PDF Dosyası - Ankara Üniversitesi Kitaplar Veritabanı

The role of the armyThe coramand of the Turkish army played a central role in the makingof the Turkish Republic. It played a leading role in the battle againstforeign oppression shortly after the first World War. It were the generalsespecially Kemal Pasja that mobilized the people and that led it from victoryto victory, so that the treaty of Sevres 1920, very humiliating for theTurks could be corrected at concluding the treaty of Lausanne (1923). Itis therefore not surprising that the military played a fundamental role inorganizing and arranging the nevv republic. Very often even military techniqueshad been applied to rapidly impose reforms. In the arrangement ofthe republic after Western model not very much vvas to be noted of democraticprinciples already accepted generally in Europe. This is not surprisingbecause the situation in Turkey vvas quite another one after the fail ofthe Othman Empire. Secularization of society vvas emphasized mainly. Indoing this they acted radically upon the islam, the other povverful elementof Turkish society. Most Turks vvere islam and they opposed actively asvvell as passively to these measures, hovvever vvithout success.The country vvas ruled vvith the one party system until 1945. The RepublicanPeople's Party vvith a military dominance vvas the only party.The Kemalists vvere forced to abandon their neutralistic policy, formallypursued in the vvar, for a pro Western one. From that period on the Turkisharmy had been more and more supported by the American army especiallyvvith respect to technology and material. The pressure of the Americanforced the Turkish governmet to give their citizens more freedom andlet them involve and participate really in ruling the country, as long asTurkish ideas vvere not opposed to American interest. This meant thatmore democratic reforms vvere carried through. Among other things morepolitical parties vvere allovved. As soon as the people got the opportunityto organize politically for an election, that vvas in 1950, the military (RepublicanPeople's Party) vvere resolutely rejected by the electorate. Theelections vvere vvon by the Demokrat Parti, the Democratic Party, vvith anenormous majority. In the first elections in 1946 they gained only someseats.It is a fundamental merit of Atatürk and his follovvers that they havelaid the basis for modern Turkey vvhich is mostly expressed by secularization.No vvonder that the military vvill do their utmost to preserve thesecular nature of state Turkey, one of the pillars of Kemalism, next to aliother reforms introduced after Kemalism.After AtatürkUntil his dead in 1938 Atatürk vvas the undisputed leader. Formalyhe had ruled the Republic of Turkey as president, but he did it vvith dictatorialauthority. Appointing a successor vvith as much prestige as he had,293