My piece in the section, "Bilkent Professors on the European
Union Accession of Turkey," as published in the Bilkent News,
December 21, 2004, was the first version and not the final version that I had sent you.
Furthermore, concerning a rather important point I have tried to make in my piece, the
editing (of the first version) unfortunately distorted rather than improved the text:
"democracy is the worst regime except all the others!" was rendered
"[democracy as a political regime is] worse than all the others!"
Sincerely yours,
Metin Heper
Professor, Acting Dean, FEASS
Response to the Letter
We sincerely apologize to Prof. Heper and also to our readers for these errors and for any
misunderstanding or inconvenience they may have caused. Below is the final version of
Prof. Heper's piece that should have been published as part of the article "Bilkent
Professors on the European Union Accession of Turkey" on the front page of our
December 21 issue.
Turkey and the European Union
"Since the late 18th century Turkey has had a European vocation. During the 19th
century, the Ottomans launched Westernization reforms, which were inevitably selective.
The founders of the Turkish Republic in turn adopted ‘Westernization with its roses and
thorns.’ Among other things, secularism became one of the founding principles of the new
state. Its nationalism turned out to be civic-cum-cultural nationalism, which, therefore,
did not oblige the Turks to develop hostile attitudes toward the West. The country made a
transition to democracy, considered an integral dimension of Westernization, in the 1940s.
Before long, in the eyes of the Turks, democracy became an indispensable political system.
The consolidation of democracy in Turkey was followed by its deepening: gradually, respect
for the ‘other’ began to be a rising value among Turks.
From the 1980s onward, Turkey made a momentous shift in its economy--from import
substitution to export orientation. In brief, the cultural, democratic, and economic
revolutions the Turks succeeded in making during the 20th century enabled them to
articulate themselves with global trends and successfully compete in various international
arenas. If and when Turkey obtains a date from the European Union for the start of
accession negotiations for full membership, it will be another positive, important
milestone in its Westernization saga. If Turkey fails to obtain a date, the country will
not turn the clock back; instead, it will go it alone and continue to make further
progress in the saga in question, with honor and dignity."
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