Transformation of State and Society in Turkey

Turkey is probably at the heart of the 'modern Islamic problem'. Togetherwith that of Japan, Turkish history constitutes one of the mostvvorthvvhileto study experiment of coping with the problem of living in a 'West' dominatedworld as 'non VVesterner'. The Turkish 'modernising' reforms vvhich startedin early 18th century and gained momentum in the 19th century, culminatedin the so called 'Kemalist' political and cultural 'revolution' that establisheda 'West oriented' Republic. Many faithful Muslims in Turkey and other partsof the Islamic vvorld saw this process as blasphemy. Turkey of our daysmakes a thrilling reading because the fate of this 'radical cultural revolution'is stili uncertain. If it settles as a success case in the sense of a stablepolitical and cultural consensus vvhich integrates, 'democratically', a nationof about 70 million people, it vvill permanently influence the fate of the restof the Islamic vvorld. For an 'outsider' vvishing to 'read' the puzzlingcomplexities of contemporary Turkish society, the 'story' of the Ottoman-Turkish venture of attempt at 'transformation' in order to cope vvith theproblem of 'living' in a 'VVest dominated' vvorld can be interesting andrevvarding.This book telis the story of this 'transformation'.Yahya Sezai Tezel retired in 2008 as the chair professor of InternationalEconomics and Economic Grovvth in Ankara University. He took his Ph. D.from Cambridge University (Faculty of Economics and Politics and SidneySussex College). He vvorked as a visiting scholar at Harvard University(Harvard Institute for International Development) vvith a RockefellerFoundation Fellovvship in Advanced Development Studies. He vvorked onthe 'genealogy'of the state tradition in Turkey atthe Middle EastCentreof Cambridge University. Besides his long term teaching at Ankara UniversityFaculty of Political Sciences, he thought undergraduate and post-graduatecourses atthe Middle EastTechnical University and Bilkent University. Hevvas the founding director of the Graduate School for Social Sciences andHumanities of the Middle EastTechnical University. He also vvorked aschief economic advisortothe Presidency of the Turkish Union of Chambersof Commerce and Industry and as the head of the Department of EuropeanUnions Department of the Ministry of Finance and Customs. He is currentlya memberoftheGoverning Board of the Balkan Political Club, establishedby Dr. Zhelyu Zhelev, first transition period President of Bulgaria.