Alevis voice demands at mass rally in Kadiköy

President Abdullah Gül’s symbolic visit to an Alevi house of worship in Tunceli last week had little effect in silencing Alevi demands as thousands rallied in Istanbul’s Kadıköy district on Sunday for equal religious rights.

Alevis from across Turkey called on the government to abolish the Religious Affairs Directorate, eliminate compulsory religious-education classes, recognize cemevis as legitimate houses of worship, and transform the Madımak Hotel in Sivas, where 33 Alevis were killed by a fundamentalist mob, into a museum.

Last week, Gül made a historic visit to the southeastern province of Tunceli and visited a cemevi, but the visit was deemed “insincere” by Alevis. Alevis are commonly viewed as a liberal sect of Shia Islam.

“Many presidents have visited cemevis, but what difference does it make when they are not recognized as legal houses of worship?” Ali Balkiz, chairman of the Alevi-Bektashi Federation, said during his speech at the rally.

Hüseyin, a 26-year-old demonstrator who declined to give his last name, told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review that nothing good could come from the initiatives the government launched. “We will continue to rally and make our voices heard until our demands are addressed,” he said.

Comparing this year’s rally with last year's rally, Hüseyin said the turnout was much greater this year. He told the Daily News this is an indication of the strength of Alevis’ strong belief in their faith.

“We cannot make our voice heard through the media and columnists,” Balkız told protesters. “It is only through these mass movements that awareness can be raised among the public and the Alevi voice can be heard. A year after our rally, nothing has changed. We will continue to rally until our demands are met.”

“What some call the ‘Alevi issue’ we call a ‘political disgrace.’ What is actually being done by the government as part of their so-called Alevi reform?” Balkız said. “We ask for visible changes to be made; we ask for our prayer houses to be legalized and for the government to pay utility and operating expenses on them.”

Splits within

Despite the large turnout, not all Alevi organizations supported the rally. Last year, Professor İzzettin Doğan, the chairman of the Cem Foundation, said those organizing the demonstrations are “trying to portray Alevism as a belief separate from Islam.” Doğan welcomed Gül’s latest visit to a cemevi, interpreting it as a sign of “symbolic presidential recognition of cemevis as legitimate places of worship.”

Kadıköy resident and bakery owner Şebnem Çiçek, who was a spectator at the rally, said the meeting was not so much about demonstrating Alevi demands as it is about targeting the government. “This demonstration is 100 percent political and about politics, nothing else,” she said.

Erdem Çolak, a local businessman, told the Daily News that the Alevi issue should be addressed more effectively by the government. “But their demand to abolish the Directorate of Religious Affairs is extreme and unrealistic,” he said.

Protesters colored the streets of Kadıköy with Turkish flags and portraits of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, while also holding placards that read, “End discrimination" and "Turkey is secular, it will remain secular." Large groups held up posters depicting the 33 Alevis who lost their lives in the July 2, 1993, Sivas massacre, while groups of Alevi dancers made their way through the crowds, singing and chanting.