The welfare party's municipal track record: Evaluating islamist municipal activism in Turkey

Middle East Journal

Volumn 53, Issue 1, 1999, Pages 75-93

  Akinci, Ugur ^a  

^a Middle East Institute   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 0033475370     PISSN: 00263141     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Article

References (108)

1. In this article, by "Islamist" and "political Islam" is meant a political movement which utilizes the discourse and symbols of Islam to come to power and to establish a non-secular social order based upon shari'a (Islamic Law). All Islamists are of course observing Muslims. But there are many secular non-Islamists in Turkey who are also devout Muslims and observe the required practices of their faith. Thus, in this article, what differentiates an "Islamist" or "political Islamist" from a "Muslim" is the organized collective effort of the former to capture political power.
2. According to an official of the local administrations section at Welfare Party headquarters, the total number of municipalities controlled by the party in early 1996 was 238, 17 of them in Istanbul alone. See M. Akif Beki, "Two Years of Refah Rule in Istanbul," Turkish Daily News (Ankara), 1 April 1996. As of 22 June 1998, the Virtue Party's Internet site listed 27 FP provincial mayors, and 298 subprovincial mayors, for a grand total of 325 municipalities controlled by Islamists.
3. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
4. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
5. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
6. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
7. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
8. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
9. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
10. Among the numerous English-language studies of political Islam's rise to power in Turkey are Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, pp. 35-43; Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), pp. 32-45; Ugur Akinci, "Welfare Party's Political Rise: A Re-Evaluation" (parts I, II and III), Turkish Daily News, 15, 16 and 17 September 1994; and M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), pp.63-82. The selected works in Turkish include Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi (Neither Shari'a nor Democracy) (Istanbul: Metis Yayinlari, 1994); Soner Yalcin, Hangi Erbakan (Which Erbakan) (Istanbul: Basak Yayinlari, 1994); Erbil Tusalp, Seriati Beklerken (While Waiting for Shari'a) (Istanbul: Papirus, 1996); and Serkan Oral, Kargatulumba Refah (Refah Railroaded) (Istanbul: Bilgi Yayinevi, 1998).
11. Nicole and Hugh Pope, Turkey Unveiled: Ataturk and After (London: John Murray, 1997), p. 333.
12. Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi, p. 185. It is ironic that Dogan, who came to power with the 1989 local elections, was probably the only RP mayor in Istanbul who was not re-elected in the March 1994 municipal elections, when the Islamists registered unprecedented gains. His detractors within the Welfare Party claimed Dogan prepared his own defeat by declaring at every public opportunity that he was pro-shari'a. "By talking too much and generating little service, Dogan had scared the voters," was the sort of very rational explanation provided by his Islamist critics (ibid. p.225). Dogan's unusual defeat in an election when Islamists won en masse supports the secularist argument that those who vote for the Islamists do so more in expectation of better service than ideological radicalism.
13. Rusen Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi, p. 185. It is ironic that Dogan, who came to power with the 1989 local elections, was probably the only RP mayor in Istanbul who was not re-elected in the March 1994 municipal elections, when the Islamists registered unprecedented gains. His detractors within the Welfare Party claimed Dogan prepared his own defeat by declaring at every public opportunity that he was pro-shari'a. "By talking too much and generating little service, Dogan had scared the voters," was the sort of very rational explanation provided by his Islamist critics (ibid. p.225). Dogan's unusual defeat in an election when Islamists won en masse supports the secularist argument that those who vote for the Islamists do so more in expectation of better service than ideological radicalism.
14. Jenny B. White, "Pragmatists or Ideologues? Turkey's Welfare Party in Power," Current History, January 1997, p. 26.
15. "Refahli baskanin yaptigina bakin!" (Look at What the RP Mayor Has Done!) Hurriyet, 7 October 1994.
16. Jenny B. White, "Pragmatists or Ideologues? Turkey's Welfare Party in Power," p. 26.
17. Christian Science Monitor, 27 January 1998. The RP-controlled Sincan hosted a pro-Iran and anti-secular "Jerusalem Night" in February 1997, at which large portraits of Hizballah and Hamas leaders were displayed. As a result, the military arranged a "coincidental" rolling of tanks through downtown in order to send an appropriate message to the then ruling RP-DYP coalition. Iran's ambassador to Ankara had to leave Turkey after the incident. RP Mayor of the city, Bekir Yildiz, who reportedly has said "we will forcefully inject shari'a into the secularists," was sent to jail briefly.
18. Nicole and Hugh Pope, Turkey Unveiled: Ataturk and After (London: John Murray, 1997), p. 333.
19. "Rayli ulasim ve metro hizlandi" (Metro and Rail Transportation Quickened), Yeni Yuzyil, 27 March 1995.
20. Rauf Tamer, "Yumusama" (Détente), Hurriyet, 14 August 1994.
21. Paul B. Henze, Turkey: Ataturk's Legacy, U.S. Relations and Prospects for the 21st Century, with a foreword by Zbigniew Brzezinski (Haarlem: SOTA, 1998).
22. Sabri Sayari, "Turkey's Islamist Challenge," Middle East Quarterly, September 1996, p. 37.
23. "Hizmet Kervani Yuruyor" (Service Convoy Marches On), Milli Gazete, 28 March 1997. All dollar conversions are based on a rate of $1 = TL 200,000, the average (mean) exchange rate valid for most of 1997.
24. Ibid.
25. Ibid. There are over 2,000 municipalities in Turkey with populations under 10,000. Islamists control a minority of the total number of municipalities, but they control the largest ones. For example, almost one in every four Turks lives either in Ankara or Istanbul. Again, in terms of the distribution of investments, Islamist-governed Istanbul and Ankara alone received 23 percent of $138 million dollar total investments made in Turkish cities between 1990-96, according to official figures released by Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Bourses. The top 12 cities received 74 percent of all investments. See: "Istanbul'un Yildizi Hala Parlak" (Istanbul's Star Shines Bright), Radikal, 28 July 1997.
26. Ibid. There are over 2,000 municipalities in Turkey with populations under 10,000. Islamists control a minority of the total number of municipalities, but they control the largest ones. For example, almost one in every four Turks lives either in Ankara or Istanbul. Again, in terms of the distribution of investments, Islamist-governed Istanbul and Ankara alone received 23 percent of $138 million dollar total investments made in Turkish cities between 1990-96, according to official figures released by Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Bourses. The top 12 cities received 74 percent of all investments. See: "Istanbul'un Yildizi Hala Parlak" (Istanbul's Star Shines Bright), Radikal, 28 July 1997.
27. "RP'liler Memnun" (RP Members are Satisfied), Radikal, 27 March 1997.
28. "Top Ten Debtors to Turkish Social Security Administration (SSK)," Anatolian News Agency news story, 8 July 1998. However, one should note that these debts were not exclusive to the Islamist-run municipalities. Among the top debtors were also some municipalities run by the center-left Republican Peoples Party (CHP): Yenimahalle municipality owed $1.9 million to the Social Security Administration; and Kucukcekmece owed $1.7 million. Kecioren in Ankara, run by the ultra-nationalist National Action Party (MHP), owed $1.4 million.
29. "Ogretmenden Itfaiye Muduru" (Teacher Becomes Fire Chief), Hurriyet, 25 March 1997.
30. Hurriyet, 23 October 1997.
31. Goksel Ozkoylu, "Uc Yil Once, Uc Yil Sonra" (Three Years Earlier. Three Years Later), Radikal, 27 March 1997.
32. "Belediyeler Dis Bore Bataginda" (Municipalities are Stuck in the Muck of External Debt), Radikal, 28 July 1997.
33. Ibid.
34. Ibid. All figures include principal and interest accrued.
35. "The Welfare Mayors After Six Months," Turkish Daily News, 16 October 1994.
36. "Cheap Bread or Pie in the Sky?" Turkish Daily News, 22 November 1996.
37. Ibid.
38. Ibid.
39. Ibid.
40. Note that not all Islamist mayors first came to power with the March 1994 elections, since the RP's municipal prominence was ushered with the 1989 local elections. The Istanbul sub-provinces of Kagithane, Bahcelievler, Sultanbeyli, and Arnavutkoy, for example, were run by Islamist mayors beginning in 1989. The city of Sivas in central Anatolia had an RP mayor beginning in December 1991, when a by-election was held to replace the previous left-of-center mayor who wanted to run for the parliament. Thus, by the time the RP won over 300 municipalities in March 1994, some of the municipalities had long been struggling with the negative impact of the partisan personnel policies implemented by Islamist mayors over a four year period. Kagithane of Istanbul was one such municipality where 342 municipal workers had been fired by its Islamist mayor by the time of the 1994 elections.
41. Baki Kosar, "Buyuksehire buyuk ofke" (Great Anger at Greater-City Municipality), Nokta, 31 July-6 August 1994, p.28.
42. White, "Pragmatists or Ideologues? Turkey's Welfare Party in Power," p. 29.
43. Ibid., p. 29.
44. Sevinc Kara, "Eminonu Municipality and Hizmet Foundation: Serving the people of Eminonu?" Turkish Daily News, 18 December 1996.
45. "Bahcivan saksofoncu sahnede" (Gardener Sax Player on the Stage), Hurriyet, 4 July 1994.
46. "Kadin Iscilere Refah Surgunu" (Female Workers Forced to Exile by Refah), Hurriyet, 2 December 1994.
47. "Van'in RP'li Baskani, Avukati Bahcivan Yapti" (RP Mayor of Van Assigned the Attorney as Gardener), Hurriyet, 28 November 1994.
48. "Mezbahaciyi Sanat Muduru Yaptilar" (They Made an Art Director Out of a Butcher), Hurriyet, 19 June 1994.
49. "Ogretmenden Itfaiye Muduru" (Teacher Becomes Fire Chief), Hurriyet, 25 March 1997.
50. Milli Gazete, 30 July 1998.
51. "Gebze'de Gergin Gun" (Tense Day in Gebze), Turkiye, 3 July 1994; and "Gebze Karisti" (Gebze Explodes), Turkiye, 9 July 1994.
52. "Gebze'de Gergin Gun" (Tense Day in Gebze), Turkiye, 3 July 1994; and "Gebze Karisti" (Gebze Explodes), Turkiye, 9 July 1994.
53. "Ataturk'ten Yine Kacti" (He Again Ran Away from Ataturk), Hurriyet, 18 September 1994.
54. "Sevki'ye 2 Yil Hapis" (Two Years Jail Time for Sevki), Hurriyet, 26 May 1998. Article 159 of the Turkish penal code makes "insulting the Turkish Grand National Assembly" a crime. At the time of the sentencing, Yilmaz was in Germany.
55. Umit Cizre Sakallioglu, "Parameters and Strategies of Islam-State Interaction in Republican Turkey," International Journal of Middle East Studies 28, 1996, p. 248.
56. Karatepe went on record by recommending the Islamists "not to ever forget your anger and disgust" against the secular regime. In 1997, Karatepe admitted that he went too far and could not "step on the brake." See Faruk Bildirici, "Kayseri'de Refah Holding" (Refah Holding in Kayseri), Hurriyet, 27 March 1997. Karatepe was found guilty of provoking the public to hatred by creating religious, racial and class discrimination in a speech in December 1997, and was sentenced to one year in jail.
57. Metin Heper, "Islam and Democracy in Turkey: Toward a Reconciliation?" The Middle East Journal 51, no. 1 (Winter 1997), p. 37.
58. "RP'li Baskandan Icki Yasagi" (Alcohol Ban from RP Mayor), Hurriyet, 15 July 1994.
59. "Kayseri'de Refah Holding" (Refah Holding in Kayseri), Hurriyet, 27 March 1997.
60. "Ardesen Belediyesi Hizmet Atagi Baslatti" (Ardesen Municipality Launches Service Initiative), Turkiye, 12 July 1994.
61. It is curious to note that Bayraktar, during an interview before the 1994 local elections, said he expected 45 percent of the prostitutes working in the legal brothels to vote for the RP. Bayraktar was trying to demonstrate the broad voter base and the populist appeal of his party. See Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi, p. 213.
62. "RP'li Baskandan Ozel TV'lere Sansur" (RP Mayor Censors Private TV Stations), Hurriyet, 31 October 1994.
63. "Cable TV Subscribers in Konya Interested in Pornography," Turkish Daily News, 22 June 1998. There are 9,223 cable TV subscribers in Islamist Konya, with 444 people on the waiting list for service.
64. Ferit Ozcan, "Bacak Sansuru" (Leg Censure). Milliyet, 14 June 1998.
65. "Isportaciya Sutyen Kilot Satma Yasagi" (Vendors are Forbidden to Sell Bras and Panties), Hurriyet, 17 May 1998.
66. Ibid.
67. "Yenidede: Bazi giysiler fahiseligin simgesi" (Yenidede: Some Clothes are Symbols of Prostitution), Milliyet, 26 June 1998.
68. "Islami Otele Goz Hapsi" (Islamic Hotel on Watch List), Yeni Yuzyil, 1 April 1996.
69. "Bilet Almak Gunahmis" (Buying Lottery Tickets is Said to be a Sin), Hurriyet, 23 June 1994.
70. "RP'li Baskan Odul Sokturdu" (RP Mayor Removes the Award), Hurriyet, 1 May 1994.
71. "RP'li Baskan, Put diye Boga Heykelini Kaldirdi" (RP Mayor Removes Bull Statue, Claiming its an Idol), Hurriyet, 26 April 1994.
72. "Sculpture Causes More Trouble for Mayor Gokcek," Turkish Daily News, 24 June 1998.
73. Husamettin Kocan, "Bak su muzirlara!" (Look at those Rascals!), Hurriyet, 20 June 1994.
74. The whole subject of cultural policy as implemented by Islamist mayors easily deserves a separate study of its own.
75. White, "Pragmatists or Ideologues? Turkey's Welfare Party in Power," p. 26.
76. Nicole and Hugh Pope, Turkey Unveiled: Araturk and After, p. 333.
77. M. Akif Beki, "Two Years of Refah Rule in Istanbul," Turkish Daily News, 1 April 1996.
78. Ibid.
79. "Rusveti bitiremedim" (I Couldn't Eliminate Bribery), Hurriyet, 3 July 1998.
80. Samil Tayyar, "Erdogan'a Buyuk Sorusturma" (Big Investigation for Erdogan), Yeni Yuzyil, 9 July 1998. In September 1998, Erdogan was sentenced to four months in jail for the content of a speech he delivered in Siirt, in December 1997. The sentence has effectively ended Erdogan's political career.
81. Kadir Ercan, "Topun Agzindalar" (They are about to be Fired), Hurrivet, 31 March 1998.
82. Ibid.
83. Emin Colasan, "GAP'in Uyanik Belediye Baskani" (GAP'S Smartaleck Mayor), Hurriyet, 5 June 1998; and "Bahcivan'in Aciklamasi" (Gardener's Explanation), Hurriyet, 11 June 1998.
84. Emin Colasan, "GAP'in Uyanik Belediye Baskani" (GAP'S Smartaleck Mayor), Hurriyet, 5 June 1998; and "Bahcivan'in Aciklamasi" (Gardener's Explanation), Hurriyet, 11 June 1998.
85. Kara, "Eminonu municipality and Hizmet Foundation: Serving the people of Eminonu?"
86. "Kacak yapiya ilginc cozum" (Interesting Solution to Illegal Construction), Yeni Yuzyil, 27 March 1995.
87. Ibid.
88. "Trilyonluk garip ihale" (Weird Tender Worth Trillion), Hurriyet, 15 September 1994.
89. See Henri Barkey, "Turkey, Islamic Politics, and the Kurdish Question," World Policy Journal, Spring 1996; Burhanettin Duran, "Approaching the Kurdish Question via Adil Duzen: An Islamist Formula of the Welfare Party for Ethnic Coexistence," Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 18, no. 1 (April 1998); and Umit Cizre Sakallioglu, "Kurdish Nationalism from an Islamist Perspective," Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 18, no. 1 (April 1998).
90. See Henri Barkey, "Turkey, Islamic Politics, and the Kurdish Question," World Policy Journal, Spring 1996; Burhanettin Duran, "Approaching the Kurdish Question via Adil Duzen: An Islamist Formula of the Welfare Party for Ethnic Coexistence," Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 18, no. 1 (April 1998); and Umit Cizre Sakallioglu, "Kurdish Nationalism from an Islamist Perspective," Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 18, no. 1 (April 1998).
91. See Henri Barkey, "Turkey, Islamic Politics, and the Kurdish Question," World Policy Journal, Spring 1996; Burhanettin Duran, "Approaching the Kurdish Question via Adil Duzen: An Islamist Formula of the Welfare Party for Ethnic Coexistence," Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 18, no. 1 (April 1998); and Umit Cizre Sakallioglu, "Kurdish Nationalism from an Islamist Perspective," Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 18, no. 1 (April 1998).
92. Barkey, "Turkey, Islamic Politics, and the Kurdish Question."
93. Ibid.
94. For a comprehensive and comparative table showing the top twenty provinces that Islamists won in seven elections since 1973, see Cakir, Ne Serial Ne Demokrasi, p. 218.
95. Ugur Akinci, "Abdullah Gul to VOA: Our electoral strength is 30 percent," Turkish Daily News, 14 August 1997.
96. Saadet Oruc, "HADEP Chairman Bozlak: PM Erbakan did not keep his promise," Turkish Daily News, 2 May 1997.
97. Nokta, 26 June-2 July 1994.
98. Cakir, Ne Seriat Ne Demokrasi, pp. 179-80.
99. Sukran Ozcakmak, "RP'li Belediyenin Fahri Mufettisi" (Voluntary Inspector of RP Municipality), Nokta, 5-11 June 1994.
100. Gul Demir and Niki Gamm, "Winning is All About Keeping Promises - the RP in Istanbul," Turkish Daily News, 31 October 1995.
101. Ibid.
102. "Rayli Ulasim ve Metro Hizlandi" (Metro and Rail Transportation Quickened), Yeni Yuzyil, 27 March 1995.
103. Currently there are 215 cases before the Turkish Parliament's Constitution and Judicial Joint Committee to have the immunities of 104 deputies (out of 550) removed so they can be tried in a court of law on various charges of corruption and wrongdoing. See Sebahat Karakoyun, "Meclis'te Suclu Rekoru" (A Record of Criminals in the Parliament), Cumhuriyet, 21 July 1998.
104. M. Hakan Yavuz, "Political Islam and the Welfare Party in Turkey," Comparative Politics 30, no. 1 (1997), p. 74.
105. Istanbul Mayor Erdogan displayed this "majoritarianism masquarading as pluralism" well when he stated at a ceremony in 1995 to inaugurate the party's Umraniye (Istanbul) branch that "if people want it, of course we will abolish secularism, and you can't stop that." Erdogan continued: "The Islam world of 1.5 billion is waiting for the Muslim Turk nation to get on its feet. And we will stand up. We can see the lights. This rebellion will start." See Hasan Cemal, "Tayyip Acik Sozlu" (Tayyip is Candid), Sabah, 8 July 1998.
106. Omer Faruk Guder, "Esnafin Cigligi" (Scream of Shopkeepers), Sabah, 8 July 1998.
107. Alper Balli, "Yargida Fervali Karar" (Decision Based on Fatwa in Courts), Cumhuriyet, 30 July 1998.
108. Ugur Akinci, "Ayata: Ataturkists Thwart RP in Provincial Towns," Turkish Daily News, 24 April 1996.