Turkish nationalists

Submitted by Concerned European (Lithuania), Jan 12, 2007 at 01:28

[go and read the atrocities committed by turks in their rampant extermination frenzy against chrstians and jews. Go read how ataturk told them they are a superior race and they should rule on everybody]

I never have read that Turks had committed any extermination campaign against Jews, both in Ottoman and Republican times. Relations between Ataturkist Turkey and Israel, until the Islamist Government of Erdogan were rather friendly.

Turks certainly committed the genocidal campaign on Armenians(probably as much as 1.5 millions were killed), Assyrians and Pontic Greek during WWI and shortly afterwards. In 1923 after the defeat of Greek invasion, Turks and Greks exchanged populations, so that amost all Greek population(about 1.5 mil.) had to leave Turkey. The rest of Greek community which remained in Istanbul were further harassed until the most of them left in 60ies. The main motive for atrocities again Greek and Armenians was nationalistic although religious factor also had its role. However one should note that the Ataturkist regimes committed atrocities against Muslim Kurds as well.

Ataturkist regime launched in 30ies a propagandist campaign the aim of which was to increase "national honor" of Turks and it included many absurd allegations about Turks as "superior race" and source of all civilization, about the descent of Turks from Hittites and Sumerians, about the origin of all world languages from the Turkish language etc. yet now these theories are long forgotten except by some arch-nationalists.

However it is true that Turkey still denies the genocide of Armenian and it is secular Ataturkists, not the Islamists, who are the most adamant about that.

It must be noted that the Ataturkist political forces(the center-left People's Republican Party) consist mostly of people who are either atheists or very moderate in religion, although not necessarily moderate, if not the most extreme, in their nationalist attitudes. Turkish Socialists(the party of late Bulent Ecevit) are also quite nationalistic and differ on this point from Western Socialists.

The nationalist forces(the National Movement Party) include both secularist and conservative Muslim members and is much more inclined towards Islam yet they always subordinate Islam to the goal of Turkish Nationalism. Nationalists want to strengthen relations with their brethren in Azerbaijan and Central Asia, and in generally have quite negative atitude towards Arabs and Iranians. The nationalism of National Movement Party is much more fierce, open and frank than that of the Ataturkist Party.

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