As a foreigner in Turkey, I am still sometimes confused about what people can or cannot say in this country. Sometimes I wish there was a manual that I could consult. Then at least I would know when and why exactly I am (or someone else is) being provocative or where the boundaries lie (which, of course, does not mean I would shut my mouth accordingly but I would be prepared for reactions).

It is not so long ago – and it’s stuck in many people’s minds – that Erdoğan said to an obviously unhappy farmer in an Anatolian village: “Take your mother and go”. It was during the last election campaign. Turkish voters apparently did not take it too seriously and gave their votes to the ruling AKP (which is currently facing the threat of closure but for very different reasons). So, apparently insulting a farmer is not a big deal. However, it is a big deal if Erdoğan’s remarks are repeated on stage – as happened recently in Trabzon during a play titled “Düğün yada Davul” (Wedding or Drums). The artists also picked up politically loaded phrases like “The prime minister is scared of the United States“ and “This is not a place to sit and relax” which – according to Turkish newspaper reports – triggered an investigation into the play. Maybe government representatives do not have much time to attend theatre plays which is why they should take at least time to listen to professionals in this art – like Nermin Karademir, Culture and Arts Union Trabzon representative: “Theatre is not a place where senior officials are praised night and day. We ask the media and the public to stand up for theatres.“ (Meanwhile it is a relief to read that Elif Şafak, the author of the bestselling novel “The Bastard of Istanbul” who was accused of insulting Turkishness in her novel, is among the 20 writers long-listed for Britain’s prestigious Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction.)

What Karademir said about the arts also holds true for the media: They neither should be a place where senior officials are praised night and day. Part of our journalist profession – as well as that of the artists’ – is to be critical of what people say and do, and convey their view to the public. However, there is a difference between being critical and simply enjoying the act of blaming another party – a game which is admittedly more entertaining than factual reporting but, if we look at it with a sober mind, also clear evidence of incapacity, in politics as well as in journalism.

My experience of the past weeks (and I openly criticise the Turkish media for having taken their share in it) has led me to believe that it is not considered inappropriate or insulting to approach someone you don’t know with the words: “Oh, you are from Germany?! The Germans recently burnt Turkish people’s houses, didn't they? It was ten so far, wasn’t it?”

At least so much can be said: I don’t mind telling people that I strongly condemn any act of arson – against people of any nationality – and so do most of my fellow country people, Germans and Turks. Sadly enough, we also have some brainless souls in our midst who believe that people should be judged by their race (I would not mind expelling these poor souls but I am afraid that would not solve the problem, who would want to have them anyway?). I do not have anything against Turks (or Alevis), the fact that I live in Turkey speaks for itself. But I have something against racist views – and I do not care whether the person who utters or triggers them is Turkish or German or whatever else.

I am unhappy about having to defend myself for being German (I am not accusing Turks in general for very unpleasant incidents that happened in this country, I am, however, blaming those who are responsible for or who are in the slightest sense supportive of them).

It’s not the fault of a little educated music shop owner in Van or of a jewelery seller in Ortaköy if they share with me their concern about “a series of attacks against Turks” committed by Germans. It is the fault of journalists who make Turkish readers believe that Germans do not like Turks and the “German government is following a conscious 'fascist' policy against Turks”* (while the German government is holding an integration summit together with members of the Turkish community). These harsh and generalizing, partly even unsustainable accusations do nothing to improve relations between Germany and Turkey but adds fuel to the fire sparked by those simple minds who unfortunately make profitable headlines.

  • The quote was taken from Yiğit Bulut's piece titled "Turks are being burned in Germany, While Turkey is 'Sleeping'" published in Referans newspaper. The English translation was published on the Turkish Weekly website under http://www.turkishweekly.net/news.php?id=53516

Dorte HUNEKE