31 October 2009 / NAZLI ILICAK, SABAH
Our republic is not in danger. We can take a breath of relief. We resemble neither Iran nor Algeria, because the conditions at hand are quite different.
We saw this up close when we joined Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on his trip. For example, Prime Minister Erdoğan met with Ayatollah Khamenei. Are there any religious figures like Khamenei in Turkey? Do we have any mullahs sitting at the top of a religious hierarchy? Do we have a Khamenei? This is a basic difference between the Sunnis and the Shiites.
Modernization in Iran was carried out, as in Turkey, from the top downwards. These days, in most Muslim countries, the alternative to dictatorial regimes is found in deep-rooted religious movements. Meanwhile though, in Turkey -- despite some of the serious problems encountered by our democracy in its infancy -- an anti-secularist party has never come to power and has never grown to the level of presenting any serious opposition.
