Turkey's Shiite minority community is following in the footsteps of the Circassians as it prepares to tell the government that it also wants equal rights.
rick murphy
"Elementary school religion textbooks" in a supposedly secular
country. What a oxymoron!!! The constitution says every citizen is
entitled to freedom of religion and Turkiye is a secular country, no
dominance of any religion. And yet only one sect of Islam is taught in
grade schools which is a violation of the constitution. Why can the
state leave the citizens alone? Is the democracy not by the people,
for the people and of the people? Why can the state not be in service
of the people? Why is the people forced into the service of the state?
This is putting the cart in front of the horses, is it not? If the
state does not work for me, why should I be in that state?
Turkey's 'Caferis' add voice to rights chorus
Monday, December 21, 2009
SEVİM SONGÜN
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
Turkey's Shiite minority community is following in the footsteps of
the Circassians as it prepares to tell the government that it also
wants equal rights. This Saturday, the Caferis will celebrate Aşura
Day, which might serve for the first time as an opportunity for
community leaders to draw attention to the demands they say have been
long overlooked
Turkey’s 'Caferi' community will soon try to make its voice heard to a
government already dealing with demands from Alevis, attempting to
reconcile with the country’s Kurds and trying to solve problems with
non-Muslim minorities.
Following the recent demand for rights by the Circassians, the
Caferis, Turkey’s Shiite minority, believe that they also deserve
equal rights.
As the Caferi community prepares to commemorate Aşura Day, which marks
the killing of Prophet Mohammad’s grandson Hüseyin and his family, on
Saturday, the event could for the first time turn into an occasion
that draws attention to their requests.
“The Kurdish initiative, the Armenian and Roma people’s initiative...
when will our turn come? Are we so unlikable?” said Selahattin
Özgündüz, leader of the Caferis and head of CaferiDer, an association
that conducts research and education on the Caferi faith.
Özgündüz said he believes the Turkish government has neglected the
Caferi community.
“If cultural diversity makes a [society] rich and is something that
deserves rights, why are we treated as ‘others’ and alienated? When
will they ask us what we want?” said Özgündüz, who addressed the
issues faced by the Caferi community in his speech for Aşura Day.
When the government asks the community to list its problems, he said,
the Caferi will bring together the right people and establish a team
to address the issue.
Problems in Shiite community
“Our problems are great enough to destroy our souls,” Özgündüz said.
These problems primarily have to do with how Caferis are defined in
elementary school religion textbooks, training and paying the salaries
of both Caferi imams and Sunni Muslim preachers, building mosques and
obstacles members of the community face on pilgrimages to Mecca.
“The Caferi faith entered the textbooks last year, but only on one
page,” said Özgündüz. “There are three different dates for the birth
of the Caferi faith. What should these children believe in: the things
that their parents teach them or their teachers?”
The main problems derive from the fact that the Religious Affairs
Directorate and other public institutions, such as schools, address
only Sunni Muslims, said Özgündüz. “But the Shiite community also pays
taxes,” he added. “We indirectly pay the salary of a Sunni imam and
the community also trains and pays the salary of a Caferi imam.”
Although the Religious Affairs Directorate does not seem to be a
sufficient institution for Shiites in Turkey, Özgündüz said, it should
not be removed because the consequences of such an act are unknown.
If the directorate is removed, sheiks from different religious cults
might emerge and lead people to radicalism, Özgündüz said, adding,
“The country might descend into chaos as a result.”
Changes in the law could bring equality among different sects of Islam
and different religions, according to Özgündüz. He said the Turkish
Radio and Television Corporation, or TRT, should also establish
programs that introduce the Caferi faith.
Özgündüz underscored that the community does not feel like, nor does
it attempt to be, a minority in Turkey. He also said national unity
would be in the Caferis’ best interests.
Another group that is demanding rights from the government is the Arab-
Alevi community in southern Turkey. It agrees about the struggles over
the years regarding the attempts to have their own imam or mescid,
also known as a prayer house.
“After the Alevi workshop, we were able to have our own imams, which
was very difficult in the past,” said Ahmet Topacık, a member of the
Arab-Alevi community living in the Adana province. He also works for
the Mediterranean Social Solidarity, Education, Health and Culture
Foundation, or ASDA.
“We want to live our faith freely,” Topacık said. “Our community is
not a rebellious one and it wants peace and unity in Turkey. These
rights will increase that peace."
rick murphy
"Look at the Koran,
look at the Bible,
all four books are God,
denigrating races is really disgraceful"
--- Asik Veysel
This is the essence of basic human rights and freedoms, including
freedom of religion (secularism) for which some unfortunate people
throughout the World have no respect.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=call-for-brotherhood-to-all-anatolian-publics-2009-12-21
A call for fraternity in Anatolia through Aşık Veysel's music
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
VERCİHAN ZİFLİOĞLU
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
Çiğdem Özer, granddaughter of one of Anatolia's greatest folk poets,
Aşık Veysel, has requested the country's Culture and Tourism Ministry
do more to promote the minstrel's legacy. She also calls for more
understanding and fraternity between Anatolia's people
Çiğdem Özer, Aşık Veysel's granddaughter
Aşık Veysel, an important representative of 20th century folk poetry
who took inspiration from Rumi, had a ready reply to those who would
practice discrimination:
“Kuran'a bak, İncil'e bak, dört kitabın dördü de hak, küçük görüp ırk
ayırmak, hakikaten yüz karası” (Look at the Koran, look at the Bible,
all four books are God, denigrating races is really disgraceful).
Folk poetry is an ongoing tradition in Anatolia dating back thousands
of years. Through their saz, an Anatolian stringed instrument, folk
poets captivate their listeners with lyrics on humanity’s pain, love
and struggles.
Aşık Veysel was born into an Alevi family in the middle of the 1800s
in Sivrialan village in the Şarkışla district of the central Anatolian
province of Sivas. He lost his sight at the age of 7 due to smallpox
but was comforted by playing the magic melodies of the saz.
As the days passed, the saz became a passion for him and the only goal
of his life. Even though he was later presented with an opportunity to
undergo an operation and regain his sight, he refused the chance,
saying: “I have created such a world that I can see better than a
person with healthy eyes. I don’t need to regain my sight.”
Aşık Veysel, who was also a close friend of a well-known name in
Turkish literature, Kurdish author Yaşar Kemal, continued to convey
brotherhood, peace and friendship messages through hundreds of his
verses and tunes.
Modern interpretations of Aşık Veysel
On the 35th anniversary of the death of Aşık Veysel, the Hürriyet
Daily News & Economic Review spoke to his granddaughter Çiğdem Özer.
“Aşık Veysel is my grandfather, he is valuable for Turkey but,
unfortunately, he has not been promoted,” said Özer.
Calling for the Culture and Tourism Ministry to recognize his legacy,
Özer said: “The year 2007 was launched as the Year of Rumi. For
example, next year could be launched as the Year of Aşık Veysel.
Support us in Aşık Veysel’s promotion to the world.”
A few years ago, Turkey’s megastar pop singer, Tarkan, performed Aşık
Veysel’s renowned piece, “Uzun İnce Bir Yoldayım” (I am on a Long,
Narrow Path), in a modern style.
Meanwhile, a renowned name in Turkish jazz, Esin Afşar, performed his
works in a jazz style. Özer said Turkish artists had attempted to do
something by their own efforts. “Works that will promote Aşık Veysel
and make him loved by a wider mass of people should be encouraged.”
Kalan Music has priceless archive and copyrights
Aşık Veysel’s priceless archive is in the hands of Kalan Music,
founded in 1991 by Hasan Saltuk, who also owns all related copyrights.
The music company sought to protect Anatolian ethnic music and was
presented with the Dutch Royal Award in 2003 for its work, “Ottoman
Music Gramophone Record Classification and Anatolian Collection.”
Due to his contributions to Anatolian ethnic music, Saltuk was also
chosen as Hero of the Year in 2004 by TIME Magazine.
Aşık Veysel died at the age of 105 in 1973. Özer said she was born two
years after her grandfather died, and that she grew up by listening to
stories from her grandmother Gülizar.
“Seeing my grandfather on television, listening to him on radios was a
source of pride for me,” she said. “We are an Alevi family. There is a
very important thing inherited from Aşık Veysel, it is a love of
humanity. Regardless of religion, language, race and sect, my
grandfather gave priority to human honor and continued the tradition
of Rumi.”
Greeting to Anatolian people
Aşık Veysel’s house in Sivrialan village was turned into a museum in
the middle of 1990s. The house displays dozens of Aşık Veysel photos
taken by well-known photographer Ara Güler, as well as the poet’s
personal belongings.
“Our door is open to everyone who wants to know Aşık Veysel,” said
Özer. “My philosophy is equality, brotherhood and friendship:
Greetings to all the people of Anatolia.”
In closing, Özer related an anecdote about her grandfather: “My
grandfather was blind in two eyes, while author Yaşar Kemal’s one eye
is blind. While they were trying to catch a street car, Rıfat Ilgaz,
one of the masters of humor, said, ‘Look at that, a single eye is
enough for two men.’”
http://www.loglar.com/album.php?id=1863
http://www.nomorelyrics.net/tr/artist/Ak_Veysel.html