The Assimilation Policy of Turkey Continues on Surnames
Ali Asker
On November 24, 1934, Turkey introduced the surname act. In Turkey, this law
is called "Soyadi kanunu". The purpose of this law was to force all groups
of people, regardless of their ethnicity or religion, to assume a Turkish
last name. This law is still applied today, and it is strictly forbidden for
Christians or any ethnic minorities to assume "non-Turkish names". These
names are by law prohibited in Turkey.
Nuri Amno (formerly Aktas), an Assyrian from the city of Midyat, is today a
Swiss citizen. He changed back the Turkish last name Aktas, which was forced
on his family, to Amno, when he was granted Swiss citizenship. In order to
do the same change in Turkey, the barrister Rudi Sümer in Midyat was hired.
Nuri Amno (formerly Aktas), who through his double citizenship also is
registered in the municipality of Midyat, applied in the summer of 2007 to
have his enforced Turkish last name "Aktas" changed back to Amno, which is
the last name that his grandfather and generations before him had used
before the compulsory legislation was introduced in 1934.
Sümer handed in an application for a change of the last name Aktas to Amno
to a Turkish court of law. The application was refused be the court, which
motivated its decision with support of the Turkish law of names, saying that
"the new last name must originate from the Turkish language" and that "it is
not permitted to assume names from foreign races or nations". The quotes are
from law no 2552 § (3.7) in the Turkish Law.
Sümer appealed against this decision to the Supreme Court of Turkey
(Yargitay), which established the decision of the lower courts. Sümer says
that this decision is in contradiction to 10 § in the Turkish constitution,
which stipulates "everybody's equal value before the law, irrespective of
race, religion or e thnicity." After the decision of the Supreme Court,
there are no higher instances to appeal to in Turkey. Sümer has therefore
appealed to the court of the European Union, the court for human rights, in
Strasbourg.
This is the first time an Assyrian appeals a decision made by a Turkish
court to the European court in Strasbourg. The case is the first of its
kind, and could become a precedent. According to Sümer, similar cases are
usually taking five years before a decision is announced by the European
court. The case was taken by the court in 2007.
(Assyrian International News Agency - By Orom Lahdo, EasternStar New
Agency, February 11, 2008)
Panta Rhei
> Sümer appealed against this decision to the Supreme Court of Turkey
> (Yargitay), which established the decision of the lower courts. Sümer says
> that this decision is in contradiction to 10 § in the Turkish constitution,
> which stipulates "everybody's equal value before the law, irrespective of
> race, religion or e thnicity." After the decision of the Supreme Court,
> there are no higher instances to appeal to in Turkey. Sümer has therefore
> appealed to the court of the European Union, the court for human rights, in
> Strasbourg.
Very well done by that Assyrian! That way Europeans can still learn some
more about typical, Turkish, practiced fascism and hypocrisy that seems so
hard to grasp for starry-eyed Westerners.
Compare the content of the above to what Turkish PM Erdogan actually said in
Germany a few days ago:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,534724,00.html
"German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her conservatives have heaped criticism
on Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for telling Germany's 2.5
million Turkish immigrants that "assimilation is a crime against humanity."
Erdogan, speaking in front of almost 20,000 people (more...) at a stadium in
the German city of Cologne on Sunday, called for people of Turkish descent
not to give up their cultural heritage."
Yet in Turkey people are COMPELLED to "assimilate" and even deny their
identity! What a despicable, rotten country! How could anyone have ever
considered to let that country join the EU!
Panta Rhei
>> Erdogan, speaking in front of almost 20,000 people (more...) at a stadium in
>> the German city of Cologne on Sunday, called for people of Turkish descent
>> not to give up their cultural heritage."
>>
>> Yet in Turkey people are COMPELLED to "assimilate" and even deny their
>> identity! What a despicable, rotten country! How could anyone have ever
>> considered to let that country join the EU!
>
> Turks will never join the EU unless they recognise the Armenian
> genocide and all the massacres they inflicted upon their minorities.
> It also directly shows to us that Islam is NOT integratable. It's a
> rotten and deadly religion that needs to be dealt with, sooner the
> better. Turkey and its islamist leadership supports the islamisation
> of our continent by mass immigration.
>
> On the other hand, Kemalist Turkey is as you rightly said, fascist,
> rotten and ultra-nationalist. Nonetheless, at least, it isn't islamist
> and so doesn't take part in what Erdogan and his folks do. None are
> good, but the latter is somewhat better for our interests than the
> former.
>
> Israel has way more legitimacy to join the European Union since it is
> a European nation by culture, by music, by its people, by many things.
> Israel is the beacon of democracy, respect for human rights and
> Western values in the backward Middle East. Turkey has never been part
> of those values because they plundered, destroyed and wrecked havoc
> all of the former Eastern Christian empires. It imposed its backward
> lifestyle upon millions of people, continued to live through tyranny
> and ignorance for centuries until some enlightened Ottomans (Tanzimat)
> understood that Western civilization and Europe was way more ahead of
> them so they tride to emulate our own Western values for their own
> benefit. But because of their sick ultra-nationalistic, non-European
> mind, they committed mass murder against their minorities and still
> don't acknowledge them. It is the duty of every civilized nation to
> impose upon the Turkish government to acknowledge, admit, repent and
> repair for their former crimes. Just as Germany had to do with the
> Holocaust.
Agree. In Turkey people seem to have the choice between some sort of
Kemalist, militaristic fascism and Islamic fascism. The real moderate and
democratic people with decent humanistic views either no more exist in
Turkey, or are jailed or were killed (when the military took over). If a
few of those that managed to survive in freedom dare to speak out, they get
taken to court (like Pamuk).
The West seems to have learned (rather slowly) to believe no more the
Turkish propaganda about its tolerance and democracy. Turkey will never
have a chance of joining the EU, as long as it shows no signs that a third
strong group of moderate, *real* liberally and democratically minded people
(apart from Kemalists and Islamists) is also present as a strong influence
in Turkey.