{"id":28008,"date":"2016-03-19T03:17:07","date_gmt":"2016-03-19T03:17:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.firdevstalkturkey.com\/?p=28008"},"modified":"2016-03-19T03:17:07","modified_gmt":"2016-03-19T03:17:07","slug":"striving-for-martyrdom-glorify-life-not-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.firdevstalkturkey.com\/striving-for-martyrdom-glorify-life-not-death\/","title":{"rendered":"Striving for martyrdom? Glorify life, not death"},"content":{"rendered":"
March 18th<\/sup> was the day of commemoration for one of World War One\u2019s worst military disasters for the Allies. In Turkey, it is celebrated as the anniversary of the Ottoman victory against the invading naval forces at the Dardanelles Straits.<\/p>\n It was one of the bloodiest campaigns of the Great War. Yet, 101 years on, the legacy of Gallipoli is still very much alive, not purely as a battle that changed the course of history, but also as a lesson in how out of the ashes of the worst brutality can arise the very best examples of basic humanity.<\/p>\n The Johnies and the Mehmets, lying in graves in Gallipoli side by side were honoured by memorials, erected on three different continents after the war. Inscriptions on them salute the fallen not only for their heroism, but also for their dignity and magnanimity.<\/p>\n The Battle of Dardanelles is deeply embedded in the psyches of all the nations that fought in it, but nowhere more than modern Turkey, where it has always been seen as a defining moment in history. The Gallipoli campaign brought a young lieutenant-colonel in the Ottoman Fifth Army, Mustafa Kemal, to prominence and revived the national resolve and pride of Turks in the twilights years of the Ottoman Empire, leading the way to the war of Independence which laid the foundations of modern Turkey.<\/p>\n In recent years, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) has taken several steps to dismantle the legacy of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the military statesman that founded the nation. \u00a0With the rising Islamist politics of the AKP, it was the Ottoman past that was glorified and the secular Republic\u2019s history modified. Almost all key historical national events were given a distinctly Islamic tone.<\/p>\n This year, too, on March 18th<\/sup>, marked as the Remembrance Day for Martyrs, the ceremony held in the north-western province \u00c7anakkale, had a strong emphasis on the Islamic concept of martyrdom. \u201cFor us, martyrdom is not something to be frightened of\u201d President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, \u201cit is something we all strive for\u201d.<\/p>\n Religious<\/em>\u00a0fervor in Mr Erdogan\u2019s speeches is nothing new. It was the obvious departure from the reconciliatory language that came to be identified internationally with the Gallipoli commemorations that surprised many.<\/p>\n \u201cWe, as a nation, never fear or shy from battle, no matter who or how powerful our enemies are. Nobody can stop us from writing a new epic as long as we protect our solidarity and brotherhood,\u201d the President said.<\/p>\n Recipients of his comments were internal enemies, but everyone else, including the European Union with whom his Prime Minister was simultaneously negotiating a refugee deal in Brussels, had their fair share too.<\/p>\n Mr Erdogan told his audience that Turkey has had 300 martyrs to terrorism since July, \u201cbut our gain is comparable to the Battle of Dardanelles and the War of Independence\u201d, he added rather haphazardly.<\/p>\n