Turkish government decided to pull the 7th grade Social Studies textbooks from circulation due to an emphasis on corruption and freedom of the press, Turkish media reported on Thursday.
The debates about new textbooks and curricula of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)’s educational system are deepening after the 2017-2018 academic year started in Turkey.
In the "Freedom of Press" section of the 7th grade Social Studies Student Workbook’s "Communication and Human Relations" unit prepared by Fatma Çakır, it is written that "A political party that comes to power alone in a country will be disturbed by the press incessantly making corruption news about the government after a while. Taking advantage of the fact that it has the power to change the Constitution, the political party that comes to power alone puts particular restrictions on the freedom of the press to the Constitution, and censors the news without their permission. When malevolent people, who know that the news about corruption is no longer being reported, are much more involved in corruption, an economic crisis drifts the country into chaos."
After the authorities noticed the statements in the textbooks, some school principals sent messages to teachers, saying that "7th grade Social Studies student workbooks and 7th-grade teachers’ guide should be urgently collected from all students and teachers, and should be handed in provincial and district stores."
Turkish voters had gone to polling stations on April 16 to either support or reject government-backed constitutional changes that would convert the country's governance system into a presidential republic and therefore increase presidential powers. International organisation monitors found that up to 2.5 million could have been manipulated in the close vote that went in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's favour.
TURKEY'S 'MOTHER OF ALL CORRUPTION' SCANDAL
In the winter of 2013, then-Prime Minister Erdoğan's government was rocked by the biggest corruption scandal in Turkish history. Police officers raided several homes, including two belonging to the families of the ruling elite. In the course of the investigation, the police confiscated some $17.5 million in cash, money allegedly used for bribery: $4.5 million was found at the residence of a government official.
Prosecutors accused 14 people of bribery, corruption, fraud, money laundering, and gold smuggling. A firestorm was sparked by the release on YouTube of audio recordings in which Erdoğan was reportedly heard telling his son, Bilal, to urgently get rid of tens of millions of dollars.
AKP government dismissed the whole graft investigation as a "coup attempt". It then proceeded to dismiss thousands of police officers, prosecutors, and judges. The government tightened its grip on the media and the judiciary.
