Malatya Assassination, trial and its reflections on politicts and the press (1952-1954)

After nearly a century of democracy debates in Turkey, the Democratic Party came to power in 1950 as a result of efforts to transition to multi-party life. The steps taken by the Democratic Party in the first years of its rule to resolve the public's dissatisfaction with freedom of religion and conscience were misunderstood and abused by some groups. The assassination of Vatan Newspaper editor-in-chief Ahmet Emin Yalman in Malatya in 1952 was one of the main issues that determined the Turkish agenda of the period. The "Fight Against Reactionary" discourse put forward by the Democratic Party immediately after the assassination was effective in alleviating the tense atmosphere between the government and the opposition or in pausing the political turmoil for a while. As a matter of fact, this situation began to be seen as a common issue by both the ruling and opposition parties, and this situation turned into a rare campaign in Turkish political life. The Democratic Party decided to establish close relations with both the press and the opposition after the Malatya Assassination. The Democratic Party's "togetherness" discourse has recently found supporters. This discourse was also supported by the opposition, especially the Republican People's Party. It is observed that political parties consolidated in this process. The moderate relations between the government and the opposition, which continued until 1953, ended with the closure of the Nation Party in the same year. The assassination of Ahmet Emin Yalman had an impact on the shaping of this period, which lasted until the end of 1953 and was also introduced as "spring weather". Therefore, examining the developments before and after this event is important in understanding the political atmosphere of the period and fills an important gap in our history of democracy.