One of the most significant findings of a study conducted jointly by the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) and PollMark, titled “Turkey's perception of the Kurdish issue,” is that the majority of society views the Kurdish issue as the most important political issue of Turkey after unemployment, which can be seen as an economic problem.

Six months have passed since the president first made mention of “some good things” in March. Success of the process that started with this statement depended on two main elements.

SETA PUBLIC LECTURE By  Ali T. Akarca  Department of Economics, University of Illinois at Chicago Chair Talip Küçükcan SETA Date: June 23, 2009 Tuesday  Time: 16.00 – 18.00 Venue: SETA Foundation, Ankara

This article aims at presenting a descriptive account of the March 2009 local elections in Turkey. Comparing the general and local elections since 2004, an overall evaluation of trends in electoral preferences is presented. Using provincial general council election results, a detailed geographical comparative analysis of the 2004 and 2009 local elections is also carried out. The analyses show that the AKP’s rise has stalled but it still remains as the dominant power in the party system. The electoral map continues to be divided between the coastal western and most developed provinces where the opposition is significantly supported, the east and southeastern provinces where the Kurdish ethnic electoral support is rising and the more conservative provinces in between where the AKP continues to be dominant with the MHP trailing behind. Even though the March 2009 elections had all the characteristics of a local election, they also revel the rising trends in electoral behaviour in Turkey.

On Monday, the Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) highest body announced the party's strategy for the closure case opened against it.

If there is one golden rule for understanding Turkish politics, it is this: You can never take anything for granted in Turkey. A case filed against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has come as a shock to many Turks as well as international observers.

The debate over lifting the headscarf ban has turned into a larger debate about freedoms in Turkey. While the vast majority of Turks support the expansion of civil liberties, there seems to be a fundamental disagreement as to how freedoms should be prioritized. The problem with this is that until and unless the question of freedoms is taken as a whole, there will be no guarantee for civil liberties in Turkey.

A debate over the headscarf is revealing new dimensions of political discourse in Turkey. While conservatives and liberals use the universal language of basic rights and liberties, laicists use a heavily religious language to prove that the headscarf is not a religious obligation.

Turkey is deadlocked again over the headscarf issue. The matter is about more than lifting or enforcing the headscarf ban. As in all critical issues, it goes to the heart of the established order.

The referendum on Oct. 21 was held under the shadow of terrorist attacks. The news of the bombing of a bridge in Daglica, Hakkari and the death of 12 soldiers began to arrive in the early hours of Sunday.

After days of debate and uncertainty, Abdullah Gül is finally a presidential candidate. Now Gül is busy trying to garner support for his nomination and, all being well, will be elected by the end of this month. What kind of a president will he be? And will his presidency provoke another political crisis in Turkey? These two questions will dominate the agenda for months to come. However the developments so far already provide some clues. By nominating Gül again, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) read the election results in the way their constituents read them -- Gül’s presidency was part of the election campaign from the very beginning. It would be wrong to reduce the AK Party’s victory to Gül alone, but the AK Party’s record over the last four-and-a-half years and what happened during Gül’s candidacy was a complete package for the vast majority of those who voted for the AK Party on July 22.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s visit to Ankara last Tuesday is important for the current state of Turkish-Iraqi relations. The visit focused on trade and security, and these are two crucial areas for both countries

The short-term winner of the July 22 elections is the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) but the big winner is the traditional periphery of Turkish society. The AK Party’s challenge now is to turn this victory into an asset for those who voted for the party. And this means electing a president who will not be a disappointment for the vast majority of the public.

The Turkish general elections are set to take place this Sunday. If there is no major disruption at the last moment, we should expect a “normal” election. But can Turkish politics normalize after the stakes have been raised to almost irrational levels?

Election campaigns in Turkey are in full swing. The political parties have mobilized all of their resources to get more voters on their side. But the July 22 election appears to be more than just politics as usual. Four main factors underlie the current election campaign. The first is “power politics.” All political parties are vying for a greater share at the ballot box. Political leaders are engaged in heated debates, accusing one another of not representing the center. The center keeps shifting from ultranationalist to social democrat and conservative. Promises range from the reasonable to the far-fetched. All political actors are desperately trying to gain the people’s confidence.