#dokuz8/Gürkan Özturan

The annual commemoration for March 18 Gallipoli Victory and Martyrs Day has brought up antisemitism in the pro-government Takvim this year. The targeting has received reactions from the Turkish Jewish Society. CHP Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu tweeted as part of the annual commemoration, "we know eachother from our eyes, for thousands of years we have been side by side and united we are a giant fatherland. Turks, Kurds, Alevis, Sunnis, Pontians, Circassians... We have made Çanakkale (Gallipoli) impenetrable. As with yesterday, today we are united again. We are friend to the forsaken, together we are the Republic." Journalist Karel Valansi quoted İmamoğlu's tweet with the note, "again we are not invited to the occasion." Istanbul mayor responded shortly after to journalist Valansi saying "you are right in your sensitivity. As with our jewish citizens who have fought in the Gallipoli Front and struggled for our independence, everyone of all faiths and identities are primary citizens of this fatherland, they are the citizens and hosts. I wish you a good day."

ANTISEMITIC TARGETING

Pro-government Takvim daily -owned by AKP chair & President Erdoğan's son-in-law- picked up on this tweet-conversation between Karel Valansi and Ekrem İmamoğlu to target Valansi, implying that she is a foreigner stationed in Turkey. On its cover picture for the news article tited "Even the Mason would not tremble Ekrem this much" Takvim used the alternate headline "he is enemy of the Turk and extremely polite towards the jew!!!" implying that she does not deserve to be treated kindly because she is not Turkish. Takvim also included a site note "do not ever forget the name Karel Valansi" next to a portrait of hers montaged in the cover picture. In the antisemitic news article on Takvim, a twitter dialogue from months ago between journalist Nevşin Mengü and Karel Valansi is also mentioned. In this dialogue, Mengü had apologized after it was stated that there is an undertone of antisemitism in her tweet. Antisemitism is a frequent reference point in the media in Turkey and from the coronavirus pandemic to historic articles, jewish citizens are projected as targets by many news outlets in racist coverage of developments.

CONDEMNATION AGAINST ANTISEMITISM

Turkish Jewish Community -Turkish Chief Rabbinate Foundation- issued a condemnation against pro-government Takvim as well as other antisemitic media coverage that has shown an increase recently. In its message TJC addressed Minister of Justice Abdulhamit Gül and Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun stating "without waiting for a new 'Human Rights Action Plan' to be announced, we are waiting for an effective precaution against this hatred." Turkish-Jewish newspaper Şalom also published an article declaring condemnation of the targeting of its writer Karel Valansi and the hate-speech.

#dokuz8/Kardelen Deniz

As a quick reminder, at the beginning of the year, AKP chair & President Erdoğan appointed Melih Bulu as a trustee rector of Boğaziçi University, one of Turkey’s most prestigious universities. A former candidate running for parliament under the AKP was the new rector, Prof. Dr. Melih Bulu, who has committed plagiarism in his academic works; his PhD dissertation is included. A mass protest immediately started against the trustee rector and continued by spreading. The police force did not hesitate; dozens of students were detained, tortured in detention, and subjected to strip-search, and some received a sentence. These were some results of LGBTI+ students among protestors were openly targeted and terrorised by the President and the government, and Boğaziçi University LGBTI+ club is closed now by force. Academic freedom is related to the protection of faculty against illegitimate interventions. There is a dependence on the university administrators to block the state, religious authorities, and donors from intervening. Nevertheless, when an illegitimate actor is put in place, the promise of academic freedom is destroyed, as Butler mentions, and we are witnessing in the case of Boğaziçi University.

I just want to say that ıt ıs my honour to be ın here wıth you today and that whatever you decıde to ask the rest of us to do or decıde to do next for the rest of us, we wıll walk wıth you, wıll stand by you. I wıll contınue to read and to learn and to act. I wıll follow your lead...

"THEY START THERE AND THEY MOVE"

Increasing the attacks on LGBTI+ communities is becoming a signature of authoritarian regimes, says Butler, and continues, while these attacks are in the names of traditional or national values, or the name of the family, it is needed to be remembered that we belong to the nation and the histories of all the nations as LGBTI+ people. Despite the extensive idea that LGBTI+ members are distracting the main protest against the trustee rector by simply being there, their presence is central to the movement since authorities perceive them as the more vulnerable and attackable group. They start there, and they move. So solidarity with the most vulnerable is crucial. Also, the LGBTI+ community is not just the most vulnerable group, but they have a great history of activism from which much can be learned. Still, similar attacks are coming from even left-wing groups. There are different lefts, interprets Butler. Some are more integrated with new social movements that include LGBTI+ people and have been renewed. Yet, the old model masculinist left still only or mostly care about class struggle and turn a blind eye to others such as identity, gender or disability struggles. However, again, LGBTI+ people, like other minority groups, have been already in class conflict.

TRANSNATIONAL SOLIDARITY

What do YOU want/expect from transnational solidarity? What do you want to see from us? "The resistance in Boğaziçi is beautiful," states Butler; "theory, affect and our everyday lives intertwine," and adds, "they want to know stories of the persons imprisoned, names, relatives, histories, how their movements work, and more. Everything must be documented and spread. The world will remain to follow up!.." [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IKTb4HHGKI[/embed]

-Kardelen Deniz

#dokuz8/Gürkan Özturan

Following appointment of a partisan politician as rector bypassing the campus tradition of electing administration at Boğaziçi University, the protests had expanded to initiate an arts exhibition with hundreds of submissions from around the world. There had been an intervention on campus against the students' tents and artwork on January 28 and multiple artworks had been reported stolen.

Islamic Research Club of #BoğaziçiUniversity targeted the students' Resistance Exhibition claiming this is making fun of Islam, pro-government Yeni Şafak also targeted the exhibition which ignited police intervention on campus.#BoğaziçiSusmayacak #BoğaziçiDireniyor https://t.co/YltvW8ttLA pic.twitter.com/QE2YBrgKcq

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 29, 2021

With the claims of “a picture of islamic holy site Kaaba is displayed on the ground this is an insult to our religious belief” by the Islamic Research Club of the university and pro-government newspapers, followed by the Director of Religious Affairs Dr. Ali Erbaş targeting the students accusing them of “countless assault on islamic values” as he announced that judicial process will be initiated. The official account of the Turkish Religious Affairs Directorate also declared condemnation of the exhibition calling it “unlimited assault on islamic values”. 

Police had forcefully detained four #BoğaziçiUniversity students who were on the Exhibition Organization Committee, the students were beaten and taken to Vatan Police Headquarters. Today students were sent to Çağlayan Courthouse.#BoğaziçiSusmayacak #BoğaziçiDireniyor pic.twitter.com/jNtLToA5F0

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 30, 2021

“BLASPHEMY” CLAIMS

The Exhibition Organization Committee member students were targeted as they were leaving the campus and they were forcefully detained. Boğaziçi University Solidarity and club house accounts announced the detentions and shared video footage of forceful detention which targeted the students with the accusation of “openly insulting society’s religious values”.  Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu announced the detentions on his social media account with the note “4 LGBT perverts who did the disrespect to the Magnificent Kaaba were detained” openly violating  the Article 10 of the Constitution.

ARTICLE 10- Everyone is equal before the law without distinction as to language, race, colour, sex, political opinion, philosophical belief, religion and sect, or any such grounds. (Paragraph added on May 7, 2004; Act No. 5170) Men and women have equal rights. The State has the obligation to ensure that this equality exists in practice. (Sentence added on September 12, 2010; Act No. 5982) Measures taken for this purpose shall not be interpreted as contrary to the principle of equality. (Paragraph added on September 12, 2010; Act No. 5982) Measures to be taken for children, the elderly, disabled people, widows and orphans of martyrs as well as for the invalid and veterans shall not be considered as violation of the principle of equality. No privilege shall be granted to any individual, family, group or class. State organs and administrative authorities are obliged to act in compliance with the principle of equality before the law in all their proceedings.

?Minister of Interior Soylu on #BoğaziçiUniversity forceful detentions, “4 LGBT perverts have been detained”.#BoğaziçiDireniyor #BoğaziçiTeslimOlmayacak pic.twitter.com/YbcPS7ffqR

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 29, 2021

GOVERNMENT-APPOINTED RECTOR JOINS IN WITH HATE CAMPAIGN

Government-appointed trustee rector Melih Bulu joined in with pro-government trolls’ homophobic hashtag campaign on social media platform Twitter, publishing a tweet based on false claims “an impertinent group’s assault on the holy beliefs of Islam is unacceptable. This has no place in Boğaziçi [University] values. A comprehensive investigation has been launched against those responsible for this gorked assault” adding the hashtag “disgrace at Boğaziçi” to the tweet at 1 am on January 30.  Following strong reactions for targeting the students of campus with a homophobic hate campaign on social media, government-appointed trustee rector deleted his tweet and republished at 5 am without the hashtag. 

SOLIDARITY WITH THE STUDENTS

After forceful detention of students at the campus gate, university solidarity platforms started declaring support with the Boğaziçi University on their social media accounts.

Student solidarity collectives from various universities declared support for #BoğaziçiUniversity students after police's forceful detention of the Exhibition Organization Committee member students.#BoğaziçiSusmayacak #BoğaziçiTeslimOlmayacak #BoğaziçiDireniyor pic.twitter.com/sP6IXTiJCC

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 29, 2021

WHO STOLE THE ART WORK ON CAMPUS?

The Resistance Exhibition was opened on Boğaziçi University’s South Campus on January 22. On day one, students reported that multiple art works were missing as they filed complaints to the campus guards asking why the art works were not protected against theft. On January 29, as the picture depicting the Kaaba -which is considered a holy site by muslims- in distortion with the picture of basilisk and placement of LGBTI+ flags on the corners of the artwork was put on display with the explanation underneath announcing the significant attributes of the work, the claims of “picture of Kaaba is put on the ground for display” as photos of the art work on the ground started circulating on pro-government media. [caption id="attachment_116827" align="aligncenter" width="747"] "Artwork is missing, security does not know about the matter."[/caption] The students had been taking pictures of the empty display board and asking “who stole the art work that was here” and asking the campus guards if they had seen any suspicious activity around the missing piece. It is yet unknown who stole and took photos of the art work on the ground.

WHAT DOES THE CONTROVERSIAL ART WORK DEPICT?

The claims of art work depicting the Kaaba being displayed on the ground do not reflect the reality. The art work was put on display as with many other art works on display-boards on campus, alongside an explanation underneath with the artist’s note.  On the picture, there is a wall-carpet depiction showing an old time carpet picture of the Kaaba that was replaced by the basilisk surrounded by greens, with corners as LGBTI+ flags that look attached clumsily. The explanation regarding basilisk -which has a significant place in the Anatolian and Middle Eastern mythologies- is placed underneath the art work in the artist’s note. 

THE SYMBOLISM OF THE PICTURE

In the explanation it is stated “the image of basilisk which has been a combination of the ‘serpent’ -a symbol of evil in Anatolian lands through the idea of original sin- and the repressed image of woman, strangely is considered highly in the Anatolia and placed in the honor spot in homes. The fact that an image combining serpent and woman -both considered as competitor by men-  being placed in the honor spot, is thought to be a subtle satire against men’s patriarchal authority.”

“TURNING THE WORLD INTO HEAVEN”

The artist explains their intention as “my goal was to give an encouraging boost to the Anatolian women’s deep and secret struggle on this path with my work.” Regarding the green leaves surrounding the basilisk image the artist writes, “if the women and animal liberty become a focal point the world itself is going to turn into the heaven. As you can see on the four corners of the work there are LGBTI+ flags attached deliberately clumsily, in contradiction with the general aesthetics of the work; they look distant and artificial. Here I wanted to draw attention to social gender norms pressuring our self gender identities and alienating our self to introduce with the alienated & distorted imagery.”

#dokuz8/Gürkan Özturan

What started out as discontent from government appointing a trustee rector to one of Turkey's most prestigious academic institutions, Boğaziçi University on the first hours of the new year, has turned into a massive student protest movement welcoming thousands of students from across the country. The students' demands are clear: "retract the appointment of trustee rectors and initiate democratic campus elections, allow academic autonomy."

ACCUSING CHP ISTANBUL CHAIR OF TERROR CHARGES

On January 8, as Boğaziçi University students made an announcement rejecting an alleged invitation to the Presidential Palace by a pro-AKP student NGO, AKP chair & President Erdoğan had made a statement after Friday Mass. In his speech, Erdoğan targeted the main opposition CHP Istanbul chair Canan Kaftancıoğlu -for participating Boğaziçi University protests- calling her a "militant terrorist of Revolutionary People's Liberation Party - Front (DHKP-C)." Kaftancıoğlu filed criminal complaint against AKP chair & President Erdoğan as well as Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu for "abuse of power," "attempt to influence judicial processes," "attempt to influence fair trial" demanding a total of 2 million TL compensation, which she announced if she wins the court case would be donated to families in need.

"LAZY, NARROW-MINDED, UNABLE TO UNDERSTAND"

The President did not stop there with his accusations and continued to refute claims that an invitation was ever issued for the Boğaziçi University students, "We are following closely the plot to instigate incidents on our universities after a routine appointment. Those affiliated with terrorist organizations are at the forefronts of these protests, which have absolutely nothing to do with democracy, human rights or free expression. We have seen different episodes of the same film over our 18 year long governance. We know the actors of these dirty scenarios in many places, including Gezi. Why should I meet with the students. First of all, these are not students but terrorists. This is a mentality of the lazy, narrow minded, with inability to understand what they see, ahead of us. Even with their protesting methods they have once again shown us that they are far from creativity."

CREATIVE SUPPORT TO BOĞAZİÇİ UNİVERSİTY

The students made a call for artist submissions to include even more creative forms of protest and disobedience in campus protests. While in some cases the handcuffs were used as reference to the campus gates being handcuffed, in some other cases lyrics to well-known songs were re-written about the government-appointed trustee rector. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1347878325532975104 On social media platforms, multiple pro-AKP accounts were seen posting homophobic comments regarding the protests, openly targeting the rainbow flags and LGBTI+ students among protestors, to defy the claims of the protests demanding free & fair campus elections. Students also made a call for submission of artistic works until the 15th of January, to hold a Resistance Exhibition on campus. Artists are invited to submit their works with their names and short presentation & definition. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1348563757514055680 Cartoonist Zehra Ömeroğlu drew the protest timeline in a caricature and released it on social media. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1348589532883656704 One of the Boğaziçi Alumni, Dr. Nancy Atakan also shared her work on social media, an embroidery of needle-work on lace, depicting the Boğaziçi University academics turning their backs on the Rectorate Hall on South Campus. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1348673770828025860 One of Boğaziçi University's cherished traditions, the student clubs available on campus have been sharing creative content in support of the protests on campus. The Cinema Club's manipulated movie posters depicting the government-appointed trustee rector has received high frequency circulation among the students and alumni.

PROTESTS SPREADING AROUND THE WORLD

Boğaziçi University alumni organizations in various countries have held solidarity protests over the weekend. In France, Germany, Norway, Australia, United Arab Emirates the alumni organizations made calls for protest and the gatherings were broadcast live on social media platforms. While there was a nation-wide curfew in Turkey and students were unable to protest over the weekend, the alumni outside of Turkey took up their place. An international petition was also initiated by notable academics and thus far been signed by over 1600 academics. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1347876421201489925 Aside from the Boğaziçi University alumni, students from various universities across Turkey have been holding solidarity protests at Istanbul University, Istanbul Technical University, Middle East Technical University, Ankara University, Aegean University, Çukurova University, Karadeniz Technical University, as well as student organizations in multiple other cities. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1348565174106656769

BOĞAZİÇİ UNİVERSİTY RESISTANCE

The students on campus had announced in the previous week of protests that there would be started Boğaziçi Resistance on campus, to pressure the government-appointed trustee rector Melih Bulu to resign from his post. The students initiated the first day of resistance with a campus-rally. January 11 marked day 1 of Boğaziçi University Resistance. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1348617326812422146

CRIMINAL COMPLAINT AGAINST STRIP SEARCH CLAIMS

After dozens of students were detained last week with dawn raids by anti-terror police, multiple students came out claiming they were tortured in detention and denied proper medical examination. Some students also stated they were subjected to strip-search and asked members of the media to access camera records from the precincts, from the corridors. Istanbul Security Directorate refuted the students' claims of torture stating "there could not be enough time for a strip search in the short span of time they were in body search." Directorate also added that a criminal complaint has been filed against the students making the torture claims. https://twitter.com/dokuz8news/status/1348627698898370560

#dokuz8/Gürkan Özturan

In the first hours of the new year on January 1, Dr. Melih Bulu -the rector of Istanbul's Haliç University- was appointed as trustee rector by AKP chair & President Erdoğan in disregard of Boğaziçi University's 158 year-long tradition of electing its rectors from its governance body. The appointment had led to widespread reactions during the 4-day new year's curfew, which was followed by the biggest mass campus protest in Turkey in the past year.

PROFESSORS TURN THEIR BACK ON THE APPOINTED RECTOR

Boğaziçi University's professors gathered around the Rectorate Hall and turned their backs to the new appointed trustee rector during handover ceremony. Professors also continued to chant slogans, demanding immediate release of their students from police detention. The academics' protest was followed by a larger protest with participation of the students on the university's South Campus. In the meantime, police continued deploying more officers and barricades in and around the campus. After today's dawn raids targeting the students, total number of detainees increased to 36.

Boğaziçi University professors called for the detained students to be released from custody during the protest. #BogaziciDireniyorpic.twitter.com/blyZzCzYBa

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 5, 2021

Boğaziçi University students and LGBTI+ activists Yıldız İdil Şen and Havin Özcan who got detained in dawn raids, announced that they were threatened with sexual assault, furthermore student Roni Gören was subjected to strip search in detention.

During the dawn raids targeting students after Boğaziçi University protests, police is reported to have knocked down a wall to raid a student's apartment when the doorlock did not break.

via/@komiteler#BogaziciDireniyorhttps://t.co/VqginbKSMw pic.twitter.com/r6fBRg0Gtf — dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 5, 2021

"THERE IS NO POLICE ON CAMPUS"

Appointed trustee rector Dr. Bulu joined Habertürk's TV program and claimed "there is no police officers on our campus; they are waiting outside to make sure not everyone gets in. Only the students showing their ID cards can pass the police control, otherwise it would be chaos on campus. Dr. Bulu also joined Cüneyt Özdemir's live broadcast on Youtube where he again claimed "there is no police officer on campus as far as I know and the protesting students can continue their protest so long as they can provide a valid university ID" while the students continued protesting outside the Rectorate Hall and shouted "police is on campus at the moment."

?Despite pro-AKP appointed trustee rector Melih Bulu claiming otherwise, there are also police vehicles with official beacons on #BoğaziçiUniversity's South Campus.#KabulEtmiyoruzVazgeçmiyoruz #BoğaziçiDireniyorpic.twitter.com/KkT35TKX7J

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 6, 2021

APPOINTED TRUSTEE RECTOR'S INTERVIEWS

During the TV interviews Dr. Bulu, said "those who are detained are not students, they are members of certain organizations. We received information that a couple of them were Boğaziçi students and we will look into it. But I had not foreseen any such provocation." Regarding the claims of plagiarism Dr. Bulu said "these are all false accusations, when I had published my dissertation, the rules of quotations were being changed I simply did not use quotation marks everywhere" although the plagiarism allegations cite paragraphs of copy/pasted text in his academic works.

#BoğaziçiUniversity's appointed trustee rector Dr. Melih Bulu gave an interview to @cuneytozdemir no Youtube. During the live-broadcast, students filled the comments section calling for Bulu's resignation. pic.twitter.com/XfebNUtUFY

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 6, 2021

HANDCUFFED CAMPUS

As for the handcuffs placed on the gates of Boğaziçi University, appointed trustee rector Bulu said "the gate lock is broken, and officers found a practical solution to keep non-Boğaziçi protestors out." An investigation was launched against the handcuffing of the university gate.

Appointed trustee rector Dr. Melih Bulu waved at the #BoğaziçiUniversity students that have been protesting him for days, announcing he would sit down for a coffee with the students today. #BoğaziçiDireniyor #KabulEtmiyoruzVazgeçmiyoruzpic.twitter.com/f386rZQWoA

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 6, 2021

"HARD ROCK RECTOR"

Dr. Bulu was asked whether or not he would intervene with Boğaziçi University's culture to which he responded "I listen to hard rock, I am a fan of Metallica and I continue to listen as a rector... I am familiar with Boğaziçi University culture, I am of this place."

CALLS FOR PROTEST

Boğaziçi University's students and academics called for mass protests on campus and at the South Campus gate for January 6, at 14.00 hours. Simultaneously Middle East Technical University students in Ankara also made a call for Solidarity Protest at METU/ODTU's Rectorate Hall at the same time in Ankara. Boğaziçi University Alumni based in Ankara also announced that a secondary solidarity protest would take place in Ankara, at the Anıtpark by founder of the republic, Atatürk's Mausoleum.

PROTESTS BANNED

Istanbul Governorship banned all meetings, gatherings and protests in Beşiktaş and Sarıyer districts ahead of Boğaziçi Universty's planned protests on campus. Heavy police presence was spotted around the campus as students complained that they were even unable to stand on the road. The calls for protest were rescheduled for 16.00 at Kadıköy's piers square.

PRO-GOVERNMENT MEDIA'S MANIPULATION

Main opposition CHP's vice-chair Gökçe Gökçen had participated in live TV program on the Boğaziçi University protests where she had uttered the words "if the government continues its policies like this, of course protests will grow." Her words were manipulated and distorted in an unauthorised broadcast of dokuz8TV's footage on pro-AKP A Haber and Yeni Şafak, which was later used by former AKP Ankara Metropolitan Mayor Melih Gökçek with the note "she says 'we are unable to defeat Erdoğan democratically, so we will stir the streets like #OccupyGezi.' But Turkey is not the Gülen's Turkey of Gezi time, this time you would drown in your own spit. Beware of what you say, you will end up in prison" threatening the young politician.

Former AKP Ankara mayor Melih Gökçek targeted CHP vice chair @GokceGokcen_ through her interview on @dokuz8TV, distorting & using interview without authorization.

Gökçen reacted against the targeting, "I am not to take a lesson of democracy from those who sold our Capital City." pic.twitter.com/XDDflRmWci — dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 5, 2021

#dokuz8/Gürkan Özturan

On the first hours of the new year, on January 1, AKP chair & President Erdoğan appointed a trustee rector for one of Turkey's most prestigious universities Boğaziçi University. The new rector, Prof. Dr. Melih Bulu was a former candidate running for parliament under AKP.

FIRST TIME SINCE MILITARY JUNTA

The university which was established as the first international campus on earth by the American Senate in 1863, has sustained a democratic tradition of electing its rectors. There was a brief moment during the 1980 military coup, when the university lost its autonomy and a rector was appointed by the military rulers. Students & academics reacted against appointment of a trustee rector once again and it was noted "since the 1980 military junta, this is the only time a rector was appointed from outside of the university." #WeDoNotAcceptWeDoNotGiveUp! has become the most popular hashtag used by protesting students.

DR. BULU IS THANKFUL TO PRESIDENT ERDOĞAN

In his first statement as the appointed trustee rector of Boğaziçi University, Dr. Melih Bulu said "as a university our primary duty is to stand against all attempts that will detach us further from scientific production. I would like to thank President Erdoğan for this appointment". Pro-AKP journalists flooded the social media in support of Dr. Bulu claiming "national will is entering to elitist campuses" claiming scientific and democratic principles are elitism. The appointed trustee rector, Dr. Melih Bulu is also claimed to have committed plagiarism in his academic works, including his PhD dissertation. While Dr. Bulu refuted claims, paragraphs were spotted in his work, directly copied from other academic articles. Thousands of alumni came forth to state that a serious academic institution such as Boğaziçi University should never tolerate plagiarism, adding that "this alone should be a reason why he cannot become a rector."

MASS PROTEST AGAINST APPOINTED TRUSTEE MAYOR

As the students & faculty members announced a protest scheduled to start at 14.00 local time on January 4 against appointed trustee mayor, police were deployed to Boğaziçi University. Buses full of police were allowed inside the campus prior to the protest as students campaigned for rectorate elections under the hashtag "We want elections for rectorate at Boğaziçi".

Students of Bosphorus University gathered at the South Campus Gate chanting "we do not want appointed trustee rector".#dokuz8/@ilkecambazoglu #KayyumRektörİstemiyoruz #BoğaziçiRektörSeçimiİstiyor pic.twitter.com/6Bt8xOzash

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 4, 2021

The security guards locked the university's South Campus gates to prevent students and alumni from meeting. Students inside Boğaziçi University's South Campus demanded the security to open the gates to unite the two protesting groups. Earlier in the day, police was deployed to the campus. Following increasing police pressure in and around Boğaziçi University campuses, the students announced they will start marching from South Campus to North Campus. The students of Boğaziçi University started their protest march against the appointment of trustee rector to the university, "AKP's trustees are surrounding us all but we know we will prevail."

????Thousands of Bosphorus University students are marching on campuses against the increasing police pressure and appointed trustee rector. #KayyumRektörİstemiyoruz#BoğaziçiRektörSeçimiİstiyor#KabulEtmiyoruzVazgecmiyoruz#dokuz8/@ilkecambazoglu pic.twitter.com/td4yJYrINA

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 4, 2021

During the protest march, Boğaziçi University students chant "Not my rector". Thousands of students and academics filled the university's North Campus, marking one of the biggest mass protests on a campus in a long time.

Students of Bosphorus University chant "Melih Bulu is the sultan's household trooper" reacting to President Erdoğan appointing an AKP candidate for parliamentary elections as trustee mayor to the university.#dokuz8/@ebrarnawel#KayyumRektörİstemiyoruzpic.twitter.com/JoY46ELr1n

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 4, 2021

CAMPUS FORUM

Boğaziçi University students & academics lateer started a campus forum to discuss the path ahead, after appointment of a partisan trustee rector to the university by AKP chair & President Erdoğan. Previously during the 2011 #OccupyStarbucks protests on campus, the former rector Prof. Dr. Kadri Özçaldıran had refused to grant the police authorization to enter campus to disperse protests saying "this is Boğaziçi University and we resolve any problem based on our democratic tradition, through dialogue and discussion."

POLICE INTERVENTION

During the student forum on North Campus, it was claimed that Dr. Melih Bulu made his entrance into the rectorate hall, breaking the students' seal at the hall's entrance. Upon hearing this claim, students ended the forum and started marching towards the South Campus. Police set up barricades to keep students outside of the campus and harshly intervened the peaceful march. During police intervention two students were reported forcefully detained. The police was spotted beating the detained students.

Police was spotted beating the students to prevent protesting students from entering the campus at Istanbul's Bosphorus University.#KabulEtmiyoruzVazgecmiyoruz #KayyumRektörİstemiyoruz #BoğaziçiRektörSeçimiİstiyor pic.twitter.com/siua6GVR8B

— dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 4, 2021

RUBBER BULLETS & TEAR GAS ON AIR

dokuz8TV aired a live program inviting Boğaziçi University student citizen journalists Ebrar Başyiğit and Beyza Kaya as well as Boğaziçi University alumni dokuz8NEWS Executive Manager Gürkan Özturan and main opposition Republican People's Party CHP vice chair Gökçe Gökçen to discuss the appointment of trustee rector to the university. Citizen journalists Başyiğit and Kaya summarized the day's developments and while they were narrating the timeline of the day, police started another stage of intervention against the students on live broadcast. Police used rubber bullets and teargas, ordering the thousands of students to disperse from the campus. CHP vice chair Gökçen commented on the ongoing spree of appointed trustees in various institutions, "it cannot continue like this, they are unable to govern their own party let alone the country. They are appointing trustees everywhere and the only merit of these people is their loyalty to the governing authority. Sooner or later they will have to withdraw their steps; this process cannot continue like this. Today we talked to the students, their message is loud and clear; they want resignation of appointed trustee rector and democratic elections for rectorate."

?Bosphorus University got handcuffed!

Following appointment of Dr. Melih Bulu as trustee rector, amidst mass protests on campus, police handcuffed Bosphorus University's entrance gate. #KabulEtmiyoruzVazgecmiyoruz #BoğaziçiRektörSeçimiİstiyor pic.twitter.com/HJCvoJReQs — dokuz8NEWS (@dokuz8news) January 4, 2021

dokuz8NEWS' Gürkan Özturan also stated "this is a first in the history of Boğaziçi University which is the oldest international campus on earth. In the university's 158 year history, except for a brief moment of military junta in 1980s the university always democratically elected its rector but this principle was shelved by AKP in 2016 when a presidential executive decree was announced cancelling university elections, opening the way for appointment of trustee rectors. Today Boğaziçi University's tradition of democracy has been under attack, they may continue appointing trustees but they cannot sustain governance through this. Nowhere in the world could it be possible to advance in any field through suspension of meritocracy, replaced by loyalty to partisan decisions." [embed]https://youtu.be/RUT17SgO0U8?t=896[/embed]

PRO-GOVERNMENT MEDIA'S CAMPAIGN

After mass campus protests, pro-AKP media started airing news claiming that the protestors were indeed terrorists aiming to assault state's police officers. The manipulative coverage of pro-AKP news outlets also included CHP's Istanbul chair Canan Kaftancıoğlu, framing her as supporter of terrorism on campuses. At 1 am on January 5, Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu went out and posed with a police officer, sharing this photo with the note "I am with the police, I am against those who say 'murderer police' and I am aware of those spineless slugs."

DAWN RAIDS AGAINST STUDENTS

In the early hours of January 5, anti-terrorism police conducted coordinated raids against students' homes in Istanbul, detaining at least 16 students from various universities for joining Boğaziçi University protests the previous day. Anti-terrorism department is still looking for 12 other students for "resistance against on-duty officers."

AFTER PROTESTS

Following yesterday's protest, the gates of Boğaziçi University were handcuffed. The gates remain locked to students and police barricade remains around the university. Students announced they will boycott classes on Tuesday and continue protests as of Wednesday. On campus it is also claimed that the rectorate handover ceremony will take place at the gate of the South Campus today.

Dr. Resit Canbeyli is a professor of Psychology. After finishing his PhD at the University of Columbia, he started lecturing at Boğaziçi University in 1978. He is active in the Association of Academic Staff (TÜMÖD) and the University Students Communication Association (ÜNIDER), and has been dealing with university matters for 42 years. “It is unfair to attribute all the issues of Turkish universities to this government, but they certainly have done more harm than any other regime. Universities, with all their potential and qualities, are under siege.”

KEMALIST EDUCATION MENTALITY

State control over higher education in Turkey became truly institutionalized after the 1980 military coup. Following a period of conflict between far-left and far-right groups in the seventies, it was utterly salient for the new military government to hold a tight grip over the academic discourse. Consequently, 3,854 teachers and 120 professors were dismissed and many others left the country or were exiled (Ref:1). In 1982, the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) was established, overseeing all higher education institutions. Another rule was imposed on universities after the military coup: All students in higher education were to take part in a mandatory Turkish History class, no matter their major. The curriculum, being in the hands of the government, strongly embraced Kemalist views. “We did not agree with it,” Dr. Canbeyli says. “It was part of government indoctrination. A small number of intellectuals warned of the consequences, and they turned out to be correct. While the Left never damaged this country, simply because it had never been in power, hatred for leftist ideology was tangible.” As the Cold War was still ongoing and the US was an important ally for Turkey, measures against the Left were encouraged. “If people became a bit more religious, they could be guided away from the Soviet Union with more ease. Consequently, the government attempted to blend Islamic virtues with the Kemalist state.” However, apart from Leftist ideas, the government kept a short leash on religion in education as well. To remain in control of the discourse on campuses, criticism of the government or its curriculum were silenced. “They suppressed any kind of independent thinking, especially when it came to Leftist and ultra-Islamic views. They embraced some of the worst policies of Atatürk, one of which being the ban on headscarves in universities. Now we are paying dearly for that, as well as the Kemalists. Nobody stood up to say how unconstitutional it was.”

EDUCATION DESECULARIZED

It was in this environment that higher education got its secular character, and was therefore despised by pro-Islamic politics for its exclusion. Since the Justice & Development Party AKP came to power in 2002, it promised to implement two major reforms that would challenge the secular character of education. First was lifting the ban of headscarves in public life (including universities), which was implemented in its entirety in 2013. Many universities were already opposed to the ban, but could not stand up to the YÖK. Dr. Canbeyli tells, “We fought hard against the headscarf ban. This society has always targeted women. Resentment from the pro-Islamic side was justified in a sense that a public institution, financed by the people, closed its gate to many women in this country. This problem is solved in a sense, but the hatred for universities did not dwindle. Instead [the government] started to think it controlled universities.” A second measure to desecularise education was to even out the opportunities for secular and religious high school education students to enter university - students of the religion-based vocational Imam Hatip high schools were only eligible to enter the theological faculties of universities as they graduated from schools that specifically train imams. This law came to pass in 2007, making these pupils eligible for higher education in all fields. Moreover, Imam Hatip middle schools were re-established as a groundbreaking education-reform bill passed the Parliament in 2012 -after İmam Hatip secondary schools had ceased to exist when the 8-year non-stop primary school bill had been passed in 1997.

CONVERTING REGULAR SCHOOLS TO IMAM HATIP SCHOOLS

What followed was a quick expansion of vocational Imam Hatip schools throughout the country. According to Reuters, as of 2018 the budget for religious high schools rose to 6.57 billion TL ($1.68 billion) - nearly a quarter of the total upper schools budget. These numbers conclude that more than double is spent on an Imam Hatip pupil compared to a standard school pupil. This is not very surprising, seeing that Erdogan together with many members of the AKP cabinet are Imam Hatip alumni (Ref: 2). Moreover, due to the automatic placement system, parents who cannot afford private schooling more and more often have no choice but to send their children to Imam Hatip schools. As the AKP has delivered inclusivity for religious students in the Turkish education system, it has nearly abolished the choice not to attend some form of religious education. An extensive revision of curriculum and textbooks was implemented under State of Emergency conditions in the whole of secondary and upper education in the country in 2017, following the coup attempt of July 2016. It has since been criticised by scholars, secular groups, education rights groups and women’s groups for its ‘Islamic character, and lack of respect for religious differences and gender equality.’ Nonetheless, Dr. Canbeyli is not convinced the pressure of the government on education will have the desired outcome: “[AKP] has been very systematic in its education reform. They start with Quran schools for children around the age of 6, then send them to Imam Hatip schools. What follows is university, which is under government control. Through education, they want to reform this country in 10 to 20 years. The Kemalists tried the same, and failed. Students are not stupid, they hear their teachers speak of the Prophet and then see what is being done today in the name of religion.”

TAKEOVER OF ACADEMIC SPACE

When it comes to higher education, universities have always been a place of debate and activism. However, academic research and intellectual discourses are increasingly “corrected” through governmental interference. Dr. Canbeyli describes it as going from one extreme to another, “As more universities were established in the last 30 years, we thought that we would see less central control and more autonomy. The opposite happened. We now have 183 universities, and each of them is controlled directly by one man.” The hierarchy that was put in place in universities, is the result of mass dismissals in the last years. In January of 2016, 1,128 scholars from 89 Turkish universities signed the so-called ‘Peace Petition’, calling for an end to the fight between Turkish state and the members of PKK. Of these ‘Academics for Peace,’ more than 700 scholars have been criminally charged with making propaganda for a terrorist organization. After the attempted coup of July 2016, academics were again targeted. Around 5,800 scholars were dismissed from public universities. More than 1,500 university deans were pressured to resign and replaced with more favorable candidates. Many academics voluntarily left the country to be able to practice their profession in peace. This poses another problem for the academic life in Turkey, “The threat is more and more imminent. As professors retire or are dismissed, they are replaced by people with no other qualifications than their connections, for example by having studied at an Imam Hatip school. The plan is to infiltrate every university with pro-Islamic elites and make any other kind of attitude unacceptable.”

UNIVERSITY AS A PLACE OF EXPRESSION

According to the Human Rights Watch, the government’s actions create “a climate of fear and self-censorship on campus, and breach Turkey’s obligations under human rights law to respect and protect academic freedom and freedom of expression.” Since the popular Gezi Park Protests of 2013, in which many students and academics were active, the government has barely allowed demonstrations to take place. Moreover, it is actively prosecuting those who counter its policies. An example of this is the student protest of Turkey’s military ‘Operation Olive Branch,’ which started after pro-government students distributed Turkish delight on campus in support of the military, in March of 2018. 27 students who protested this congratulatory action on campus were given jail time, and Erdogan called them ‘terrorists’. Still, Dr. Canbeyli sees the value of university as a place of coming together: “Bogazici in particular is not as polarized as other institutions, but there is now a larger group of pro-Islamic students. Sometimes this will manifest itself in arguments, sometimes it will boil down to physical conflict. However, our education calls for collaboration and discussion. People are free to express themselves.” According to Dr. Canbeyli, another problem has arisen that will challenge the quality of education in universities as well as the change to counter polarization among students: “We see a new trend happening with distant education due to the Covid-19 outbreak. In a classroom I can speak as I please, but if classes are broadcast online anything can be used against you. They can control people if they stay at home. I hope these measures will remain for only one more semester, but if they wish they are able to implement more and more online education.”

THE ‘PIOUS GENERATION’

This is the environment that Erdoğan’s ‘pious generation’ will enter their university career in. “Younger generations want to go abroad for good reason, they do not see a future here,” Dr. Canbeyli says right off the bat. However, he remains positive about his new students. While being brought up in the AKP era, this generation also grew up being experts in finding alternative media outlets and listening to other narratives online. “[The government] is thinking in terms of their parents’ time, but much has changed. They are world citizens, and know what is going on, on an international scale. You cannot suppress them.” Nonetheless, there are serious problems to be faced before Turkish students can live up to their potential. These issues do not confine themselves to the borders of Turkey, as Dr. Canbeyli explains: “This is a fantastic generation, but they are not getting what they deserve. They know what is going on in the world and see the reality, yet they cannot participate. They have been deprived of a good passport.” He gives the example of one of his students who did not receive a German education visa because she did not have 30,000 TL on her bank account. “How can you ask that from a 22-year old? As prices go up, travelling to conferences or paying for registration fees have become harder. Since I was young, people have had financial difficulties in this country. How then can we reach a certain level of sophistication and intellectual freedom? For many Turkish students it is nearly impossible to go someplace and create something new, to remove yourself from this place and this moment. In the meantime, your institution is being targeted and new rules are being made for you to follow. This is a prison.”

“SEE YOU AT THE BALLOT BOX”

Whether the ‘pious generation’ will be working in the government’s favour remains to be seen. It appears that some would like to see change, with voices becoming louder recently: University entrance exams took place a month earlier than planned, leaving less preparation time and making it risky to catch the virus. Consequently, many youngsters took to social media to vent their frustrations. Tags saying ‘See you at the ballot box’ have been trending on Twitter, and a live broadcast of Erdogan speaking to youths was massively downvoted leading to the closing of its comment section. Uncomfortably coincidental was last week’s announcement of plans for data localization as a means to control social media, exactly targeting what Dr. Canbeyli sees as one of this generation’s biggest qualities: Access to information and alternative narratives.  

Talitha Smit

1- Ulaş Sunata, “Highly Skilled Labor Migration: The Case of ICT Specialists from Turkey in Germany” (Osnabrück: Osnabrück University Press, 2010), 147-148.

2- Soner Cagaptay, “The New Sultan. Erdogan and the Crisis of Modern Turkey” (New York: IB Taurus, 2017), 189-190.