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Tens of thousands of Turks demand equal rights for Alevis
Thousands of citizens demonstrated Sunday in the Aegean city of İzmir, demanding equal rights for Alevis.
The protest at the Gündoğdu Square, which comes after similar rallies in previous years in Ankara and Istanbul, attracted nearly 60,000 people, news agencies reported.
Speaking at the rally, Ali Balkız, head of the Pir Sultan Abdal Cultural Association, an Alevi organization, said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan wanted democracy and freedom “only for himself.”
“[Turkey is] moving toward a one-man rule flavored by religious sauce,” Balkız said. “[Erdoğan] played with the judiciary after the referendum and in the aftermath of the [June 12] general elections, he will move toward a presidential regime. I’m afraid an [Adolf] Hitler, or [Benito] Mussolini is coming. We have to prevent this.”
Selahattin Özel, the chief of the Alevi Culture Associations, meanwhile, criticized the government’s “Alevi initiative.”
“Alevism was defined by non-Alevis until today,” he said. “If they wish to learn what it is, our doors are open.”
Chanting slogans and carrying banners, the protesters demanded that the Directorate of Religious Affairs and mandatory religion lessons be abolished while also calling for cemevis, the places of worship for Alevis, to be granted legal status.They also said authorities should stop their practice of building mosques in Alevi villages.
NOTE:
The Alevi (in English /ælɛ´viː/, also /æ´lɛviː/ or /ə´leɪviː/) are a religious, sub-ethnic and cultural community, primarily in Turkey, numbering in the tens of millions. Alevis are classified as a branch of Shia Islam, however there are significant differences in Alevi beliefs, traditions and rituals when compared to other orthodox sects. Alevi worship takes place in assembly houses (cemevi) rather than mosques. The ceremony (âyîn-i cem, or simply cem), features music and dance (semah) where both women and men participate. Instead of Arabic, the respective native language is predominant during rituals and praying.
Key Alevi characteristics include:
- Humanism
- Love and respect for all people (“The important thing is not religion, but being a human being&rdquo
- Tolerance towards other religions and ethnic groups (“If you hurt another person, the ritual prayers you have done are counted as worthless&rdquo
- Respect for working people ("The greatest act of worship is to work&rdquo
- Equality of men and women, who pray side by side. Monogamy is practiced.
Alevism is closely related to the Bektashi Sufi lineage, in the sense that both venerate Hajji Bektash Wali (Turkish: Hacibektaş Veli), a saint of the 13th century. Many Alevis refer to an "Alevi-Bektashi" tradition, but this identity is not universally adopted, nor is the combined name used by non-Turkish Bektashis (e.g., in the Balkans). In addition to its religious aspect, Alevism is also closely associated with Anatolian folk culture. Modern Alevi theology has been profoundly influenced by humanism, universalism and the ancient Turkic belief, tengriism.
The 1990s brought a new emphasis on Alevism as a cultural identity. Alevi communities today generally support secularism in the form of the Kemalist model.
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