THE CASE of ALEVIS in TURKEY by AYŞE EZGİ GÜRCAN Submitted To
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
ARTICULATING AND AGGREGATING SECTARIAN INTERESTS: THE CASE OF ALEVIS IN TURKEY by AYŞE EZGİ GÜRCAN Submitted to the Graduate School of Social Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science Sabancı University Spring 2013 ARTICULATING AND AGGREGATING SECTARIAN INTERESTS: THE CASE OF ALEVIS IN TURKEY APPROVED BY: Sabri Sayarı ………………………. (Dissertation Supervisor) Bahri Yılmaz ……………………….. Emre Hatipoğlu ………………………… Ersin Kalaycıoğlu ………………………… Meltem Müftüler-Baç ………………………… DATE OF APPROVAL: 28.05.2013 © Ayşe Ezgi Gürcan 2013 All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT ARTICULATING AND AGGREGATING SECTARIAN INTERESTS: THE CASE OF ALEVIS IN TURKEY Ayşe Ezgi Gürcan Political Science, Ph.D. Thesis, 2013 Supervisor: Sabri Sayarı Keywords: Alevi, political representation, group-based rights, transnational advocacy networks, interest groups This dissertation provides insight into the dynamics of the inclusion of the Alevi community into the political processes in Turkey. By focusing on the actors and the strategies of Alevi interest politics in Turkey and Germany, the dissertation discusses how the changing political opportunity structures and the heterogeneous and fragmented collective identity of the Alevis shape the articulation and aggregation of their shared interests. Adopting a transnational perspective, it argues that the study of the networks established between the domestic Alevi interest groups, and the Alevi migrant communities and organizations located in Europe are just as important as the understanding of the relationship between the domestic Alevi organizations and political actors in Turkey. Through process tracing this dissertation demonstrates that Alevis present an interesting case in the study of political inclusion of minorities. Alevis reject minority status, although their demands include collective right claims, and their narratives emphasize discrimination on the basis of their collective identity. The interest groups established by Alevis seek recognition and respect for the community but have been unable to effectively mobilize due to the heterogeneity in framing Alevi identity. Finally, the regional organizations, which historically played a significant role in the diffusion of norms of individual and collective rights, contribute to the emergence of new patterns of exclusion for the Alevi community in Turkey. iv ÖZET MEZHEP KAYNAKLI ÇIKARLARIN EKLEMLENMESI VE TOPLAŞIMI: TÜRKİYE’DE ALEVILER ÖRNEĞI Ayşe Ezgi Gürcan Siyaset Bilimi, Doktora Tezi, 2013 Danışman: Sabri Sayarı Anahtar kelimeler: Alevi, siyasi temsil, group temelli haklar, ulusaşırı destek ağları, çıkar grupları, Bu doktora tezi, Alevi toplumunun Türkiye’deki siyasi süreçlere dahil olmasının dinamiklerinin kavranmasını sağlamaktadır. Türkiye ve Almanya’daki Alevi çıkar politikalarının aktörlerine ve stratejilerine odaklanmak suretiyle, bu tez değişen politik fırsat yapılarının ve Alevilerin heterojen ve parçalanmış kolektif kimliklerinin ortak çıkarların eklemlenmesi ve toplaşımını nasıl biçimlendirdiğini tartışmaktadır. Ulusaşırı bir bakış açısı benimseyerek yerel Alevi çıkar grupları ile Avrupa’daki Alevi Göçmen toplulukları ve örgütleri arasında kurulmuş ağların incelenmesinin, Türkiye’deki Alevi organizasyonları ve politik aktörlerin ilişkileri anlamak kadar önemli olduğunu savunur. Bu doktora tezi süreç izleme metoduyla azınlıkların siyasal katılmalarında Aleviler ilginç bir durum arz etmekte olduğunu göstermektedir. Her ne kadar talepleri kolektif hak isteklerini içermekte ve anlatıları kolektif kimlikleri bazında ayrımcılığa vurgu yapmakta ise de Aleviler azınlık statüsünü reddetmektedirler. Aleviler tarafından kurulmuş olan çıkar grupları kendi toplumları için tanınma ve saygınlık aramakta ama Alevilik kimliğinin çerçevelenmesindeki heterojenlikten dolayı etkin bir şekilde mobilize olamamaktadırlar. Son olarak, bireysel ve kolektif haklar üstüne normların yayılmasında etkin bir rol oynayan bölgesel kuruluşlar, Türkiye’de Aleviler için yeni tip dışlama modellerinin ortaya çıkmasında katkıda bulunmaktadır. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I have incurred significant debt to many people as I wrote this dissertation. They assisted me in many different ways and made the whole process enjoyable and enlightening. First and foremost, I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Sabri Sayarı, who has been extremely patient and supportive. I am very thankful for the professional guidance he provided to me with, and greately appreciate the time he has given me to edit my dissertation. I also would like to thank to all of my committee members. I am grateful to Ersin Kalaycıoğlu for his insightful comments and critiques throughout my dissertation writing process. I also thank Bahri Yılmaz, who accepted to take part in my dissertation committee and challenged me with his questions. I am also thankful to the other members of my dissertation committee, Meltem Müftüler-Baç and Emre Hatipoğlu, for their useful comments and suggestions. I should also express my gratitude to Işık Özel, who inspired and encouraged me with her insightful comments on my dissertation even though she was not part of my committee. I also would like to thank all individuals who took part in my fieldwork and shared their views and experiences with me. I am also indebted to Ahmet Evin, Damla Cihangir, Aytaç Göğüş and Doğantürk Şimşek, who aided me during my fieldwork and found contacts. I am greatly thankful to TÜBİTAK BİDEB without whose National PhD Scholarship Program neither my graduate study nor my dissertation could have been realized. Finally, I thank Sabanci University for providing an excellent academic environment throughout my doctoral study and for facilitating the completion of this dissertation. My friends and collegues at Sabancı University not only made my time in Sabancı greatly enjoyable, but also helped me during my dissertation writing process. I am particularly thankful to my friend Hasret Dikici Bilgin, who was a great mentor throughout the long course of my graduate study. I am very grateful for the academic and personal guidance she continues to provide me. I am also indebted to Şebnem Gümüşcü who not only gave invaluable suggestions, but also renewed my self- confidence whenever I lost it. My colleagues Selin Merzuka Türkeş Kılıç, Eda Kuşku Sönmez and Aybars Görgülü motivated me whenever I was discouraged and supported me during my graduate study. vi Finally, I am grateful to my family for their support and understanding. I particularly would like thank to my most-beloved father who read the whole thesis and skillfully edited while giving invaluable suggestions. Notwithstanding expressing my gratitude to all the people and institutions for their guidance, support and inspiration, I, of course, acknowledge that the responsibility of any possible errors and omissions of this work rests solely with me. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................... xii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................... xiii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .....................................................................................xiv INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................1 CHAPTER 1: THE ALEVI QUESTION IN TURKISH POLITICS AND SOCIETY ....9 1.1. Introduction: Why Study Alevis? .......................................................................9 1.2. Democracy and Inclusion Revisited ................................................................. 10 1.3. Inclusion as a Minority Right ........................................................................... 13 1.3.1. What Constitutes a Minority? ................................................................... 13 1.3.2. Theoretical Approaches to Minority Rights .............................................. 15 1.3.2.1.Collective rights vs. group rights………………………………………….16 1.3.2.2. The liberal vs. communitarian debate on rights…………………………..17 1.3.3. Legal Approaches to Minority Rights ...................................................... 20 1.3.3.1. Emergence of minority rights standards under the United Nations………21 1.3.3.2. European Standards on Minority Rights………………………………….23 1.4 Issue of Inclusion of Minorities and Marginalized Groups in Turkey ..................... 27 1.4.1 Brief Overview of the State and Alevi Relations in Turkey .......................... 29 1.4.2 Regional Challenges to Rights Regime in Turkey ........................................ 32 1.4.3. Alevis in Turkey: An Unwilling Minority? ............................................... 35 1.5 How to Study Alevi Inclusion in Turkish Politics? ................................................. 37 CHAPTER 2: REPRESENTING ALEVI INTERESTS IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE: ALEVI INTEREST GROUPS AND STRUGGLE FOR RIGHTS ............................... 42 2.1. Introduction .......................................................................................................... 42 2.2. Representing Alevi Interests in Non-electoral Domains ........................................ 43 2.2.1.1. Political Representation Concept Revisited ............................................. 44 2.2.1.2. “Frames”: Tools of “giving voice” .......................................................... 48 2.2.1.3. Political Opportunity Structures .............................................................. 49 2.3.