BY YILMAZ OZTUNA
TURKIYE- Turkey has three red lines. The first is non-discrimination on the basis of race, religion, geography or other factors. For example, Edirne is governed the same as Hakkari. This method of administration is similar to that of France. The second is secular democracy. The third is respect for Ataturk, the national hero of our nation. These are the red lines of our regime. These lines can be crossed only in terms of freedom of thought. However, those who attempt to violate them in practice in the state and the regime will get burned. This warning is not meant for journalists, artists, etc., but for politicians and bureaucrats.
Turkey is a Turkish state. There is no concept or word meaning ‘person from Turkey.’ Turkish citizens are absolutely Turks. Turkey isn’t a mini-empire like Yugoslavia. It’s similar to France. There are certain Turks whose mother language isn’t Turkish. Their sub-culture might be Kurdish, German, Arab, etc. They are all our citizens with equal rights. We’re so intermixed with each other that we can’t be separated. Naturally, our citizens can exercise their personal cultural rights and activities. We would welcome this gladly. The area beyond this is the red line which nobody should cross.