Western press and US government continues to keep the American public misinformed about the nature of real Islam because if they knew what it was, the country would become Muslim. Wishful thinking of a retired politician perhaps, still, it belies an inherent incompatibility between the Western democratic vision and politic of the prophet. Turks tend to be pretty pragmatic. If they have to choose between the EU “Christian Club” and the Arab “Muslim Club” they can clearly see where to find the greenest pastures. But how long can the Kemalist civil religion suppress the stubborn expansionistic impulse that Islam has consistently exhibited over a thousand years? Something will give. Something did. Mustafa*, a custodian in an office not far from the British consulate, sees the bombings as a sign of something deeper. After the bombs hit the consulate and bank he stated matter-of-factly, “Islam is at war with the world.” This kind of thinking challenges the millions of Turkish Muslims who prefer to have their “Turkish Delight” and eat it too. For example, Turks may religiously observe the Ramadan fast, but at other times unashamedly indulge their appetite for Raki, a strong alcoholic drink forbidden by their religion. The radical Muslims want to force an hour of decision for the moderate majority of Turks, those who have inherited what I call Islam Lite. The fact that most of those who died in the bombs were Turkish Muslims means that the radicals have taken it upon themselves to define a real Muslim. According to them, real Muslims do not make alliances with non-Muslims, do not become debtors to them, and certainly do not befriend Jews. The government-paid mosque leaders have been working overtime this week trying to promote the virtues of Islam Lite. They have legitimate reasons to worry that many Turks will get off the fence and choose the militant side of Islam. Even before the September 11 attacks in New York Islam was in a crisis. This crisis began with the end of the Caliphate. President Bush’s vision for democracy gaining ground in the Middle East presents a possible solution for this crisis. On the contrary radical Muslims envision reestablishing some kind of supreme Muslim leadership. The world stands at a juncture in the road where the choices made will have profound implications for the future.
*psuedonym
Ron Coody, previously from Waynedale, is currently living and working in Istanbul as a writer.
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