Our Radio that Broadcasted Propaganda to Turkey from German Democratic Republic in the Cold War period (1958-1989)

Our Radio was founded in 1958 in the city of Leipzig in the German Democratic Republic by the foreign office of the Communist Party of Turkey, which was declared illegal within Turkey. A clandestine propaganda radio, Our Radio's main purposes include making communist propaganda towards Turkey, making anti-imperialist broadcasts and conveying political developments in socialist countries to its listeners in Turkey. Our Radio, which continued its broadcasting life until 1989, was founded by İsmail Bilen, Nazim Hikmet and members of the journalist Sertel family, Zekeriya Sertel, Sabiha Sertel and Yildiz Sertel. Subsequently, Our Radio, which continued its broadcasting life with its expanded staff as a result of the participation of names such as Zeki Baştimar, Aram Pehlivanyan, Hayk Açikgoz and his wife Anjel Açikgoz, Bilal Sen and Gun Benderli, made propaganda broadcasts on many subjects. These issues include Turkish-Soviet friendship, anti-American imperialism, worker-peasant movements in Turkey, Turkish workers in West Germany, military coups in Turkey and the army, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), Political parties such as the Democratic Party, the Justice Party, the Republican People's Party, which they think serve the United States of America, and the Workers' Party of Turkey, which they find ideologically closer to them, issues such as Cyprus and the Middle East that concern Turkish foreign policy, and the Kurdish movement. Our Radio ended its broadcasting life a few days before the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, which symbolized the end of the Cold War. Considering its 31-year broadcasting life, Our Radio's propaganda broadcasts had an impact on Turkey's domestic politics, Turkish-Soviet relations and many other issues. In addition, in the second half of the 1960s, when Turkish-Soviet relations began to develop, Our Radio's propaganda broadcasts were frequently complained to by Turkey to the Soviets, but these broadcasts did not cause a major problem between the two countries. Key Words: Our Radio, Propaganda, Cold War, Turkish Communist Party, Clandestine Radios, Ismail Bilen, Nazim Hikmet.