President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will mark Turkey’s centenary Sunday by honouring the post-Ottoman republic’s revered founder, while chipping away at the foundation of his secular state.
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Erdogan and World War I-era military commander Mustafa Kemal Ataturk have become the seminal figures of modern Turkey, their contrasting styles and visions defining the shape of society and the country’s place in the world.
Dubbed “reis” (“chief”) by supporters, Erdogan is now Turkey’s longest-serving leader, overseeing a massive modernisation drive that has sustained his popularity in poorer and more religiously conservative provinces since 2003.
Meaning the “father of all Turks”, the surname Ataturk was bestowed on Mustafa Kemal by Turkey’s parliament after the field marshal drove out foreign armies and built a new, staunchly secular republic from the Ottoman Empire’s ruins.
Now, Erdogan is walking a fine line between paying respects to the man who created the country, and building his own legacy – one that critics fear is pulling Turkey back into its Ottoman past.
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He peppers his speeches with proclamations about a new “Century of Turkey”, which could include a revised constitution that protects women’s right to stay veiled in public and defines marriage as a union between a man and woman.
State television is also rolling back coverage of the celebrations, citing Israel’s war with Gaza militants.
A lack of foreign guests at Turkey’s big birthday bash is adding to a sense of this being one party that Erdogan would prefer to skip.
Erdogan “didn’t really want to celebrate the republic,” said Soli Ozel, a professor of Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.
“People are unhappy. Nothing has been done to create a festive atmosphere.”
‘Climate of…
Source : france24
