The Turkish Left

Author(s): Kemal H. Karpat

Source: Journal of Contemporary History, Vol. 1, No. 2, Left-Wing Intellectuals between the
Wars (1966), pp. 169-186
Published by: Sage Publications, Ltd.
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The Turkish Left

Kemal H. Karpat

The rise of a modern secular left-wing movement in Turkey,

aimed at establishinga new social and politicalsystem, depended
first and above all on the eliminationof the traditionalconceptsof
authorityand social organization.Leftist ideas of governmentrest
on a materialistconcept of power and assume an economic ex-
planation of social organizationwhich is irreconcilablewith the
traditionalistmoral understandingof governmentand authority.
It was natural, then, that the disintegrationof traditionalism
and the rise of leftist thought should begin only slowly in the
Ottoman Empire and become increasinglyrapid in Republican
Turkey. The reformsin governmentpreparedthe groundnot only
for modernizationof the countryin the generalsense, but also for
the developmentof leftist movements.
The first of these (clubs, politicalparties)were establisheddur-
ing the Young Turks era (I908-I8), after the power of the tradi-
tionalistdynastyhad been irrevocablyunderminedby nationalism
and secularism.The process had in fact begun much earlier,as a
result of the social changesoccurringafter Tanzimat (I839), and
especiallyafter the CrimeanWar in I853. The Young Ottomans
(1865-76), especiallyAli Suavi,ZiyaPasa,and Namik Kemal,held
views which might have evolvedinto a movementof socialprotest,
but they were stifled and divertedinto the demandfor a constitu-
tional parliamentaryregime after AbdulhamidII, in 1877, pro-
rogued Parliament indefinitely and maintained the sanctity of
traditionalinstitutions. Thereaftersocial ideas found an outlet in
literaturewhich bore little relationto political thought. Between
the years I880 and I908 the reformistintelligentsia,forced to flee
abroad,borrowedWestern political ideas without much concern
for theireconomicandsocialrelevance.1The resultingsocialvacuum
1 Cf. Serif Mardin, Jon Turklerin Siyasi Fikirleri (Ankara,
I964), and Kemal
H. Karpat. Turkey's Politics (Princeton, I959), Chapters 1-3.

I69
 CONTEMPORARY HISTORY

in the thought of the Young Turks reflectedtheir aloofnessfrom

the country's realities and the inabilityof modernsocial ideas to
make their way againstthe institutionsand the philosophyof the
traditionalsocial organization.
A drasticchangein these traditionalpoliticalinstitutionsthere-
fore appearedas the primary condition for the rise of modern
social thought, includingits left-wing varieties.Consequentlythe
abolition by Mustafa Kemal of the Sultanatein 1922 and the
Caliphatein 1924, and of their sustainingculturaland educational
bases (these had already been undermined by the secularist-
nationalistpolicies of the Young Turks), preparedthe groundfor
the establishment(1923)and consolidationof a Republicanregime,
and also removedthe obstacleshamperingthe rise of a secularleft.
The Republicangovernment,bent on preservingthe unity neces-
saryfor buildinga nationalstate,found it expedientto makeexten-
sive use of the traditionalconcepts of governmentand authority,
but these could not be maintainedindefinitely,while the social
structure became diversifiedand evolved often in contradiction
with the politicalideas survivingfrom earliertimes. The inability
to harmonizethe philosophy of the political system with its de-
veloping social and economiccontent, and to providesatisfactory
intellectualexplanations,causedprofoundtensionsthroughoutthe
Republic.Freshsocialideas,being ignoredor misunderstood,took
the formof politicalhostilityto a governmentwhich failedto grasp
theirvital meaning.Wheneverconditionsmadeit possible,as dur-
ing periodsof rapprochementwith the SovietUnion, orwhengenu-
ine attemptsto introduce democraticprocesseswere made, as in
I930 and after 1946, left-wing currents burst violently into the
open.
The forms they took varied accordingto the degree of liberal-
ization and the stage of social developmentreached.In 1930 the
intervalof liberalizationwas so shortthat they scarcelyhad time to
assert themselves,and became confusedwith the popularprotest
againstthe ruling RepublicanParty. They emergedmore clearly
after1946,but were soon forcedundergroundby the government's
repressive action.
A second source of leftism in Turkey must be sought in the
socialand culturaldislocationcausedby modernization.The com-
plex social and psychologicalreadjustmentsit implied provided
leftism with the opportunityto present itself as a creed offering
170
 THE TURKISH LEFT

salvation in the form of dedication to a modern form of life.

Modernization,indeed,graduallyunderminedthe traditionalsocial
and cultural frameworkwithin which the individual had found
security and meaning in life. Changein a society which preserves
its basic religious,cultural,and philosophicalframeworkdoes not
totally undermineits value system; but in Turkey the economic
andsocialtransformation,especiallyafterI930, profoundlyaffected
existingvalues.The situationwasfurtheraggravatedby the govern-
ment's oppositionto open debateand discussion.Given this free-
dom, the intellectualswould have been able to explainand justify
the changes and thus adapt themselvesmentally to new forms of
social and political organization.Without it, they were unable to
carryout their unique mission of formulatinga systemof ideasand
thus facilitatingthe adjustmentto the changedforms of life.

Actuallyit was the intellectualwho becamethe first victim of the

clash of values. The common people were still relatively secure
within their traditionalfamily relationsand communalties, which
were hostile to but still protectedthem againstoutsideinfluences.2
But the intellectual,borrowingthe outlookand valuesof the West,
was exposedto inner conflictfromthe very beginning.His ideas of
'good', 'right',and 'just'differedsubstantiallyfrom those accepted
in his immediateenvironment.It was usually the more sensitive
and serious type of intellectual who reacted most violently to
society's unwillingnessto accept his own borrowedstandardsof
'good' and 'just', standardsnourishedby a kind of secularhuman-
ism which made his dissatisfactionwith the traditionalistorder
even greaterand left him mentallyisolatedin his own society. He
turned avidly to a searchfor argumentsand ideas to support his
standand to condemnhis opponentsand societyat largeas sinners
againstmodernism.
Westernliteratureofferedhim an easy escapeinto an idealworld
where he sharedideas and lived amongmen whose way of life he
wanted to make his own.3 Later the intellectual moved from
2 The large
group of Turkish workers (over I5o,ooo) employed in Western
Europe seemed to have taken the new conditions in their stride just because their
values were already formed and their intellectual unpreparedness left them
immune to outside influences. See Nermin Abadan, Bati Almanya'daki Turk
Iscileri ve Sorunlari (Ankara, I964), p. I91 ff.
3 A leftist escapee to the West wrote: 'I am in
Europe and free. I have no
hatred, only pity towards my society which tortured me and my friends and con-
demned us materially and morally. That society pushed aside the truly pro-

171
 CONTEMPORARY HISTORY

literatureto socialdoctrineand finallybeganto searchfor political

meansto fulfil his social dream.The rise of leftism in Turkeywas
intimatelyassociatedwith literature;the country'sleading leftists
are usually thoroughlyversed in Western literature,and literary
workswere often used to conveypoliticalideas to adherentsand to
propose practicalmethods of political action. The police would
ascertainthe politicaltendencyof suspectedleftistsby raidingtheir
libraries;IgnazioSilone,John Steinbeck,andmost Russianwriters
were usuallyconsideredincriminating.
It was thus the intrusionof Westernvaluesupon a traditionalist
system, ratherthan a conflict arisingfrom the clash of economic
interests,which turnedintellectualsto the left, althougheconomic
argumentswere later invoked as justificationfor a new political
regime. This situation, coupled with the ruling elite's denial of
freedom, and especiallyits dismal failure to replacefading social
values with new ones genuinely in accord with new conditions,
facilitatedthe spreadof leftist ideas.
A former member of the undergroundcommunist party of
Turkey (now an actor),gives an excellentinsight into his conver-
sion to marxism.He was brought up in a lower-classurban en-
vironment amidst poverty, ignorance, and bloody feuds arising
from personal conflicts, while the upper class remained utterly
unconcernedwith the fate of the underdog.Eventuallya friend,
who had associatedwith communists, gave him Stefan Zweig's
book Mercy, describingZweig as a humanist. Later the reading
list includedNazim Hikmet'spoems and otherworksby left-wing
Turkish writers, to be followed by occasionalsocialist writings.
Finally the 'bourgeois' became the hated enemy opposing the
establishmentof the 'right' social order, and the man found him-
self in the left-wingundergroundin I946.4'I askmyself,'he writes,
'whether I would have joined the communist party ... if I had
found a little interest, affection, and understanding ? ... I ask the
question in order to determinemy own responsibility.I am the
child of a society whose valueswere destroyedand its foundations
gressive citizens ... It lives on their blood and tears ... we have seen much and
our friends have suffered much. What was our guilt ? Nothing, believe me,
nothing. Only our thoughts, which did not suit their minds and made them
suspicious.' Aksam, I3 August I960.
4 Aclan Sayilgan, Inkar Firtinasi (Ankara, I962), pp. 15-27. The author entered
the party in 1946 and was arrested in I952 along with most of the underground
organization.

172
 THE TURKISH LEFT

shaken by the downfall of the Empire ... I accept my share of

responsibilitywithout going into unnecessaryexplanations.But
those ruling society in those days must accepttheirs too. It is easy
to accuseand even punish a man and makehim a socialoutcastbe-
causehis values differfrom society's.But this meansto view lightly
the problemsof our countryand those of the world ... I have no
doubt that my generation,born with the Republic,was the victim
of treachery.We saw that everythingwas valued politically.The
politicianswrote historyand made us readit the way they pleased.
They defineddemocracyas they pleasedand wantedthe massesto
swallowit like a pill. They praisednot the powerof the intellect,of
creativityand culture,but that of bruteforce, and wantedus to be-
come its slaves. They sacrificedwhat was lofty to the clamorous
flattery of the masses ... A generation which was neglected and
whose existencewas ignored,was bound to realizethat it had been
deceived. It would then rejecteverythingand would strive to find
new values to replacethose destroyed.'
Often left-wing ideas were takenup as a comprehensiveanswer
to the needs of modernization.A well-integratedsocio-political
system, such as that of the traditionalistIslamicorder,couldbe re-
placed only by a system which was equally comprehensive.This
substitutionof one system for anotheris feasibleat the intellectual
level if other social and political developmentswithin the social
body do not thwart or reshape the intellectuals'political ideals.
The socialtransformationin Turkey,while offeringsuitablecondi-
tions for the developmentof a radicalleft, also creatednew interests
and orientationswhich were in opposition to it. In this context
leftism in Turkey,especiallyafter I940, becamealso partof a com-
plex endeavourto preservethe intelligentsia'shigh status against
the rising entrepreneurialmiddle class. Modernization in the
OttomanEmpire and RepublicanTurkey aimed primarilyat re-
formingthe governmentinstitutions.The subsequentexpansionof
the administrationnecessitateda large bureaucracy,whose official
role of implementing state authority was coupled with the un-
officialfunctionof providingintellectualleadershipforthe modern-
ization movement. The content of this function was determined
largely by the bureaucraticintelligentsia'sassociationwith and
dependenceon government.
The entrepreneurialgroups, on the other hand, functioned
initially as a subordinateeconomicauxiliaryto the ruling bureau-
I73
 CONTEMPORARY HISTORY

craticorder.But the growthin theirsize, power,andfunctionwith-

in the nationaleconomymade them potentialcandidatesfor politi-
cal power. Eventually,after the introductionof a multi-partysys-
tem in I945-6, they assumedtheir own politicalrole and achieved
powerunderthe DemocraticPartyin I950. This was followedby a
markeddiminutionin the powerof the bureaucratswho had ruled
the countrysince the nineteenthcentury,while importantsections
of the intelligentsiawereattractedto the side of the risingbourgeoi-
sie. Furthermore,the rise of new social groups to economic and
politicalpower challengedand underminedthe values and stand-
ardsof the upperclasses,the old Ottomanfamilieswho had led the
Republican revolution, and those who grew rich in 19I5-22, in the
economicscramblewhich followedthe declineof the non-Moslem
middleclasses.The growingimportanceof economicfactorsplayed
a decisivepartin givinga moreconcreteformto leftistideologyand
in relatingit to varioussocialgroups.

The agitated years of the War of Liberation (I919-23) saw the rise
of a series of leftist groups. Of these only the young spartacist-
marxists, trained in Germany, notably Sefik Husnu (Degmer)
played a part in later movements.The Islamic-mindedsocialists
tookno partin the electionsof 1923,while the secularist,moderate
leftistswere absorbedinto the rulingRepublicanParty.After I925
the Law on Public Orderwas used to liquidateall extremistmove-
ments.
The official acceptanceof economic statism in I931, and the
renewalof the treatyof friendshipwith the US SR, enabledsocial
questions to be discussed more freely. It was obvious that the
socialtransformationsunderway needed an explanationand justi-
fication,not only to placatethe intellectualsbut also to influence
their thinking. The review Kadro (I932-4) presented an amalgam of
radical concepts, left and right, aiming at creating a national
ideology,and possiblypreventingthe expansionof the radicalleft.
But marxistpolitical literature5,apartfrom a few translations,re-

5 See Kerim Sadi (Nevzat Gurken) Felsefenin Sefaleti (Istanbul, I934); Bir
Sakirdin Hatalari (Istanbul, I934); and several other works appearing in the
Insaniyet (Humanity) collection. See also the review Projector. On the Kadro see
Turkiye'deKapitalism (Tarihsel Maddecilik Yayinlari), vol. i (Istanbul, 1965),
p. I54 ff.

I74
 THE TURKISH LEFT

mainedconfinedto a few insignificanttracts,brochures,andperiodi-

cals. Undergroundpolitical activities were also of limited conse-
quence.
The reallysignificantleftist activityafterI925 was to be found in
literature. Nazim Hikmet Ran (I902-63), using also the pen name
of OrhanSelim, SabahaddinAli (1907-48), and severalotherlesser
names, portrayedin realisticterms the plight of the lower classes,
using literaturefor political purposes. In an interview in I958,
Nazim Hikmet declared that 'a writer could not be politically
neutral. It would be difficultto point even to a singlegreatwriter
throughout history who remained perfectly neutral and passive
about the problems of his time ... I believe that writers, com-
munistwritersin particular,must createa literaturewhich will be-
come one of the sourcesof knowledgeof reallife ... I would like to
write poems, novels, playswhich had this virtuefor my people and
for other peoples'.6
OrhanKemal, one of the best contemporaryTurkish novelists,
tells how he was convertedto such views by associationwith Nazim
Hikmetin jail.7His writingsalsomakeit clearthat personalfriend-
ships and family attachmentsoften determineda writer'spolitical
and ideological orientation,and incidentallyprovide interesting
information about the lower strata of Turkish society. Nazim
Hikmet's celebrated poems MemleketimdenInsan Manzaralari
(Humanviews of my country),a descriptionof varioussocialtypes,
are based on observationand interviewswith men he met in jail.
Kemal Tahir, another well-known living novelist befriendedby
Nazim Hikmet,told this writerin I962 thatmost of his heroeswere
men he met in jail,while servinga sentencefor his associationwith
Hikmet. Similarly Sevket Sureyya, the leader of theKadro, was
awakenedto the realitiesof Turkishlife, accordingto his memoirs,
by men he met in jail. All this suggests that the early socialist
writershad only a limited knowledgeof life in Anatolia,and may
legitimately provoke the question whether men condemned for
ordinarycrimesaccuratelyreflectTurkey'ssocial problems.

During the war years I939-45 conditions favouredthe develop-

ment of left currents;the rise of wealthy groups living in luxury
gave a sharperoutline to social injusticeand illiteracy.At Ankara
6 Nazim Hikmet,
Anthologie Poetique (Paris, I964), pp. 357-8.
7 Orhan Kemal, Nazim Hikmet'le Uc BucukYil (Istanbul, I965).

I75
 CONTEMPORARYHISTORY

University a team of sociologistsbegan to study social change in

Turkey in a systematic,scientificmanner,publishingtheir results
in the reviewsYurtve Dunya and Adimlar,and took an active part
in the developmentof villageinstitutes,the educationalinstitutions
set up in the countryside.
The fruit of these preparationswas evident in the outburst of
left-wing activitiesfollowingthe politicalliberalizationof I945-6.8
Several newspapersand reviews gave space to socialist ideas of
variouskinds,while the amendmentof the Law on Associationsin
1946,enabledleft groupsto organizethemselves.Of aboutsix self-
styledsocialistpartiesestablishedat thattime, only two were of any
politicalconsequence:the SocialistPartyof Esat Adil Mustecapli-
oglu, with a broadleftist orientation,and the marxistWorkersand
Peasants Socialist Party of Sefik Husnu Degmer. Of about one
hundred trade unions establishedin I946, at least a dozen were
dominatedby the left. Eventually the two parties, most of the
publications,and the unions were closed in December 1946, and
their leaderschargedwith subversiveactivities.
The left was once more declared illegal and identified with
extremism,althougha largenumberof so-calledleftistswere doing
no more than seeking development and progress through ideas
other than the officialplatitudes.This indiscriminatecondemna-
tion madeit impossibleto separatecommunistsfromsocialists,and
in fact secured for the former a dominatingposition. It remains
true, however,that the leftistsin 1946may in a way be said to have
doomed themselvesfrom the outset by giving priorityto foreign
policy. They arousedhostilityby theirpro-Sovietattitudeat a time
when Stalinwas exertingpressureon Turkeyto obtainterritoryin
the North and militarybases on the Straits.
After 1946 left-wing activitieswere carriedon by members of
Degmer's party who escaped arrest in 1946. The underground
organizationunder Zeki Bastimarwas uncoveredand its members
arrestedin 1952, and sentenced to various terms in jail. Their
activitiesat home and abroad,their tactics, and especiallythe use
they made of 'fronts' and of sympathizers(often without their
knowledge), have been described by former members.9 Open
8 The Democratic Party, established in January 1946, was supported by many
socially-minded and leftist intellectuals desiring social progress. Some of them
became fully identified with this party and put to good use the propaganda and
organizational skills developed during their marriage with leftism.
9 Sayilgan, op. cit., p. I28 ff.

I76
 THE TURKISH LEFT

activities,such as oppositionto the KoreanWar,sporadicpublica-

tions, and the VatanPartisi establishedby Hikmet Kivilcimli in
I957, were quickly liquidated by the Menderes government.10
Left-wing activities after the second world war were initiated by
urban intellectuals,many of them from the upper classes. They
attracteda numberof universitystudents(theuniversitiesremained
the main centres of leftism) but were unsuccessfulin gaining the
supportof the workingclass. Althoughusing marxistslogans,they
seemed to criticize chieflyconservatismand traditionalismrather
than any specificsocial class. In fact the 'bourgeoisie'seemedto be
the conservativereligioussmall shopkeeperand the self-employed
businessmanrelyingon his own effortsfor a living, ratherthan the
bankeror capitalist.

The numberof convincedleftistsin Turkeyin the nineteen-forties

probablynever exceeded a thousand. Isolated from society, they
appearedunable to affectthe course of events. But a new genera-
tion of intellectualswas being educatedin the West. Some of them,
alreadycommittedto socialismor communism,assembledin Paris
and organizedthe ProgressiveYoung Turks, which served as a
communicationcentre with marxist groups in Turkey; but the
majorityof socially-mindedstudents in the West preferrednot to
compromisethemselvesby overtadherenceto a leftistideologyand
awaiteda suitable chance upon their returnhome.
The chance came as the liberal economicpolicy of the Demo-
craticPartypromotedthe developmentof entrepreneurialactivities
of all kinds.1l In 1950 the industrialmiddle class (includingtheir
families), probablyaccountedfor about five per cent of the total
population.By I965 the figurehad risen to over twenty per cent,
and exerteda powerfulinfluenceon the government.The number
of wage earnersmeanwhilerose fromfewerthan400,000in 1950 to
close on two millions in I965. At the same time improvementsin
agriculturalmethods and an extended road programmeincreased
10One of the first acts of Mendereswas to stiffenthe legal provisionsoutlaw-
ing communist activities. For legal aspects of leftist trials see Remzi Balkanli,
Mukayeseli Basin ve Propaganda (Ankara, I96I), p. 445 ff.
11Alec P. Alexander, 'Industrial Entrepreneurshipin Turkey', Economic
Development and Cultural Change, July I960; Arif Payaslioglu, Turkiye'de Ozel
Sanayi Alanindaki Mutesebbisler ve Tese busler (Ankara, I96I). There is a com-
prehensive symposium in Social Aspects of Economic Development (Istanbul,
I963).

I77 I2
 CONTEMPORARYHISTORY
socialmobilityand helpedto spreadsocialawareness.The political
consciousnessof the massesdevelopedsteadilyas they found their
place in the variousoccupations.The dominantmotivein all these
activities was economic; among the working classes it naturally
expresseditself in a desire for materialadvancementand welfare.
This processof growthfrom below, initiatedby the government
with immediatepracticalmotivesof its own,fundamentallychanged
the country'ssocialorganizationand the powerrelationswithin it.
The bureaucracy,already affected by inflation, surrenderedits
political and social power to a new economic elite drawn from
landed and business groups and their associates.Moreover, the
intelligentsia,in the past stronglyrepresentedin the bureaucracy,
saw the rise fromits own ranksof professionalgroupseitherassoci-
ated with the entrepreneursas engineersand technicians,or find-
ing lucrativeemploymentin the serviceof privatecommercialand
business enterprises.Earliersocial values, based on educationand
dedication to state ideals, were underminedby an order based
essentiallyon economic power. Socially and psychologicallythis
was a far-reachingrevolution.Materiallyand morally,it affected
everysectionof the traditionalrulinggroups;the civil bureaucracy,
the military, and all their affiliates.This social change occurred
without benefitof intellectualjustificationor systematization.The
automaticcondemnationof all critical social ideas in the past as
being conduciveto socialismand communismgreatlyhinderedthe
developmentof an adequateschool of social thinking.
The intellectuals'reactionto these changesoncemoremanifested
itself in literature.The vast output of stories and novels with
'socialcontent'after I950, best reflectsthe trendsof thoughtwhich
eventuallybecamethe foundationof a new leftism.Writerssuch as
MahmutMakal,YasarKemal, OrhanKemal, Aziz Nesin, Kemal
Tahir, FakirBaykurt,KemalBilbasar,AtillaIlhan,Necati Cumali,
to mention only a few, came mainly from the villages and the
lower ranksof the urbanintelligentsia.12They broughtto public
attentionthe unknowndimensionsof Turkey'sacute social prob-
lems, the widespreadpoverty,distress,andinjustice.Graduallythis
type of writingfound its way into the daily press. Correspondents
roamedthe far reachesof Anatoliaand corroboratedthe writers

12 Cf. Kemal H. Karpat, 'Social Themes in ContemporaryTurkish Litera-

ture', MiddleEastJournal,Winter-SpringI960.
I78
 THE TURKISH LEFT

with their well-documentedfindings. The increase in the daily

circulationof newspapers(many published social novels in serial
instalments)from abouthalf a millionin 1950 to a millionin I956,
a millionand a half in I960, and finallyto overtwo millionsin I965,
atteststo the importanceacquiredby the writtenword. Gradually
the pressattractedsome of the left-winglitterateursandbecameone
of the strongholdsof socialismafterthe revolutionof I960.
There were also a numberof periodicalsdevoted largelyto the
discussionof socialideas,severalof them publishedby villageinsti-
tute graduates. The review Forum, appearing bi-monthly in
Ankaraafter I954, providedprobablythe best systematicanalysis
of Turkey's problems. It often published articles by leftists but
generallyoccupied a moderatemiddle-of-the-roadposition. This
was a sensible thing to do, since it permitted the discussion of
socialproblemswithoutincurringthe dangerof being indictedfor
leftist propaganda.
Supportand approvalcame from those in the bureaucracyand
the intelligentsiawho did not benefitdirectlyfrom the Democrats'
economicpolicy. The idea that socialjusticewas lackingin Turkey
appealedto them and they soughtalliesamongothersocialgroups.
They hopedto win overthe impoverishedpeasantsandworkersand
togetherwith them establisha new, just, and prosperousregime;
but they found little responsein those quarters.
The large-scaleconversionof the bureaucracyand the intelli-
gentsia to the left occurredgraduallyafter I954. In that year the
Democrats won a great victory at the elections, and decided to
speed up their developmentdrive, based chieflyon an inflationary
unplannedeconomicpolicy. Capitalaccumulationin privatehands
increasedand inflationmounted,while salariesremainedrelatively
stagnant.The dissatisfactionarousedprovidedthe foundationsof
a new leftist movement not associateddirectlywith marxism,as
was the case for most earlierleftist endeavours.Furthermore,the
new leftism was a responseto domesticconditions,not a replicaof
a foreign ideology. As such it held the promiseof takingshape in
economic and social policies designed to broadenand modernize
the Republicfrom within. Kemalismhad built the politicalframe-
work of modernismbut neglectedits social and economiccontent.
The rising social currents eventually sought legitimationin the
unfulfilled social promises of Kemalism, through an expanded
interpretationof its populist, statist, and reformistprinciples.
I79
 CONTEMPORARY HISTORY

The organizedpropagationof social ideas began timidly first in

the Devrim Ocaklari(Reform Hearths) establishedearly in the
I950s to defend the secular reforms against religious reaction.13
The Ocaksattractedmostly the universitystudents, and were in
sympathywith the RepublicanParty. Discussions usually began
with a defence of Kemalism,and after 1954 moved on to debate
contemporarysocial and economic problems. For the most part,
however,the young generationof intellectualsgot their trainingin
the youth branchesof the RepublicanPartywhich, at its eleventh
conventionin I954, adopteda programmewhich seemedto answer
the intelligentsia'ssocial yearnings.Article 36 of the programme
reads:
The main source of value which must be protectedand made the foun-
dationof nationalexistenceis the citizens'effort(work).It is the duty of
the state to take the necessarymeasuresto provide employmentoppor-
tunity for the citizen accordingto his intellectualand civil capacities,to
provide jobs for the unemployed and protect labour from exploitation
with due regardfor the employers'rights. Our party considersthe job
security of every citizen an inviolableright.. .14
At its fourteenthconventionin 1957the RepublicanPartydecided
to expandthe activitiesof its youth branches,since these seemedto
respond best to new social ideas. They were involved in the
students'demonstrationsbeforethe revolutionof I960, and played
a leadingpart in organizingresistanceto the Democrats'drive to
silence the opposition.Their undergroundactivitiesin April-May
I960 were inspiredby a revolutionaryelan which has been main-
tainedto the presentday. Until the revolutionof 1960, there were
about 295 Republicanyouth branchesin the country;the number
went up to about 530 in 1961, comprising roughly 25,000 energetic
young members. With Inonu's support, the Republican Party
committeditself to the solution of social and economicproblems
and especiallyto socialjustice.Unplannedeconomicdevelopment,
it was argued, had lowered the living standardsof the salaried
groups,largesectionsof the urbanpopulationwere destitute,while
smallgroupsbecamerich. In the electionsof I957 the Republicans
increasedtheir vote by 15 per cent, gaining 178 seats as against3I
13 In I963 the Ocaks had fourteen branches in ten cities with a total member-
ship of 2,000. Cumhuriyet, 12 April I963.
14 CHP Programi (Ankara, I954). For comparative table, see Kemal H.
Karpat, 'Turkish Elections of I957', Western Political Quarterly,!June I961.
I80
 THE TURKISH LEFT

in I954. These results encouragedthem to enlarge their social

programmeand bring to the fore the leftist members.The party's
Research Bureau began to issue studies on a variety of social
problems.15Finally, beginning in 1958-9, some party leaders
openly defended socialism as the short road to developmentand
welfare. The psychologicaland organizationalground for a new
leftism was thus prepared. It needed only the opportunity to
emerge,and this was suppliedby the militaryrevolt of I960.
The social motivationsof the militaryrevolutionwere evident in
its organizationalstructure,its policies,andespeciallyin its attitude
to social questions. The revolution was carried out by officers,
mostly men in their thirties, raised in the same atmosphereand
with the sameaspirationsas the new intelligentsiasupportingthem.
The militarygovernmentshowedlittle favourto the groupswhich
had grownrich underthe Democrats;it stressedthe importanceof
economicdevelopmentand socialjustice,and its leadingmembers,
includingPresidentCemal Gursel, openly declaredthat socialism
might be beneficialto Turkey. Police controls over labour were
lifted, and some cases of communistpropagandapending in the
courtswere broughtquicklyto an end.16
The period from 27 May 1960 to the elections of I5 October
I96I, can be described as an intensive search for a social and
economicpolicy capableof bringingTurkeyfully into the modern
age. Social evils were brought into the open and dramatizedas
proof of Turkey's backwardness.Newspaper reporterssearched
the countrysideto discover villages owned by agas (landowners,
tribalchiefs)who were describedas plottingwith religiousleaders
to keepthe peasantsin ignoranceandto exploitthem. The heartless
capitalistswereaccusedof deprivingthe workersof theirduewages,
and endlesstestimonywas offeredto show the unjustaccumulation
of wealth under the Democrats.
Whatwas requiredto remedythese ills, it was said, was a strong
regimeled by a socially-mindedelite. A professorsummedup the
situation.'We have,' he declared,'a unique chancein the fact that
15 By 1961 the Research Bureau had
published 24 studies covering major
social issues, and reproducing speeches by its members on urgent social problems.
16 See e.g. Aksam, Io August I960, Cumhuriyet,
5 July I960. The case against
I3 people arrested in 1958 for exploding bombs near the American Embassy
while Dulles was in Ankara, was dismissed.
I8I
 CONTEMPORARYHISTORY
those (military)holding the destinyof the State in their hands...
are an impartialbody concernedonly with the country'swelfare.
Shouldwe miss this opportunity?'17The essaycompetitionopened
by the newspaperCumhuriyetabout expectationsfrom the revolu-
tion showedthat the intelligentsiademandedland reform,eradica-
tion of illiteracy,better pay for all workers,an end to exploitation,
economicdevelopment,etc., all to be achievedovernight.18How-
ever,the attemptsby a few officersin the juntato capitalizeon these
demands and establish a strong rule was opposed by the Re-
publican Party and the leftists at large. Both groups hoped to
achievepower and use the social discontentfor their own benefit.
Meanwhile several organizationsknown to have opposed the
Democratsin the past opened their membershipto socialists.The
AnkaraDevrim Ocagigainedseveralmemberswhorepresentedthe
socialistwing amongteachers,journalists,andacademics.A spokes-
man for the Ocak,accusedof collaboratingwith leftists, answered
his nationalistopponents: 'Yes, I no longer work alone in the
AnkaraDevrim Ocagi. A group of thirty people who have social
trainingand knowhow to workas a team are steadilyat work.'19A
similar socialistorientationwas evident in the powerfulNational
Federationof TurkishTeachersAssociations,as shownby its later
activitiesand its supportof left-wing parties.20
The establishmentof a State Planning Organizationin 1960
added a new dimensionand a scientificjustificationfor this new
leftism or socialism,as it was now openly called. The rationaluse
of nationalresourcesto promoterapiddevelopment,socialjustice,
literacy,etc., could, it was said, be achievedthroughoverallplan-
ning by the state. The idea of state planning injected a potent
politicalingredientinto social thinkingwhich was bound to affect
the course of events.
17 Cumhuriyet, 8 July 1960.
18 Ibid., 7 August I960. (The essays were published intermittently for about
three months.) It was also reliably reported that the leftists began to publish
after the revolution a review which was never distributed. It contained articles
on Marxism, Leninism, and Stalinism. The review was suppressed by the police
and its publishers brought into court.
19 Letter in Yeni Istanbul, 3 February I963. This organization also fought to
eliminate the legal provisions outlawing communism. The Chairman, Tarik
Z. Tunaya, was probably referring to this leftist infiltration when he declared:
'we are decided to fight to the end those circles who use Kemalism as a cover
without being Kemalists, and who conceal their secret intentions'. Cumhuriyet,
12 April 1963.
20 See letter addressed to Inonu, Yon, 25 July I962.

I82
 THE TURKISH LEFT
The socialideas developedin I954-60 and duringthe revolution
were eventuallyincorporatedin the Constitutionof 1961. Defining
Turkey as a national,secular,and social state, it recognizedexten-
sive individualrights and freedoms,and spelled out a broadsocial
programmeto be carriedout by the state.21Thus, while providing
a legal basisfor socialreforms,it also ensuredsafetyfor individuals
to engage in politicalactivity in order to achievethese goals. The
RepublicanParty and some socialistsdominatedthe Constitutent
Assemblywhich draftedthe Constitution.It was assumedthat this
partywould come to powerin the forthcomingelectionsand carry
out a social programmethrough state planning, but there was
amongthe populationat largea deep aversionto any schemelikely
to restorethe power of the intelligentsiaand bureaucracy.Entre-
preneurs, businessmen, and landlords, aware that the proposed
planning was aimed chiefly at their economic power, used their
professionalorganizationsandpublicationsto fightthe swingto the
left. When the ban on politicalactivitieswas lifted, the Justiceand
New Turkey parties establishedin I96I came to representtheir
interests.
The elections of 15 October I96I gave the Republicansthe
largest number of seats in the National Assembly, but not an
absolutemajority,22while the Senatewas underthe controlof the
JusticeParty.With the military'ssupport,the Republicansnever-
theless formed a Cabinet under Ismet Inonu's Premiershipin
coalitionwith their chief opponent,the JusticeParty.The coalition
lasted aboutsix months, breakingup chieflybecauseof sharpcon-
flict over economic policy (state versus free enterprise),although
outwardlyit appearedas disagreementon the amnesty of jailed
Democrats.23The subsequent government, formed in coalition
with the minorpartiesin June I962, againunder Inonu'sPremier-
ship, was formed only after the Republicansreluctantlyagreedto
compromiseon their socialprogrammeandto acceptprivateenter-
prise as an equal. The chairmanof the New Turkey Party, an
ardentdefenderof privateenterprise,was madeDeputy Premierin
chargeof economicaffairs,includingthe StatePlanningOrganiza-
tion. These developmentsopeneda new andimportantphasein the
21 Constitution
of the Turkish Republic, Ankara I96I, also MIiddleEast Journal,
Winter I962.
22 The percentage of seats was as follows: New
PRP, 36.7; Justice, 34-8;
Turkey, 13-7; and National, 14 per cent.
23 See Inonu's letter of resignation, Yeni Sabah, I June I962.

183
 CONTEMPORARY HISTORY

history of the Turkish left. The hopes of the socialists were

dashed, while the middle-classgroups consolidatedtheir power,
especiallyafter the military appearedreconciledto supportinga
civilian regime.
The re-establishmentof a civilianparliamentaryregimeappeared
to have doomedthe intellectuals'hopes for radicalreform;among
them many who had supportedthe RepublicanParty decided to
initiatean independentline of action.The firstresultwasthe publi-
cation of a declarationsigned by over five hundredintellectuals.24
The signatoriescame predominantlyfrom three fields: the uni-
versities(usuallythe lowerranks),the press,andthe bureaucracy.
The declaration,which won socialist support, asserted that a
rapidincreasein productionwas the chief conditionfor achieving
the goals proclaimedby Ataturk.Democracycould not be estab-
lished so long as men were subjectto hunger and unemployment.
Hence, 'teachers, writers, politicians, trade unionists, entrepre-
neurs, and administrators,who are in a positionto give a direction
to Turkish society, must unite around a distinct philosophy of
development ... the circles capable of determining the fate of
Turkey did not possess ... a development philosophy'. The pro-
posed developmentphilosophyaimed at reachingits social goals
through a mixed economy but relying chiefly on state enterprise.
Private enterprise,besides being slow in achievingdevelopment,
was wasteful, caused suffering, and in underdevelopednations
appearedincompatiblewith socialjustice.The new statismwas to
increaseinvestmentthroughforcedsavings(taxation)and compre-
hensive economic planning. Since larger economic units were
essentialin planning,agriculturaland industrialcooperativeswere
to be expandedand the middlemanrestricted.Statismwas to give
high socialstandingto labour,eliminateexploitation,enforceland
reform,and eradicateilliteracy.
Soon afterthe publicationof this declarationseveralnewspapers
becameopenly (Vatan)or implicitly(Cumhuriyet, Milliyet,Aksam)
the spokesmenfor this new brandof socialism,and scoresof books
were publishedon the subject.25Ataturkwas describedas being a
24Yon, 20 December I96I. The French text is in Orient (21), I962, pp. 135-
42, the English in Middle Eastern Affairs, March 1963.
25 Cumhuriyet chose as the subject of its annual essay competition (1963) the
necessity of socialism. See also Hilmi Ozgen, Turk Sosyalizmi Uzerinde Denemeler
(Ankara, 1963), Ali Faik Cihan, Sosyalist Turkiye (Istanbul, I964).Yon published
Nazim Hikmet's poems along with translations of marxist writings.

184
 THE TURKISH LEFT

socialistat heart, and the entirehistoryof the Republicwas evalu-

ated from a socialistviewpoint. The reviewYon, heartenedby its
initial success (circulationwent to 30,000 but then droppedcon-
siderably),intensifiedits attackson Parliament,the landlords,and
the rich, as well as privateenterpriseof any kind. The opposition
to Yoncame chieflyfrom conservativenationalistswho appealedto
traditionalsymbols and loyalties and condemnedall socialists as
communists.26
The socialismproposedby Yon as a method of action was de-
fended on philosophicalgroundsby the SosyalistKulturDernegi
(Socialist Cultural Society). It was establishedin February1963
by a group of intellectualswho had resignedfrom the State Plan-
ning OrganizationafterParliamenthad curtailedits radicalauthori-
tariandevelopmentschemes. The Society included a sizable seg-
ment of the writers for Yon, some independentintellectuals,and
also some extreme leftists. Its aim, accordingto its statutes, was
the scientificstudy of socialistideas and their propagation.More
specifically,the Societywantedto 'studyin the light of sciencethe
conditions necessaryfor the establishmentof a true democratic
order'.27The centreof this socialistmovementwas in Ankara(and
not Istanbulas in the past), and notablyin the School of Political
Science. Under its old name Mulkiye(est. 1859) this School had
trained the elite which ruled Turkey well into the Republic.
Activists in the socialistmovementalso included severalRepubli-
can Party deputies, some formerofficers,and a sizablenumberof
governmentofficials.28Some of the intellectualsin Yon were of
peasant origin (teacherseducated in village institutes), but most
from families of lower-rankingbureaucrats.They belonged pre-
dominantlyto the generationraisedin the waryears.Their vehe-
ment animositytowardsthe rich revealedthe accumulatedhatred
of a social orderwhich had forced them to spend their childhood
and adolescencein draband wretchedsurroundings.The socialist
26 See the publications of Komunizmle Mucadele Dernegi
(Society for
Struggle against Communism),and the dailiesYeni Istanbul,Son Havadis, the
reviews DusunenAdam, Toprak,etc. There were also clashes between left and
right wing student groups.
27 For two differentviews on this
society see Namik Zeki Aral, 'Memlekette
Sosyalist Cereyan', Yeni Istanbul, 7 February 1963; Cahit Tanyol, 'Bir Bildiri',
Cumhuriyet, 8 February I963.
28 The Turkish socialistsestablishedrelationswith Western
socialists,hoping
to win their support. See Socialist International Information, vol. xiii, i June
1963.

3 +
 CONTEMPORARYHISTORY

intelligentsia,using the Kemalist idea of a classless society (he

meanta society without class conflicts)interpretedit literally.The
rich were condemnedas the causeof social conflictand as enemies
of progress.
Turkish socialism,as it developedafter the revolutionof I960,
seems to have been at first an effortto harmonizethe relationsbe-
tween individualand society in a new social order,and to generate
a sense of socialresponsibility.Its ideologicalsourcescanbe traced
to the Fabian school, classical Western socialism, and also to
Marxist ideas revised in the light of new theories of economic
developmentand planningas formulatedin WesternEuropeafter
the war,includingthe views of the Dutch economistJanTinbergen
who was adviserto the State PlanningOrganization.The response
of rank-and-fileintellectualswas generallyfavourable.State plan-
ning was advancedas the primaryconditionfor achievingeconomic
developmentand socialwelfare,and it was largelyon this question
that the division between socialists and their opponents turned.
Consequentlythe needto definethe natureandfunctionof the state
in socialism became imperative.Most socialists argued that the
state had the prime function of establishingsocial justice. Subse-
quently,despite varioustraditionalforces affectingits philosophy,
the state would be transformedinto an agency of modernization
underthe influenceof the new intellectualelite in power.The idea
of workersand peasantstakingan active part in this socialiststate
was dealt with only later, after the need for popularsupport be-
came evident. Thus the ideas of Yonand the SocialistSocietytook
shapeasa newelitistdoctrineof powerjustifiedin termsof economic
development.

I86