Last Friday’s murder in Istanbul was no exception. As we mourn Hrant Dink, we also need to question the obvious dynamics behind this tragedy. Over the last few years, a poisonous ultranationalist environment has befallen our country. The political class, mass media and state bureaucracy are all responsible for fueling a schizophrenic form of nationalism. That such nationalism begets violence should not be surprising. Let’s be clear and honest: We are all complicit in Hrant Dink’s murder. Turkey’s conspiracy-prone public debate is increasingly producing an anti-European, anti-American, anti-Kurd, anti-Armenian and anti-liberal nationalism. It is as if Turkey has become anti-everything, without knowing much what to stand for. Our incorrigible sense of insecurity has turned the founding ideology of the republic into an aggressive reflex against perceived enemies - -- enemies that we often create in our own imagination. How else can one explain the trials of Orhan Pamuk, Elif Safak and Hrant Dink in 2006? What about the shameful treatment of Professor Atilla Yayla for simply voicing an opinion? Can you defend a country that prosecutes its most creative minds for “denigrating Turkishness”? Let’s not forget the words of the current justice minister, who not too long ago blamed the organizers of a conference on the Armenian question for “stabbing the Turkish nation in the back.” Why are we so surprised when a young nationalist fool takes such words seriously?
Exploiting nationalism is risky business. Yet it is a growing industry in Turkey. Lately best-selling books and box office hits all have virulent Turkish nationalism as a common theme. We seem to forget that what is sowed is eventually reaped. Once the angry virus of nationalism is out of the bottle, it becomes uncontainable. And last Friday, Turkey unfortunately reaped the poisonous fruit of this angry nationalism. Disgracefully portrayed as the enemy of the Turkish nation, a genuine proponent of Turkish-Armenian reconciliation was shot dead. It is all well to express public shock, abhorrence and compassion once the damage is done. But where were we yesterday, when Hrant was alone in court and needed public support and solidarity? Does it take his murder to wake us up? God forbid, are we also going to suddenly discover how much we love Orhan Pamuk when it is too late?
It is time to get serious and realize that nationalism offers no solution to any of the problems we are facing. Our Kurdish dilemma, the Armenian question and the deadlock with the European Union cannot be solved with more nationalism. The government, the mass media and opposition parties should all stop exploiting and polarizing nationalist feelings for political or material gain. We should start by toning down the nationalist rhetoric over Kirkuk and northern Iraq. It does not take much to see that Turkish nationalism begets Kurdish nationalism and violence begets violence. Instead of a nationalist straitjacket, the real challenge -- and solution -- that awaits Turkey is multiculturalism. Turkey’s polarization will become even more dangerous unless we can transform it into a workable pluralism. And the only way to embrace our multiple identities is to celebrate our multicultural heritage.
I am not naïve. I know multiculturalism will be an uphill struggle in Turkey. After all, we are like France, where the republic clings to its “imagined monolithic identity.” I also know that multiculturalism is under assault even in more liberal European countries such as Britain and Holland -- on false grounds that it fuels Islamic radicalism. This is why we need to be cautious in implementing multiculturalism. Here is a modest proposal: let’s raise a monument in memory of Hrant, to immortalize his life dedicated to Turkish-Armenian reconciliation. It would be a small step for the world, but a giant one for Turkey.
