While Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party-led (AKP) sharia-oriented attempts sparked debates within the public opinion, Nuray Mert, a liberal columnist from daily Cumhuriyet, further fuelled the debates with her controversial articles in favour of the government’s anti-evolution theory motions and granting muftis to carry out marriage ceremonies.
A recent draft law of the AKP government grants the muftis and imams the authority to carry out official marriage ceremonies. This draft law has been criticised as a violation of civil code and an attempt to build sharia law.
In late July, the Justice and Development Party government also finalized the final version of Turkey’s national school curriculum, leaving evolution theory out and adding the concept of jihad instead.
NURAY MERT IS AGAINST EVOLUTION AND FAVOURS ISLAMIC STEPS
As the government’s Islamic steps in education and social life have ignited harsh criticisms in recent weeks in Turkey, Nuray Mert, a well-known liberal journalist from daily Cumhuriyet, wrote sensational articles, arguing that the theory of evolution is "not a scientific fact", thus teaching evolution would stand as a "positivist dogma and imposition" in Turkey.
Furthermore, Nuray Mert penned yet another controversial article, putting forth that the government intends to "teach the general concept of jihad against its radical approaches". Mert also advocated the draft law of the AKP government that would entitle the muftis (officials from Turkey’s Presidency of Religious Affairs) to carry out civil marriages, adding that such an attempt could not be labelled as a pro-sharia imposition, but "accords to the current civil code".
SECULAR INTELLECTUALS PROTEST NURAY MERT
In addition to the recently intensified government-led Islamic impositions in Turkey, Nuray Mert’s sensational expressions have fuelled the already heated debates in the country.
So much so that, Orhan Bursalı and Selçuk Erez, columnists from daily Cumhuriyet again, reacted the stance of Nuray Mert. "I am not sure whether Mert read anything about," said Bursalı, accusing Mert of lacking knowledge about evolution. Selçuk Erez, on the other hand, wrote a satirical article, a fable-like column ridiculing Mert’s scientific insufficiency in the field of the evolution theory.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s recently "spotlighted" columnist Nuray Mert has come to the fore again with her last article on August 7. Writing on the debates over "new state" following former AKP administrator Ayhan Oğan's statement, "A new state has been founded as of July 15 (2016), and the founder is Recep Tayyip Erdoğan", Mert "criticised" the AKP government for having a problem of legitimacy despite the ruling party has not been challenged by any sort of "former status quo".
However, Mert concluded her recent article with a striking 'note', warning everyone not to dare to interpret her phrases as a retreat from her opinions on 'evolution' and 'the civil marriage by muftis'.
Established in May 1924, daily Cumhuriyet (literally 'the Republic') newspaper is the oldest newspaper of the modern Republic of Turkey. Nevertheless, the political leaning of Cumhuriyet has slid into a liberal tendency in recent years when many liberal editors, cadres and columnists, including ex-chief editor Can Dündar, began to lead the newspaper’s political ambience.
Turkey’s liberals previously supported President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s and his Justice and Development Party’s transformational steps as "democratic" elements in the country’s political orientation and establishment, supplying confidence to the government in leading Turkey to its present circumstances.
