Interchangeability of "Islam" and "secularism"

Submitted by Ianus (Poland), Jun 9, 2010 at 16:53

Lazman wrote :

"Until recently Turkey had different minorities, with those who regarded themselves as Turks being the majority. Some years back, following elections of PM Erdogan and his AKP government, a fascinating survey revealed that almost all of those who voted for the opposition secularist party considered themselves as Turk first Muslim second. And those who voted for AKP considered themselves Muslim first and Turk second."

In other words - a "secularist" in Turkey is a Moslem who says "I am a Turk" while an "Islamist" in Turkey is a Turk who says "I am a Moslem" , aren't they ? If it is all that makes these evasive Turkish twin brothers different , then small wonder "Islamists" and "secularists" constantly mix up their roles . Interchangeability of "Islam" and "secularism" is evidently a temptation no one can can resist given the above initial definition . You can be staunchly 'secular' or be quite 'Islamic' and very little really changes in the Turkish quid pro quo farce , doesn't it ?

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