Reforms kemalists

The reforms kemalists (or in Turkish: Atatürk Devrimleri or Atatürk İnkılapları ), is political reforms, social and economic carried out by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish republic. The goal was for him to leave the Turkey poverty and misery while approaching the Western model civilisationnel. He said We will raise our nation on the level of the most civilized civilizations richest and world. We will put our national culture at the top of the tuning fork of contemporary civilization.

Political reforms

Abolition of the sultanate

Following the occupation of the Ottoman Empire by the allies, from the peace negotiations were going to open. At the end of the month of October 1922, the Top dog, Tewfik Pasha propose like deputy of the sultan. This advertisement causes the anger of Turkish who refuses to be made represent by the sultan.

Mustafa Kemal strong of the rejection of Turkish towards the proposal of the sultan is given to put an end at this institution, with this intention, it joins together the Grande National Assembly of Turkey the October 30th. For Mustafa Kemal it is necessary to put an end to the Sultanat without attacking the Califat. With the platform he proposes, There is only one manner of leaving the dead end where we are. That the Parliament promulgates a law separating the sultanate from the caliphate, abolishing the sultanate, and expelling Mehmed VI of the pays.

The deputies want only to deposit Mehmed VI and not to put an end to the sultanate. For them the episode of Ankara was only one bracket and once the finished war the Ottoman Empire would turn over to a constitutional sultanate with Istanbul like capital as was already the case under the Young person-Turks. A sharp debate bursts between the eighty deputies faithful to Mustafa Kemal and the remainder of the assembly. He asks the Parliament to pass directly to the vote. The members of Parliament refuse and renvoyent the project at the Commission of Legislation.

The Commission meets on November 1st. It is made up as a majority of lawyers and monk. The members base themselves in turn on the Coran, of the crowned books and the theological texts dating from the 12th century. After a long debate, Mustafa Kemal exceeded by these debates which he considers useless intervenes: Here are soon two hours that I listen to your chatterings! The question is however simple: the sovereign right to have itself lies in the Nation. However the house of Osman Othoman dynasty assumed this privilege by the force, and it is by violence that its representatives reigned on the Turkish nation and maintained on it them domination for ten centuries. Now, it is the Nation which, revolting against its usurpers, takes again itself indeed the exercise of its sovereignty. It is from now on an accomplished fact, to which nothing could be opposed any more. It would be convenient that each member of this assembly joined from this point of view, based on the natural right. In the contrary case, the facts of inescapable reality will not be changed it, but then station! … one could see falling from the heads! The President and the Members of the Commission take fear, and precipitately decide to make the legal text eligible. Mustafa Kemal goes then to the National Assembly and request the vote of the law forthwith. After having armed its eighty deputies it goes up to the platform and reads a bill which it even wrote to him: The National Assembly decides that the constitutional law of January 20th, 1921 applies to the whole of the territories Turkish asserted by the National Pact. Consequently, all Turkey passes under the administration of the government of Ankara, because the Turkish people consider the shape of the government of Istanbul, founded on the sovereignty of a person, like belonging forever to the field of the histoire. In spite of its precautions the deputies refuse to vote the law. Mustafa Kemal requires of the deputies to vote the law by acclamations, but several deputies ask to make vote the law by a nominal poll, which Mustafa Kemal refuses. With the assistance of its deputies who are acquired to him, Mustafa Kemal proposes a vote by show of hands. The law proclaiming the abolition of the caliphate is voted unanimously, but following agitation, Kemal makes evacuate the assembly.

The November 3rd 1922, the Othoman government ceases existing, the November 5th, Refet Pasha carries out a coup d'etat and takes in hand the administration of the Empire and announces officially the abolition of the sultanate. The November 17th, the sultan Mehmed VI flees the Ottoman Empire for Sanremo.

After being itself removed from the sultan, Mustafa Kemal decides to send Ismet Inonu to negotiate the Traité of Lausanne. The conference of Lausanne opens the November 21st 1922, four days after the departure of the sultan, and finishes the July 24th 1923. The treaty is ratified by the assembly of Ankara at the beginning of the month of August 1923. The October 2nd, the last allied quotas evacuate Turkey. This new treaty allows the foundation of a new State established on all it Anatolia and controlling the straits completely.

After the signature of the treaty, the dictatorial capacities lent to Mustafa Kemal by the Parliament in 1921 end. An opposition is formed, Rauf, is president of the Council, as for Mustafa Kemal keeps its seat of president of the National Assembly.

The opposition criticizes the policy followed by Kemal, Rauf does not cease criticizing Mustafa Kemal and it is joined in its criticisms by the majority of large the Pasha, Kazım Karabekir, Refet, Ali-Fuad, Nureddine and Arif.

To have a more flexible assembly, Mustafa Kemal decides to proceed to new elections (September 1923).

Birth of the Republic

The elections of 1923 mark a turning in the life of Mustafa Kemal. The war being finished, the demobilized army, and topics of the fatherland in danger not having more course it is found completely insulated within the Parliament.

To see abandoned Kémal the political life, a group of deputies tries to make vote a bill stipulating that to be elected, it is necessary to be originating in a city included/understood in the borders of the Turkey news. This attempt on behalf of the opposition to get rid of the general who was born with Salonique (current Greece) is a failure. Then the deputies try to make vote another bill, no one cannot be the representative of the people if it did not reside in his own electoral constituency during at least five years.

Mustafa Kemal was made indignant by all these attacks. It decides to create a political party, while being pressed on the local committees of resistance which it had created in 1919 during the foreign occupation. The committee had become with time a powerful organization, which covered the whole of the territory. The committees become the Republican party of the people (Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi). To set up this new party, he visits the worldwide to make conferences and meeting there.

The elections are a failure for him, the clergy invited not to vote for him. The new composition of the room was for Kemal worse than front, the voters voted for hostile small parts all the ones with the others. The only way for him of returning to the capacity was to belong to a coalition, but he refuses and prefers to withdraw political life temporarily. After the elections, a delegation of deputies asks him to resign of her position of president of the National Assembly. According to them, the president's function of the Parliament and that of president of a political party are incompatible. Mustafa Kemal answers them: I do not include/understand absolutely anything so that you tell me. You speak to me about the various fractions of the Parliament? There should be one party in the State. For the decisions which we have to make, the unit is essential. It should neither have left there rival, nor contrary ideologies. It is for me a point of honor to remain at the same time the President of the Parliament and the chief of the only party to which I recognize a legal existence, I hear the Republican party of the people. In my eyes, all the other parties do not exist pas.

Decided not to yield, Mustafa Kemal invites the October 20th all the ministers in exercise. A debate then follows on the form of the State to give to Turkey, Mustafa Kemal manages to persuade the members of the government which this form of the State and which is not the good one should be changed it urgently. To put in difficulty the deputies, he asks the ministers to give their resignation to the Parliament. After their resignation, the Parliament is in the incapacity to form a new government. Eight days later, the constitution of the new government did not have advanced of a step.

To conclude its plan, it invites at him Ismet Inonu, Fethi Okyar and Kemaleddin.

Each one in its role, it had the role of worsening the debates and of reviving the tensions between deputies. To have a referee, the deputies ask Kemal to come chaired the assembly and to propose a solution. Deputies sent three delegations to persuade Mustafa Kemal to come well to help them. It accepts in the condition express that its decisions are adopted without discussion by the Parliament.

It is not satisfied with the verbal promise of the deputies, it asks the president of the Room to have his formal engagement and writing. With the Parliament he makes a speech: System should be changed radically. I decided consequently, that Turkey would be an authoritative Republic, controlled by an invested President of the totality of the capacity exécutif. Then it lily the bill constitutional which he had written: The shape of the government of the Turkish State is the Republic. It is managed by the Large Parliament, which governs different the Department by the body from the ministers and chooses in her center the President of the Republic. This one is the Head of the State; it chairs, when it considers it necessary, the National Assembly as well as the Council of Ministers, of which it chooses the president among the members of the Parliament. The list of the members of the government is subjected by the President of the Republic to the approval of Assemblée. The deputies do not want not voted the law proposed by Mustafa Kemal, but they cannot move back any more and they are in the obligation to satisfy at the requests of the general. Forty percent of the deputies abstain from, but in spite of their abstention, the law is adopted.

The October 13rd 1923, the capital passes from Istanbul to the small town of Ankara. This change of capital falls under its will to create a new State centered on Anatolia and the Turkish people, and to cut any historical link with Istanbul, the imperial capital.

The République is proclaimed the October 29th 1923 and Atatürk became about it the first president by unanimous decision of the National Assembly. The November 30th of the same year, İsmet İnönü form the first government. The Turkish République starts to rise on the following principles: “Sovereignty belongs without restriction nor condition on the Nation” ( Hakimiyet bila kaydüşart to milletindir ) and “Peace in the country, peace in the world” ( Yurtta sulh cihanda sulh ).

Abolition of the Caliphate

To make Turkey definitively independent and to break with the past of the Ottoman Empire, it decides to abolish the Califat.

While attacking the caliph, Mustafa Kemal to tackle Islam indirectly. It did not know how to put an end at this institution without attracting the lightnings of the Parliament and the Turkish people. But what saved it this dead end was the letter that two Moslem princes of the the Indies wrote to him, the Aga Khan and the Emir Ali. In this letter the two princes ask him to respect the person of the Caliph and ask him to put an end to the encroachment of the civil government on the religious capacity. In addition this letter was initially published in newspapers stambouliotes before to be received by the president of the Republic. Mustafa Kemal benefitted from this act to show the Caliph to be an agent from abroad and to work for the British. Mustafa Kemal knew pertinently that its argument was mean, but it was sure that suspicion that the deputies for the foreigner have would override the defense of the Caliph. After its speech at the assembly where it fustigated the Indian princes, these two notorious agents of the Intelligence Service , it put insane to rage the deputies. A law then is immediately voted informant that any opposition to the Republic or any demonstration of sympathy in favor of the old mode were punishable offenses of the capital punishment.

When deputies wanted to defend the Caliph while asserting that it was a diplomatic asset for Turkey, Mustafa Kemal immediately makes apply the law that it had made vote, it submitted them in courts and made them condemn to death. In addition, the news directors who published the letter of the two Indian princes were condemned to the forced labors. March 1st, 1924, he promises to the members of Parliament to clean and raise the Islamic faith, by releasing it from the political role of instrument to which it was controlled during centuries. Then Mustafa Kemal launched a propaganda of scale by the way of CHP against the Caliph Abdul Mejid, presenting it like a traitor and an agent from abroad. The March 3rd 1924 mark the abolition of the caliphate, Mustafa Kemal proposes the total secularization of Turkey in front of the members of Parliament, the law was voted unanimously by a show of hands. The next morning, it sends police officers in the palate of the sultan which drove out it of Turkey, him and the Osman family. But because of its nonmembership in the Arab world, the abolition of the caliphate did not throw the anathema on Mustafa Kemal, even if there were demonstrations against this decision in Turkey.

Social reforms

Prohibition of the port of fez

The prohibition of the port of the fez is a reform purely symbolic system, which fell under the reforms anti-Othomans carried out by the government of Ankara. He believed that the prohibition of the port of fez would not pose any problem to him, he was surprised to learn that the Turks held with this cover-chief. Because fez it formed fully part of the Turkish identity and Islamic.

Mustafa Kemal started initially by providing caps to its close guard to see their reaction. And with its great surprise its bodyguards accept the caps without stumbling. It then decides to impose the cap within the army, it convinces them to carry them to protect itself from the sun, the soldiers thus agree to give up fez it for the cap.

Extremely of its two successes, Mustafa Kemal launched a vast propaganda in all the country for the abandonment of the port of fez, it traversed all the country capped of a straw hat on the European model. But it did not have this time any success, the Turks were strongly due to fez. In July 1926, Mustafa Kemal decides to make vote in urgency by the National Assembly a law assimilating the port of fez with an attack against the state security. The police force stopped any Turk then carrying one fez, the Turks refusing to give up fez to them were made bastonner and were thrown in prison.

The Turks refused to wear hats, and several riots burst, with Sivas, Erzurum and in a dozen other cities. To calm the situation, the general Nureddin Pasha proposed at the Parliament to restore the use of the port of fez. He was quickly expelled of the Parliament by the security services under the order of the President. Mustafa Kemal sent in all the country of the severe instructions to the police force, of the thousands of Turks were apprehended or for some put directly in prison. He makes carry out a hundred the recalcitrant ones.

Reform education

To build the country, Mustafa Kemal needed frameworks, intellectuals and scientists. Thus he undertakes important reforms of education, he decides to prohibit all the religious schools in the name of the Laïcité and of progress He opened hundreds of elementary schools and secondaries and said to the professors They are the teachers who raise the people with the row of true nations! It is you schoolmasters, who will build the new generation, the Turkey news. The methods of teaching applied are recommended by the institute Jean-Jacques Rousseau of Geneva. Western intellectuals also came in the country to make conferences, in order to prepare the professors Turkish with the new program set up by the government.

Ankara is metamorphosed little by little, of the laboratories, the schools, the stations of experiments, the libraries, the residences and restaurants for the students appear. Tens of universities are open through the country, of faculties, the colleges of trade, the academies of music, the schools of architecture and town planning and of the university residences. Mustafa Kemal, which strongly had a policy anti-Nazi, invited European specialists in Turkey; a certain number of constrained German professors to leave the Nazisme take refuge in Turkey and with the agreement of the authorities teach in faculties of the country. Among them enormously professors of Jewish origins were, like Hirsch, Neumark, Eckstein, Reichenbach, Richard von Mises specialized in political economy, right, medicine and philosophy of sciences.

Revolution of the signs

The revolution of the signs or linguistic revolution (Dil Devrimi) is a reform implemented by Atatürk for to purify the Turkish language. In a speech held at the Parliament, Mustafa Kemal explains: It is necessary to give to the Turkish people a key for the reading and the writing and to deviate from the arid way which made up to now its efforts sterile. This key is not other than the Turkish alphabet derived from Latin. It was enough to a simple test to make shine as the sun this truth that the characters Turkish of Latin origin adapt easily to our language and that, thanks to them, at the city as in the countryside, the children of this country can easily arrive at reading and writing. We all must hasten us to teach the alphabet with all the illiterate ones, men or women, that it will be given to us to meet in our public life or private. We are in the emotion of a success which does not suffer from comparison with the joys gotten by any other victory. Moral satisfaction tested to make the simple trade of teacher to save our compatriots of ignorance invaded all our être. The French historian, Benoist Méchin explains: The writing and the alphabet of which the Turks were useful themselves were them also, borrowed from Arab civilization. However, the Arab writing, created to note the sounds of a language where the vowels exist only according to the direction of the word, was appropriate by no means for Turkish where the vowels are, as in the European languages, of the intrinsic elements of the word having a clean existence as well as the consonants. To write Turkish using the Arab chart was as absurd as to write French or English with characters hébraïques. Only ten percent of the Turkish population could read and write. The knowledge was in the hand generally Clergé and with a small intellectual elite. Mustafa Kemal thus decided to remove the Arabic alphabet completely in Turkey to replace it by the Latin alphabet, better adapted to the Turkish Langue. Of only one blow, it would modify the communication system written between each one of its subjects and would upset the national literature; it would revolutionize all the forms of the thought, from one end to another of Turkey. More still: it would lead the people to change scientific philosophy, of intellectual method and finally of destiny. None the large revolutionists last - that it was Cromwell, Robespierre or Lénine - loin. had not dared to also go Mustafa Kemal creates the Société for the study of the Turkish language . The linguists belonging to this institute were charged to work out a Latin alphabet, adapted to the Turkish requirements. These people advised to him to apply the reform over several years, but Mustafa Kemal refused and wanted that the reform is accomplished in a few weeks. Before facing the public, it spent several days to learn the new alphabet. In July 1928 it requires of the institute of the Turkish language to hold an extraordinary session in Istanbul.

Mustafa Kemal explained in detail with its public why it was necessary at all costs to change alphabet and why it had to be done quickly. It illustrated its demonstration using a small black board, and it was not rare to see it asking illiterates to write their Turkish name. In front of the success of its conference, it decides to traverse to him even the country to explain to the citizens Turkish the reasons of this reform. The peasants were allured from the start by the reform of the writing. Like all the postponed people, the Turks had a burning desire to learn and to inform themselves. To know to read and write seemed to them a marvellous privilege. (...) For them, to overcome ignorance, it was to overcome the misère. The whole country went back to the school. Villagers, farmers, shepherds, tradesmen, notaries, journalists, politicians, without reference to age nor of social status, all found themselves with the neck and neck on the benches of the classrooms. It was an astonishing spectacle to see a whole people thus setting out again with zéro. Mustafa Kemal organized distributions of price to reward the Turks more deserving. He predicts a brilliant future with any person knowing to handle the Latin alphabet. The Arabic alphabet is finally prohibited the November 3rd 1928. Moreover, he announces that very condemned knowing to read and write usually the Latin alphabet before November 3rd whatever the crime would be amnestied which he could commit. In an interview given to an American journalist, he is explained: Many crimes committed in the past were due to ignorance. The State promulgates laws which must be respected by all. But it fully does not fill its task, if it does not provide at the same time, with each citizen, a sufficient instruction to allow him of the lire. The reform is a total success, in a few years hardly the rate of Analphabétisme dropped considerably. The history counts few examples of this kind where a government undertook linguistic changes of such a great scale within such a short time and, it should be recognized, with as many succès.

Women's rights

Atatürk launched much reforms for émanciper the Turkish woman. In 1930 it gives the right to vote with the women with the local elections, and, in 1934, for the national elections; the women and the men become equal in right. The new civil code adopted in 1926 prohibits the Polygamie, and gives more rights to the women on the divorces, the guard of the goods, the children and on the transmission. The school becomes mixed and laic in addition.

Mustafa Kemal opens the doors of the Republican party to the women, he encouraged them to become lawyers or doctors. He named two women judges with the court of children of Ankara, and made elect four women at the municipal council of the town of Istanbul.

In the middle of the years 1930, eighteen women were elected at the national parliament. Later, Turkey will be the first country of the world to be had like judges Supreme court, a woman.

Culture and arts

According to Atatürk The base of the Turkish Republic is the culture. He saw his nation and his values like the greatest age of the world. In the past it described the ideological push of modern Turkey: I am persuaded that the methods of teaching and education, applied until now, are the most important factors of the regression of our nation. So I understand by the program of state education a culture entirely deprived of the superstitions of the past, foreign ideas which do not have any report/ratio with our nature and of the influences come from the East and the Occident and agreeing with our national character and our history; because it is only with one such culture that the development our national cause could be assured. The culture is proportional to the medium. And this element is the character of the nation. In order to synthesize this new Turkish history, Atatürk wishes to use the elements of the national heritage of Turkey - what includes the ancient cultures indigenous - and also arts and the culture of the other ages of the world. It supported the study of old Anatolian civilizations, such as the Hittites, the Phrygiens, the Lydiens. And the study of the preislamic culture of Turkish was largely encouraged.

The Visual arts - whose development was slowed down by the civils servant of the Ottoman Empire who declared that the reproduction of human forms was idolatry - opened out under the presidency of Atatürk. Many museums were open, architecture followed more modern tendencies; and the music, the opera and the ballets took a greater place. Literary and cinematographic industry largely developed thereafter.

History of the Turkish people

In 1932, the government kemalist creates the Tarih Kurumu (Institute of the History) the purpose of which was to explore the Turkish history. Joining together a committee of historians, the institute was placed under the personal direction of Atatürk. The goal of Atatürk with the creation of this institute was to make the promotion of a fourth identity. Because for him, in addition to the Turkish identity, Othoman and Islamic, Turkey is also European. He was fully convinced of the europeanity of Turkish, thus he launches out in an immense work of anthropological transformation . He does not hesitate to rewrite the history of the Turkish people, affirming that the Turkish people are not originating in the Central Asia but in the Anatolia. For the institute, Turkish would go down from the Hittites, which would have moved towards the Central Asia before returning in Anatolia.

For the historian Hamit Bozarslan, in addition to the fact of promoting a European identity of the Turkish people, the goal was also to have the act of property of Anatolia, in particular with respect to the Armenians. Because for the Turkish political elite, it was necessary to justify the presence of the Turkish people, like his historical rights in this area.

Political reforms

Abolition of the Sultanate (November 1st 1922)
Proclamation of the Republic (October 29th 1923)
Abolition of the Caliphate (March 3rd 1924)

Social reforms

Attribution of equal rights between the men and the women (1926 - 1934). After the elections of 1935, Turkey counts ten deputies women.
Law on the hats and clothing, with prohibition of port of fez and the Islamic scarf (November 25th 1925)
Loi on family names: obligation is made to the Turks choose a family name (June 21st 1934)
Fermeture of the tekkes , zaviyes (Moslem monasteries) and türbes (sanctuaries) (November 30th 1925)
Suppression of the titles and nicknames (November 26th 1934)
Adoption of the international systems for the time being, the calendar and the weights and measures (1925 - 1931)
Sunday replaces Friday like day of rest

Legal reforms

Abolition of the Moslem legislation (1924 - 1937)
Installation of the Civil code, the French criminal code, the Italian penal code, and the German commercial code. (1924 - 1937)
In 1928 Islam is not any more religion of State, it remains however under its supervision. Thus, the State becomes laic.
In 1937, the secularity of the State becomes a constitutional principle.

Cultural and educational reforms

unification of the teaching and removal of the religious schools (March 3rd 1924)
Adoption of the new Turkish alphabet based on the Latin alphabet (November 1st 1928), known under the name of “Revolution of the signs”
Foundation of the Türk Dil Kurumu (Institute of the Turkish Language) and of the Tarih Kurumu (Institute of the History) (1931 - 1932). The purpose of it was to explore the Turkish history.
Reform of the University (May 31st 1933)
In order to ensure the Autarky of Turkey, Kemal Atatürk replaces the Café, favorite of the Turks but imported drink, by the The, which can be produced in Anatolia. Today, the Turks consumes approximately a kilogram of the per week and family (the Turkish the however not very tannic and is scented little).

Economic reforms

Abolition of the Dîme ( aşar ), a tax which was transferred with the religious authorities.
Valorization of the trade of farmer, the rationalization and the extension of the appropriations granted by the Agricultural Bank made it possible the farming community to buy modern farm equipment, to renovate their farms which become thus more roomy and cleaner. The contagious diseases knew a noticeable decrease and fertility rate increases.
Establishment of “model farm”, agriculture is then modernized on the European model with the use of tractor and the introduction of the irrigation and the creation of co-operatives. In 1925 there was a score of tractors in the country, this figure increases up to 34.000 in 1953. In same time, nearly 15.000 fountains were built by the government.
“Law of the encouragement to industry”
Application of two “development plans” (1933 - 1937). The government kemalist launches it Program national industrialization , an economic development program carried out with the Soviet assistance. The purpose of this plan was to encourage the companies to settle in Anatolia and to find the raw materials which they needed to develop. The first large Turkish companies were cement and sugar factories. In 1928, the government undertakes the construction of powerful powerplants to provide to the emergent industry the energy which it needed. Foundries, steel-works, factories of ceramics, factories of chemicals and paper mills are created.

References

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