The debates on corruption during the transition from single party rule to the multi party regime (1943-1948)

This thesis examines the corruption debates that emerged in various segments of Turkish society between 1943 and 1948. The period between the multi-candidate elections of 1943 and the transition to multi-party politics in 1946, is traced through complaints submitted to the general secretaries of the Republican People's Party (CHP). By analyzing the expressions of corruption in these complaints, this study attempts to reveal the contextual transformations of intra-party corruption debates during this period. In this context, the minutes from the multi-party parliament after the 1946 elections and from the CHP's 7th Grand Congress in 1947 were examined to determine how corruption discussions were represented at higher layers of politics. Focusing on how the concept of corruption took on a historical form during the transition to multiparty rule, this thesis takes into account the broad range of meanings associated with the concept in debates of corruption and historical references to Turkey's modern background. This is because the statements of corruption in complaints and in the political arena refer not only to moral and political boundaries, but also to the collective memory of the late Ottoman period, the War of Independence, and the early Republican period. Therefore, it is decided to conduct this analysis within a flexible historical context rather than following a strict chronological line. The increased visibility of debates on corruption within the party in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey and the press prompted the CHP to develop counter-discourses against the opposition on this issue. The 7th Grand Congress of the party was an opportunity to openly express this search. The CHP, which was worn down by organized opposition, internal party struggles, and corruption revelations, felt the need to take measures on this issue within the party. The commission proposed in June 1948 at the CHP group meeting to combat corruption marks the end point of this study. This study examines the multi-layered relations between the state and society, the expression production of privileged groups, and how the poor, women, and children became visible in the official sphere through the corruption debates. The study argues that these debates changed with the transformation of the political regime between 1943 and 1948. Consequently, the forms of communication between the party, the state, and the people are analyzed through the lens of corruption debates.