Silence: Its Mystique, Comfort and Price
We are children of a culture that says “speech is silver, silence is golden”. But in a society where injustice has become routine, is silence a virtue, or a comfort with a heavy price?
Author
Erdal Turna
43 articles · Writing for PUGAT 2021–2026 · 5 series
Articles · page 3
“Dishonourable, Disgraceful, Shameless”
In the first hours of the earthquake everyone prayed for those under the rubble and said “this is not the time for politics”. But then those who helped were targeted. On the relationship between the earthquake and politics.
The Earthquake: Being a Spectator to the Pain of Others
An earthquake is above all a security problem. After every earthquake, the promises made and the taxes collected are forgotten. In the author’s view, repeated negligence is no longer negligence but betrayal.
What Is Happening in Syria, What Is Turkey Doing? (3): Concerns on the Syrian Border
The parameters of Turkey’s Syria policy raise serious concerns: the use of intelligence as a political tool, relations with jihadist groups and weaknesses in border security.
What Is Happening in Syria, What Is Turkey Doing? (2): Parameters of Turkish–Syrian Relations
From brother Assad to Assad the murderer: Turkish–Syrian relations have never followed a straight line since the 1980s. This part examines the parameters that shape the relationship.
What Is Happening in Syria, What Is Turkey Doing? (1): A War of Losers
There are no winners in the war that has raged in Syria since 2011. Policies that misread the Arab Spring brought Turkey to a point where it contributes neither to ending the bloodshed nor to border security.
The İstiklal Avenue Bomb: Whoever Manages Perceptions Wins the Election
After the attack on İstiklal Avenue, the real question is this: was there intelligence about the attack, and if so, what measures were taken? The author calls for accountability.
Is Being in Opposition a Common Denominator?
As long as government and opposition cast each other as “the other”, politics turns into a dialogue of the deaf. The author asks whether being in opposition can on its own be a common denominator.
The Stranger at the Door: Enemy or Refugee
According to sociologist Zygmunt Bauman, many of the refugees coming to Europe are not hungry, poor people but people who have lost their former standing. This view calls for migration policies to be rethought.
Sedat Peker, Coup Plotter
Hundreds have been tried on charges of “attempting to overthrow the government”, yet the charge has never been brought against a crime boss. The author looks at Sedat Peker’s statements from this ironic angle.
