If the goal is to get votes...

In the simplest way, the Republic of Turkey was established as a result of the ruthless struggle between supporters of the modern, secular state and the leaders of the sects. That is, the creation of a secular republic was made possible by the seizure of that power from the sectarians who had established their power in all parts of the country during the last 300 years of the empire.

After the defeat of the empire in the First World War, the struggle for independence, began in geography about half of which was occupied, continued after the proclamation of the Turkish Grand National Assembly on April 23, 1920, in the form of open or secret struggles between monarchists and republicans, modernists and radical sects.

Although the abolition of the caliphate after the proclamation of the republic, and later the sects monasteries and madrasas, resulted in the transfer of power from the abuseful clergy to the people, over time, sects have clearly demonstrated without reconciling with this at all that they have no intention of relinquishing power.

The words of the founder of the republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk - "The Republic of Turkey cannot be a country of sheikhs, dervishes, murids... The most real sect is a sect of culture" - have always been accepted as a password of hostility by those deprived of power with the advent of the republican regime.

During the transition to a multi-party system in 1950, parties that used religious motives as a tool in their policies caused the republican values to erode.

The AKP, which was founded in the early 2000s and is still in power, placed the sects directly within the state administration. You know one consequence of this: a sect that shared power with a political party had become a terrorist organization and attempted a military coup.

Although logic and mathematics required the idea that the ruling party would stay away from sects after that attempt, which was thwarted by the determined reaction of the supporters of the secular republic, it was the exact opposite: speakers of parliament, members of the government, MPs, especially the president, felt obliged to follow in the footsteps of sect leaders who had lost their brain functions, to take pictures and share them, and to receive advice from them.

It is impossible for any sect to survive without the support of the political authorities (it's not just about financial support, it's also a great support to be loyal to them). Although pro-secular sections of society, opposition media, and NGOs have reacted harshly to the abnormal situations (especially sexual harassment of students) that have emerged in various sects, foundations, and madrassa-style schools over the years, the loyal approach of the political authorities to these recent events has become a major source of civil strife in the country. Although the municipality's support for religious foundations, associations, and sects was cut off after the Istanbul municipality's transition to a secular party 15 months ago, the central government supported them to continue their existence under their auspices. As a result, it became inevitable that the activities of sects would become increasingly threatening to society.

The Republic of Turkey is now experiencing that process: new facts about the sexual relations of sect sheikhs and madrassa mullahs with their students, religious ceremonies held in mosques, attempts to place more staff in government offices...

On the other hand, young people with higher education aged 18-29 are looking for ways to go abroad, expressing that their hopes for the country are declining from today to tomorrow. The surprising aspect of the government's sectarian policy is that while 73% of the approximately 20 million young people aged 18-29 are dissatisfied with any of the existing political parties, the ruling party, instead of trying to attract as many voters as possible, is turning a blind eye to rising tensions in the country for a maximum of 10,000 votes each sect can give. We understood the ideological side of this: when approaching the issue from the point of view of political interests. Why choose at least 5 million votes, which are expected to come from young people with a maximum of 500,000 votes from sects (provided, of course, that they are promised based on concrete and modern requirements)?

Or, in accordance with the nature of democracy, does the ruling party, which has been tired for 18 years, not have the power to calculate these simple figures?

Mayis Alizade