The Irish Times has printed an article about me.

My objection to the monument that the mayor of Özalp district in the eastern Turkish city of Van wants to build is criticized in this piece that reads “Istanbul” in its byline.

The reporter is Nicholas Birch. I don’t know him personally and have no information if he is Irish or not. But I did learn that Birch closely follows Turkey. And I do not want to believe that he has acted with ill-intentions.

The article is titled “The massacre the Turkish media would like Kurds to forget.” Birch is referring to my article as “Turkish media”.

I wouldn’t know how one can make generalization by having only one article in hand. You decide. But I do write this piece as a response to Birch.

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If what you wanted to do was sketch the profile of someone who represents the "reasonable majority" of this country, you could hardly find a better person than Koksal Toptan (who was just elected Speaker of the Turkish Parliament) as your subject. And so today, we see that a representative of Turkey's "reasonable majority" sits in the Speaker's seat in the Turkish Parliament.


The first great victory stemming from the July 22 elections has occured.

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In terms of criticizing the Speaker that came before Toptan, Bulent Arinc, I was at the top of the list in the Turkish press. The truth is though, my feelings about Arinc were always mixed. On the one hand, I saw in Arinc some extremely important and successful political merits. But on the other hand, he was also one of the most extreme examples we had of political provocateurs.

In the end though, I can say that Arinc did in fact carry out a very successful and character-full term as Speaker; I guess my conscience pushes me to write this.

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What will you feel if, on the morning of July 23, AKP emerges from the ballot boxes as the single party victor?


Will this mean that a "sharia regime" has come to Turkey?

While we're at it, let's also consider the opposite. Consider whether or not if, on the morning of July 23, it appears that the AKP has emerged with fewer votes.....will that mean that we are free of "the threat of an Islamic regime"?

What would I do personally if a "sharia" regime came to this country?
And by that, I mean a regime which would change the course of my, my wife's, my daughter's, my mother's, and my siblings' lives.

Either I would abandon this country. Or, since I have never borne arms before, I would enter into a life and death struggle to protect my life style.

Will I be forced to make a decision like this on the morning of July 23?

Well, on that particular point, I separate from many of the people in my circle.

Turkey will not awaken to any such risk on the morning of July 23.

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Let me start with this admission: I am the general editor of Turkey's largest and most effective newspaper, and I have been in my posting for what counts as a long time. But even with all this experience behind me, there are some events which I have a difficult time understanding. The "Lokmaci Gate overpass" incident in Northern Cyprus is one of these.


I still don't quite understand this incident; as far as I can see, this overpass had no strategic significance. No doubt both sides are looking for some sort of "symbolic wound" to serve their own interests. But would someone explain to me how it is that the destruction of an ugly overpass, much like those you see all over Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir, could become a national matter? But I guess it can become a national matter, and easily. Because the fact is, if you don't have strong strategic goals to guide you, or policies that face the future, then you begin to make symbolic matters out of just such overpasses.

What will happen when this overpass comes completely down? People say the power of the Turkish Armed Forces (which does not approve the destruction of the overpass) will be damaged, that its bayonets will be wilted. But is that really the case?

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I have a foreign friend who for years and years was the general director of newpapers. One day he said to me: "Being the managing editor is the art of directing a newspaper where people who work have their egos bursting out from their ears."


It seemed at the time an exaggerated, even unfair analysis. But as the years passed, I began to wonder whether it wasn't just a bit true. There are some journalists who cannot control their egos. They are the ones busy saying "I wrote that first," or "I was the one to write that." But the truth is, journalism is a career that calls for risk-taking, and in fact, journalists must be free to make mistakes.

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