Turkey and Greece

     Shirley Lambert, editorial director of the Scarecrow Press, comes to the defense of Turkey:
     "It is true that the enmity between the countries of Greece and Turkey shows little signs of flagging, despite the passage of time and despite their having been allies in NATO for many years. Part of the problem must certainly be laid at the feet of their leaders, who frequently fan smoldering embers with jingoistic rhetoric, threats, and other bombast. Focusing attention at a foe clearly remembered diverts attention from present concerns (repressive dictatorship for a number of years in the case of Greece, then a fumbling democracy but frail economy; super inflation in the case of Turkey; and corruption at the top in both countries).
     Greece has mastered the art of public relations. It has history on its side, i.e., its classic art and architecture, literature that is taught in every Western country, a widespread network of ex-patriots clustered in many cities (at least in North America), who seem able to grab attention easily. Turkey, on the other hand, has never overcome its image (reinforced in the popular literature and cinema) of a ferocious Moslem nation that massacred the Crusaders, conquered Constantinople, and was on the wrong side in World War I. "Midnight Express" was the worst publicity the country ever received. Even its current status as one of the top touristic destinations for all Europe and, more and more, for North America, has not dispelled the sense of Turkey as an alien, somewhat dangerous place, definitely not "Westernized."
     From my first experience living in the country as a foreign exchange student (AFS) in 1962, to the present time as I continue to increase my circle of Turkish friends, I have pondered this paradox. Turkey is a country that has opened its arms to the West; its alphabet was changed to a Roman alphabet under Ataturk. It gave women the vote right around the time the U.S. did. It stood loyally by (at a tremendous economic cost) during the Gulf War and turned off the spigot that supplied its oil. It always allows us to use its territory for our military planes and personnel (just ask anyone who has been stationed at Incirlik, and they will tell you how fantastic their experience in that country has been). During the Spanish Inquisition, Turkey accepted Jewish refugees whose descendants still live there. They took in Jews during the second World War (I know one family that sheltered two Jewish women on their way to Palestine--they stayed with them for the duration of the war).
     Turkish people are among the friendliest in the world; their streets are safe; they are holding the line against the tide of fundamentalism that is rising in their country because of their treatment at the hands of the West. Yet they are continually denied entrance into the EC; their diplomats are targeted by both Armenian and Kurdish assassins (who also threaten American scholars who present unbiased research,by the way); they are reviled in the popular press for the Armenian massacre during their fight to preserve their nation after World War I (war criminals were actually caught and tried, however; we seem to still be trying to achieve that with the Bosnian Serbs). It really is time that the whole story, both sides, is told.
     There are scholars, notably at Princeton, who would be able to present a fully documented account of Turkey's recent history, and the Economist has done some good pieces in the past year or two, but these carefully researched studies never seem to make it into the popular awareness. Turkey stands at a strategic location in the world, both geographically and culturally, and it would serve us better to preserve and strengthen our friendship with and understanding of this country.
     And please do note that I speak here as an individual who has known and come to love this country over 36 years, not as a representative of Scarecrow Press."
     My comment: WAIS presents both sides problems, and I am glad to reproduce this message. I asked WAIS members to tell how their worldview was formed, and I grew up with an exaggerated cult of ancient Greece; this was true of people with my background, including Byron and Victor Hugo. I know Greek, but not Turkish. I do not know Arabic, and cannot share the experience of those who assure me that the Arabs are friendly and hospitable. In Istambul I was robbed, and in Ankara I chased a thief from my hotel room. These experiences color my attitude.
     I am surprised to find myself defending the Turkish military, but I do so in their struggle with Muslims. I do not think all religions are equal; the default position of Islam, and indeed of fundamentalist Judaism, is the cult of war. Admittedly "Christians" have acted in a similar way, but the default position of Christianity is peace.
     Although Christian divisions were largely responsible for the fall of Constantinople, I lament it and the Greeks still resent it deeply. I see no easy solution to the Kurdish problem, but I fear that, like the Israeli-Palestinian problem, is will go on and on.

Ronald Hilton - 12/28/98