Mehmet Ali Birand: Who is Islamizing our daily life?

The increasing number of “Islamic” proverbs that creep into our language… The change in the way we dress… The way we eat and drink orange juice instead of alcohol… The refusal to shake women's hands… Greeting others by putting a hand over the heart… And the increasingly frequent scenes of separation of women from men… etc…etc… Today, I will try to tell you who promotes this trend.

Above all, the government, naturally. The July 22 elections made the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) realize for the first time that they could really govern the country, and they began to use this power. Society observes those who form the government and gradually begins to adjust to the situation. When you add municipalities to the governing sectors, you can discern the downward spread of the new lifestyle to a larger base.

You'll also notice that this trend is not growing due to orders or secret directives from the government. It's enough that they set the examples. Women who see Emine Erdoğan begin to dress like she does. Men who hear Erdoğan speak begin to talk like he does.

Then there are segments that accelerate this change. Here is a list of the people who form those groups:

-THE ‘MISSIONARIES': Missionaries are people who spread Christianity. I am using that term to refer to people who make special efforts to increasingly impose Islam on our daily life. This segment is effective despite being a minority. They have a militant approach. They want Turkey to adopt Islamic Law. They don't have the power to achieve this, but they establish crews, they ring doorbells, and they wave their green flags and chant a testimony of faith during demonstrations. They have recently gained increased self-confidence and become more visible than they used to be. They harass those who drink alcohol and others who don't fast during Ramadan, and they increase neighborhood pressure.

-THE ‘INJURED': This is a larger segment made up of people who consider themselves victims of their faith. It also includes some pious groups who believe they were often pushed around in the name of secularism in the past and were prevented from the free practice of their religion. With AKP rule, they also gained courage and became visible. They never used to stay at hotels or swim in the sea. They were rarely seen at shopping malls. They don't feel the need to hide any more. They are everywhere. Their numbers are the same, but we see them more often. This segment is a big factor in the Islamization of daily life. They sometimes seem to be taking revenge on the past.

- THE ‘PUSHERS': I think this largest segment is made up of those who always follow “the flavor of the day” and push their own interest by trying to endear themselves to the government and the AKP crowd. Bureaucrats are at the top of the list. “Pushers” range from diplomats who drink at home but make do with orange juice at AKP dinners, to ministerial and municipal employees. They all fall in line with the general average at the top. Maybe they imagine they will revert to their natural state when the government changes hands. However, they are not aware of the fact that their women will not be able to take off the turbans they were made to wear in order to fit in. Last but not least are the legal tender mongers and their families, those who wink at the government and chase their own interests.

I've been sharing my observations with you for two days. At the very beginning I wrote that I may be mistaken in some of my conclusions. That, however, doesn't change the obvious truth. Turkish society is changing. Some see this change as a road to Shariah. Others qualify it as de-modernizing or becoming Middle Eastern. No matter what we call it, let's act in awareness of these developments.