Another Enigma: Why The Religious Trend In Turkey?

Submitted by Dave (United States), Apr 22, 2017 at 14:56

While Erdogan may be puzzling in many ways, he seems to be riding a wave of religious reaction in traditionally secular Turkey. Past Pew polls on Turkish attitudes show far less affinity for Sharia than in most Muslim countries, but despite people realizing that Erdogan is an Islamist, he's still popular. When he and the AKP first rose to political prominence, it was reported that economic prosperity was the real motivator for the voters, but since then economic conditions have worsened, and yet Erdogan and the AKP keep on rolling. It would appear that demographic changes are responsible, but the Kurds, a people who live in humble circumstances and have an even higher birth rate, are becoming less Islamist and more pro-Western.

It's always possible that Erdogan's use of nationalism and repression are making Turkey look more Islamist than it is, or his demagoguery is actually changing social attitudes.

Whatever the reason, Turkey is running backwards fast and that's alarming.

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