Religion and ethno‐nationalism: Turkey's Kurdish issue

One approach within the Islamic camp treats Islam, which emphasizes overarching notions such as the ‘Islamic brotherhood’ and ‘ummah’, as incompatible with ethno‐nationalist ideas and movements. It is, however, striking that in the last decades, several Islamic and conservative groups in Turkey have paid increasing attention to the Kurdish issue, supporting their ethnic demands and sentiments. Even more striking, the leftist, secular Kurdish ethno‐nationalists have adopted a more welcoming attitude toward Islam. How can we explain such intriguing developments and shifts? Using original data derived from several elite interviews and a public opinion survey, this study shows that the struggle for Kurdish popular support and legitimacy has encouraged political elites from both camps to enrich their ideological toolbox by borrowing ideas and discourses from each other. Further, Turkish and Kurdish nationalists alike utilize Islamic discourses and ideas to legitimize their competing nationalist claims. Exploring such issues, the study also provides theoretical and policy implications.     

Who supports secession? The determinants of secessionist attitudes among Turkey's Kurds

Who supports secession in a multiethnic country? What factors lead to secessionist or separatist attitudes? Despite the substantial interest in secessionist movements, the micro‐level factors and dynamics behind mass support for secession have been understudied. Using original and comprehensive data derived from two public opinion surveys, conducted in 2011 and 2013 with nationwide, representative samples, this study investigates the determinants of separatist attitudes among Turkey's Kurds. The empirical results show that perceptions of discrimination, ideological factors (i.e. a left‐right division and partisanship), region and religious sect do affect support for secession. Our findings provide strong support for the grievance theory and, further, show that ideology is an important factor. However, the results call into question arguments drawing attention to the role of modernisation (i.e. socio‐economic status) and of religiosity. The study also discusses some practical implications of the empirical findings.     

Spatiotemporal Changes in Landscape Pattern in Response to Afforestation in Northeastern Turkey: A Case Study of Torul

Abstract

Monitoring and understanding of land use/forest cover dynamics as well as the factors affecting the changes in land use/forest cover are necessary for the sustainable management of natural resources. This study analyzes the spatial and temporal changes in land use and forest cover patterns in a typical mountain forest area in the Torul State Forest Enterprise area of Northeastern Turkey. The investigation evaluates the temporal changes of the spatial structure of forest conditions through the spatial analysis of forest-cover type maps from 1984 and 2005 using GIS and FRAGSTATS. The evidence presented here showed that there were drastic changes in the temporal and spatial dynamics of land use/forest cover, and between 1984 and 2005 there was a net increase of 19.9% in total forested area. Productive forest area increased by 3161 ha, although degraded forest area increased 9216 ha. In examining the changes of crown closure and development stages of the forest ecosystem during the study period, the forest stand area with low crown closures increased. The regenerated area increased because of regeneration activities while the other development stages were left to grow to older development stages in the period. These results regarding the crown closure and development stage show that forest quality has increased, and this is partly due to emigration of the rural population in Torul. In terms of spatial configuration, the landscape structure in Torul, the State Forest Enterprise area, changed substantially over the 21-year study period, resulting in fragmentation of the landscape as indicated by large patch numbers and smaller mean patch sizes, owing to heavy timber subtraction, illegal cutting, and uncontrolled stand treatments.     

Exploring the roots and dynamics of Kurdish ethno‐nationalism in Turkey

Using comprehensive and original data derived from a recent major public opinion survey, this study examines an under‐investigated aspect of the Kurdish issue in Turkey: the dynamics and factors behind Kurdish ethno‐nationalism at a mass level. The empirical findings disprove the conventional socio‐economic peace and Islamic‐peace hypotheses around this issue, and our statistical analyses provide strong support for the relative deprivation hypothesis, i.e. that those who think the Turkish state discriminates against Kurds are more likely to have ethno‐nationalist orientations. Multivariate analyses further show that religious sectarian differences among Kurds (i.e. the Hanefi‐Shafi division) matter: the more religious Shafi Kurds have a stronger ethnic consciousness and a higher degree of ethno‐nationalism. The study also provides a discussion of the broader theoretical and practical implications of the empirical findings, which may provide insights into conflict resolution prospects in countries with a Kurdish population.