Turkey Today: A Nation Divided Over Islam's Revival

Features

• Cover Type: Hard Cover with 328 pages
• Published by: Basic Books June 15, 2000
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 081333764X
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0813337647
• Book Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Weighs: 1.4 pounds

From Library Journal
This timely book is an attempt to understand the role of Islam in Turkey today. It addresses a complex subject, one inseparable from the role of the Turkish military and, ultimately, the enduring influence of Kemal Ataturk himself. Howe, an American journalist who opened the Ankara bureau of the New York Times in 1979, asks whether Turkey is a democracy if the the military can repeatedly overthrow governments to restore the secular, Western-oriented rule inspired by its mentor, Ataturk. Its most recent action came in 1997, when it toppled the coalition government of Islamist prime minister Necmettin Erbakan. Another perceived threat to the Turkish government comes from the Kurds, who have been relentlessly oppressed by the military for years. Howe has contacts across the spectrum of Turkish society, and this compilation of her many interviews gives us an invaluable look at who the Turks are today. (Most Turks, whether religious or secular, are not fanatic.) Writing as an unbiased insider, Howe gives us a wonderful picture not only of current Turkish political life but also of its society and culture. An index would have been useful. Highly recommended for all libraries.DRuth K. Baacke, Whatcom Community Coll., Bellingham, WA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description
The secular Republic of Turkey, which has gone further towards Westernization than any other Muslim country, has been caught up in the Islamic revival sweeping the world from Morocco to the Philippines. Three-quarters of a century after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk abolished the trappings of the Islamic state and replaced them with Western institutions, Turkey has become dangerously polarized. Ataturk's disciples see his revolution under threat and are engaged in a new crusade against the spread of political Islam. On the other hand, a reinvigorated Islamic movement chafes at official restrictions on Islamic practices and is seeking ways to gain political power.Turkey Today is about the Islamic surge in today's Turkey, the only Muslim country with one foot in Europe and an active member of the Western Alliance. It is about Ataturk's legacy, its successes and failures. It is also a personal view of the multi-dimensional nature of Islam in Turkey… as a political, moral, spiritual force.The New York Times bureau chief in Ankara before and after the 1980 military coup, Marvine Howe returns to Turkey to give an in-depth account of the Islamic revival in that rigidly secular country. She discusses the questions on many peoples minds: Why has political Islam reemerged in Turkey today? How does the observance of Islam in Turkey differ from that of other Muslims in the region? Does the Islamic movement pose a threat to the secular state and its relations with the West? What are the chances for an Islamic-secular dialogue and accommodation?Here is a close-up view of some of the many faces of Islam in Turkey: the fundamentalist who would sacrifice higher education for a headscarf, radical cult leaders who prey on youths, the Islamist author who openly seeks to return to Sharia (Islamic Law), ordinary students in the controversial Imam Hatip schools, a leading Islamic reformist who would be satisfied with the American Bill of Rights.Here too, you will meet the Kemalists imbued with the Ataturk mystique. There is the judge who firmly believes that all sectors of the Turkish society have been infiltrated by the Islamic movement. Above all many women are obsessed with the Iranian revolution and the possibility it might happen in Turkey. Their close allies are the military, who promoted religion against Communism in the 1980s, and a decade later launched a virulent campaign against what they perceive to be radical Islamic activities.This reportage-monograph also focuses on other aspects of contemporary Turkey: the Kurdish imbroglio, the mood of the minorities, the Islamization of the arts, the economic boom in the provinces, the reappraisal of Turkish foreign policy.Turkey Today is a lively engaging portrait of this richly diverse society, a fair and even-handed treatment of all sides.

Reader Reviews
In the Preface section the author states, "my aim is to give the general reader a better idea as to who Turks are and where they're going...." During her tenure as the New York Times bureau chief in Ankara (capital of Turkey) from 1979-1983, Ms. Howe witnessed many critical events, including the 1980 coup conducted by a secularist military which subdued temporarily all insurgent forces in Turkey. To deal with political Islam as an emerging force in Turkey, the author covers many issues and events, most of which only faintly relate to present day secular Turkey and in this book, there is much information but little analysis. Although the book is titled,"Turkey Today: A Nation Divided over Islam's Revival", most of the time it chronicles only past political events. Former Islamist Refah Party leader Erbakan is long gone, the incumbent Ecevit coalition government has a much different political agenda and the new President Ahmet Necdet Sezer is a forceful head of state. However, regardless of these shortcomings, Ms. Howe accomplishes her above stated mission for the general reader. The book is valuable as it tackles a complex issue with care and fairness. Comment | | (Report this)